Read Online The Fall: Victim Zero by Joshua Guess - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Joshua Guess
Ads: Link
alone in the room. He stalked toward his office, grim determination pushing him forward. He opened the door with his half-functional left arm.
Jones was packing up. He turned as the door opened, surprise on his face.
“ McDonald. We heard something happened on your way to--”
Kell cut him off by raising the pistol and leveling it at Jones. There was a solid six feet between them.
“McDonald, what the hell are you doing? Get that gun out of my face.”
Kell's breathing picked up. Agony tore through his chest, a vice pressing in on him from every side. The morning's events finally caught up with him, and the tears poured down his face.
“I told you what would happen. I told you.”
Alarm flashed across the agent's face. “Wait...”
“They could have left,” Kell said, wrenching sobs punctuating the words. “They were going to leave, and they would have been safe.”
“ Oh, god, man, I'm sor--”
“ Don't!” Kell screamed. “Don't fucking apologize! You did this! You made them come back. And now they're...”
“ Jesus, Kell. Both of them?”
There was genuine pity in his voice. True sadness. Kell even thought there might be sympathy. Unable to speak, he nodded.
“I know you blame me, but listen, man. I didn't do this. I didn't kill them.”
Another harsh sob erupted from him. “I know you didn't. You only kept them in harm's way. You didn't kill them. Just like David, I did. My work did.”
Jones took a breath to say something, and Kell shot him in the mouth.
I keep what promises I can .
Goodbye.
No one came flying up the steps at the sound of the gunshot. The office was on the fourth floor, and Kell doubted there was anyone between him and the ground. The door had been shut, the heavy oak muffling the sound.
He didn't care about getting caught, not of itself. He only wanted to go one last place before the end. There was an empty trash can lying on its side next to the elevator. Kell hooked a foot into it and righted the container, into which he dropped the gun. After a moment's thought he added the spare magazines. No need for bullets without a gun.
He took the stairs at a casual pace. There were fewer people in the building than there had been even a few minutes before, and those remaining looked so busy that they didn't pay him the slightest bit of attention. He ambled through the lobby and back into the parking lot, only pausing for a few seconds to take in the scene before making his way toward one of the idling black SUVs.
Kell climbed in, closed the door, and threw it in gear. Someone yelled for him to stop, the sound dim and distorted through the glass, and he ignored that, too.
It took him fifteen minutes to reach the access road he was looking for. Apparently the situation in the city had deteriorated so much that no one bothered to follow after him. The thought of what the people in Cincinnati would be dealing with in just a few hours, and after them people all over the world, crossed his mind as he guided the massive vehicle up the steep county road.
There was nothing he could do for them. He'd tried.
He came to a stop at the top of a hill. The scene below him was picturesque; the bluff overlooked the city, showing urban sprawl and the spread of nature in equal measure. It was a favorite place of his and Karen's on those rare occasions when they had time to simply enjoy each other.
Kell left the truck and settled slowly and painfully against the spreading oak tree he'd picnicked under so many times. Below him the city moved, cars flowing across its streets like blood pumping through an artery. Like all large gatherings of people it was akin to a living thing.
The morning stretched on as he watched. As the lunch rush approached, telltale columns of smoke began to appear, first sporadic and faint but growing in number and size as the morning wore into afternoon. The piercing screech of sirens seemed endless. It was all just noise to him. The city below him was still alive, but
Jones was packing up. He turned as the door opened, surprise on his face.
“ McDonald. We heard something happened on your way to--”
Kell cut him off by raising the pistol and leveling it at Jones. There was a solid six feet between them.
“McDonald, what the hell are you doing? Get that gun out of my face.”
Kell's breathing picked up. Agony tore through his chest, a vice pressing in on him from every side. The morning's events finally caught up with him, and the tears poured down his face.
“I told you what would happen. I told you.”
Alarm flashed across the agent's face. “Wait...”
“They could have left,” Kell said, wrenching sobs punctuating the words. “They were going to leave, and they would have been safe.”
“ Oh, god, man, I'm sor--”
“ Don't!” Kell screamed. “Don't fucking apologize! You did this! You made them come back. And now they're...”
“ Jesus, Kell. Both of them?”
There was genuine pity in his voice. True sadness. Kell even thought there might be sympathy. Unable to speak, he nodded.
“I know you blame me, but listen, man. I didn't do this. I didn't kill them.”
Another harsh sob erupted from him. “I know you didn't. You only kept them in harm's way. You didn't kill them. Just like David, I did. My work did.”
Jones took a breath to say something, and Kell shot him in the mouth.
I keep what promises I can .
Goodbye.
No one came flying up the steps at the sound of the gunshot. The office was on the fourth floor, and Kell doubted there was anyone between him and the ground. The door had been shut, the heavy oak muffling the sound.
He didn't care about getting caught, not of itself. He only wanted to go one last place before the end. There was an empty trash can lying on its side next to the elevator. Kell hooked a foot into it and righted the container, into which he dropped the gun. After a moment's thought he added the spare magazines. No need for bullets without a gun.
He took the stairs at a casual pace. There were fewer people in the building than there had been even a few minutes before, and those remaining looked so busy that they didn't pay him the slightest bit of attention. He ambled through the lobby and back into the parking lot, only pausing for a few seconds to take in the scene before making his way toward one of the idling black SUVs.
Kell climbed in, closed the door, and threw it in gear. Someone yelled for him to stop, the sound dim and distorted through the glass, and he ignored that, too.
It took him fifteen minutes to reach the access road he was looking for. Apparently the situation in the city had deteriorated so much that no one bothered to follow after him. The thought of what the people in Cincinnati would be dealing with in just a few hours, and after them people all over the world, crossed his mind as he guided the massive vehicle up the steep county road.
There was nothing he could do for them. He'd tried.
He came to a stop at the top of a hill. The scene below him was picturesque; the bluff overlooked the city, showing urban sprawl and the spread of nature in equal measure. It was a favorite place of his and Karen's on those rare occasions when they had time to simply enjoy each other.
Kell left the truck and settled slowly and painfully against the spreading oak tree he'd picnicked under so many times. Below him the city moved, cars flowing across its streets like blood pumping through an artery. Like all large gatherings of people it was akin to a living thing.
The morning stretched on as he watched. As the lunch rush approached, telltale columns of smoke began to appear, first sporadic and faint but growing in number and size as the morning wore into afternoon. The piercing screech of sirens seemed endless. It was all just noise to him. The city below him was still alive, but
Similar Books
