My mind was racing with what had just happened. The police suspected my involvement in a crime I was innocent of, but now the officers sent to bring me in were dead. No one would believe that. The man with the sniper rifle had seen to that. It also explained why he hadn’t shot to kill. He hadn’t missed me by accident but by design. I was being set up.

Someone must have heard the shots—in fact I could hear alarmed voices calling out from the nearby hotel—and the police would be coming any minute. The sensible thing to do would be to wait for the responding emergency vehicles, put down my gun and throw myself on the mercy of the justice system. But I was under no illusions; there was no way I was going to hang around, not when all they’d see was a cop killer. I’d be facedown in the dirt, my hands cuffed and surrounded by armed men itching to blow me away long before I could argue my innocence.

There was only one way out of this that I could see.

I had to take down the shooter.

The shoreline was made up of stones and gravel, but gave way within a few yards to tufts of grass. If I stood up, or even crouched, I’d be an easy target. The trees and shrubbery in the park didn’t offer much cover from the shooter with his high vantage either, so all I could do was belly crawl along the shore, my knees and elbows propelling me along. I considered crawling into the channel and swimming, but decided against it. I needed my weapon dry.

Fifty yards on, I quickly raised my eyes over the embankment and saw that the shooter would have to lean out from the tower to get me now that I’d compromised his position. I didn’t think he’d do that. I quickly raced up the embankment and into a small copse of trees. Crouching there, I pulled out my gun.

If I used it now, tests would show that the gun had been fired, I’d have gunshot residue on my skin and clothing: it would mean more questions if the police took me down, it would compound my guilt as a cop killer. But I wasn’t going to go against a man with a sniper rifle with only my bare hands.

Distantly I heard the first wail of sirens. The police were on their way. My window of opportunity had just been slammed in my face.

Got to move, I told myself. I have to take down this man or I’ll never get the chance again.