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was one. From the amount of blood that led up to the door, Taylor judged that the injured man must have been in a pretty bad way.
       It was Doyle who appeared next to him first, quickly followed by Rudy. Lennox however, he heard long before he saw him; each wheezing breath he took echoed through the stone valley. When he finally reached the top of the mound it was all Lennox could do to stay on his feet.
       Before he had a chance to rest, Taylor lifted him from his doubled over position and directed him at the house.
       “Rudy, take Lennox to the rear of the building and try and find a way in. They’ll be sitting pretty tight so we’ll have to squeeze them out.”
       Rudy nodded and grabbed Lennox’s other shoulder, taking him off Taylor’s hands.
       “Let’s go,” he said to the panting hulk, who looked distraught at the idea of more physical exertion.
       “Spike, how you doing?” Taylor asked.
       “Not good, there’s no quick way to get to you, I tried going over the top but it’s too steep. We’re going to have to go all the way around.”
       Taylor resisted the urge to yell into his throat-mike, “Just get here as quick as you can.”
       The five-minute excursion would give the snipers enough time to dig themselves in and prepare for an attack. There was also the risk that they had friends nearby, and were not the only people in the area that wanted to him and his men. They would have to go in without the Rhino’s firepower to assist them.
     
      They approached the building as cautiously as possible, their rifles scanning every possible attack point. Taylor didn’t like situations like this; they made him nervous. Although he and his men outnumbered their attackers, it was they who were in the stronger position and if they were sensible they should know it too. They were in a place of safety and would be happy to sit and do nothing. If Taylor wanted them on the other hand, he would have to go in and get them.
       “Sarge,” Rudy’s voice rang into his ear-piece, “no luck here, we found a doorway but it’s completely blocked by debris.”
       “Shit,” Taylor muttered, knowing that without a two-pronged attack, things were looking even more in their assailant’s favour.
       “Get back here then Rudy, looks like it’s gonna be a frontal assault.”
       Rudy’s message had made him pause for a second and rethink his strategy. As he weighed up his options, he didn’t notice the injured man step into the doorway. His rifle was aimed directly at Taylor.
       “Sarge, look out!” Doyle yelled.
       He turned in time to see the man take a burst of shots to his right side, spinning him onto the wall of the building. Even though his injuries were mortal, the man still tried to right himself and re-aim his weapon but Taylor had already released a burst of fire from his own rifle, hitting the enemy square in the chest and dropping him to his knees. The man, who Taylor could now see was well over fifty, gave him a quizzical look like he had no idea how come such a shitty thing was happening to him. Before collapsing onto his face, he let out a strangled sigh that may have been an attempt to ask why.
       Taylor glanced at Doyle, whose rifle now hung idly by his side. He tried to think of something to say but the look they shared said it all; yes, you did just save my life, and yes, killing does get easier.
       He broke from Doyle’s stare to pull the pin from the grenade he was holding and throw it deep into the building.
       “If I were you,” he said, “I’d get down.”
     
      With smoke still burning their eyes, they stepped over the debris into the entrance of the building. Turning off the narrow corridor, Taylor and Doyle ventured into the first apartment on their right, the force of the blast having blown the door of the unit clean off. Lennox and Rudy were doing the same thing to the apartments on the left. They were easy to search as there was