Stephanie caught up with Samantha and joined her in her rushed walk towards the lake. Both Stephanie and Samantha were silent during the walk, a mass of nerves and tensions as they moved closer to their destination. The sound of muffled chatter and the clinking of plates and glasses coming from the diners on the terrace gradually faded with each step they took, emphasising the distance they were putting between themselves and the hotel building. The path circumvented much of the golf course which stretched out as open land between themselves and the lake. Behind the lake was a dense wooded area and as Stephanie scanned the horizon she could make out little of what was beyond the water. From their position Stephanie felt alarmingly exposed. As they approached the lake it was soon possible to make out the figure of a man who was standing facing the water, with his back to Samantha and Stephanie. Stephanie’s heart thudded nervously the more they closed the gap and the longer they remained in the open; she was anxious to reach the scattering of trees near the banks of the lake which would at least offer them some sort of cover.
The first bullet exploded into the air, splitting the silence and sending sound waves reverberating around them. Stephanie reacted immediately, grabbing hold of Samantha’s arm and dragging her towards the ground. When they both looked up they realised that the bullet had missed its target as the figure at the lake had turned and was running towards them, shouting out guttural, indistinguishable sounds. This was when the second bullet could be heard, only this time it hit its target, smashing into the man’s scull and sending him toppling forward.
“Jack!”
Stephanie cursed herself for not realising in time what Samantha was going to do and stopping her. Scrambling up from the ground, Samantha bolted towards the lifeless body of the man in front of them and that was when the third and final bullet shot through the air. Stephanie watched in horror as Samantha’s body jolted and fell before her. Clambering across the ground between them, Stephanie reached Samantha who was lying on her back, blood seeping from behind her head. The only movement her body made was when her eyelids flitted upwards as Stephanie hovered above her. Then there was a sudden sharp intake of breath and her lips opened as if to speak although no sound came out.
“Stay still,” Stephanie ordered, feeling utterly helpless as she held the back of Samantha’s neck in a vain attempt at stopping the flow of blood. She looked out towards the lake but could see no indication of where the shots had been fired from.
“Tom...” Samantha managed to utter. Stephanie’s head swung back to Samantha.
“What? What is it? What do you know?” Stephanie asked, her attention suddenly firmly focused on Samantha’s face.
“Get him back... Carlton made sure….they’ll be waiting for him in Ireland.”
Stephanie felt the icy claws of panic grasping at her as she watched the life slipping out of Samantha’s face. She went to rise off the floor, heedless of the danger, as Samantha’s words echoed around her head. When she pushed her body up onto her hands however her arms suddenly lost their strength and she found herself falling back towards the floor. Underneath her body her hands came into contact with a warm moistness and she rolled over onto her back to see evidence of Samantha’s bullet wound smudged over the front of her blouse. It wasn’t until she tried unsuccessfully for a second time to push herself off the floor that she realised that the blood covering her was not that of Samantha’s; the first bullet had in fact found its target, the blood was hers.
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