FROM MY FIRST NOVEL
PROLOGUE
In his bedroom, James Vallence woke with a start. He froze. Something hard and metallic had pressed against his ear. A female voice hissed, “If you’re in any doubt this is a real gun and I’ll use it without a second thought.” The end of the barrel jabbed against his temple to emphasise the threat.
In the darkness he could only see the silhouette of the woman but he could smell her perspiration and sense her tension. She had spoken French as if it was her native language, though not with the Mediterranean patois of the local villagers.
He figured he was dealing with a professional burglar; a male accomplice, if she had one, might be prowling the villa. He’d find there was little worth taking. But what if he stumbled on Kim in her room and decided she could be a consolation prize?
James tried negotiating a way out, “Are you after money?”
The gun barrel tapped the bridge of his nose hard enough to hurt. “If you speak again you won’t look pretty when you wake up.”
They waited. The light over the landing came on abruptly, splashing through the open doorway and onto the woman. She was pale-skinned. Her cold eyes stared back at him out of a dark ski mask.
A male voice came from the landing in accented French, “I’ve got her.”
James realised instantly that the intruders had come to kidnap Kim, not to commit burglary. He panicked, blurting in English, “Leave her. My parents are wealthy. They’ll pay a ransom if you take me instead.”
Disinterested, but wary, the woman stood up. The rough male voice ordered, “Let’s get going. Just knock him out. The girl’s all we want.”
James was too slow. The woman reacted instantly to his lunge for her gun. There was a blinding flash of light, an explosion, and an impact that threw him violently back on the pillow.
tsw.createspace.com/title3340898
In his bedroom, James Vallence woke with a start. He froze. Something hard and metallic had pressed against his ear. A female voice hissed, “If you’re in any doubt this is a real gun and I’ll use it without a second thought.” The end of the barrel jabbed against his temple to emphasise the threat.
In the darkness he could only see the silhouette of the woman but he could smell her perspiration and sense her tension. She had spoken French as if it was her native language, though not with the Mediterranean patois of the local villagers.
He figured he was dealing with a professional burglar; a male accomplice, if she had one, might be prowling the villa. He’d find there was little worth taking. But what if he stumbled on Kim in her room and decided she could be a consolation prize?
James tried negotiating a way out, “Are you after money?”
The gun barrel tapped the bridge of his nose hard enough to hurt. “If you speak again you won’t look pretty when you wake up.”
They waited. The light over the landing came on abruptly, splashing through the open doorway and onto the woman. She was pale-skinned. Her cold eyes stared back at him out of a dark ski mask.
A male voice came from the landing in accented French, “I’ve got her.”
James realised instantly that the intruders had come to kidnap Kim, not to commit burglary. He panicked, blurting in English, “Leave her. My parents are wealthy. They’ll pay a ransom if you take me instead.”
Disinterested, but wary, the woman stood up. The rough male voice ordered, “Let’s get going. Just knock him out. The girl’s all we want.”
James was too slow. The woman reacted instantly to his lunge for her gun. There was a blinding flash of light, an explosion, and an impact that threw him violently back on the pillow.
tsw.createspace.com/title3340898
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