Free Fire in the Blood by George McCartney Page A

it was all quite amicable in the end. Yeah, she got the house, the money, the cars and the kids.’
‘How many?’ asked Annie.
Jack remained true to form and said, ‘We had two. A little Ford Fiesta runabout and Senga, of course.’
Another fierce scowl from Annie elicited the required information. ‘Sorry, we’ve a son and a daughter, both in their late teens and remarkably sane and sensible under the circumstances. I’m lucky, they’re both really good kids.’
However, Annie’s female curiosity was still piqued and her cross-examination continued unabated. ‘So, if your wife got the house, the kids, the cars and the money, what did you get?’
‘Well I got my cassette collection, which was completely non-negotiable, and Senga. Oh, and the business. Combined current value probably around £500, which is mainly in the car. But on a positive note, thanks to a wonderful new key employee, I do have prospects.’
Annie wasn’t finished and continued, ‘But didn’t you have a lawyer? I mean to negotiate a fair financial settlement. You know, like a fifty-fifty split of your joint assets?’
‘No, I felt that it was all my fault, Annie. I’d neglected my wife and children and I didn’t deserve to take anything from the marriage. I still feel the same. It’s not a new story, the late great Hank Williams explained it a lot better than me.’
Annie was none the wiser for Jack’s explanation. ‘So was he like an old friend, or a counsellor?’
Jack nodded and said,‘Both Annie, he was a famous country singer, who wrote the book on breaking up and heartaches. But in a foot-tapping, catchy kind of way. He’s the main man as far as I’m concerned.’
‘Well I like having my independence,’ said Annie. ‘I don’t think I’ll ever get married. From what I can see it just seems to make most people miserable.’
Cheerfully, Jack then advised, ‘Look, don’t waste time worrying about it, kiddo, you might never get asked. Anyway enough of the true confessions, how are we going to find out where this randy bugger lives, since we don’t know where he’s working, or what he looks like?’
A light bulb above head moment then occurred to Annie. ‘Okay, why don’t I just phone him again and ask which lock-up garage he’s in. Then I can go down, pretend to fix up a day for my car service and try and find out where he lives at the same time.’
Urging caution Jack warned, ‘No, that’s not the way I usually handle these situations. It’s really best to be cautious and keep any contact with the target to an absolute minimum.’
‘You’ve obviously not heard, boss, but us women do have our little ways. Especially when it comes to dealing with a totalradge merchant. Trust me, I can do this and save us a lot of time messing about.’
As she started to get out the car Jackconceded defeat andoffered a final instruction. ‘Okay then, fair enough, but try not to come back covered in oily paw prints. I’ve just had the upholstery cleaned.’
Annie spoke briefly on her mobile to the mechanic, then gave Jack a thumb’s up and set off purposefully down the lane .

Chapter 13
Ten minutes later Annie returned to the car smiling smugly and, thankfully, free of oily paw marks. ‘Job done boss, the address of the love shack is 219 Henry Street, top flat left, the red door with a big knocker. You won’t be surprised to learn that he’s a fan of big knockers, judging by the number of nudie posters plastered all over the garage walls.’
Reluctantly acknowledging Annie’s success, Jack smirked and said, ‘Okay then Annie, I’m officially impressed. So how did you do manage to, ahem, pull it off?’
A further fierce scowl from Annie elicited yet another swift apology, ‘Sorry.’
‘Well using the previously mentioned womanly wiles and a touch of the improvisation you talked about yesterday, I talked him out of his first idea, which was the kind offer of a quick and dirty shag bent over the bonnet of a rusty old Vauxhall