Blood and Bone: (Royal Blood #6) by Amity Cross Read Free Book Online Page A

the gun on the coffee table and disengaged the clip. “Bullets go here. Takes a clip of nine.” He slammed it back in place. “Load a bullet in the chamber when you put in a new clip.” He slid back the mechanism on the barrel and it clicked back. “Check it’s loaded correctly here.” Then he pointed to the rear of the gun. “Safety is here.” He flipped the switch at the back of the gun. “On. Off. On. Off.” Aiming toward the wall, he finished with, “Trigger. Aim, compensate for recoil, and fire.” Spinning the gun around in his hand like a magician, he curled his fingers around the barrel and held it out toward me butt first.
    “The rest is math,” Mercy said. “Stance, force, accuracy.”
    Mathematics was a language I understood better than English, so I nodded and took the gun from Mr. Blood.
    “Have you been to Germany before?” Mercy asked.
    “I’ve been to Blackpool,” I said, remembering the seaside trip I took with the family to the northern part of the UK. Mr. Blood frowned, and I wondered if he ever took holidays as an assassin. “You know, in the north? It has a sandy beach, so it was a real trip, you know. Pebble beaches suck.”
    Mercy elbowed me and shook her head. “Not exactly what I was getting at.”
    Mr. Blood narrowed his eyes. “We have a lead on where Moltke may be going next. Or at least who he’s working with. To what end, we don’t know, but it’s the only lead we have.”
    “We’re surveilling a meeting between two bad guys,” Mercy explained. “Folsom is leaving us some equipment, but we need someone to help operate it.”
    “Done,” I said. “Whatever you need, I’m your man.”
    “We won’t be coming back until the job is done,” Mr. Blood added. “We’ll be dark. No support, nothing.”
    “I understand.” Tonight would probably be the last time I’d have contact with Amanda and the boys until Mr. Moltke was brought to justice. That meant even MI6 didn’t know what we were about to do… How deep did his betrayal run?
    “Go,” Mercy said. “Be with your family. There’ll be more than enough time to explain the mission parameters en route to Berlin.”
    I nodded and rose to my feet, beginning to feel the weight on my shoulders. Leaving them be, I went back down the hall to the main bedroom. Amanda sat on the edge of the bed, wringing her hands in her lap.
    I remembered the day I first saw her. She was a barmaid at the local pub, and every man in the place wanted a piece of her—she was that beautiful. I never thought I’d have a chance with a woman like that, but when I went up to the bar to order a pint, she’d asked why I didn’t have a crack like all the others. Because a woman like you deserves far more than a cheap line thrown over a sticky bar. I’d said the right thing for once in my life, and the rest was history.
    She glanced up when I stepped into the room, and I took a deep breath, steeling myself for another barrage of abuse. I deserved it, but she’d see what lengths I’d go to ensure their safety. She’d see how much I truly loved her. I never lied about that.
    “I’m going with them to get the man who did this to you,” I said.
    “What?” Amanda asked, rising to her feet. “You’re leaving?”
    “I’m going to make sure he can’t hurt you or the boys again,” I replied. “I’m going to prove my love to you.”
    She shook her head, her eyes misting with another round of tears. “ You stupid man .”
    I sighed. Had I said the wrong thing again? “Amanda…”
    When she threw herself into my arms, I held onto her tightly, burying my nose into her hair.
    “I’m so angry with you,” she murmured. “So bloody angry I want to string you up, Marcus Jackson, but I can’t lose you. I almost lost you twice today already.”
    “ I love you so much ,” I said, crushing her against my chest.
    “Come back in one piece,” she whispered. “And come back with that asshole in a body bag.”

Chapter 7

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    B erlin was