Preys and Predators Part 1 Chapter 32

 

32

 

Colonel Moran saw the lady boarded the coach readied for her. He had his rifle; the Lee Metford rifle with the ten bullets ammo clip. It was only released to the Army as a standard issue but the Colonel had tested the rifle for a few years. He laid the two-spare clip by the table near the window. He had to make sure she was safe.

 In his assassination works, he would have used the air-rifle modified by him to firer a live bullet. It was for silencer noise of the shot he required.

The Lee Metford was his other preferred rifle having tested it on other targets; assassination was his speciality. The proximity killings including poisoning and the garrotte were the works of the others, but the above four hundred yards shots were his to marvelled over. Once during the Boer’s War, the Colonel took upon himself to hunt the sniper who had taken down five officers of the Regiment. He was a Big Game hunter having spent his free time on the continent hunting the elusive leopard or the cheetah. He needed the big rush inside him when he lined the barrel at the charging predator. His experience won him the duel with the sniper with the shot taken by the Lee Enfield rifle Mark 1. He did the shot at nine hundred yards after a long wait in the bush.

“Gentlemen, it is not the fault of the rifle when we missed a target. It is us who hold the trigger and lined the barrel.” Colonel Moran told the riflemen assembled before him after the successful shot.

“Blood good it does compared to the Maxim gun now.” One of the junior officers voiced out. The Maxim .303 Machine Gun was the first machine gun to operate entirely by mechanical means. It could fire 650 rounds a minute from a continuously fed belt of ammunition.

“The Maxim gun is a mass killer and not like this rifle which is a refined tool of the marksman.” Colonel Moran defended the rifle as the better tool. He was proud of his marksmanship; something that other officers said was his ego to praise the long barrel. Colonel Moran have his bullets customed made for him, with the right grammage of powder and filing to the tip.

“Well, he then needs to bend over and I will treat him to the tradesman shot up the arse.” One officer commented and the words reached the Colonel. The officer was sent back home with a dishonourable discharge to his demerit.

The first sight of the enemy was when the man he posted on the right end of the street stepped out with the revolver drawn. He raised his right arm up holding the revolver and fired it to sky. It was a warning shot, and later he collapsed on the pavement with the dagger in his back. Colonel Moran saw the killer emerged and was shot by the Colonel with the rifle. It then triggered more shooters ion the street aiming at the Colonel. He stepped back when the bullets impacted on the window. He leaned out and caught sight of three men running across the street to the house.

Two of them were shot by the Colonel’s assigned guards on the street. His men were hidden in the adjacent house armed with revolvers. They gunned the enemies but one got into the house. The Colonel heard the shot below but he was taking any chances. He hid behind the divan with the rifle drawn.

“It is me, Sir.” Jeremy Evans rushed in. “I got the nitwit in the head.”

Jeremy served with the Colonel in the Regiment and was a sharpshooter. He stepped up to the Colonel and the bullet from across the street; fired from the roof impacted on his head. He was dead before he fell to the flooring.

“I will be darned.” Colonel Moran loved his men, and then turned to the window to sight the shooter. The other was seen at the rooftop loading the rifle The Colonel shot first and killed the shooter. He heard the commotion downstairs and rushed to the stairways. He positioned himself with the rifle aimed at the stairs. He fired first at the man who emerged there armed with a revolver. He fired the second round at the other man who was behind. Both men fell on the stairs and rolled down.

“Er ist da oben. Seien Sie vorsichtig.” (In German; He is up there. Be careful.).

“Beeil dich mit ihm. Wir sollen ihn hier töten und dann die Dame.” (In German; Rush him. We are to kill him here, and then the lady.)

“Dann lass es uns tun.” (In German, let’s do it).

Several shots were heard by the Colonel. He was not assuming the best but felt confident his men made it there.

“Sir, we got them. Bloody Germans.” That was the voice of his other man, Stewart. “You can come down now, Sir.”

Colonel Moran stood up and the watched his men mounted the stairs.

“We counted ten of them but some got away. They are mercenaries, Sir.”

“Collect Jeremy from inside, and Davies down below. We are leaving but leave the Germans.” Colonel Moran gave the order. He then retrieved his bullets and leather case. He was more concerned on the lady then.

At that moment, Mary was inside the coach without a chance to do the sights. Her driver was whipping the horses drawing the coach in a frenzy. They were pursued by two other coaches and they have revolvers drawn at the lady’s coach.

“Hang onto your skirt there, Missy. We got a race going on here now.” Her driver named John Wayne was a man of man years of driving the coach, with his younger days doing it on the Great Plains.

“It is not the Epson Derby but we will do it with style.” John called out. He was driving eh coach from the front unlike the ones on the street with the driver at the rear.

“Dolly will get us clear.” Dolly was the horse that was pulling the coach. She went past the corners on two wheels before righted to the standard four wheels. The shots came then.

“I will be darned they can shoot at this race.” John cursed. “What was it with the guns? We used to have arrows sticking out on the coach.”

The race came to a junction with the river in the front. John saw the oncoming cart form the right and did a sharp turn to the left. The front pursuing coach did not see the cart and swerved to avoid but ended up plunging into the river. The other coach kept the pursuit on and John coaxed Dolly to run faster.

“Do for me, Dolly. I will Randy off your back for the month.” John called out. He knew how the stud works well.

Further down the street parallel to the river, John saw the oncoming coach with menacing intention. He had little choice with the side alleys all crammed with carts.

“Missy, can you shoot well from the side?” John called out. “We are going need it.”

Mary leaned out of the coach window and saw the oncoming coach. It was a split-second decision, and she did it. She leaned back on the seat and drew her revolver.

“Dolly, let us do it!” John called out and drove the coach to the side of the street with half the body over the river side. The coach drove on two wheels skirted the opposing coach with John turning to smile at the other nervous driver. Mary then fired off three shots in succession at the passing coach. She was unsure if she hit any one there but soon John had the coach back on the street. She heard the noise of the coaches crashing at the rear.

“We had done it, Missy. Now we get you home.” John called out. He drove the coach to the safe house in downtown. A lady with the heavily cosmetic layers greeted her.

“Welcome to the Bordel Marquis De Sado.” The lady said. “Here we act on every fantasy you may want including on how to preserve your chatte (in English is fanny).”

“And John. Do go to Room No.5. Chanel will attend to you. She can do the whips on you.”