Chapter 3 The hostage - taker lifted a megaphone toward my position and started screaming : [ ] " You cops are REALLY pushing it ! I told you no funny business , but you just ignored me , didn't you ? " ] " And now you've got a fucking sniper watching me ? Do you have a death wish ? ! " [ ] " I'm giving you ten seconds ! If that helicopter isn't here , we're ALL going down ! " ]] " TEN ! " The air got thick with tension . The hostage - taker had backed himself into the worst possible angle for a clean shot , and the whole situation felt like it was choking to death . [ ] I kept my sights on the remote in his hand , readjusting my position . One shot to take out that detonator - that was our only chance left . ] But Ryan was still running his mouth over the comm : " Stay calm , everyone . This guy's just bluffing . He doesn't have the guts to actually blow anything up ! " ] NINE ! " I'd just steadied my rifle when Nina suddenly lunged at me , slapping her hand right over my scope . ] ] 7 " I thought we agreed I was taking the shot ! Why are you trying to steal it ? " I shoved her hand away , but the lens was already smeared with her sweaty palm prints . " EIGHT ! " I glared at her , and she just ripped off her headset completely . [ ] " Honestly ? This hostage isn't even worth saving . Who cares if he dies ? At least I can get some target practice . " [] " Let me spell it out for you , Claire - when this mission goes to hell , YOU'RE taking the blame ! " ] ] " SEVEN ! " " Ryan and I already worked it out . Mission fails , you're gone . He's sick of dealing with antisocial women like you anyway . Hope you're ready to get fired AND divorced ! " " SIX ! " I didn't have time for her garbage . I bent down , grabbed the rifle Nina had dropped , and raised it quickly . [ ] She tried to tackle me again . ] ] " FIVE ! " I dodged sideways . She went flying past me , and I used the momentum to kick her to the ground , yanking out my cuffs and locking her hands behind her back . " It's fine , he won't actually detonate anything ... " ] ] Ryan was STILL babbling over the comm . I'd had enough . I keyed my mic and shouted : [ ] " ALL UNITS GO ! SWAT , create a distraction ! I'm taking the shot on the detonatort " ] ] " FOUR ! " The next second - CRASH ! Glass exploded as SWAT burst through the windows , successfully pulling the hostage - taker's attention away from me . His finger started moving toward the trigger button . In that split second , I held my breath , locked onto his exposed hand with lightning speed , and squeezed the trigger [ ] BANG The hostage - taker's hand holding the bomb exploded on impact , and the remote shattered under my bullet . ] Chapter 3 He spun around , trying to draw his gun on the hostage , but the SWAT team leader put a round through his other hand . [ ] The officer dove forward , pinning him to the ground with a tactical knife at his throat . [ ] The rest of the team rushed in to extract the hostage . I stood there , finally allowing myself to breathe . ] ] But then Ryan's voice crackled through my earpiece again : ] " Claire ! You acted without authorization , compromised the sniper position , disobeyed direct orders , and created massive operational risk ! Do you have any idea what the consequences are going to be ? " My head was spinning . I suddenly remembered what Nina had said earlier : [] " When this mission goes to hell , YOU'RE taking the blame ! " That's when it hit me . From the very beginning , they'd planned to make me the scapegoat . No matter how this turned out , I was always going to be the one holding the bag .] ]