HISTORY OF THE END OF THE WORLD

• the Atlan Chronicles 5 –
  Laura loved Amsterdam from the star. Underneath the hectic of big city life, there was a tone of relaxation in the people and even the laws. She used all kinds of food, several drugs and got to know several locals a lot better. She even found a job in a coffeeshop at a quiet canal. Amsterdam was not that overorganised as the metropoles she had visited on her travels. The combination of water, history and a amazing cultural life, made the capital of the Netherlands ideal for her.
  Her work started at ten in the morning. Luckily she found a nice room, not far from the Zoo and on walking distance from the coffee-shop.
  On her way to it, she passed numerous small shops, selling food, textiles, tulipbulbs, clothing and antiques. She passed stands selling cheap art, jewelry and books. At this time of the day the streets and alleys were quiet and she could take her time to shop with her eyes.
  She was standing in front of one of her favorite shop, selling mainly African art, when suddenly the world exploded. Laura was hit by the blaste-wave, which knocked her to the ground. When the dust had settled, she saw, that the facade of a left-wing bookshop was blown away and pieces of paper shortly filled the air.
  At that moment, an elderly man ran out of the ruins. He was tall, bald and moved like a threatened predator. He stood still for a moment and listened intentively. Then he started running towards her. He was about 100 yards away from the blast-area, when a uniformed and helmeted cop appeared. Without hesitation he shouldered his rifle and started shooting. The fugitive threw himself to the ground and crawled amongst the tables of a shoarma-”tent”.
  Laura opened her eyes when the shots went silent and saw, right into the eyes of the run-away. There was a moment of intense contact. There eyes locked and she felt that she was bombarded with information. The older man reached into his coat and withdrew a small package and threw it towards her. Instintively she closed her eyes again. When she opened them again, the fugitive was gone.
  Laura pressed her face to the stones and heard the sound of multiple footsteps running by, pursuing the stranger. A few minutes it was quiet, except for the approaching sounds of the police, an ambulance and the fire-departement.
  Instinctively she grabbed the package and put it in het bag. She brushed the dirt from her clothes and, amidst the growing chaos, slid into a small alley and disappeared from the “crime-scene”.