Revenge of the Adventurer! 27.

Hampered by my injured arm, I ran from the house after Scruff. She pulled a torch from her belt as she ran.
"You'll never catch me!" Galliard called from ahead of us. "Never! No-one can catch me!"
"Careful!" I warned Scruff. "He's mad!"
"You think so?" she joked back. "Sis, I heard him!"
"No-one's going to catch me!" I heard Galliard cry. "No-one! Not ever!"
I'm fast, and I ran after him. Suddenly I heard a shot. Galliard had another gun!
"Watch out!" I warned. "He's armed!"
"I heard him! He's going to kill someone if he's not careful!"
Guided by my torch, we ran through the dark woodland, following the disturbing sound of Galliard's laughter. I might have let him go, but he was armed and dangerous - a homicidal maniac. I hoped Barton had called the police - Surrey police are more understanding where I'm concerned, since they don't have the experience of cases where I've had to go rather a long way beyond what concerned citizens usually do. Well, not so much as the London police do, anyhow.
"Galliard!" I yelled, "be careful! You'll kill yourself!"
"No!" he cried back. "I can't die! I can't! I'll kill you! I'll kill all of you!"
We broke from the woodland to find ourselves in a clearing on the edge of a cliff. Far below a river ran. Ahead of us, facing us, his clothes torn, his eyes wild, was Galliard, a small pistol in his right hand.
"I'm going to kill you," he laughed. Scruff stared at him. She'd never faced an insane enemy before, I remembered. I hoped she wouldn't try anything stupid.
"You thought you could stop me," Galliard laughed. "No-one can stop me! I'm going to destroy John Barton and everything he ever stood for! I'll kill you. Then I'll kill him! I'll kill all of you! And everyone will think I'm a hero. I'll tell them you were all evil, that you tried to kill me. And they'll believe me. They've GOT to believe me! They have to believe me!"
As he ranted, he did not notice my left hand move behind me, to a pouch on my belt. It was designed to open easily, and it did. I took hold of something in the pouch and slowly drew it out.
"Which one shall I kill first?" Galliard mused. "Will it be the little one in the red jacket, or the one in grey? I'll kill you! I'll..."
"No!"
I threw the magnesium flare, covering my eyes as I did so. I saw the blinding flas through my eyelids, and Galliard screamed.
"Down!" I cried to Scruff. We both hit the ground as Galliard staggered, disorientated, blinded.
"My eyes!" he screamed, waving his gun in the air. "My eyes!" He staggered back, and I realised too late the danger he was in.
"No! move forward!" I yelled.
"No! I won't do what you say! I'll jump back!"
No!"
But it was too late. I jumped to my feet, but Galliard jumped backwards, and with a yell of terror he was gone. Over the cliff.