I reached the first landing. From here on up it was pitch black. I paused long enough to remove my loafers. Staying close to the railing I moved silently upward. I stopped when I heard the sounds of metal against metal. I knew that sound.

How many steps were there? I climbed these stairs every day, but who pays attention to how many there are. At last I reached out for the railing and there was none. I was on the second floor hallway. It was a short hall that teed off. The left tee led to a walking track above the gym floor, the right tee to the coaches office.

Cautiously, I looked around the left corner. There, kneeling before the balcony railing, was a dark figure in silhouette.
Oh my God, he’s got a rifle. Throwing caution aside, I ran toward him. At the last second he must have sensed my being, because he jerked to his feet, but by then I had thrown myself at him.

Our collision was the sound of two rams butting horns. The rife boomed harmlessly into the ceiling as we crashed against the..