The Sniper's Kiss

Prologue

Major Pavlichenko rested both elbows on the table and stared down at her wineglass. “We’re not like other soldiers. Yes, sometimes they send you off to knock out communication lines or machine-gun nests, and then you’re just a rifleman with a good aim.” She paused, turning the glass with her fingertips, and Mia knew more was coming.

“But sometimes it’s personal. You’re assigned to hunt a particular officer, or an enemy sniper, one of your professional colleagues, so to speak. Then the act of shooting is… a kind of intimacy and leaves a mark on you.”

“Intimacy? Shooting an enemy from a long distance?”

“Yes, because the target’s not anonymous anymore. You might track him for days or watch him for hours, as he moves around his subordinates. When he finally settles down and you get him in your scope, you fixate on him, on his uniform. While you’re waiting for the perfect shot, you can see his rank on his cap or collar, his medals. You study the details of his face, whether he shaved that morning or has a dueling scar. Maybe he’s handsome or looks like someone you know. You wait for him to turn just the right way, and when you lay your crosshairs over his face, you look into his eyes. He’s perhaps five hundred meters away, but he could be in your embrace, and he’s yours completely.”

She stared into space and seemed to be remembering.

“You feel a surge of power but also a little sadness because you know this man has no idea he is in the last moments of his life. How many more breaths will you allow him to take? You’re tempted to let him take another and another, because by now you’re half in love with him. But then you remember your duty and your homeland, and so, after a farewell in your thoughts, you fire. Your shot, your touch, is directly to his head. It’s a moment you never forget, and we have a name for it.”

“A name, for a kill? What’s that?”

“The sniper’s kiss.”