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Authors: Glenn Smith
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them tripping her.
A gun fired at Flint. The slug missed by a few inches. Flint was conscious but he had lost his breath from the hard impact of falling on cobblestones. He could not see their assailant. Mary yelled "THROW IT." He hurled the gun toward her voice. He felt a man standing over him, breathing heavy, swearing and sweating. He heard a pistol cock. Then the intense explosion of a pistol fired. The assailant collapsed, laid heavy on top of Flint.
By the time Mary untangled herself from the bola, stood and walked to where Flint was just beginning to breathe again, the man she had fired at was absolutely still on his back. Mary kept the Sig Sauer aimed, but then she saw further precaution was not needed. Her bullet had struck him in the temple.
Mary helped Flint stand while he pocketed the dead man's passport. She handed him the pistol which he slipped back into his side pocket. Because the house was closed, no one else was close enough to be hurt.
Without discussion Mary and Flint moved back toward the entrance gate. No police were anywhere to be seen until they were out of view of the damaged front wall. Flint took Mary's arm and they drifted along with two other couples who were headed back down the restored streets to get some food. Flint and Mary did not look bad—no torn clothing or broken skin. Hardly any dust despite their having both fallen. Mary smoothed her hair. Flint's hat covered his short haircut.
By the time they reached the train, Flint and Mary were breathing normally. Back at the Bristol, Flint looked at the passport, called Ava. Then he talked to Harry, filled him in. Stevenson Karbouski from Las Vegas was the man’s name.
By mid afternoon Flint and Mary were out of the taxi, talking through the gate speaker to Gina. They had both showered again. Mary put on a light colored skirt and sweater instead of the dark pant suit she had worn to Pompeii. Flint had a new piece of intelligence from Harry who reported that Zeta had learned that Freddy had visited Athens the day before. She discovered several large deposits in one of his off shore accounts, including $100,000 that morning.
Inside Gina’s house, Flint discovered that Freddy had been gone since breakfast. Could he somehow be connected to Karbouski? Gina and Ava had discussed Freddy. They agreed that his personality did not require him to have a conscience, but he had no record of arrest or even suspicion of being involved with any crime. Since he began treatment with Ava, he had lost weight. He had also lost a mood of pervasive anxiety and he had started sleeping well. Gina said she was sure that his business was legitimate. She also thought that he was making money by collecting ancient coins or ceramics—she wasn’t sure, maybe both—as a hobby. Murphy had no opinion, noting that the CIA did not have a file on Fred.
Flint produced the note that had sent him and Mary to Pompeii, then gave a few more details than he had provided to Ava on the phone an hour earlier. Mary said little. She was feeling withdrawn and depressed. She had killed animals hunting and not had remorse. She had not hesitated to shoot Karbouski, but now she felt a sense of foreboding.
The sound from outside was distant but Flint moved as soon as he heard it. "Hit the deck," he said urgently as he grabbed Murphy and dragged him off the gurney to the floor. Ava and Gina quickly got prone. Mary sat motionless, knowing she should move but not finding the strength to tumble off the sofa. Glass shattered . Mary toppled over bleeding. A ricocheting slug had nicked the artery in her left arm after traveling through part of the bicep muscle.
A man burst through the front door. He was spraying bullets from a Kalashnikov assault rifle. Flint put the red dot at the top of the thirty-round
A gun fired at Flint. The slug missed by a few inches. Flint was conscious but he had lost his breath from the hard impact of falling on cobblestones. He could not see their assailant. Mary yelled "THROW IT." He hurled the gun toward her voice. He felt a man standing over him, breathing heavy, swearing and sweating. He heard a pistol cock. Then the intense explosion of a pistol fired. The assailant collapsed, laid heavy on top of Flint.
By the time Mary untangled herself from the bola, stood and walked to where Flint was just beginning to breathe again, the man she had fired at was absolutely still on his back. Mary kept the Sig Sauer aimed, but then she saw further precaution was not needed. Her bullet had struck him in the temple.
Mary helped Flint stand while he pocketed the dead man's passport. She handed him the pistol which he slipped back into his side pocket. Because the house was closed, no one else was close enough to be hurt.
Without discussion Mary and Flint moved back toward the entrance gate. No police were anywhere to be seen until they were out of view of the damaged front wall. Flint took Mary's arm and they drifted along with two other couples who were headed back down the restored streets to get some food. Flint and Mary did not look bad—no torn clothing or broken skin. Hardly any dust despite their having both fallen. Mary smoothed her hair. Flint's hat covered his short haircut.
By the time they reached the train, Flint and Mary were breathing normally. Back at the Bristol, Flint looked at the passport, called Ava. Then he talked to Harry, filled him in. Stevenson Karbouski from Las Vegas was the man’s name.
By mid afternoon Flint and Mary were out of the taxi, talking through the gate speaker to Gina. They had both showered again. Mary put on a light colored skirt and sweater instead of the dark pant suit she had worn to Pompeii. Flint had a new piece of intelligence from Harry who reported that Zeta had learned that Freddy had visited Athens the day before. She discovered several large deposits in one of his off shore accounts, including $100,000 that morning.
Inside Gina’s house, Flint discovered that Freddy had been gone since breakfast. Could he somehow be connected to Karbouski? Gina and Ava had discussed Freddy. They agreed that his personality did not require him to have a conscience, but he had no record of arrest or even suspicion of being involved with any crime. Since he began treatment with Ava, he had lost weight. He had also lost a mood of pervasive anxiety and he had started sleeping well. Gina said she was sure that his business was legitimate. She also thought that he was making money by collecting ancient coins or ceramics—she wasn’t sure, maybe both—as a hobby. Murphy had no opinion, noting that the CIA did not have a file on Fred.
Flint produced the note that had sent him and Mary to Pompeii, then gave a few more details than he had provided to Ava on the phone an hour earlier. Mary said little. She was feeling withdrawn and depressed. She had killed animals hunting and not had remorse. She had not hesitated to shoot Karbouski, but now she felt a sense of foreboding.
The sound from outside was distant but Flint moved as soon as he heard it. "Hit the deck," he said urgently as he grabbed Murphy and dragged him off the gurney to the floor. Ava and Gina quickly got prone. Mary sat motionless, knowing she should move but not finding the strength to tumble off the sofa. Glass shattered . Mary toppled over bleeding. A ricocheting slug had nicked the artery in her left arm after traveling through part of the bicep muscle.
A man burst through the front door. He was spraying bullets from a Kalashnikov assault rifle. Flint put the red dot at the top of the thirty-round
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