Read Online Bodyguard: Ransom (Book 2) by Chris Bradford - Free Book Online Page B

surveillance skills to find a shop in the middle of the Indian Ocean,’ laughed Amir.
    ‘You forget airport duty-free,’ Ling replied with a devious wink, nudging Connor with her elbow.
    Amir handed them a pile of clothes each. ‘Here’s your Buddyguard-issue gear: baseball cap, shorts, T-shirts, polo-shirt … all fire-retardant, stab-proof and, of course, bulletproof,’ he said, looking up at Connor.
    ‘Don’t worry, I’ll definitely be wearing these,’ said Connor, holding up and inspecting the pocketed blue polo-shirt. It still amazed him that such soft thin fabric could stop a bullet from a handgun or the sharpened steel point of a knife.
    ‘Is there a bulletproof bikini for me?’ asked Ling.
    Amir searched through her pile of clothes. ‘Err, no, sorry.’
    A smirk appeared on Ling’s lips. ‘I was only joking.’
    Amir reddened as it dawned on him how ridiculous such an item would be. ‘Oh, very funny.’ He pulled a slim black torch from the Go-bag. ‘By the way, Bugsy’s supplied you with a new torch.’
    Amir depressed the button and a glaringly bright green laser strobe flashed out.
    ‘Hey, watch it!’ exclaimed Ling, shielding her eyes. ‘You almost blinded me.’
    ‘That’s kinda the aim of it,’ said Amir, grinning like a Cheshire cat at his retaliation. ‘It’s a Dazzler.’
    ‘A what?’
    ‘A non-lethal weapon that temporarily blinds or disorientates your enemy.’
    ‘Seems pretty lethal to me,’ said Ling as she blinked away tears.
    ‘Well, it won’t kill anyone, and it works as a standard torch too,’ Amir explained, putting the Dazzler back in the bag. ‘Anyway, at the other end of the spectrum, so to speak, are your sunglasses.’
    ‘It’s all right, I still have mine from the last mission,’ said Connor.
    ‘Not like these you don’t,’ replied Amir, excitedly handing them each a pair. ‘Put them on.’
    As Connor and Ling slipped on the shades, Amir closed the blinds and switched off the room’s light, plunging them into darkness.
    ‘Hey, I can’t see a thing!’ Ling exclaimed.
    ‘Flick the switch on the right edge of the frame.’
    Finding the tiny switch with his fingernail, Connor gasped in awe as Amir and Ling reappeared before his eyes in a shimmering silver light. ‘Now these are cool!’
    ‘Night-vision sunglasses,’ explained Amir, enjoying the looks of astonishment on his friends’ faces. ‘Cutting-edge nanotechnology in the lens allows you to see in the dark as if there’s a full moon. There’s a smart layer of nano-photonic film that converts infrared light to visible. Unlike standard night-vision goggles that only amplify visiblelight, these have the advantage of not being vulnerable to flaring when confronted with a bright light.’
    Amir switched on the main light to prove his point. Connor could still see perfectly well, even if the room before him appeared over-exposed. He flicked off the night-vision mode and everything returned to normal.
    ‘What else is in your bag of tricks?’ asked Ling, now caught up in the thrill of such advanced gadgets at their disposal.
    ‘Well, there’s this,’ said Amir, handing Ling a large white bottle.
    ‘What is it?’ she asked eagerly. ‘A miniature life raft? A smoke grenade?’
    ‘No, but it will protect you from the greatest danger you face on your mission.’
    Ling looked expectantly at him. ‘So, what is it?’
    Amir was barely able to suppress his grin. ‘It’s sunscreen.’

 
    ‘What’s going on in maths? You’ve got Bs and Cs in your other subjects, but an
E
for maths.’
    Connor groaned down the phone. ‘
Mum
 … I’ve had a few other things on my mind recently.’
    ‘Like what?’
    Connor didn’t know how to answer that. His mum had no idea he was training and operating as a professional bodyguard. She’d been told that he was attending a boarding school for gifted and talented sports students, the cost sponsored by a special government scholarship scheme. That’s why