Page 89 of Gryphon

Had he ever measured his life in good memories?

In good times, sure. Snow bunnies and fine restaurants. A con well played. A game won.

But good memories? How many of those did he have before joining Miranda’s team? Before pairing up with Holly? That should be easy to answer but it wasn’t.

They resumed their climb.

Yes, he wanted to go back to the good times. Life on Miranda’s team had none of the ease and flow that came with surviving on his own and in his own way. It had also included a wide variety of near-death experiences, right up to last night’s shooting.

Yet…

The memories were good. As if he actually fulfilled some purpose. But what a cost. The chaos. The near-death experiences. The crushing weight of each successive crisis.

They crested the last riser. His eyes didn’t track the fantastic sculptures. Nor the sweeping views.

Instead, he spotted Max and Holly setting up on the southern parapet.

71

Holly stood along the wide stone parapet of The Chronicle. It was as if it had been made for snipers. Chest high, smooth stone, and a sweeping view.

The Tbilisi Sea stretched away to the left. The morning sun still lay to the left and behind them offering excellent visibility. Any morning breeze had died and the chill air meant a minimum of turbulence.

The GIS headquarters building lay approximately a kilometer off and fifty meters lower. They couldn’t ask for a better vantage point.

Frankly, she’d been worried about being caught out alongside Max. She hadn’t shot a proper sniper rifle in years and it was a skill that staled quickly. But this shot would be almost easy. At half the rated effective range and a quarter of the longest recorded kill, she wouldn’t be pushing the weapon’s limits at all, only her own.

“You’re zeroed for five hundred meters,” Max’s voice dropped to a sniper’s whisper even with no one about to overhear them.

Not to be outdone, she answered, “I make the wind at five knots off the water and distance just shy of a kilometer.”

“Eight hundred and thirty meters,” Max held up his phone. “Google Maps.”

Holly sighed and dialed the corrections into the scope, double-checking that she was dialing in the right direction to compensate for the amount of gravity-induced bullet drop across the distance past five hundred.

Their voices overlapped as they both looked up compensations for the denser cold air and the Earth’s spin. The Coriolis effect became a notable factor especially as they were shooting just west of due south. In the full second of the bullet’s travel time across eight hundred meters, the target would be carried sideways by…three inches due to the Earth’s spin. She clicked in that setting as well.

“Are you sure, Holly?” Mike’s voice close by her right side jolted her badly enough to add three extra clicks on the scope setting.

She carefully dialed the three clicks back before looking at him. He was standing there with Elene clutching his arm like she was a drowning woman. Mike was always good with the women. Is that what had happened to her? Swept away by that Mike magnetism? Maybe she would be better off if he was gone. “Am I sure about what?”

He nodded in the direction of the GIS headquarters. “Long time since you shot someone.”

She turned back to her weapon. “These guys? I’m fine with it.”

“Okay,” his answer barely registered.

Yet she was aware of Max’s sudden scrutiny. “I’m fine with it,” she offered him a sniper’s whisper that wouldn’t even carry to Mike.

He didn’t turn away.

“Just mind your own damn dials.”

With her settings dialed in and checked, Holly turned her full attention to the target for the first time.

Through the scope, the triangular building with its rooftop glass office resolved into a heavy glass door. An area paved with slate between the door and the knee-high parapet along the roof’s edge that she could cover in an easy sweep.

She checked her watch. At least five minutes to wait before Pavle would even start his part of the plan.

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