He placed his boot where it would block the door from opening more than eight inches.
The door struck his foot.
As predicted, the gunman retracted the door and tried again, this time with more force. Again, it struck his foot.
Nathan's night-vision scope gave him a good view of the intruder's reflection in the mirror.
Exactly like LG's attackers, the man wore digital camo and body armor, but armed with a menacing Mac-10 instead of a TASER.
Radio traffic between Delta Lead and Harv buzzed in his ear.
"The elevator's on the move."
"Copy, Delta Lead," Harv said. "Kilo Three, stay here and cover the exit corridor. I'm relocating to a position closer to the elevator."
In his mind, he saw Harv weaving between the cars, heading for the elevator.
Delta Lead's voice cut in. "Kilo Three. That gunman's five seconds from reaching the glass along Olympic."
Nathan took slow, shallow breaths, calming his mind.
It was all about timing. Perfect timing, he silently added.
The door retracted again. Knowing the obstruction caused some puzzlement, he moved his foot back six inches.
When the door struck his foot a third time, he started a mental countdown.
The gunman's expression changed to irritation and Nathan knew what was coming.
Like a snake moving down a gopher hole, a hand extended through the opening.
Three.
The hand swept up and down on the wall- Two.
And stopped at the switch.
One.
Putting his full weight behind the move, he shouldered the door shut and felt bone snap.
A howl of pain erupted, but Nathan kept the man's arm pinned. "Kilo Three, shoot through the door. Now!"
Nathan yanked the door open, kicked his assailant into the corridor, and thrust himself backward.
The showroom door erupted in a horizontal hail of splinters.
Several of LG's rounds pounded the gunman's vest before he fell against the wall. The man grunted and tried to bring his Mac-10 to bear on the bathroom, but one of LG's rounds struck the outside of his shoulder, missing the ballistic vest.
Fountains of light now gushed through the perforated showroom door and Nathan could see the man still trying to bring his weapon up.
Staying within the safety of the bathroom, he painted the gunman's face with his laser and fired.
A green hole replaced the green dot.
"Kilo Three, cease fire, cease fire!"
Any of LG's bullets that hadn't struck the first gunman had forced the second gunman to duck for cover.
When the barrage ended, he pivoted into the corridor in a crouch, lined up on the remaining man, who sat on the floor applying pressure to a leg wound. With his free hand, the man tried to bring his weapon up. Nathan drilled him in the forehead.
It wasn't pretty.
The guy began convulsing, then fell over and continued to jerk around like a tortured earthworm. Not all head shots resulted in a quick death. He'd seen this before.
Nathan ended it with a bullet under the man's chin.
Three rounds fired, thirteen left in the magazine.
He couldn't afford to feel badly right now. Them or us, he reminded himself.
After advancing to the door, which was propped open with a spare Mac-10 magazine, he flattened himself against the wall. Whoever remained out there had to know what was going on. Several of LG's rounds had struck the exit door but hadn't passed through.
Delta Lead said, "The two gunmen in the alley are moving toward the door."
Before Nathan could click his radio, Harv said, "Kilo Three, incoming!"
Harvey heard Nate's order for LG to shoot through the showroom door and knew it would draw the attention of the gunman along Olympic Boulevard. It put LG at risk, but she'd deliver the suppression fire with no questions asked. Thankfully, Nate didn't need a prolonged salvo. He called for an immediate cease-fire and LG's pistol went silent.
Sure enough, as soon as she opened fire, the gunman on Olympic did the same thing.
"Kilo Three, incoming!"
The guy discharged his suppressed weapon through the glass, sweeping it back and forth like a firefighter.
The result was chaotic.
Like a crystalline waterfall, a downpour of glass fell into the showroom.
Windshields shattered, sheet metal tore, and tires flattened.
Some of the slugs skipped off the granite floor and slammed into the offices on the far side of the room.
Harvey slid sideways to get behind the rear tire of a Jaguar. "Kilo Three, suppression fire on Olympic!"
He listened to LG's shots change tone as she fired toward the shooter. The barrage from the street ended. Either she'd scored a hit or the gunman was changing magazines.
He had his answer.
Another salvo tore through the room and the mayhem began anew.
The sound was surreal.
The suppressed Mac-10 couldn't be heard over the banging, clanging, and breaking glass, but it looked like invisible demons were unleashing Hell's wrath upon the vehicles.
He broke the side window of an Aston Martin and lined up on the elevator. It took all the control he had to keep his attention focused away from the shooter on Olympic, but he couldn't allow anyone to flank them along the rear wall of the showroom.
The elevator doors opened.
Nothing happened.
No one came out.
Someone could be hiding in there, so he maintained his position.
A bullet whizzed past his feet to the right. Shit!
"Kilo Three, status?" he whispered.
"He keeps ducking behind the corner. I can't get a clear shot."
