The Fourth Option
by Matt Hilton
Contents
27
Overview
The hostage exchange erupts into a firefight, but Hunter’s preparation lets Mercer break free, wound Vince, and help turn the ambush against Vince’s men. Vince still escapes, leaving Hunter, Rink, Mercer, and Sue briefly believing they have survived the worst.
That hope collapses when a hidden second sniper opens fire, striking Mercer and Sue before Harvey Lucas can stop him. Harvey kills both snipers, but Sue dies, turning the rescue into a bitter, incomplete victory and deepening the cost of Vince’s war against them.
Summary
Vince’s ambush begins with a rifle shot, but Hunter and Rink’s counterplan works before Vince can finish the trade. Mercer breaks the disguised duct-tape restraints Hunter prepared, pulls the hidden pistol from his waistband, shoves Sue down, and shoots Vince, wounding him. At the same time, Hunter and Rink fire on Vince’s two nearby gunmen, killing them after a brief exchange in which Rink is nicked in the forearm.
As the shooting clears, Vince abandons the fight and runs for the trees, then escapes by speedboat instead of trying to recover Sue or finish Mercer. Hunter and Rink move in to protect Mercer and Sue while they recover. Mercer removes Sue’s gag and embraces her, and Sue, shocked but grateful, accepts his affection. Rink voices frustration that Vince has survived yet again, though Hunter insists his luck will not last forever.
Sue realizes that Hunter, Rink, and Mercer cooperated to rescue her, and Rink confirms that all of them played a part. Mercer apologizes for failing to kill Vince, but Rink tells him that wounding Vince and driving him off was enough, because a clean shot from Vince could have changed everything. Even in that apparent victory, Hunter remains uneasy because the numbers from Vince’s crew still do not seem right.
Hunter starts warning everyone to leave the exposed clearing, but the danger arrives first. A distant rifle shot hits Mercer and Sue before the sound fully reaches them. Hunter and Rink dive into action, with Rink throwing Mercer and Sue into the shallow ditch for cover while Hunter searches unsuccessfully for the hidden shooter. More shots follow, then three answering rifle cracks ring out from elsewhere and the gunfire stops.
Hunter finally sees Harvey Lucas emerge from concealment in a ghillie suit with a rifle. Harvey explains that he killed the first sniper, the woman Vince called Pam, at the start of the fight, but did not realize there was a second sniper until that shooter opened fire. Harvey kills the second sniper too, but too late to prevent the damage. Looking toward Rink and Mercer, Hunter understands the outcome: Sue does not rise, her breathing has stopped, and the rescue ends in loss despite the tactical victory.
Who Appears
- HunterNarrator who prepared Mercer’s fake restraints, fought through the ambush, and realizes too late another shooter remains.
- RinkHunter’s ally; kills one gunman, is grazed in the forearm, protects Mercer and Sue, and witnesses Sue’s death.
- Jason MercerBreaks free using Hunter’s plan, shoots and wounds Vince, shields Sue, and survives the later sniper attack.
- Sue CarterFreed from Vince’s custody, learns the others worked together for her, then is fatally shot by a hidden sniper.
- VinceLaunches the ambush, is wounded by Mercer, abandons his men, and escapes across the bayou by speedboat.
- Harvey LucasHidden ally in a ghillie suit who kills Pam and the second sniper, but arrives too late to save Sue.
- PamVince’s riflewoman; killed by Harvey at the start of the firefight before she can finish the ambush.