RACE AMAZON: False Dawn (James Pace novels Book 1) by Andy Lucas Page B

days in an effort to break them in. So far he’d only suffered one blister.
    The local pub seemed the obvious choice and it was packed with people.  The first thing to strike him may have been the crowd but the second was more off-putting; an atmosphere choked with a stifling heat.    A quick glance at Sarah told him she found it as hot as he did so they opted to take their drinks out into the empty beer garden.  Some of the wooden tables still had brightly-striped umbrellas propped through holes in their centre. 
    They sat down at one, the red and white material musty but lending them a sense of privacy as well as warding off the very light rain that had began to fall.
    ‘The publicity worked better than expected,’ she began, sipping her glass of sweet cider. Pace hadn’t worked out what to say by then and gratefully seized upon her opening.  
    ‘I’m glad,’ he said.  ‘I hope it covers what your father paid me.’
    ‘Don’t worry, nobody’s going to want any of your money back,’ Sarah smiled and sipped at her drink again. 
    ‘Good job, I’ve got plans for every penny.’
    ‘We’ve managed to get a couple of multinationals interested that weren’t even on the list to start with. Your interviews have been well received and the whole thing is being promoted strongly.  They’ve been queuing up to have their company logos on the promotional material.’  Her face was alight with enthusiasm.
    ‘More pledged money?’ asked Pace.
    ‘The project is almost three million pounds up on our highest expectations already.  Most of that money has come in because of your involvement.  You must be a celebrity of some kind,’ she laughed.
    ‘Getting yourself shot does have some advantages.’
    ‘It would seem so in your case.’
    ‘I’m glad something good is going to come out of all this. I’m the first to admit I’ve drifted since leaving the air force.  I was beginning to wonder where, if anywhere, I was going.  I’m not getting any younger sadly.’  
    Pace didn’t really know the woman but he felt completely comfortable with her. Momentarily at a loss for the next sentence he took refuge in a few swallows of his beer.  The icy liquid chilled its way down to his stomach.
    ‘Are you worried?  About the race?’ Her question took him by surprise. ‘It isn’t going to be easy, even for the experienced team members.  How are your nerves holding up?’
    ‘Okay,’ he replied. This late in the day, with an outbound flight to South America waiting for him the next morning, being worried didn’t feature. His only feeling was a bloody-minded determination to succeed. 
    ‘That’s good.’  Sarah said softly.
    ‘I’ve been given a second chance. Your father has given me the opportunity to do something really useful again with my life and I’m going to do it.  It doesn’t matter what his reasons are.’  
    Sarah leaned across the table and pulled his hands into her own, her touch gentle on his skin.  The sudden intimacy surprised him, as did the look in her eyes of honest admiration.
    He had no idea she’d spent the previous evening reading through his personal file, including several sheets of family background and subtle psychological observations undertaken by the Harley Street doctor; none of which Pace would ever see. 
    His was the story of a man who’d thrown away a promising career with the Royal Air Force and walked away after nearly a decade of service. 
    His military records had been included in the secret dossier and indicated a hugely talented pilot with a disciplinary record that left a lot to be desired.  Pace had walked a fine line with the chain of command and seemed to have had little respect for it.  Overlooked for promotion several times because he had a habit of speaking his mind, regardless of who was listening, he’d finally called it a day.  Civilian life had been one long amble to nowhere ever since.
    ‘You know what I think?’  
    ‘I don’t