'I'll manage.'
No one else dies. Even if we had to drag her to safety an inch at a time.
Harry complied, gently lifting Diane under her armpits. She groaned painfully. I positioned myself on the other side and lifted her knees, my legs trembling under her weight.
It would be tough, but we'd get her out of here.
'Jack!'
The voice came from behind us, loud and unmistakable.
Benedict.
'Herb! We're over here!'
Thirty seconds later my partner came waddling down the tube, followed by a uniformed officer. His labored breathing and the coat of sweat on his face told me he wasn't any more comfortable in the sewers than I was.
'Kork is ahead of us,' I called out. 'Get Diane out of here, alert the troops. We need to cover all manhole exits for ten square blocks.'
'You're going after him?'
I nodded.
'With him?' Benedict jerked a thumb at Harry.
McGlade sneered back. 'Good to see you too, Tubby.'
'Harry's going back with you. Place him under arrest for obstruction of --'
'My ass,' McGlade said. Then he took off down the pipe.
Nothing's ever easy.
'Gotta go, Herb.'
'Be careful, Jack. Backup is coming.'
We exchanged a tense look, and then I went after Harry. A few feet into the blackness, I stopped and listened. The falling water sound was louder, and I could hear the echo of footsteps.
'Dammit, Harry! Wait up!'
My voice sounded small, hollow, as it echoed down the tube.
'I'm a few yards ahead of you.'
When I finally caught up to him, I was sweating as much as Herb had been.
'Welcome back, Jackie. You gonna read me my rights?'
'When this is over, Harry, I swear --'
I felt the bullet at the same time I heard it. It hit me in the stomach, knocking me backward. I sprawled in the filthy water, my head bouncing on cement.
The feeling was unreal, like I'd been gut-punched by a speeding car. I sucked in the foul sewer air, my breath having left me. The pain was so bad, it made me forget my leg.
The tube exploded in a muzzle flash, and thunder erupted in my ears. McGlade was returning fire. Enclosed in the concrete tube, the gun deafened us both.
A long minute passed. McGlade knelt next to me and felt along my body. He pressed on my diaphragm and I yelped. Then he reached under my vest and felt the skin. I couldn't sense if there was a wound or not.
Harry released the pressure and a moment later the little flashlight was pointing in my face.
'The vest stopped the bullet.' Or that's what it sounded like. My ears were still ringing. 'Can you move?'
I tried to speak. 'Yeah.'
He offered his hand and helped me up. The darkness fractured into pinpoints of light, stars dancing in my vision. I blinked twice and swallowed.
'Kevlar worked pretty good.' McGlade handed me the light and crouched behind me. 'You go first.'
I looked down at my gun hand and saw that I still held the .38. Then I moved, one foot in front of the other.
The water sound increased. I sensed the tube ending, opening up into a much bigger area. The sewer main. I listened, peering into the dark.
'You waiting for Christmas?' Harry nudged me. 'Move it.'
I flicked on the flashlight, looking for a foothold so I could climb out.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Three shots went into the wall next to me, chips of concrete biting into my face and neck. I jumped, landing on a ledge several feet below, falling partially into the sewage water. My gun skittered off out of sight.
A bright flashlight beam trained on the tube where I'd been seconds ago. It made its way down the wall and hit me in the face. I squinted at the figure behind the light.
The Gingerbread Man grinned, his gun pointing at my head.
