Chapter 22
Lucas had made his calculations as he took a lift from the 10th floor. The scanner was indicating that he had to go over 900 ft up so he decided it was best to start his expedition from the 90th floor. With that in mind he jumped from elevator to elevator.
He heard the ding as the elevator doors opened and he was taken into a wide corridor of the 90th floor that was a replica of the ground floor. He jumped out and searched for the fire escape door that was situated to the right of the elevator which he just exited. He pulled the doorknob's lever down and the door swung away from him. He went through it and was welcomed by the chilling breeze that was coming from above. The walls were dusty, same as the concrete stairs. There were a few spider webs here and there but what would you expect from a rarely used or cleaned stairway.
He stepped up the first step and his boot's tap sound reverberated along the shaft. He took out the scanner and began his navigation.
The radio that he carried in one of his pants pockets picked up transmission from Crane who was waiting in their truck.
"Any luck?" Crane asked
"None whatsoever. But it's too early to tell," Lucas replied
"Keep me posted okay?"
"Will do," and with that the transmission was cut.
Lucas replaced the radio into his pocket and continued his way up.
Door after door, Lucas had checked and the scanner was still telling him to go a little bit higher. So far he had passed the 97th floor and he now stood in front of the door that led to the 98th floor. The scanner indicated he was on the right path. Taking a deep breath he slipped the device into his left hand and with his right he reaches into his jacket and retrieved his Micro Uzi. He had no idea what was waiting for him on the other side and he wanted to be prepared. He felt comfortable after taking it out because he was no longer feeling the butt of the gun poking at his ribs.
He twisted the door lever and pulled the door slightly open. There was a black man in an expensive looking tuxedo passing by his back to him but Lucas could tell it was the man that Spencer had seen at the entrance of the building, the guy who was helping Harriet and no doubt the man who helped in the slaughtering of Lucas' teammates.
He pulled the door further so that the barrel of ha gun could fit and aim without any trouble. The hinges screeched and the man looked his way, his eyes widened. He saw the barrel and a split second before Lucas could squeeze the trigger, he dropped to the ground and landed on one of his knees while his other had went to his hip no doubt he was drawing for his own weapon.
Lucas cursed as his shots went into the wall pasted the spot where the man had ducked. The man returned fire and Lucas was forced to take cover behind the wall. He felt a bullet sizzle past his face, if he had ducked a second later he would have had a bullet impaled in his head.
Damn good shot, Lucas thought as he leaned in to take another shot. He aimed and spotted the man dashing through the corridor. Lucas fired at his moving target but aiming and firing at the same time just wasn't Lucas' specialty hence he missed and his bullets only hit the floor behind the man who had now ducked behind a potted plant.
It wasn't a logical place to find cover but it abstracted Lucas' view of the man. Lucas peered and the plant was beginning to frustrate him.
He unleashed a ferry of bullets that ripped through the plant and shredded it to pieces.
Lucas had emptied the entire magazine in the short time that he as fired at the man. A few seconds later the man behind the plant fired a short quick burst of bullets. Lucas was forced to take cover.
He unloaded his empty clip and fed a new magazine into the butt of his gun and slammed it into place. In the short while that he was reloading, the man had moved across the corridor and had fired at the lock that led into the room at the end of the corridor.
You're not getting off that easy, Lucas thought as he leaned past the door frame and into the corridor with his gun arm extended and without any second thoughts, he fired as the man made a break for the door. He has smashed his shoulder into it's wood to force it open but at the expense of his balance.
The door flew open and Lucas could here it slam against the wall. He saw the man fall to the ground on his belly, it was just the opportune moment to end his life. Lucas fired at the lying figure but the man rolled to the side with cat-like reflexes. Seems Lucas was not the only one who had thought he was exposed. The man found cover behind the adjacent wall. Lucas heard a pained grunt and he smiled knowing he had at least hit his target even though it wasn't a mortal hit.
Lucas cautiously went it the once glowing corridor that now had bullet holes all over it's floors and walls, and the staff would have to consider getting a new potted plant.
Lucas moved along the edges of the corridor, his gun was extended and ready to fire at anything that moved, his shoulder was brushing against the wall slightly. He sidestepped pasted the only plant that was still in one piece and he looked at the ajar doorway with caution. The inside of the room was dark and quiet. Lucas could not hear any sound coming from inside the room and for the briefest of moments he considered the possibility of his hit being more lethal than he had initially thought.
No!
That was the kind of thinking that would push him to lower his guard and possibly lead to his death. He decided that he wasn't going to lower his guard unless he was absolutely certain that the man was dead and the only to do that was if he saw a corpse. With that in mind he followed the wall until he was peeking into the room.
Even though it really was dark, Lucas could see the dark shadowy figures of furniture positioned in front of a black shadow of a TV. He'd walked into the living room. He now moved at a crouch, slowly, quietly and of course with the utmost vigilance. For all he knew the man would be waiting for him and would no doubt-ably kill him on the spot.
He scouted the whole living room. Nothing. There was another doorway leading to the kitchen from the far end of the room. He checked it out and again he came up with nothing. It was as if the man was never there in the first place, as if his mind was simply playing with his vision. Lucas wanted to believe that but he simply couldn't. The man had definitely smashed through the door and he was most definitely here.
He doubled back to the room's smashed door. It was still standing close to the wall that it had previously smashed but it formed a small shadow behind it. Lucas never considered searching behind it seeing as no one could ever conceal there presence behind it, let alone a grown man!
Lucas crept past it and he begun to move in the small passageway that resembled a corridor and it led to a single door which Lucas concluded to be the bedroom. The door stood open.
Bingo, he thought and approached the door. Nobody ever leaves their bedroom door open, the man was bound to be there and the man was most definitely cornered.
Lucas had only walked a few paces towards it when he heard metal click a short distance behind his head, a gun. Lucas stopped his foot mid step in the air.
Damnit! Lucas had made a simple mistake. He had neglected checking behind the door and the punishment of doing so was going to be his death.
"Drop it," he heard behind him.
Lucas contemplated his options, he'd either try so spin as fast as he could and fire at the man who had outplayed him and end up dead before getting his own shot it or he'd drop his weapon and wait to see whether he'd be shot it cold blood or not.
Lucas didn't like his odds very much. His gun clattered on the floor when he dropped it.