The book of Raxworthy

Chapter 30 Part 2

When Darren got to the elevator, he was just in time to see the grinning faces of his men through the closing door.  His face set in determination, Darren headed for the stairs.  “Time for practice to pay off”, Darren murmered to himself.  Yanking the door to the stairs open, Darren slid round the half open door in the way that a high jumper slides over the bar.  For several weeks Darren had been practicing getting down the stairs quickly.  His method was to basically surf down the stairs, letting his feet move rythmically, slipping over each step, each foot barely grazing the step.  Yanking his shirt off with perfect timing, Darren used it as a makeshift glove for his right hand.  With his right hand on the well polished steel banister, Darren slid down the 17 flights of stairs and was grabbing the door handle at the bottom almost before he realised that he had started.  Breathing heavily and attempting to compose himself, he walked quickly to the elevator, where he assumed a nochalant, apathetic attitude, leaning on the wall, concealing the exhaustion from his exertion.  3...2...1, beep.  The elevator doors opened, and Darren heard the voices of his men as they filed out.  “Hehehe, poor Darren”, one of them was saying.  “Yeh, poor beggar, thinks he can beat the elevator”, another contributed.  Darren coughed inauspiciously, and the men turned round, their eyes clouded with disbelief.  

Darren: “Right, come on, don't stand round.  Let's move”.

The men were speechless, but forgot the phenomena for the time being.  The men fell in line behind Raxworthy, as the jogged out of the appartment building, out of the block, and down the congested road to the market.