had better move away.’

Marcus said nothing and didn’t move.

‘Move out of the way, Marcus!’ Maggot ordered.

‘I’m going nowhere, Maggot,’ Marcus insisted. ‘Nowhere.’

Maggot smiled, his teeth showing white beneath his parted lips. ‘Marcus, you don’t want to do this.’ He pushed his gun into his waist belt. ‘You never could beat me, Marcus. And you are not going to this time.’

Marcus tensed and pushed Susan to one side. It was true what Maggot had said; all the time the two of them had fought in the gym. Marcus had never got the better of Maggot. Never.

Maggot came towards him, walking slowly on the balls of his feet, a smile teasing the corners of his mouth. Marcus wriggled his fingers in a crab like motion, trying to get the tension out of his hands.

Maggot came closer.

Marcus pushed Susan away, towards the empty room.

Maggot stopped a few feet from him.

‘Make up your mind, Marcus. Concede now or you’ll never leave this building alive.’

Susan gasped. ‘You’re supposed to be friends.’

‘He’s a hit-man, Susan; he kills. It’s what he’s paid to do.’

Marcus waited and watched carefully because he knew it would come. It was just a case of being ready for it. Maggot was so quick, Marcus had never seen anybody with faster reactions and reflexes.

When Maggot’s arm shot out it was like the long tongue of an Iguana lizard; fast and instantaneous. Marcus moved his head to one side as the ends of Maggot’s curved knuckles slammed into the edge of his cheekbone.

As Marcus ducked and felt Maggot’s arms sliding painfully past his ear, he turned in towards Maggot’s outstretched arm, dropping quickly and pushing up with one, outstretched hand.

It caught Maggot beneath the armpit and forced his arm up. This gave Marcus the space he needed to duck beneath Maggot’s arm and move behind him.

Maggot spun immediately, but as he did, it gave Marcus a micro second of time to aim a kick at Maggot’s kidneys. His foot connected, but Maggot’s body was turning and this had the effect of allowing the kick to glance off his body and not do much damage at all.

They were now facing each other, but their positions were reversed. They stood square to each other and waited briefly. Then all hell was let loose.

From the room where Susan had been pushed into by Marcus, she could hear the awful sounds of bone on bone, gristle on gristle, shouts and groans as the two men fought in the confines of the narrow passageway.

She edged herself closer to the open door, compelled to see what was happening but not wanting to see Marcus being hurt. She peered round the corner and saw Maggot being lifted up bodily by Marcus, and then being slammed down on to the hard floor like a wrestler slams his opponent down.

Maggot hit the floor but immediately kicked his leg out straight, catching Marcus in the crotch. Marcus cried out in agony and doubled up as Maggot leapt to his feet and grabbed Marcus round the neck. He then began to throttle the life out of him.

Susan screamed out and ran out into the corridor. She began to pummel Maggot as hard as she could, but it was ineffective; Maggot appeared to ignore her, oblivious to the punches.

But Marcus knew that Maggot would not put up with it for long; soon he would lash out at Susan and it would be over. Just one, swift blow to her throat would crush her windpipe and she would be dead. He had to stop her, but how?

Marcus screamed out at her, his voice almost choked. ‘Get out of the way, Susan! He’ll kill you!’

But Susan kept raining blows on Maggot’s back, ignoring Marcus’s pleas.

Marcus tried shouting at her again, but no sound came from his throat. His eyes were blurring and he was vaguely aware of Susan’s legs with his fast, diminishing vision. He knew that this would be the only way he could stop her and save her life.

He forced Maggot to swing round a little by pushing his feet against the wall. As Maggot responded to the increased pressure, Marcus swung a foot at Susan’s leg, striking her just below her knee. She screamed out and fell to the floor.

Marcus now had nothing to support himself against Maggot’s fierce hold now that his foot was off the floor, and his whole body weight slumped in the arm lock that Maggot had around his neck.

This caused Maggot to droop slightly and his grip slackened for a moment, which allowed Marcus to twist his body just a little, enough to move his arm and grab Maggot by the balls.

Marcus squeezed hard. Maggot screamed out and tightened the lock he had on Marcus neck. Marcus squeezed harder until he felt the balls crushing in his hand. Maggot tried ignoring the pain and tightened his grip on Marcus neck. Marcus could no longer breathe; he was choking to death, his head was bursting but he wouldn’t let go. He twisted his hand, feeling the scrotum turning. A few seconds more and he would be tearing Maggot’s balls away from his crotch.

Maggot yelled at the top of his voice and relaxed his grip on Marcus, who immediately broke away. He straightened, drawing in huge gasps of air. Maggot began to drop towards the floor. Marcus seized the advantage and took Maggot’s head in his hands. He held it firmly and looked for a moment as though a terrible sadness had filled his heart. Then he twisted Maggot’s head fiercely and yelled out at the top of his voice.

Susan screamed out in terror as she heard Maggot’s neck snap and he dropped to the floor. He was dead.

Marcus sagged to his knees and bent over Maggot’s body. He was breathing heavily with the tortured sound of someone who has almost been choked to death. He had slumped so far down that his forehead almost rested on his friend’s body, weakened by the terrific fight he had put up against him. There was the look of deep sadness and shock in his eyes when he finally lifted his head and looked down at the man who had been his friend. He dropped back on to his heels, tears falling freely down his face.

Susan sat up knelt beside him. Then she put her arms around him very tenderly. She didn’t know what to say, she could only try to understand what it must have been like for Marcus.

He turned his face towards her and looked into her eyes. She could see the pain deep inside him. She then reached forward and kissed him gently on the side of his cheek.

‘Very touching,’ a voice boomed out.

They both looked up immediately, startled. Standing near to the short passage from the front door was Milan Janov. He had a machine pistol in his hand and he was aiming it at the two of them.

‘Now you are both going to die. Then I will kill Abdul.’

He raised the gun and a shattering blast of gunfire filled the corridor.

Susan screamed and clutched her ears as Marcus instinctively pulled her to him and sought the dubious cover of the floor.

Janov seemed to burst open as bullet after bullet shredded his body, lifting it high and slamming him against the wall. He was dead before he slithered down the wall to sit, lifeless in a pool of his own blood.

David stepped into the hallway, the AK47 smoking in his hand. He looked at Janov, then down the passage to Marcus and Susan. He said nothing, then walked up to them and looked down at Maggot’s dead body. He reached down and lifted Maggot’s hand, looking at the joint where Maggot’s finger should have been. He nodded and let it drop.

‘Where did you come from?’ Marcus asked him.

David simply lifted his head in the direction of the room where he had been sleeping.

‘I climbed out of the window.’ He looked down at Maggot again. ‘You know, I remembered his voice. He said something before he shot me in the head. I knew then I had to get out because he would have killed us all.’ He turned and looked over at Janov. ‘I nearly ran into him.’

‘Lucky you didn’t,’ Marcus commented, ‘otherwise we would have all been dead now.’

‘What about Abdul?’ David asked. ‘What are we going to do with him?’

Marcus got to his feet. ‘Take him with us,’ he said. ‘Cavendish can do what he wants then.’ He put his arm round David and Susan. ‘Time we went home,’ he said. ‘I think we deserve it.’

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