Midnight Sun (129 page)

Leka
charged
from
behind,
knife
in
hand.
His
ears
ringing
wildly
,
Warner
barely
heard
the
thump
of
boots
on
floor
. He
attempti
ed
to
roll
away
from
Leka's
powerful
hammer
hands
a moment
too
late.
Warner's
arm
flew
up
to
deflect
the
knife
thrust.
The
blade
came
fast,
slicing
muscle
and
sinew
between
the
radius
and
ulna.
Warner
let
out
a
bellowing
roar
and
jammed
the
butt
of
his
pistol into the
muscular
Kosovar's
skull
.
Leka
roared
back
and
hammered
his
fist
into
Warner's
forehead
,
smacking
the
agent
into
the
wall
and
jarring
his
pistol
loose
. I
t
spun
across
the
floor
with
a
clatter.

Leka
jabbed
a
fist
toward
Warner's
gut,
and
the
agent
raised
his
leg
to
deflect
the
blow.
Leka
’
s
knuckles
cracked
against
Warner's
knee.
Both
men
shouted
in
pain
-
filled
fury.
Grunting
back
the
agony
in
his
arm,
the
knife
had
wedged
solidly
between
the
bone
s of his forearm
,
Warner
grabbed
Leka's
shirt
and
used
the
man's
own
body
weight
to
leverage
him
across
and
away.
Leka
countered
by
grabbing
Warner's
clothes.
The
two
men
toppled
to
the
ground
in
a
seething
mass
of
grappling
and
growling
like
a
cage
-
fight
death
match.
Their
faces
pressed
against
each
other
, grinding jawbones into each other like weapons, using every part of their anatomy as a tool of inflicting pain.
Fingernails gouged into skin. Knees pressed to thigh muscles and groin. Elbows dug into ribs.
Warner
bit
Leka's
ear,
drawing
blood
and
eliciting
a
howl.
Leka
grabbed
the
knife
handle
protruding
from
the
other's
arm
.
Warner
let
out
a
scream
and
drove
a
thumb
into
Leka's
eye
,
then
repeatedly
jammed
a
knee
into
his
groin.
Leka
reacted
to
the
testicle
blow,
loosening
his
grip
enough
for
Warner
to
roll
into
the
upper
position
and
drive
an
elbow
into
Leka's
solar
plexus.

Out
of
the
corner
of
his
eye
,
he
saw
the
wounded
Kreshnik
rise to his knees,
grab
the
gun
that
had
flown
from
Warner’s
hand,
pick
it
up
,
and
point
it
at
him.
Warner
quickly
fell back
on
to
his
side,
allowing
Leka
to raise
on
top
of
him
. He
took
the
bait.
Kreshnik's
shot
exploded
as
Leka
rose
above
Warner.
A
look
of
triumph
lit
Leka's
eyes
in
the
brief
second
before
the
bullet
slammed
the
side
of
his
head,
face
bursting
like
a
ruptured
melon
.
Leka
snapped
to
one
side
,
flying
off
the
Secret Service
agent
as
if
yanked
by
an
unseen
string.

“
N
o
!
”
Kreshnik
shouted
.

Warner,
now
without
a
shield,
scrambled
to
his
feet.
Another
shot
rang
out.
Warner
instinctively
stiffened,
waiting
for
the
bullet
to
slam
into
his
body.
Instead
,
he
saw
Kreshnik
stumble
back,
a
look
of
shock
on
his
face.
Warner
turned
to
see
where
the
shot
had
come
from.