Katherine swallowed as she nodded at Leem and recalled what he had just said.

"Run, Kat, as fast as we can through the arch to the far end of the next court. Let's hope we get lucky a second time."

There was so much more she wanted to say to him but it wasn't the time or place. If these were their last moments together, she would not burden them with sorrow. She reached a shaking hand to his face and traced his brow and lips. He shook his head.

"Kat, I'm going to get you outta this and you're going to forget me, okay?"

She puckered her lips briefly. "Not bloody likely!"

"Yeah, you are and you'll stop spouting such nonsense about bein' in love with me."

Her heart thudded to a stop. Oh, that hurt. She had told him she loved him and he dismissed her feelings. She looked down and sucked in a few shaky breaths in an attempt to prevent herself from crying.

"N-Nonsense?"

Leem drew his brows together but before he could reply, a loud bang echoed through the courtyard followed immediately by a hiss and a crack in the stones of the entry they had hid themselves in. Katherine instantly recognized the sound as that of a gunshot. Leem pulled her deeper into the enclave and then yanked at the metal gate preventing them from escaping into the building beyond. He swore as it refused to budge. A few more shots rang out, sending chips of stone flying at them. She covered her mouth to stifle a cry. This was it, they were going to die.

"Get back," Leem roughly shoved her into the corner, then closed his eyes as he put himself between her and the bullets flying in their direction.

Katherine watched his eyes dance beneath his lids as if lost in thought. Several additional bangs followed. He leaned closer, enveloping her in his warmth.

"There's just one gunman shooting from the third window at this end of the court on the second floor," he murmured, "but his angle is off. He can't shoot us in this corner."

"What do we do?" Katherine was shaking.

She held his sides, desperate to be anchored by his strength. She could barely hear her own thoughts there was so much blood rushing through her ears. Her pulse jumped in her neck. Leem fished out his phone and started texting furiously. Another shot pinged off the metal security gate, just inches from his back.

"Fuck, that was too close," he cursed as he peered over his shoulder, "the shooter has moved, I think. He's coming for us. I've sent word to Fil, Mycroft and Sherlock but I don't think they can get here on time."

Leem flicked his jacket open, pulled out his gun, pried her fingers open and slapped the cool metal handgun into her palm. "There's a chance for you to make it, Kat. I'm probably going down first. When I do, you crawl under me and lie here. Don't move. Play dead. If it looks as if this guy is going to shoot, you unload, understand? You need to buy yourself time if you're going to live."

"Y-You want me to h-hide," she stammered, "u-under your dead body?"

He smiled. "Yeah, 'course I would prefer you were hiding under my very much alive body and that we were naked but that's not really an option right now."

She frowned at him. "Don't joke. Don't talk like that and stop smiling! What is wrong with you? You shouldn't be so blasé about dying."

Leem sighed and kissed the tip of her nose. His eyes sparkled in the ever receding light. The sun was nearly set.

"I've had a good run. I don't have any regrets. I got to meet you, didn't I? I got a girl like you ta fancy herself . . . in love . . . with me," his voice faltered a moment before he cleared it. "I'm going to die a happy man because of you, Kat. Every fuckin' moment I spent with you was worth it, alright? Every single second."

Tears burned a path down her cheeks. "Damn you, same here, you know. God, you're killing me with talk like that."

Then, the court beyond their enclave seemed to go eerily quiet and a voice reverberated across the pitch.

"Dr. Katherine Adams!" A man's deep timber shouted.

She froze. Dr. Ross called her name. Even though she knew he was still alive, the tone of his voice reminded her of a resurrected phantom from a horror film. Leem turned his head towards the sound. As Katherine gazed at his stoic profile, she came to a decision. She was not going to let him die for her, she simply wasn't going to let that happen. She carefully slipped the gun he had given her into the rear of the waistband of her leggings where it felt secure. She heaved in a breath. With a strength she didn't know she had, she shoved him away from her.

"Stay here," she commanded.

He gawked at her, stunned a moment. She dipped her head apologetically, evaded his grasp as he fumbled for her and just started running. He called in her wake but she ignored him. Her feet pounded along the turf until someone stepped in her path and she skidded to a stop.

"Katherine," a dark figure said in a sing-song voice, "Katherine, Katherine, Katherine!"

"D-Dr. Ross!" She rasped, gulping in breaths.

The man stepped nearer and she could better make out that it was indeed her old mentor. He had dyed his hair black or a dark brown to mask they grey. He had grown a mustache and it looked as if he had gained a significant amount of weight. He also had tanned to a deep golden brown. Something about that observation made her furious. While she had been trying to save the world from the likes of him, he had been on vacation enjoying his ill-gotten gains.

"Well, what do we do, Katherine Adams?" Dr. Ross hissed. "What do we do? I asked you to come alone and yet, your, ahem, bodyguard is here."

"He doesn't know anything," she returned quickly. "He followed me, that's all. Come on, Dr. Ross, you want me dead, I don't want anyone else to get hurt. We should go somewhere more discreet, don't you think?"

Dr. Ross raised his arm. Something metallic glinted in his grasp. She stepped back.

"I think you've been alive long enough, Katherine."

There was a resolve in his eyes as he cocked his gun. He was going to kill her, and then probably Leem, whose gun she had taken. She berated herself for being a dummy. She frantically tried to think of some way to stall him. Desperately, she dropped to her knees and held up her hands as if praying.

"Wait!" She begged. "Wait, please!"

Off in the distance, the muffled buffeting of a helicopter's blades rumbled in the sky. It momentarily distracted Dr. Ross and he looked in the direction of the sound. Kat didn't hesitate in retrieving Leem's gun from behind her back. This man had tried to have her killed. He had threatened everyone she knew and held dear. He had a fucking vacation tan, the fucker! In less than a heartbeat, she whipped the gun out, aimed and pulled the trigger at almost the same instant his eyes found hers again.

Dr. Ross' body jerked as the bullet slammed into his abdomen. His eyes went wide with surprise. He clutched at his stomach, stumbled back and collapsed. He splayed out on his back and appeared to go limp. Numbly, Katherine spun away and tried not to gag.

"Kat!"

She was nearly hyperventilating. Her hands shook so violently, she almost dropped the gun. Leem came running over to her, pulled her to her feet and crushed her in his arms.

"You daft, daft, chick," he mumbled into her hair. "That was so, incredibly stupid. So stupid . . . and so fucking brave."

Katherine's mouth felt dry. She had just shot Dr. Ross, a man she once looked upon as a father figure but also, a man who had betrayed that trust. She shoved the gun back in Leem's hand, then threw her arms around his neck and started bawling. They stood there embracing a few minutes until the pulsing beat of a helicopter's rotors and the shine of a bright spotlight became too much to ignore.

"Backup is here," Leem chuckled into her ear.

She nodded and raised her head. Just as she did, she heard the rapid succession of a pair of shots and felt the biting sear of something lance her calf as well as an explosion of pain along her ribcage. What follow was a blur. She was shoved aside, a chorus of loud pops erupted next to her and then she started to go down. She clutched at her side as she crumpled to the ground. Something warm and liquid coated her hands. Overwhelming, fiery pain stole her breath. She tried to focus, but her head swam. Sounds faded, sensations dulled.

Then, she blacked out.