The tiny bulbs lit only the area directly in front, along Erin Mills Parkway; the light didnât reach into the houses and spaces on the other side.
I saw a series of flashesâmuzzle bursts from different parts of the buildingâfollowed instantly by the sound of gunfire. One of the guards on the wall crumpled to the ground.
âOh my God!â Lori exclaimed.
Almost before the words had gotten out a second guard was hit, his body spinning backward at the impact of the bullet. There were more and more flashes from the tower, but nobody else was hitâat least not that I could see.
âTurn off the lights!â I screamed. âTurn off the lights!â
Lori jumped to her feet and started yelling again and waving her arms in the airâand making herself a perfect target.
âLori!â I yelled. I jumped forward, knocking her over. She groaned as we smashed heavily into the gravel.
There was a loud impactâa bullet smashing into the rooftop right by our headsâthen a second. I grabbed her and rolled us back over until we were sheltered by the wall again.
âAre you all right?â
âIâm ⦠Iâm okay ⦠The bullets ⦠We were almost shot.â
âPlease donât move,â I said. âStay here.â
I disentangled myself and started to crawl away, still sheltered by the edge of the building.
âWhat are you doing?â she demanded. âWhere are you going?â
âI have to warn them. We canât have people heading across the open space toward the wall. The shooters have too good an angle. Donât move until I come back to get you!â
I scampered along with the protection of the bricks until I was well away from where weâd been shot at. I now had no choice. I had to move across open roof space to get to the ladder and down. If I moved fast they probably couldnât draw a bead on me. I took a deep breath and then ran as fast as I could. Grabbing the top of the ladder, I swung myself over the edgeâalmost falling, desperately grabbing with my feet and hands and securing a hold. I slid down the ladder, landing at the bottom with a loud thud, almost tumbling over with the impact.
I ran along the back of the stores, completely sheltered from the snipers. People were coming on foot, their flashlights marking their arrival, like signal beacons for the shooters.
âCut your lights!â I yelled. âGet down, get down!â
Flashlights snapped off as people took cover. In the dark theyâd be safeâunless the shooters had night-vision goggles. The first of the guards joined me along the wall.
Then a pair of headlights came up the roadâanother perfect target, even more visible than the flashlights of the people on foot. It was my Omega, which meant either my mom or my dad was driving. I ran straight toward the car, right into the beams of the headlights, waving my hands. The car skidded to a stop in front of me. Not wanting to waste time explaining, I leaned inside the open window, over my father at the wheel, and pushed off the headlights, throwing us into darkness. My mom was in the passenger seat and Herb was in the back.
In the sudden gloom, I told them we were under fire.
âWhere is it coming from?â Herb asked.
âSnipers in the condo tower! Theyâve been picking people off. At least two guards down.â
âLetâs move behind the stores, get out of the sight lines,â Mom said to Dad as I stepped back.
My father bumped the car up over the curb, crossed the sidewalk, and pulled in right beside the back of the buildings. I ran after them and got there as they were climbing out.
âTurn off all the lights!â my mother called into a walkie-talkie.
âWe should signal for the reserves,â Herb said.
âI agree,â my mom said. âAnd letâs get Howie stationed with a team at the northeast corner.â
As my mother repeated
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