Stones of Fire

93

Cædmon ran towards the pencil-thin erratic green glow.

‘Turn it off!’ he shouted, able to see that MacFarlane had taken control of the careering vehicle. Able to see that he was steering the truck directly towards the source of the beam.

Edie turned her head in his direction. With her curly hair wildly blowing all about her, she looked like one of the Furies in pursuit of the wicked among them.

Her expression resolute, she shook her head, refusing to move out of the path of the oncoming truck.

Cædmon pumped his legs and arms faster, afraid he wouldn’t reach her in time. Afraid she would meet her end in a hideous fashion. Afraid.

He only had a few seconds, the whole of the world reduced to his pounding heart, the rat-a-tat-tat of automatic weapon fire, the roar of the powerful engine.

She was just a few feet away.

He could do this.

He could save –

He was airborne, diving towards her, his arms and legs stretched.

His heart in his throat, Cædmon ploughed into Edie, knocking her off her feet and out of the truck’s path. The laser flew from her hands, its beam frenetically arcing through the night sky before disappearing as it plummeted to earth. Limbs tangled together, the two of them rolled across the rocky terrain, the inhospitable surface providing no leaf or blade of grass to soften the impact.

With no time to inquire about injuries, he rolled to his knees. His finger on the trigger of the Glock, his arms locked in a firing position, he prayed that he had successfully cleared the jam. The truck now moving away from him, he took aim at its rear tyres, permitting himself one deep, calming breath before he fired six shots in quick succession.

His aim true, he hit the new targets, blowing out both rear driver’s-side tyres, the truck abruptly fishtailing, wildly swaying from side to side as Stanford MacFarlane lost control of the mammoth two-and-a-half-ton vehicle, the truck veering towards the cliff overlooking the sea.

The gun hanging limply from his hand, Cædmon stood motionless, watching in disbelief as the truck reached the cliff edge. For the briefest of seconds its red tail lights twinkled eerily in the darkness before disappearing from sight. A sonorous boom! was accompanied by a bright flash illuminating the heavens. A surreal swansong for a madman and the legendary Ark of the Covenant.

‘All was vanity and grasping for the wind.’

Edie ran to him, throwing herself into his arms.

‘Oh God! I can’t believe what I just saw!’

‘Nor I,’ he whispered, holding her tight.