Thank you to my two beta's – Valkyriexx and Imagination95 :D
Bid Me Run and I Will Strive With Things Impossible
~William Shakespeare~
Alex could hear his heart beating in his head as he ran through the streets of Chelsea away from the men who were chasing him; they wore ordinary clothes but Alex had spotted them easily as the six of them had looked too alike one another, several bearing scars on their faces, it was at that point he ran from the market stall he was at and made a dash for it.
Three of the six men had seen him immediately and raced after him, hot on his tail.
Alex veered round a corner onto Chelsea Manor Street; he crashed into a young woman with her son in her arms.
"Sorry!" He called after himself as he sped down the street. He did his best to dodge people carrying numerous shopping bags and pushing children in pushchairs.
He turned down Britten Street and carried on. He looked behind him to see three of the men bearing down on him. As he looked ahead of him he saw a car pull round the corner and he skidded out of the way into St Luke's Street, adrenaline pumping through his veins from the sudden fright. Alex thought he could hear quick footsteps behind him before realising they were his own.
He reached the end of St Luke's Street and stopped, his lungs were burning and his head was throbbing from the lack of oxygen. He looked around him and saw that two of the men were still close behind him about one hundred metres away. He sprinted off again, turning left.
He didn't really know where he was intending to go. Perhaps he could get to the underground and get the tube to a fair distance away and return home later.
There was a sheen of sweat covering his face and he used the edge of his short sleeve t-shirt to wipe it off as best he could. He looked nervously round him. He could only see two of the men, they had slowed down, but they were close enough for Alex to see the dark expressions on their faces. He watched and stood still as one of them put a hand behind his back and then pulled out a handgun.
'Crap!' Alex thought as he started off again, this time on a slightly slower sprint. At least he had a goal to get to.
BANG!
He heard a round go off behind him and then several people screaming. He stopped himself and turned to see behind him. Everyone had gotten out of the way and had moved themselves into nearby shops for cover.
The man with the gun stared at Alex with a sly grin. He raised his weapon, his smile widening. He would be the one to shoot Alex Rider.
Alex knew it would be dangerous and potentially fatal to turn his back on the gunman fifty metres away, but he had no choice. There was a large decorative flower pot next to him; perhaps he could use that for cover.
BANG!
The flower pot exploded next to him, dirt spilling over the concrete path.
Perhaps not. He didn't even realise that he'd started running but he had and was heading down Ixworth Place, running as fast as he could. He turned onto Elystan Street and then found his way onto Pelham Crescent. He saw a sign post for South Kensington Underground and followed it.
He saw a subway to his left and dashed for it.
He would hide in there for a bit.
He pressed himself against the wall of the cool subway and sank down to the floor. He could feel his heart beating erratically in his chest. He tried to take slow, deep breaths but he couldn't seem to calm himself down.
He was panic ridden. Flashes of the handgun filled his mind and he shook his head to get rid out the thoughts, not that it helped. He felt a tear of trepidation fall down his cheek.
"I love you Jack." He whispered to himself.
Loud footsteps echoed.
Alex scrambled to his feet using the dirty wall to help him up. He wiped his hand on his jeans and faced the direction of the ever nearing footsteps.
A figure appeared in the dim light of the subway.
"Hello Alex." Said a voice filled with grim humour. Alex shuddered.
"Who are you?" He didn't recognise the man.
"Why could it matter, you're going to die, Alex Rider." The voice, it sounded so cold.
The man raised his arm parallel to the ground and used his other hand to steady it, he took aim.
Alex's ears felt deaf as he felt his life flash before his eyes.
Jack...
Tom...
Ben...
K-Unit...
Smithers...
A photo of his parents...
An image of him hugging his Uncle tightly...
Time felt like it had stopped. He wished it would, he wished he was able to run.
Alex took a tentative step backwards, but his soon-to-be killer took a step forward, keeping the gun aligned with his chest.
Sweat covered his upper lip and forehead. He felt hot, even though the autumn air was cool.
So, this was it.
He trained his eye in on the man's trigger finger. He watched as it tensed and then lax a little. Alex closed his eyes.
BANG!
The force of the bullet threw his back and he hit his head against the concrete floor, the bullet went straight through Alex thin body.
The shot echoed around the subway tunnel. Alex lay motionless. Eyes closed. Though he was not peaceful, not just yet.
Alex could not feel the pain that was in his chest, he used up every last ounce of strength to move his left hand over to his right where his watch was and he pressed one of the buttons three times, alerting MI6. They had agents stationed all over Chelsea.
Alex kept his eyes closed, afraid of what he'd see if he opened them. There was blood in his mouth and a lot of it and when he opened his mouth the blood poured from it and trickled down his cheek and dripped onto the floor and soaked into his hair.
If he had opened his eyes he would have seen the man looming over him, a sadistic grin plastered on his face. Then he would have seen the man's eyes widen as he was shot in the back of the head and killed instantly.
The agent who found Alex was Ryan Burns. He had got there just a second too late.
"Rider?" He said, placing two fingers on his neck, nothing. He pulled out his phone from his pocket and dialled the last number that had called him to say that an agent had been injured.
"He has become an Angel, I'm sorry."