thebodyguardsprincess M47 annmayburn 2 by Ann Mayburn Read Free Book Online Page A

and nodded at Rashid. The two tall and unassuming men gave each other a smile filled with malice.
    Nancy, wearing a pair of plush brown puppy ears on her head, met them in the dining room. She practically vibrated with excitement and dropped to her knees. With a soft moan, she kissed David's shoes. Rashid kept his face carefully blank and shifted with impatience. David patted her head and scratched her behind her pretend puppy ears. "Where are they?"
    "The housekeeper says they called from a payphone in downtown DC. About fifteen minutes from here." She shifted back on her heels and grinned. "They said they quit and they're going on vacation someplace where they can't be reached."
    "Downtown DC is an odd place to take a vacation," David mused. He took a seat at the dining table, and Nancy curled at his feet. "They must have her with them. Those assholes have foiled every attempt we've made against her in the past nine months. No way she vanishes and they suddenly go on vacation."
    "I don't know what you're so worried about," Rashid said as he played with an elaborate flower arrangement on the table. "If she shows her face anywhere she is instantly going to jail. If they are with her and try to resist, they'll be either killed or taken into custody as well."
    "What if the hypnotic block fails and she remembers our conversations?" Nancy asked from the ground. Rashid glared at her.
    "Yes, Rashid, what if your hypnosis fails?" David folded his arms.
    Remembering what happened to Karen, Rashid swallowed and kept his eyes on the curve of a pink orchid. She had suffered for the entire two-hour webcast as an example of what would happen if you failed the anarchists. By the time the torture master was done, she resembled barely breathing meat. "Do I need to remind you that my hypnosis has increased our ranks of devoted members by the thousands? That my suggestions have turned housewives into martyrs, politicians into weapons of chaos?"
    "We appreciate your devotion to the cause. That is the only reason you didn't join Karen." David leaned forward. "The fact that we control the Sanjit's housekeeper is also a stroke of genius on your part."
    "Thank you," Rashid said in a slightly mollified voice. "Even if she did remember something, it's not like anyone is going to believe her. We have her on surveillance tape meeting with a known anarchist and handing over files in exchange for money down the street from her home."
    David nodded, a small smile on his bland face. "If she is caught, we need to kill her ASAP. I want our people scanning the police radios. I want our hackers on all of the government sites monitoring their chatter." His teeth clenched as anger tightened his features. "In the meantime, get an assassination team together and send them to that payphone. The diplomatic SUV is missing from the Sanjit's house. They must be driving it. Find the SUV and you'll find the bodyguards. Kill them all."
    "Yes, sir," Rashid said and wiped the pollen from the flowers on his black pants. "How quiet do you want me to keep it?"
    "I don't care. It's downtown DC, that area is infested with gangs and trash. You could shoot up the whole area and no one would notice." Nancy began to lick his shoe and David kicked her away. "Our focus is still on the next meeting of the Security Council. While finding that little cunt is important, don't forget our main objective."
    Nodding, David scrolled through the numbers on his cell phone and started planning.
    * * * *
    Full of delicious and greasy diner food, Lalita strolled back through the warm summer night and marveled at the turn her life had taken. Deep in the rough section of Washington DC, she meandered along as if she didn't have a care in the world. The meal had been quick and efficient with no complications of a SWAT team coming to arrest her. No one even really noticed her. Probably because they were too busy staring at the huge and muscled glory of her men.
    Asher and Kent had been charming and more