Hostage (45 page)

Alicia broke away. ‘Kyle, I asked not
to be disturbed –’

‘Sorry, I didn’t get the
message,’ replied Charley, wheeling herself in. She glanced at Connor who was
guiltily rubbing away a faint smear of lipstick with the back of his hand.

‘Our car’s here,’ she
stated pointedly.

Connor nodded, unable to meet her
questioning stare.

‘
Already?
’ said Alicia,
almost pleading for more time.

‘We’ve a plane to catch,’
Charley replied, breezily pivoting on the spot and heading for the door.

While Charley’s back was turned,
Connor took Alicia’s hand and looked her in the eyes. ‘I definitely
won’t forget you … or that kiss!’ he promised.

Then, with great reluctance, he hurried
after Charley.
At the threshold to the room, he glanced back. Alicia
stood silhouetted by the window, gazing out across the south lawn.

‘Don’t worry, Connor, I’ll
protect her,’ said Kyle, who stood sentry at the door.

Knowing she was in safe hands, Connor headed
through the White House’s main entrance hall and out on to the driveway of the
north portico. Charley was already waiting for him in the car.

‘Honestly, I didn’t make the
first move,’ he explained, offering a sheepish grin as he clambered in next to
her. ‘Besides, I’m no longer
officially
protecting her –’

‘It’s not important,’ said
Charley, although Connor could tell that she was annoyed.

‘Surely you must’ve found
yourself in similar situations,’ he pressed.

Charley gave him a look that he
couldn’t quite read. Then her expression softened. ‘Don’t worry, I
won’t tell the colonel.’

With that she placed a black folder on
Connor’s lap. The folder was marked
CONFIDENTIAL
in red lettering
and had a silver winged shield embossed on the cover.

‘Your next assignment.’

Connor stared at Charley in disbelief.
‘But I’ve barely got out of hospital. Besides, who’s to say I
still
want to be a buddyguard.’

‘The colonel,’ she replied,
handing him a scratched key fob. ‘He says it’s in your blood … and
he’s never wrong.’

As they drove away from the White House, his
Principal safe and secure, Connor studied the key fob. His father’s
face stared back at him and Connor thought he could discern the ghost
of a proud smile.

Connor couldn’t deny the fact. It
was
in his blood. He was born to be a bodyguard.

Starting a new book is always a challenge,
and a new series is even more so. There are countless risks to the ultimate success of
the story: from deciding which plotline to follow, which characters to choose and what
words to use; to having the time to actually write the book, think without distraction
and defeat that self-doubt which plagues all authors. The journey of a book from idea to
completion is fraught with many dangers. But thankfully I was able to rely on my own
team of ‘bodyguards’ to protect me in my mission.

These fearless protectors who deserve my
thanks are:

My darling wife Sarah, my super-charged Zach
and my glorious Leo; my mum and dad who have protected me my entire life; Sue and Simon
for their love and support; buddyguards Steve and Sam; and Karen, Rob and Thomas of
‘Rose Security Forces’.

Charlie Viney, my agent, who I believe would
actually throw himself in the line of fire to protect my career! Franca Bernatavicius
and Nicky Kennedy at ILA, who would be right behind him (probably using Charlie as a
shield!) along with Pippa Le Quesne.

My squad of loyal Puffin Bodyguards – my
editor Alex Antscherl, operations leader Shannon Cullen, Jayde Lynch, Julia Teece, Wendy
Shakespeare, Helen Gray, and Sara Chadwick-Holmes for producing such a fantastic
cover.

Trevor Wilson and Sarah Wilson at Authors
Abroad for all their hard work in organizing my book tours.

My friends who continue to stand by me in
life, including but not exclusive to Geoff and Lucy, Matt, Charlie, Nick and Zelia, Ann
and Andrew (my godparents), my cousin Laura and the Dyson clan (especially my
god-daughter Lulu!).

The following fans for helping me with the
Arabic: Shazaan Nadeem, Jan Murphy, Lee Lalka, Peter Brown, Mus Hertoghs, Zo Zo Harley
Clews.

These super-fans who deserve acknowledgement
for their unwavering support from Young Samurai through to Bodyguard: Kevin Haex, Tim
Hoogstoel, Steve McCormick, Charlie Harland and Aidan Bracher.

A huge thanks must go to all the friends I
made on my Close Protection Course with Wilplan Training. These people are
real
bodyguards and deserve true respect. This book is written in honour of them: Mandie,
Simon, George, Sarah and Andy, Big Si, Baz, Andy, Jimmy, Sean, Nigel, Alex, Joe, Ronnie,
and of course Sam and Mark!

Finally, to my instructors and the staff on
the Wilplan Close Protection Course (
www.wilplantraining.co.uk
) where I learnt the true art of being a bodyguard.
Gary, Simon, Claire, Wendy, John, Ray and Pete – thank you for your dedicated
instruction, patience and knowledge. Your wisdom is the lifeblood in this book.

Stay safe.

Chris

Any fans can keep in touch with me and the
progress of the Bodyguard series on my Facebook page, or via the website at
www.bodyguard-books.com

Warning: Do not attempt any of the techniques
described within the book without the supervision of a qualified martial arts
instructor. These can be highly dangerous moves and result in fatal injuries. The author
and publisher take no responsibility for any injuries resulting from attempting these
techniques.

Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin
Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London
WC2R 0RL
, England
Penguin Group (USA)
Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90
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Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80
Strand, London
WC2R 0RL
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First published 2013

Text copyright © Chris Bradford, 2013

Cover illustration by Larry Rostant

All rights reserved

The moral right of the author has been
asserted

Typeset by Palimpsest Book Production Ltd,
Falkirk, Stirlingshire

ISBN: 978-0-141-97150-6

www.puffin.co.uk