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Back The Guardian of Lies Save as PDF
Chapters (56)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. CHAPTER ONE
  4. CHAPTER TWO
  5. CHAPTER THREE
  6. CHAPTER FOUR
  7. CHAPTER FIVE
  8. CHAPTER SIX
  9. CHAPTER SEVEN
  10. CHAPTER EIGHT
  11. CHAPTER NINE
  12. CHAPTER TEN
  13. CHAPTER ELEVEN
  14. CHAPTER TWELVE
  15. CHAPTER THIRTEEN
  16. CHAPTER FOURTEEN
  17. CHAPTER FIFTEEN
  18. CHAPTER SIXTEEN
  19. CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
  20. CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
  21. CHAPTER NINETEEN
  22. CHAPTER TWENTY
  23. CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
  24. CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
  25. CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
  26. CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
  27. CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
  28. CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
  29. CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
  30. CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
  31. CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
  32. CHAPTER THIRTY
  33. CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
  34. CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
  35. CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
  36. CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
  37. CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
  38. CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
  39. CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
  40. CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
  41. CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
  42. CHAPTER FORTY
  43. CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
  44. CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
  45. CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
  46. CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
  47. CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
  48. CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
  49. CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
  50. CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
  51. CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
  52. Acknowledgements
  53. ‘The Survivors’ Ad
  54. ‘The Betrayal’ Ad
  55. ‘The Liberation’ Ad
  56. Copyright

A scrawny ginger cat was lounging in a shady spot, seeking refuge from the relentless heat, and as I reached the doorway where I’d hidden that night, my body reacted. With a mind of its own. It recalled the person who had sheltered there with me, the feel of his shoulder under my cheek and his whispered breath on my ear. His concern for me like a third person squeezed in there with us. And as I passed the innocuous-looking doorway an unexpected heat rose in my chest.

Let me help you.

Léon’s words last night. The night sky was witness to them. In the dark I had wrapped an arm around his neck and kissed his warm mouth.

The street was not as quiet as I’d expected now, so to gain time I bent and stroked the mangy little fleabag of a cat, which set it purring as loud as a tank. But as soon as there was a brief lull in activity in the street I moved over to the door of the house into which André and his companion had disappeared.

I knocked on the door, only once. No response. Part of me was disappointed. That part of me wanted a good long talk with Monsieur MGB. But the other part was pleased. It wanted a private snoop while the coast was clear.

I pulled out my lock-picks.

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

I slid a hand into the side pocket of the man’s jacket hanging in the wardrobe.

A small cry of pain escaped me. I swore and snatched it back out fast. It felt as though my fingertips had been ripped by a ferret’s teeth and when I looked I saw blood.

‘Bastard,’ I hissed at the suit.

It was charcoal grey with a faint stripe, exquisitely tailored, with a transparent cover over the shoulders to keep off the dust. This was a meticulous man. I twisted a handkerchief around my scarlet fingertips and with the other hand opened up the pocket so that I could peer inside. With care I extracted the contents. It was a wine cork with two razor blades embedded in it. What kind of person carried a weapon like that around? Or was it just to deter pickpockets?

Or perhaps . . . I licked my lips . . . perhaps he knew I was coming.

*

Opening drawers and cupboards, unlocking his suitcase and sticking a suspicious finger into cigarette packets.

‘Come on, Gilles Bertin, you can’t hide forever.’

I rummaged through a waste bin. I stirred the contents of his sugar packet and prodded his coffee beans for anything hidden inside. I upended the seat cushions on his sofa. I crawled under his bed. I peeled back the inner soles of his shoes.

Nothing.

Oh so careful, Gilles Bertin.