"Keep firing."
"Kilo team, the other gunman just turned onto Stewart Street. He'll be in a position to shoot into the showroom near the main entrance in five seconds."
Harvey copied the transmission.
The second barrage from LG's gunman went silent.
Delta Lead said, "Good shooting, Kilo Three. You winged him. He's limping back to the east alley."
The stairwell door next to the elevator burst open and three men carrying pistols fanned out in different directions. Unless they'd changed clothes, these weren't the men who'd entered the building with briefcases. These guys were dressed exactly like the mercenaries who'd attacked LG a few hours ago.
Harvey reported the new threat to everyone and lined up on the first gunman. He scored a head shot, but the other two hit the deck and disappeared below the cars. He moved to his right a few feet.
Good thing he did.
Both gunmen opened fire.
Several slugs careened off the floor where he'd just stood.
"Kilo team, we recommend you shoot the overheads and switch to night vision."
He wasted no time taking out the overhead spots. Harvey concentrated on his half of the showroom while LG broke the others. Within six seconds, they'd engulfed themselves in darkness.
Advantage good guys.
"Switching to NV," Harvey whispered. "I'm moving toward the rear wall. Kilo Three, maintain eyes on the exit corridor. Be prepared to give Kilo One more cover fire. Delta Lead, what're the gunmen in the east alley doing?"
Nathan didn't like the delay in action and needed an update.
Harv came through again. After giving instructions to LG, Harv asked about the gunmen in the alley.
"They're standing on either side of the door."
Nathan didn't know if their Mac-10s were 9mm or 45ACP, but he was fairly certain the bullets wouldn't penetrate this steel-clad door. If they did, they wouldn't have much energy left. At least he hoped not.
"Kilo One, the man Kilo Three wounded just limped into the east alley. One of your gunmen is running over to him. Now would be a good time to slam open the door and catch the remaining gunman on the right side."
Without answering Delta Lead's transmission, he stepped back and kicked the door with all his strength.
The door accelerated around its radius and hammered the gunman. Needing eyes on the two remaining threats, Nathan peered around the jamb toward Olympic.
Caught in the open, the gunman running toward his wounded comrade stopped, focused on the exit door, then made the decision to abandon his humanitarian mission. He ran past his wounded comrade toward the mouth of the alley at Olympic.
So much for loyalty, thought Nathan.
The guy was savvy enough to weave back and forth, creating a difficult target.
Nathan used the door's frame to steady his aim. Not wanting to risk a head shot, he painted his laser on the gunman's back, adjusted it slightly lower, and fired three shots just below the guy's ballistic vest.
Ten rounds left.
The man shuddered from being struck at least once, but managed to stay on his feet. Limping as fast as he could, the gunman continued his retreat toward Olympic.
Nathan checked the gunman who'd taken the impact from the door and saw the guy on his hands and knees-his Mac-10 a few feet away. Blood flowing from his nose, he looked up with a resigned expression. Even though this man wouldn't have shown Nathan the same mercy, he made a split-second decision to spare him from the underworld, though he might need a cane for the rest of life. Nathan shot both of the guy's shins, stepped into the alley, and kicked his weapon under the parked SUVs.
Although hobbled, the man LG had wounded brought his Mac-10 to bear. Nathan darted back into the exit corridor just as the guy fired. The subsonic bullets missed him, but the man he'd spared wasn't as fortunate. Multiple slugs pounded him. It wasn't pretty and he averted his eyes.
When the salvo ended, Nathan peered around the corner and saw the shooter frantically attempting to change magazines. He again used the jamb to steady his aim and drilled the gunman's face. Nathan lined up again on the guy limping toward Olympic. He couldn't allow him to reach the mouth of the alley and disappear.
Nathan aimed at the man's butt and fired three quick, but controlled rounds.
The projectiles found their mark.
The gunman tumbled.
With only four rounds left in the magazine, he took a few seconds to reload. His shot count jumped back up to sixteen rounds. One in the pipe, fifteen in the mag.
Nathan looked at the man he'd hammered with the door. Moaning in agony, the guy was a bloody mess. Half of his face was shredded and his neck spurted from a torn artery. He'd be dead soon. In an act of mercy, Nathan shot him through the temple.
"Kilo One, incoming!"
He took a backward step into the exit corridor as another salvo of bullets shrieked and howled down the alley.
The faceless man shuddered as more slugs plowed into him. Farther down the alley to the south, the Mercedes shuttle and Dumpsters took impacts. Metal thumped and glass shattered.
When the barrage ended, Nathan leaned out of the door and began a rapid-fire salvo of his own, firing several rounds per second at the remaining gunman. He purposely aimed low, skipping the bullets off the concrete. Some of the slugs might strike the guy's vest, or miss altogether, but he needed to keep the last gunman from reloading.