The Link 2 - The Hunted

Chapter 29 - Levi

Damn truck. I only needed another second or two for a clean shot. It would have been a long one, but then I wouldn't have had to sit atop the damn fabric store any longer. The wind kept shifting, making my calculations difficult and I was feeling exposed. I preferred being at ground level where escape routes were plentiful, but the cars in the parking lot and the lack of cover made that impossible. For fifty grand, I would sit on the roof all night if that's what it took.

A smile crept onto my face as I remembered my time in Iraq. Before that war, I was a nobody with no idea of where my life was headed. Sure, I was a crack shot, but that's because I spent my youth hunting small animals in the woods behind my house. I could still remember the rush of watching my first target drop from branch. The squirrel did a couple of flips as it tumbled through the air and landed almost soundless on the forest floor. I didn't even know they could make sounds, but it emitted what sounded like a reverse groan repeatedly. I marveled at how it struggled to move, its hind legs useless. My first kill and I was only ten. I even liked the sound when its bones snapped as I crushed its skull with my foot. It was the first time I felt true power. The intoxicating sense of being a god.

All of that was nothing compared to the first time I put a bullet into a man. I watched the side of his face collapse then spray out the other side as the bullet traveled through his brain. It was perfect, and they paid me to do it. In fact, they gave me a medal for my sixteen confirmed kills. I chuckled to myself. The term confirmed was such a silly one. There were so many more. In war, you can pretty much shoot anyone that strikes your fancy. And shoot I did.

My favorite was the face of the camel-jockey kid. He had been between what looked like his parents, holding the hand of each. I dropped first the mother, then a round in the father before his wife hit the ground. I never pulled the trigger on the child. His face, covered in blood, was more than satisfactory. There were no tears, just uncontrollable shaking, unable to decide who to help as if that were possible. At that moment, I knew I was a god.

I looked through the scope and lined up on the car that the girl would have to return to eventually. Had I known that was where she would park, I would have had her on the way in. Instead, I had to recon from my car, circling until I found the vehicle. Luckily, it had only taken an hour before I spotted them entering the mall. Another five minutes to find the license plate.

I was less than pleased that the target decided to see a movie. I barely noticed them crossing into the theater and hoped I'd get her coming out. She kept swinging around that boyfriend of hers and then that truck swept by, directly in my line of fire. I couldn't re-establish before the building got in the way. I almost took a risky shot, but a miss would have warned the target, making it more difficult in the future.

The girl was fairly cute, not that that affected my desire to end her life. I wondered who she pissed off so much to award me double my usual fee. It never ceased to amaze me what idiots think they can get away with. She probably stuck her nose where it didn't belong, or maybe a family member borrowed money from the wrong people. I chuckled, thinking about a father or mother hearing about their daughter's brains splattered across a mall parking lot. It would be a joy to be there to see their reactions. The facial expressions are as exciting as the deaths themselves.

I slowed my breathing, not wanting the impending excitement to raise my heart rate too much. A strong pulse makes for a more difficult shot. I needed a clean head, even though the shot would be under 300 meters. I had plenty of time to enjoy myself after I pull the trigger.

They came out the same doors they entered. Her boyfriend and another younger boy. I smiled, thinking I would get a good look at the two boys when they watched the girl's head explode. As forecast, they carried new clothes with them. It was better intel than I usually received.

My scope zeroed in on a bouncing head that I knew would still as they neared the car. I could probably make the shot while she was moving, but patience would guarantee a better result. I started my breathing exercises, slow and steady. The tip of my finger graced the hair trigger as if it was born there, waiting for the instruction to squeeze.

The target was laughing as she neared the car. I tried not to smile at the irony, mixing happiness with death was my purview, and now I was about to share it with her. She stilled as her boyfriend moved forward to open the car door. The crosshairs stilled near her left eye, accounting for the crosswind. My finger squeezed, and my god-like power screamed from the barrel.