Sneak Peek - An excerpt from Cat and Mouse - Part V - The Finale

Yes, readers - I'm almost there! I'd say I'm about 90% done and just have to tie up some loose ends.

But, after such a long dry spell, I wanted to give you a little taste of what's to come ...

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The pair walked down the gentle slope towards the building near the sea. Even with sunglasses, Iain’s eyes were dazzled by the glare, but he saw the silhouettes of two men approach them from the opposite direction. As they drew closer, the glare receded and he could see them more clearly. They were both in short lycra trunks and barefoot with sword-belts wrapped around trim waists; their bodies gleaming molten bronze with exertion under the hot sun. With a start, the Scot recognized one of the two as the handsome Arab that had played a major part in his rescue. A moment later, the other man was equally surprised as well as he recognized the policeman.

His swarthy face broke into an infectious grin. “Inspector! This is indeed a surprise!” The grin changed quickly to a more somber mien. “I do ask your forgiveness for my charade. I deeply regret any additional anguish I caused you, but we had to act quickly and there was some bit of improvisation required. If we had been but a few minutes earlier, we may have been able to save your companion, as well. That failure has been laying heavily on my heart. I was hoping for some opportunity to see you, but I felt my walking into Interpol headquarters would have caused only more problems for you.”

Goddard was struck by the genuineness of the statement. “I should be the one thanking you …?”

“Asim. Asim bin Aziz”

“… Asim. I owe you my life.” At this proximity, he noticed several long, but faint scratches across both mens’ bodies. Damn, those swords are real…

Once again, Asim beamed. He turned to his companion. He topped the Arab by about 3 inches, and had the long, powerful muscular lines of a physique model. Or a professional dancer. His pale blue eyes sparkled in a sculpted face with a light-brown, well-trimmed beard. “This is one of my students – Guiliano Champuis. He was also on your extraction team.”

The young man shook hands with the inspector. “It’s a pleasure as well, sir. I’m glad to see you up and about! We were all worried about you when we got you out of that warehouse.”

Asim continued. “After the sparring session I’ve put this young pup through, we are going to spend some time in a nice hot shower together. Please join us on the veranda later for drinks, Inspector – you are always most welcome! The other members of the team would enjoy your company as well.” The two swordsmen continued up towards the main building. The Arab’s hand stroked down Champuis’ muscular back and rested possessively on his ass.