Page 206 of The Black Trilogy

“Makes my life look idyllic, even if I didn’t think so at the time.”

Black came from old money, hence the massive houses and fancy toys. His ancestors had been big investors, first in gold, then property, and latterly oil. Although his early years had been pleasant, when his parents died in a car crash on the eve of his sixteenth birthday, he’d grown up fast.

“I was supposed to move in with my aunt, but Satan would have to live in an igloo before I’d set foot in her house. You’ll meet her one day, and then you’ll understand why.”

“So what did you do?”

“A friend of my father’s helped me out. He altered some records and got the court to appoint him as my guardian, then signed off so I could join the Navy at sixteen.”

“When you say altered some records…?”

“When I said I was twenty-five, I meant twenty-four.”

Suddenly, his willingness to help out with my age issue made more sense.

Black’s father had split his job as a CIA agent with managing the family investment portfolio, and Black followed in his footsteps until he decided to quit the government agency and branch out with Nate instead.

“I was sick of the bureaucracy,” he said. “Do you have any idea how many forms you need to fill in when you shoot someone?”

“It’s not a problem I’ve ever come across, no.”

“And it’s not only that. Some of the people who spouted enough half-truths to get elected had a habit of making messed up decisions, and I was stuck following their orders. If I’m going to die, I’d rather do it on my dollar.”

“So you just quit?”

He laughed. “Not exactly. Now I’m a consultant. They don’t have anyone else who can do what Nate and I do, so now we can charge what we like and kick the rubbish back to them.”

“Is that where you go when you disappear?” He’d been gone a few times, ranging from a day to a week.

“Yes.”

“What do you have to do?”

He stared at the wall over my shoulder as the mask he wore with everyone else slotted into place. Inside, I groaned. Just when I thought I was getting somewhere with him.

“Maybe one day I’ll tell you. But not yet.”

That hurt more than I cared to admit. I wanted him to trust me, but clearly we still had a way to go.

From that day onwards, Black made sure I got one afternoon off each week, and he nearly always joined me so we could do something together. Sometimes we’d go for a walk, or out in his plane, or even just sit in with a movie. We both liked action films, although neither of us could resist pointing out all the operational errors as we watched.

We spent a couple of days in England, with Black’s house now blessedly free of decorators and paint smells. He still expected me to train, but I managed to find a morning to visit Jimmy.

He gave me a bone-crushing hug. “Amanda! We thought you’d forgotten us.”

“I’d never do that.”

“He treating you okay?”

“He’s a tough guy to work for, but he’s fair. I’ve learned a lot.”

He looked briefly disappointed. “No chance of you coming back, then?”

Was there? I came to the realisation I didn’t want to leave America. Riverley felt like home now. But what if Black didn’t want to keep me when my time was up?

I pushed that thought out of my mind and shook my head. “Sorry, Jimmy.”

He shrugged. “It was worth asking.”

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