The quiet night quickly turned into a hectic frenzy; panicked shouts, the sounds of squealing tires and a semi-automatic weapon tearing through the peaceful stillness that was Mill Valley.
Halfway down the stairs, Mike was greeted by Adams and Kosinski, both plain-clothes detectives having their revolvers pulled as they headed toward the lobby, their faces ashen with fear.
Half a dozen .38 Specials against a high-powered machine gun could do that to anybody.
It quickly became obvious that Esteban had logged into their radio frequency, his actions changing drastically once Mike had called in all units to make them aware of the approaching vehicle.
But instead of fleeing, the killer had turned on his bright headlights and tore through the gravel parking lot of the motel, raising dirt and causing flying debris as he spun his tires. Now, hidden beneath a cloud of dust, he had opened fire at their parked vehicles, as well as the centered lobby entrance, sending deadly showers of glass shards onto the walkways whenever he hit one of the many old windows.
"Adams, Kosinski, see if you can get to him from the other side!", Mike yelled from his crouched position by the front desk, seeking cover behind a corner wall by the foyer to keep a safe distance to the destroyed glass doors and the dangerous killer waiting outside.
With his .38 pointed toward the long hallway that would lead to the south end of the motel, he watched the two seasoned detectives bridge the distance of the lobby in a single leap, their shouts disappearing in the thunder of another round of shots fired into the building.
"Steve, see if you can get him once he stops firing!"
A couple feet behind him, the young Inspector was hidden beneath a large fire extinguisher, his green eyes wide with terror, yet ready to jump into action as he processed the order he'd been given. With an imperceptible nod, he slowly inched his way toward the front desk, waiting anxiously for his opportunity to return fire.
Outside, the engine of the sportscar roared once again, signaling that Esteban was creating another round of dust to obscure sight of his exact position, only the refracted beam of his headlights making it past the thick cloud.
"There's no way he can get out of here the way we triangulated in on him. We just gotta keep him busy for a few more minutes to get into position.", Mike said, not out of overconfidence, but from years of experience and a plan he was hoping would finally put an end to Esteban's reign of terror.
Down below, deep in his coat pocket, the radio sprung to life once again, as bits and pieces of Norm's transmission could be heard, explaining that they would head into the woods to see if they could cut off Esteban's escape route from that angle, but refused to shoot until they were told otherwise for fear of friendly fire.
Finally jumping into action for a counter-attack, Steve emerged from his hiding spot and crossed the short distance to the entrance doors, pressing his back flat against the plaster wall as he fired two closely aimed rounds toward the car, hitting metal but not stopping it.
Soon after, Esteban returned fire toward the lobby, pulverizing the wall Steve had used as a vantage point, and would have surely killed the young Inspector had he not leapt to the side, then rolled behind the unmanned front desk.
Suddenly, as fast as the attack began, everything fell quiet once again.
Throughout the little bit of daylight coming into the lobby this early in the day, Mike glanced over at his partner, sharing the same confusion. With a slight shrug, he peeked his head around the corner only to see the sportscar sitting idle in the cloud of dust that was slowly creeping through what was left of the doors of the motel, the low rumbling of the powerful engine the only noise from outside.
"Well, either you got him, Buddyboy, or he's about to start round two."
Upon his partner's quiet sigh, Mike could hear the engine of the car revving up once again, the back tires spinning against the gravel as he slowly gained momentum. But instead of another attack, Esteban steered toward the road, making a sharp right turn heading north, before disappearing in the darkness of the surrounding forest.
With a frustrated grunt, he tried reaching for the radio in his coat but knew that it was too late for Norm and Dan to interfere, the two detectives more than likely not even close to a safe shooting position.
Steve appeared by his side just in time to see the rear lights vanish around a curve, his left hand shoving the revolver back into the holster.
"Looks like he's fleeing. Don't you want to go after him?"
As the young Inspector dug the car keys out of his gray overcoat, he headed toward the doors, ready to get moving when Mike held him back by his elbow, his knuckles turning white under the strong grasp.
"We're going to go after him if the car is still drivable, yes. But I don't think he's fleeing. I think this is round two of whatever he has planned."