Page 162 of Massimo

THOCK.

THOCK.

THOCK –

The wood block split into two again.

I threw one half onto the ground so I could chop the remaining piece into eighths.

I stepped to the side –

Just as a distant crack echoed through the forest –

And the piece of wood blasted off the top of the stump and flew to the ground.

I stared at where the log had just been –

And I realized in horror what had just happened.

Someone had shot at me.

From the distance of the rifle report, probably hundreds of feet away.

Sniper.

By sheer luck, I’d moved just in time.

I started towards the log where my gun was sitting, 15 feet away –

But the sniper got there first.

Crack!

The surface of the wood next to the Glock exploded in a burst of splinters.

SHIT –

I dove to the ground and took cover behind several huge cross-sections of the tree. They formed a protective barrier between me and the shooter.

My heart thudded in my chest and my mind raced at a million miles a second.

You fucking idiot – you should have left hours ago!

Now you’ve endangered Lucia –

NO, I shouted inwardly. STOP. Slow down.

It was no use beating myself up.

I had to get out of this situation – and to do that, I had to think.

What did I know about what had just happened?

The first shot had been low. If the sniper had wanted to kill me, he would have aimed for the center of my torso.

Either the sniper was a bad shot – or he’d been trying to wound me, not kill me.

That had to be it. A leg shot would incapacitate but probably not kill me. And it would make sure I couldn’t run.

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