He checked to his left upper corner and saw two of his men approaching from that side, then checked his upper right and saw two more agents converging on the café. He had a further two men approaching through the coffee shop itself, whilst he and his own partner would approach via the escalator, completely blocking off all hope of Cole’s escape.
78
Cole glanced again at his laptop. One minute left.
He turned in his chair, checking the café. Two more agents were coming towards him, dressed smart casual, jackets but no ties. Open jackets, with easy access to their handguns.
Were they just going to blow him away in the middle of a shopping mall? If Hansard thought Cole had discovered his plan, then it would be a resounding yes. Hansard would have given the order for Cole’s death, and would worry about the legal niceties later.
Cole hadn’t reacted to seeing the men, and doubted they were aware that he knew they were there. That would make things easier.
Thirty seconds.
Two pairs on each side of the upper concourse, converging on him. One pair approaching the double escalator from the lower level. One pair behind him, close now.
He could see the reflection of the two men behind him in the screen of his laptop now, could see them withdraw their short-barrelled H&K semi-automatic handguns from their concealed holsters, holding them down against their thighs so as not to alarm the other customers. It was evening, the sky pitch black outside, but the mall was still busy, and Cole knew the agents would wait until the last minute before making their move.
Ten seconds.
79
Porter saw his two men on the coffee shop balcony draw their weapons, sidling up close to their target, who seemed oblivious to their presence.
Hansard’s orders were clear. Mark Cole was to be executed on the spot. He was known to have evaded agents in the past, and Hansard was adamant that no chances should be taken.
The mall itself had its own security guards, but they would be unarmed, and unlikely to challenge armed men. Porter therefore expected the first two men on the scene to shoot Cole cleanly in the head at point blank range, and make their way casually from the area.
If the police were to show and somehow get involved, they were to offer no resistance; Hansard assured them that he would sort everything out if they were caught. Mark Cole was, after all, an internationally wanted terrorist fugitive.
Porter had asked Hansard about getting the local police involved, but Hansard had thought this a bad idea, not wanting to bog the operation down by including too many people. Porter decided he was right; operations often failed for that very reason, and Porter knew that they could not allow this mission to fail.
80
Cole checked again the positions of the men moving in against him.
The two men on the balcony near side were now almost at the café, and the pair on the far side were making rapid progress. The pair from the lower concourse were now on the escalator, halfway up.
The pair behind him were coming up to within arms reach. Cole steadied his breathing as their pistols came up, aiming towards the back of his head.
He glanced at the laptop.
Download complete.
Cole pivoted downwards from his chair, taking his head out of the target zone, before grabbing the laptop and exploding back upwards. He swung the computer in a tight arc, smashing the unit into the head of the man on his right-hand side.
The laptop shattered with the impact, which knocked the agent out cold, and in the same instant, Cole’s left hand dropped onto the second man’s right wrist, deflecting the gun down and away from him.
The man squeezed the trigger, and although the 9mm round discharged harmlessly into the concrete floor, the effect of the supersonic crack was electric.
Customers in the café leapt out of their seats, pointing, staring and screaming. ‘Pistole!’ shouted one, and then the panic really started, especially when they watched as Cole dipped his legs and shoved his right arm in between the agent’s thighs, pulling him up and over his shoulders in a modified fireman’s lift; modified only in that instead of keeping the man on his shoulders, he kept the movement going and threw the man violently off the opposite shoulder and straight over the balcony.
The mall fell silent as the man went over the side, so that his piercing scream was all that was heard, until it too was silenced as he crashed through the circular glass roof of the flower stall beneath.
The sound of breaking glass set everyone off again, and now even those customers who had not reacted to the gunshot were in wild-eyed panic, and a mass exodus of screaming men, women and children stormed the exits.
81
Porter watched with disbelief as he saw first one man go down, then the second spiralling over the balcony. What the hell?!
He and his partner broke into a sprint up the escalator, Porter’s hand microphone going up to his mouth. ‘Go, go, go!’ he ordered the other two pairs above him. ‘Take him down!’
Cole saw the other two pairs push their way past the surging crowds, drawing their own weapons, no longer interested in subtlety.
Cole dropped down as the nearest pair opened fire, peppering the area with 9mm rounds. The bullets ricocheted off the balcony’s steel support columns and shattered the glass between, showering down on Cole and lacerating his hands and face.
Cole spotted the handgun of the first agent he had taken out, on the floor just next to the man’s prone body. He grabbed it up, rising to a crouch and letting loose half the magazine, forcing the pair to duck for cover of their own.
Cole switched to his other side, where the other pair were now aiming their weapons towards him, and emptied the rest of the magazine at them.
The pistol slide clicked forwards, empty, and Cole wasted no time in placing his hands on the balcony support rail in front of him and swinging both legs over the side, vaulting it in one fluid motion.
82
Porter looked on wide eyed as he reached the second floor, just in time to see his quarry jump straight over the balcony.
He and the other agents rushed forwards, and saw Cole gripping hold of the flexible branches of the huge Christmas tree below, swinging wildly from side to side as he tried to steady himself.
The agents leaned over the barrier with their weapons and unloaded at the escaping target, and the tree erupted in the hail of fire, lights exploding and decorations disintegrating.
Cole was protected by the massive embrace of the tree itself though, and before long had reached the first floor of the mall, having dropped from branch to branch down the massive pine.
Porter watched as Cole sprinted away from the tree, into the crowds surging for the exit.
He saw movement from his side, and quickly deflected the gun arm of his partner. ‘No!’ he warned. ‘He’s too close to the crowds. Let’s go!’ he ordered, and the six agents raced back towards the escalators.
83
Cole couldn’t believe he had managed to avoid the gunfire of Hansard’s agents. He had hoped the tree would afford him some protection, but had not realized quite how thick its shrubbery was.