Jia exhaled slowly and released her grip on the pistol.
After walking for another fifty yards, the pair veered off the path and made their way up the slope. They were leaving the valley. Jia tried to follow their movement but soon lost them in the trees. Once they were out of sight, she removed her phone and dialed one of only three numbers stored on the device.
She hated talking to her handler, but the circumstances made it necessary.
After two rings, a man answered in Beijing-accented Mandarin. “Where are you?”
“Versailles,” she said, stiffly.
“Versailles? Why didn’t you check in before?”
“I was operating too close to the targets. Everything is clear now.” Jia kept her eyes focused on the spot where the two had disappeared, just in case the man attempted to double back and catch her off guard.
“Give me a situation report,” the man said.
Jia gave him a brief overview of all that had transpired. Knowing her handler was a man obsessed with detail, she left nothing out.
When she was finished, he said, “With the others out of the way, it’s time to make our move.”
“What do you want me to do?”
“Take the girl alive. Once you have her, I’ll send a vehicle from Paris to pick you up. We’ll have both of you on a plane by midnight.”
“And the man?”
There was a long pause.
“Kill him.”
Jia had expected his answer but needed an official confirmation. The Chinese government was reluctant to assassinate enemies on foreign soil, but in this case they didn’t have a choice. No one could know who made off with the girl.
The man continued, “When you kill him, make it look like it was the people who were following them.”
Jia knew exactly how to make that happen. She would first shoot the girl with a tranquilizer dart, then kill the man. She would then bring him back and toss him into the fire. In a few hours, all the bodies would be little more than a pile of charred bones. The French authorities would never be able to sort it all out. She smiled. In the end, they would probably find a way to blame the Americans.
After ending the call, she swung down through the branches with the skill of an Olympic gymnast. Seconds later, she dropped to the ground in a crouch and listened intently, her ears trained to pick up the slightest noise.
Hearing nothing, she drew the Beretta and slipped quietly down the gravel drive, eventually turning in to the trees at the same place where the pair had disappeared.
It was time to put the weapon in her country’s hands.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
Dear Reader,
Thank you so much for purchasing Betrayal. I know there are a lot of ways you can spend your entertainment dollars, so I’m grateful you decided to spend yours on one of my novels. I’m currently working on the fifth book in the Delphi series, as well as a new series.
I sincerely hope you found Betrayal entertaining. If you did, I’d like to ask you to do something: please go online and post an honest review. The reviews of satisfied readers are vital to the success of every author, and please know that your effort will be greatly appreciated.
Please also let me know your thoughts by emailing me at johnsneedenauthor@gmail.com. I love hearing from my readers.
Thanks again and I hope to hear from you soon!
John Sneeden
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
John was born on the coast of North Carolina, and thanks to his mother, a voracious reader, he began discovering books at a very early age. If not outside playing basketball or fishing with friends, he could be found curled up in a living room chair with an Edgar Rice Burroughs novel. In fact, it was Burroughs who first kindled his love for escapist fiction.
After a twenty-five year career in banking, John decided to turn his life-long passion for reading into a career as an author. He still lives in the southern United States, and when not writing he loves to travel and follow NHL hockey.
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