The Darkest Day

SIXTY-FIVE

He had come from the control tower, flanking Victor by climbing up while he had sought to flank the men by climbing down. Victor charged into him, releasing his own empty sub-machine gun to grab the gunman’s UMP and drive it and the gunman against a wall. He grunted from the impact and Victor wrenched the weapon closer, pulling the man off balance and into an elbow.

His grip on the weapon loosened and Victor tore it from his grasp and swung it like a club at the guy’s head.

The fourth man ducked to avoid it and caught the gun by the barrel. They wrestled for control of the weapon, strength versus strength, Victor winning but only continuing the struggle to focus his opponent’s attention on fighting back instead of what Victor’s legs were doing.

He kicked the guy, missing the side of the knee and striking him on the thigh. The force was enough to make him grimace and pull the leg back, transferring all of his weight to the other leg.

Victor swept the load-bearing ankle and the guy dropped.

Victor put a burst of rounds through the man’s face.

Before he could turn round, a thick forearm snaked in front of Victor’s neck, going for a choke hold.

At that moment he couldn’t know whether Halleck intended to apply a blood choke or an air choke, but Victor’s reaction was the same. Before Halleck could get into either position, Victor tensed his neck to harden the muscles and flare the strong tendons. At the same time he released the UMP and shrugged his right shoulder to raise Halleck’s arm and create room to manoeuvre. Then he turned his head away to the left, so the attacking arm applied pressure to the muscle and tendons at the side of his neck.

Any delay in response would have decreased his chances of survival to almost zero. Halleck’s years in the military had taught him how to fight and kill, but he was not fast enough to apply the more difficult blood choke in time. He went for the air choke, locking his hands off in a gable grip, the bony part of the forearm applying the pressure. He pulled Victor tight against him and put the side of his head against Victor’s back, both to increase the pressure of the choke and to keep his eyes away from Victor’s reach.

The flared neck, raised shoulder and turned head combined to give him extra time to fight back. Attacking eyes was problematic at the best of times in Victor’s experience, let alone while suffocating, so he concentrated on Halleck’s arm.

He grabbed at the forearm in both hands. An attacker didn’t have to be strong to be able to resist an attempt to pull the arm away, but Halleck had dense arms, packed with powerful muscle, so as Victor wrenched downwards he also lifted his feet to drop his weight.

Halleck was strong, but not strong enough to resist now.

The forearm edged away from Victor’s neck.

Not far, but far enough to dispel the agony and let Victor draw in a big lungful of air, giving him more time and space to twist his body so that he was at a ninety-degree angle from his attacker. The choke was now a headlock. Halleck still held on, his grip tight and secure, but the danger of suffocation had gone.

With his left hand, Victor grabbed a handful of Halleck’s jacket and the love handle beneath it and squeezed. The pinching effect caused significant pain, but also secured Halleck in place. Otherwise, if he opted to move, Victor would have no choice but to be dragged along with him. Now, with a firm hold on Halleck, Victor kept him where he wanted.

He slammed his right palm up between Halleck’s legs for a groin strike.

Halleck grunted but his grip stayed secure. His pain tolerance was Herculean, but could not withstand a second palm strike.

His hold weakened and Victor lifted him off his feet and slammed him on the floor, scrambling on top of Halleck and pinning him in place, the blade of his forearm compressing the man’s Adam’s apple. He wheezed, breathless, strength fading. Victor smashed Halleck in the face with his free elbow again and again until he stopped fighting back and Victor’s sleeve was soaked in blood and frayed where it had ripped on broken bone.

Victor took a few seconds to get his breath back then reloaded his weapon and exited the building. In the distance, flames licked the sky from the burning truck and helicopter wreckage.

The aluminium case was no longer by the door.

He peered into the distance for a sign of Raven, but there was only darkness.