Call After Midnight. Tess Gerritsen

      

       A fan-favorite novel by internationally bestselling author Tess Gerritsen

      Newlywed Sarah Fontaine has just received the news that every wife fears: her husband of two months has died abroad in a hotel fire. Yet convinced he's still alive, Sarah forges an alliance with Nick O'Hara from the U.S. State Department that has the two of them crisscrossing Europe on a desperate search for signs of life. As Sarah and Nick become quarry in the secret world of international espionage, they must risk everything for answers that may prove fatal.

       Rave reviews for the novels ofTess Gerritsen

       VANISH

      “Gerritsen’s latest novel is a tense, taut thriller that grabs readers from the get-go and never lets up.”

       —Booklist

       BODY DOUBLE

      “An electric series of startling twists, the revelation of ghoulishly practical motives and a nail-biting finale make this Gerritsen’s best to date.”

       —Publishers Weekly

      “The story zips along.… A delightfully bizarro plot twist.”

       —Entertainment Weekly

       THE APPRENTICE

      ”Well-drawn characters and a compelling story will grab readers’ interest and earn Gerritsen more admirers.”

       —Booklist

      “Leave the lights on, check the closets, and lock the doors before cracking [The Apprentice].”

       —People

       THE SURGEON

      “Gliding as smoothly as a scalpel in a confident surgeon’s hand, this tale proves that Gerritsen…has morphed into a…suspense novelist whose growing popularity is keeping pace with her ever-finer writing skills.”

       —Publishers Weekly

      “Gerritsen fans know by now what to expect from her: a fascinating story with a gripping plot and believably human characters. Such is The Surgeon, and, in places, then some. Let new readers learn what the fans delight in.”

       —Booklist

       THE SINNER

      “Gerritsen gives atmospheric depth to her tale… satisfyingly gritty.”

      —Publishers Weekly

       Call After Midnight

      Tess Gerritsen

       www.mirabooks.co.uk

      To Jacob,

      who was always there

       CONTENTS

       Cover

       Back Cover Text

       Praise

       Title Page

       Dedication

       Contents

PROLOGUE

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

       CHAPTER FOUR

       CHAPTER FIVE

       CHAPTER SIX

       CHAPTER SEVEN

       CHAPTER EIGHT

       CHAPTER NINE

       CHAPTER TEN

       CHAPTER ELEVEN

       CHAPTER TWELVE

       CHAPTER THIRTEEN

       CHAPTER FOURTEEN

       CHAPTER FIFTEEN

       CHAPTER SIXTEEN

       Extract

       Endpage

       Copyright

       PROLOGUE

       Berlin

      IT TAKES TWENTY seconds of pressure on the carotid arteries to render a man unconscious. Two minutes longer, and death is inevitable. Simon Dance didn’t need a medical textbook to tell him these facts—he knew them from experience. He also knew there could be no slack in the garrote. If the cord wasn’t taut, if it allowed just a short spurt of precious blood to reach the victim’s brain, the struggle would be prolonged. It made the whole process sloppy, even dangerous. There was nothing as savage as a dying man.

      As he crouched in the darkness, Dance wound the garrote twice around his hands and glanced at the luminous dial of his watch. Two hours had passed since he’d turned off the lights. His assassin was obviously a cautious man who wanted to be sure Dance was deeply asleep. If the man was a professional, he would know that the first two hours of sleep are the heaviest. Now was the time to strike.

      In the hallway outside, a footstep creaked. Dance stiffened, then rose slowly and waited in the darkness beside the door.