The House Kat: Zugzswag (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781777794651)

An assassin's campaign of revenge against the unwitting Kat Fernando, shocks Europe and the western world as members of a recent coalition of European government representatives are being brutally murdered. Apparently, there is no doubt about assassin's identity because she makes sure that everyone knows she is the infamous Anita Franco. In fact the assassin is Hedda Jäger, and she taking revenge for the deaths of her brother Edward and Uncle Ähern. She blames Anita Franco for their deaths, but it was the joint coalition that ordered the American missile strike on Ähern Jäger's fortress in Italy which supposedly killed them.She doesn't know that Anita was the alias Kat had used while working undercover. With her daughter Sara, Sara's nanny, Rose, and the love of Deacon Loats, Kat thinks she has finally found the quiet, normal life she had always dreamt of. That quiet becomes anything but when she discovers what Hedda is doing and she must prove her innocence. Aware of what is going on Kat's former employer, US Military Counterintelligence wants to make sure that Kat is where she is supposed to be. MCI agent Raini Hannamansigh is sent up to Toronto to confirm that she is or is not the assassin. Raini reports that she is innocent, Yet there is someone else at MCI who has a score to settle with Kat. He feels that she embarrassed him during an earlier mission in Europe and leads a squad of killers to raid her house in Toronto. Raini realises that MCI doesn't really want Kat to be innocent so she quits and joins Kat to help clear her name. Kat's house has a self destruct system that she engages when the killers arrive. When everyone thinks she is dead she, Sara, Rose and Raini escape. Kat and Raini leave Canada and fly away with Deacon to Portugal and from there the two women go in search of the imposter Anita Franco. They discover the assassin's real name and find her house near Fragilliana, Spain. Just as they get there to take Hedda prisoner they are passed by a hit squad who were sent to kill the woman, and they discover that Hedda's house also had a self destruct system and the the killers are caught in the terrible explosions. One man survives long enough to give Kat the name of the man behind the raid, Siggy Kraft. He was the one who gave Hedda the false information and feared that Hedda was coming for him. Now it is Kat and Raini who arrive at his door in Zurich just in time to see Hedda leaving. A car chase ensues which finally ends in disaster asHedda dies from previous injuries and blames Kat. Once again Kat and Raini run for their lives as the police and the MCI killers hunt for them. The police in Germany and Spain compare notes and realize that Kat is completely innocent and call of the manhunt. But the MCI killers keep going and follow Kat and Raini to England where they go to ground. British police are not informed of the developments across the Channel and are still looking for them. They are caught by a small town police force and sent to London but on the way the hit team takes them for a final helicopter ride. Raini is shot dead. Kat manages to kill the leader of the squad before he can jump out with the other leaving Kat to crash into the ocean. They didn't know that the helicopter is the type she was trained on. She gains control and flies back to England where she is arrested. She explains her situation and is about to be released when two of the kill squad arrive at RNAS Yeovilton to finish the job. At the same time Deacon arrive to take Kat home. She escapes that attempt and goes to London with Deacon. When they are free at last, Hedda's brother Edward returns for the dead and kills Deacon just moments after Kat said she was finally ready to marry him. Edward fatally shoots her seconds before he himself is shot dead. Kat lives long enough to think only of her daughter Sara. The End.