When a treasure-hunting
black ops soldier and a disgraced, reckless archeologist team up in search of a
priceless artifact, they might get more than they bargained for.
Ever since leaving the
Green Berets to work in private security, Alex Tucker has longed for some
excitement—and he’s about to get his wish.
Archeologist Malcolm
Armstrong needs the chance to prove he isn’t a fraud. Along with Alex, he’s
hired to track down and authenticate a valuable scepter, in a hunt that turns
deadlier than either of them imagined as they search dangerous locations across
three continents and try to stay ahead of the factions who want the treasure
for themselves—and Malcolm and Alex dead.
Just as they realize the
feelings between them transcend convenience and the thrill of the chase, a
rival reemerges, threatening everything.
Buy links: Dreamspinner Amazon
Cat gives this one 4
Meows with a 3 Purr heat index...
This story has a lot of
action, two characters that are like water and oil and yet seem to stick. I
love a good opposites attract and action, suspense. this story delivered it
well. I was expecting more booby trap stuff since all the Indiana jones
references but wasn't disappointed...much. The action and suspense were there,
a slow burn that turns ho and an allover good story
Excerpt…
THE SCENT of lavender
pervaded the picturesque hilltop town of Roussillon in the heart of Provence,
aided by the soft June breeze and enhanced by the muted buzz of thousands of
bees tending the fields. Against the backdrop of a cornflower-blue sky and
pastel clouds that would have done Monet himself proud, it was one of the most
beautifully bucolic landscapes I’d ever seen in my life.
It was almost a shame that
I only got to experience it because of a kidnapping.
“Keep your eyes off your
phone, you philistine. We’re at a café.” The woman sitting across from me
crossed her legs and took a sip of her cappuccino, letting one bright red
sandal dangle from just the toes of her left foot. Her dark brown skin glowed
in the late afternoon light, and she looked perfectly at home surrounded by the
tall ochre buildings, edged with muted white bricks to help distinguish one
from the next.
I put my phone aside and
smiled at her as I reached for my drink, trying not to grit my teeth. “He’s ten
minutes late for the pickup.”
“What did you really
expect? You put water in his fuel tank. Doubtless his engine is running a bit
rough by now. He’ll be here, though.”
Here was actually fifty yards farther up the hill, inside
the Church of Saint Michael. It was a quiet, unassuming place of worship,
without the fanfare of a lot of historical French churches. It was also the
designated drop point for the five million euros that was Sophie Mercier’s
ransom demand, tucked into a leather bag beneath a pew in the front row.
It hadn’t been hard to
find the men responsible for kidnapping Sophie, the fifteen-year-old daughter
of a wealthy shipping magnate with offices in every major city in France. She’d
been snatched on a school trip to Provence, stolen out of her private room at
the picturesque but low-security hotel in this same little town two nights ago.
Two hours later, a ransom demand was sent to her father. Instead of reaching
out to the authorities, he immediately contacted my employer, Kensington
International Security.
“He wants the retrieval
kept low-key, as far from media attention as possible,” Robert Kensington had
said when he called to brief me on the job. “Rene Mercier is renegotiating a
government contract right now, and he doesn’t want this to affect his
bargaining position.”
Rene Mercier sounds
like he could use a solid punch to the fucking face. But then, that was the truth about most of our
clients. They didn’t call KIS because they were nice people in a bind—they
called up a private mercenary, security, and retrieval outfit because they
wanted results and could afford to get them fast.
Working in France meant
collaborating with KIS’s in-country analyst, Patricia Diagho, who was currently
cradling her shiny black cup in one hand and gazing out at the Luberon range
like she didn’t have a care in the world. I looked away from her, back down to
my phone. Still no movement.
“Alex, honestly. People
are going to think you’re nothing but a rude American.”
“A completely accurate
assumption,” I agreed. “I’d rather have them think that than get a slow start
because I was too busy blending in to do my job.”
Patricia looked at me over
the top edge of her designer sunglasses and raised one eyebrow. “Are you
insinuating that I don’t know how to do mine? As if I don’t have an alert
programmed into my phone to let me know as soon as the package begins to move?
As if I would ever let a disgusting waste of humanity like this man and his
friends get away with kidnapping a young girl? Hmm? Is that what you think?”
Patricia was great to work
with, for the most part, but she could be overzealous about protecting what she
considered her part of the job—the technical side of things. I chose my words
carefully. “I think that I’d rather be sure than not, under the circumstances.
It’s no reflection on you or your work, just of my own paranoia.” That much was
completely true—I knew Patricia was good. Less than twelve hours after
receiving the ransom demand, she had profiles ready for me on all three of the
kidnappers, including likely spots where they’d be holding Sophie. Two hours of
riding around the local countryside had confirmed the recent addition of a
biometric lock to the thick metal door of one of the warehouses listed, as well
as new gleaming bars over the windows. Bingo. After that, it
was just a matter of taking them out without causing harm to Sophie.
“Hmm. Well, I suppose I’ll
overlook it this time.” She leaned back again and sighed. “Better you glance at
your phone than be unable to keep your hands off your piece.”
“It’s like you want me
to think you’ve got a dirty mind.”
Cari Z is a Colorado girl
who loves snow and sunshine. She has a wonderful relationship with her husband,
a complex relationship with the characters in her head and a sadomasochistic
relationship with her exercise routine. She hopes that you enjoy reading what
she's put out there as much as she enjoyed writing it in the first place.
@author_cariz
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enjoyed the excerpt
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good book.
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