The Doomsday Key

Like the death of Jason Gorman.

Upon Ivar's orders, the young man had been murdered.

A tragic loss, but he could afford no regrets.

Chapter 8

October 11, 8:14 A.M.

Rome, Italy

They had less than a minute. The unexpected guests that the innkeeper had warned about were headed up. Gray didn't want to be there when they arrived.

He led everyone in a rush down the hall toward the hotel's fire escape. It was just around the corner from his room. Reaching the window, he tugged it open and stepped aside for Rachel.

"Head down," he ordered. "Get out of sight."

Rachel clambered through the window and onto the iron ladder.

Gray pointed to Kowalski, poking him in the chest. "Stay with her."

"Don't have to tell me twice," he answered and followed.

Seichan stood two steps away in the hallway, her legs wide, her arms out, her hands cradling a black Sig Sauer pistol. She kept it pointed down the hall.

"Do you have another weapon?" he asked.

"I've got it covered. Get moving."

Muffled voices arose down the hall, along with the creak of wooden floorboards. The assassins had reached their floor and were headed toward their room. The hotel's convoluted layout had probably saved their lives, bought them just enough time to slip the ambush.

But not much more than that.

Gray backed to the window and ducked through. Seichan came next. Without even turning, she back-stepped cleanly through the open window, never dropping her guard of the hallway.

Rachel and Kowalski were already headed down. They were a floor below when shots suddenly fired up at them. Gray didn't hear the blasts, but he did recognize the ping s of ricochets and the puffs of brick dust from the wall.

Kowalski cursed, pulled Rachel behind him, and began a fast retreat back up the fire escape.

Gray spotted the shooter, half-hidden by a Dumpster. The bastards already had the alley exit covered. Seichan fired back. The gunman ducked away, but her pistol had no silencer. The blasts stung Gray's ears and were surely loud enough to be heard by the assassins inside.

"Make for the roof!" he ordered.

The shooter below took potshots as they fled, but Seichan kept him pinned down, and the iron cage of the fire escape helped shelter them. Luckily, they didn't have far to go. The hotel was only five stories high.

Reaching the top, Gray herded everyone away from the roof's edge. He stared across the expanse of pigeon droppings, vent pipes, and graffiti-sprayed heating and cooling equipment. They needed another way down. Even now he heard boots landing hard on the fire escape's iron railings. The others were headed up after them.

Gray pointed to the far side of the hotel. Another building abutted it. It was one story shorter. They had to get out of sight, or at least out of the direct line of fire.

They sprinted for the low wall that separated the two buildings. Gray reached it first and leaned over. A whitewashed metal ladder was bolted to the side of the hotel and led down to the lower building's roof.

"Go!"

Rachel rolled over the edge and scrambled down the rungs. Kowalski didn't bother to wait his turn. He grabbed the edge of the wall, hung by his fingers, and merely dropped. He landed on his backside on the tar-papered roof below.

A gunshot drew Gray's attention around.

A black-masked head ducked below the fire escape on the far side.

"Now or never, Pierce!" Seichan warned.

She fired twice more, discouraging anyone else from showing themselves. Taking advantage of the cover, Gray flipped over the edge of the roof, grabbed the ladder, and ignored the rungs. Like a fireman on a pole, he slid down its length.

More shots echoed above.

As his heels hit the tar paper, he stared up. Seichan flew over the wall and snatched one-armed for the ladder. Her other hand still clenched her smoking pistol. In her haste, she missed her grip on the topmost rung and began a headlong tumble. She tried for a second hold, dropping her gun and reaching out. Fingertips caught for half a breath. Her pistol tumbled and struck near Gray's toes. Her momentary grip ripped away.

She fell.

Gray lunged out and got under her. She landed heavily in his arms. The impact took him down to one knee, but he caught her. Momentarily stunned, she breathed hard, a hand clutched on Gray's wrist.

Kowalski retrieved her gun, then helped them back to their feet.

Seichan shoved roughly out of Gray's arms, took an unsteady step, then gained her balance. Turning, she cleanly plucked her pistol out of Kowalski's fingers before he could react.

"Hey..." Kowalski stared at his empty hand as if the appendage had betrayed him.

"There's another fire escape over here," Rachel called to them. Her eyes momentarily flickered between Gray and Seichan.

They all hurried over. The top of the fire escape was sheltered behind a bulky ventilation unit. They began a rapid descent, leaping from landing to landing. This fire escape dumped into a different alley. It would buy them an extra half breath, but Gray knew that whatever net had been cast around the hotel was surely being extended. They had to escape before it fully closed around them.

At the end of the alleyway, a street opened. They headed toward it. With no way to identify the assassins, they were still in grave danger. They could stumble right into one of them and not even know it. They had to get well away from the area, out of the city.

Gray's questioning glance slid from Rachel to Seichan. "Anyone have a car?"

"I do," Rachel answered. "But it's parked around the corner from the hotel."

He shook his head. It was too dangerous to go back. And considering that the streets had already turned into a parking lot due to the morning gridlock, a car might not even serve them.

A growl on his left warned him of the danger. Gray leaped back as a motorcyclist sped through the stalled traffic, riding almost up on the narrow sidewalk. Kowalski was a second slower. The cyclist nearly clipped him, which only pissed the big man off.

"Screw you, Knievel!"

Kowalski shoved with both arms as the man passed.

The rider flew out of his seat. The cycle struck a parked car and toppled on its side. A second motorcyclist who hadn't seen the altercation and was following the same winding path could not get out of the way in time. He was forced to drop his bike and skid along the street gutter.