‘That was impressive,’ Morgan beamed.
‘I’m glad you liked it,’ came a familiar voice from behind them.
Morgan turned and saw the outstretched hand of Colonel De Villiers.
‘I owe you an apology, Mr Morgan,’ the Guards officer admitted with remorse. ‘I’m sorry I doubted your talents. Rest assured that we will be re-examining Private’s bids for other royal events.’
Morgan was surprised by the admission, but he suspected there was more behind it than gratitude for saving the life of Abbie Winchester.
‘I appreciate that, Colonel, but right now our only interest in the royal family is the full recovery of Abbie.’
The Colonel smiled, his face seeming to strain with the effort. ‘Ah, yes. About Miss Winchester,’ he began. ‘I’m sure you can appreciate, Mr Morgan, that affairs such as these are best handled behind closed doors. A scandal involving the Duke is to no one’s benefit, and I’m sure that your discretion in the matter will go a long way in securing the very lucrative security contracts for royal events.’
Morgan held the Colonel’s gaze. When the American spoke, the officer’s stretched smile faded to a grimace. ‘Abbie Winchester is the victim of a serious crime, Colonel, and it’s down to her what action she wants to take against the people who committed that crime, including her own father.’
‘I don’t see that—’
‘I’m not finished,’ Morgan cut him off. ‘Grace Beckit is dead, Colonel, and all of the evidence that Private has gathered has accompanied Aaron Shaw into custody. I expect the Duke will join him in the cells shortly. Scotland Yard will get the full cooperation of myself and my offices in their investigation, and those two young girls will get their justice.’
Without hiding his disgust, De Villiers turned on his heel and left as quickly as he’d appeared.
‘You’ve made another enemy there,’ Cook cautioned.
‘But I’ve made a friend, too.’ Morgan smiled at her. Beside him, Knight began to take a great interest in the parade programme in his hands.
‘Maybe,’ Cook allowed, tilting her head a little to the side. ‘I do think I could work well beneath you.’
‘It gets better,’ Morgan promised.
‘Does it?’ she asked. Out of Knight’s field of vision, the Major traced a fingernail along the back of Morgan’s neck. ‘So when do I find out how I did on my assessment?’
Morgan said nothing. Instead he looked up to where the smoke trails of the Red Arrows merged and blurred against the azure blue of the sky. Tomorrow he would be up there, on his way to a home halfway across the world, and the pressures that came with being the head of a global investigation agency. But tonight he would be a tourist.
He turned in his chair and smiled at the captivating woman in front of him.
‘The parade was great,’ he said.
Cook looked deep into his eyes. The slightest tremble appeared on her perfect lips as Morgan took her hand.
‘Now show me what else London has to offer.’
STORIES AT THE SPEED OF LIFE
www.bookshots.com
ALSO BY JAMES PATTERSON
ALEX CROSS NOVELS
Along Came a Spider
Kiss the Girls
Jack and Jill
Cat and Mouse
Pop Goes the Weasel
Roses are Red
Violets are Blue
Four Blind Mice
The Big Bad Wolf
London Bridges
Mary, Mary
Cross
Double Cross
Cross Country
Alex Cross’s Trial (with Richard DiLallo)
I, Alex Cross
Cross Fire
Kill Alex Cross
Merry Christmas, Alex Cross
Alex Cross, Run
Cross My Heart
Hope to Die
Cross Justice
THE WOMEN’S MURDER CLUB SERIES
1st to Die
2nd Chance (with Andrew Gross)
3rd Degree (with Andrew Gross)
4th of July (with Maxine Paetro)
The 5th Horseman (with Maxine Paetro)
The 6th Target (with Maxine Paetro)
7th Heaven (with Maxine Paetro)
8th Confession (with Maxine Paetro)
9th Judgement (with Maxine Paetro)
10th Anniversary (with Maxine Paetro)
11th Hour (with Maxine Paetro)
12th of Never (with Maxine Paetro)
Unlucky 13 (with Maxine Paetro)
14th Deadly Sin (with Maxine Paetro)
15th Affair (with Maxine Paetro)
DETECTIVE MICHAEL BENNETT SERIES
Step on a Crack (with Michael Ledwidge)
Run for Your Life (with Michael Ledwidge)
Worst Case (with Michael Ledwidge)
Tick Tock (with Michael Ledwidge)
I, Michael Bennett (with Michael Ledwidge)
Gone (with Michael Ledwidge)
Burn (with Michael Ledwidge)
Alert (with Michael Ledwidge)
PRIVATE NOVELS
Private (with Maxine Paetro)
Private London (with Mark Pearson)
Private Games (with Mark Sullivan)
Private: No. 1 Suspect (with Maxine Paetro)
Private Berlin (with Mark Sullivan)
Private Down Under (with Michael White)
Private L.A. (with Mark Sullivan)
Private India (with Ashwin Sanghi)
Private Vegas (with Maxine Paetro)
Private Sydney (with Kathryn Fox)
Private Paris (with Mark Sullivan)
NYPD RED SERIES
NYPD Red (with Marshall Karp)
NYPD Red 2 (with Marshall Karp)
NYPD Red 3 (with Marshall Karp)
NYPD Red 4 (with Marshall Karp)
STAND-ALONE THRILLERS
Sail (with Howard Roughan)
Swimsuit (with Maxine Paetro)
Don’t Blink (with Howard Roughan)
Postcard Killers (with Liza Marklund)
Toys (with Neil McMahon)
Now You See Her (with Michael Ledwidge)
Kill Me If You Can (with Marshall Karp)
Guilty Wives (with David Ellis)
Zoo (with Michael Ledwidge)
Second Honeymoon (with Howard Roughan)
Mistress (with David Ellis)
Invisible (with David Ellis)
The Thomas Berryman Number
Truth or Die (with Howard Roughan)
Murder House (with David Ellis)
NON-FICTION
Torn Apart (with Hal and Cory Friedman)
The Murder of King Tut (with Martin Dugard)
ROMANCE
Sundays at Tiffany’s (with Gabrielle Charbonnet)
The Christmas Wedding (with Richard DiLallo)
First Love (with Emily Raymond)
OTHER TITLES
Miracle at Augusta (with Peter de Jonge)
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escriptions of events are the products of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to actual persons is entirely coincidental.
First published in Great Britain in 2016 by BookShots
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ISBN 9781786530172
Private Royals: BookShots (A Private Thriller) Page 8
