Free Black Horn by A. J. Quinnell

that
incurred Becker's wrath.
    "There
were two mistakes made." Rolph Becker said bitterly. "The first in
Hong Kong, when that idiot Tommy Mo didn't realise that the bloody house of
that Chinese professor had a sprinkler system, which we know saved a lot of his
documents. The other mistake was made here. We should never have allowed that
woman to be shot. If only Coppen had died, nobody would have minded much,
especially since he was an orphan. But when a woman gets shot, it's
different... Even more so, when that woman has a multi-millionairess for a
mother."
    "So
what's our strategy?" the partner asked.
    Becker's
voice went quiet and cold. "Our strategy is to have Maxie MacDonald and his
friends watched closely. And if they go into the bush, your job is to make sure
that they don't come out alive. Meanwhile, I've strongly suggested to Tommy Mo
that he takes care of Professor Kwok's daughter, and this time to make sure
that the Professor's study is completely incinerated, which should have
happened in the first place." He was gazing out across the black lake, and
his voice took on a hard edge. "I've decided that we have to try to hit
Gloria Manners. She holds the purse strings, and once she's out of the way the
others will go home... Yes, I know it's dangerous, but we can't stop now. I've
lived here all my working life. I've watched this lake grow and I grew with
it... I came from being a poor white in South Africa, looked down on by everyone,
to being somebody ... a man people look up to ... No one's going to take that
away from me. No one's going to put me in prison. No matter who has to
die."

Chapter 14
    Lucy was in the garden, sitting on a canvas chair reading, when he arrived. He parked
his black Volvo by the gate and climbed out. Colin Chapman was definitely not a
handsome man, she decided, but he carried himself with assurance... with a
slightly cheeky air.
    She watched as he moved across the road to another car, leaned down and spoke to
the driver, who then sounded his horn twice. A minute later, two men
materialised from the sides of the garden wall and climbed into the car. As he
walked to the gate, the car drove away. It, or one like it, had been parked
there every day and night since the death of her family.
    She stood up, and he kissed her lightly on the cheek and explained, "We had
what we call a red alert, both at the airport and the sea passenger terminal.
This afternoon we had a strong tip-off of a terrorist attack and so we've had
to pull in all our security people. That included my people who were protecting you."
    As they walked into the house, she said, "Well, it's no problem. I'm sure I'm not a target."
    "I'm sure you're at risk," he answered. "I cannot put my people back up
here until tomorrow morning, which means I have to stay the night." They
were now in the lounge. He turned and smiled at her. "That might sound like the
greatest line a man ever made but, Lucy, I assure you that the red alert is
genuine and that the threat to your life is real in my mind."
    With a
half-smile, she said, "Colin, I have two questions. First, if I was a
seventy-year-old lady, would you also be offering to stay the night? And
second, if this house is attacked by Triad hitmen tonight, would you be able to
protect me?"
    He
said, "If you had been a lady of seventy, I would have insisted that at
least two of my men remained on watch, even if it meant a clash with the
Commissioner. But I must be honest. I find you attractive and also enjoy your
mind and your company. So, since you had invited me for dinner anyway, I
thought I could sleep on your settee until my men come back in the
morning."
    She
reached up and kissed his cheek and said, "After dinner, will you write me
poems in Chinese?"
    He
nodded solemnly.
    "If
that's what you'd like ... As to your second question: of course I'm not Rambo,
but I have been well-trained." He reached under his jacket and pulled out
a large pistol. "I know how to use it."
    "Have
you ever killed