The Sum of Things by Tony McManus

Author:Tony McManus [McManus, Tony]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, action, adventure, Thriller
Publisher: Tony McManus
Published: 2017-09-02T22:00:00+00:00

II

Fallon ate breakfast alone on the hotel terrace. Pierce, laid low with a massive hangover, had declined to surface and stayed in his bed.

Fallon, his head clear and sharp, had no such problem. Disliking the Thai rotgut, he’d eased up on his intake in the whisky bash the previous day. He’d had Kit Wattana have one of the waiters check out the bar for any real scotch. By luck more than good judgment, the young man had returned with a full, unopened bottle of Glenfiddich Single Malt. And Fallon took the opportunity to teach good whisky drinking etiquette to the general. He’d got the waiter to bring two brandy glasses, poured the malt and gave one to Kit Wattana.

“Sip it slowly, Kit and run it around your mouth.”

“No ice?”

“Absolutely not. Drink iced water after, but not with.”

Wattana sipped the malt. “James, this is beautiful,” he said and sipped again.

“Yes, it is. Try drinking the Thai whisky now.”

Wattana took a sip of his Thai whisky and spat it back. “It’s shit,” he said.

“You’re so right,” Fallon laughed. “I drank my first scotch malt at age sixteen. It was my father’s. He and his friends loved it, and I was curious why? So one night, alone in the house, I opened his cabinet and tried it. I’ve been trying it ever since. And so will you, Kit.”

Reflecting on it, Fallon grinned. Wattana was colorful and humorous; a good scout, Dance had called him, and it was true. He’d seemed innocent in so many ways, especially when he’d probed Fallon with odd, curious questions. “How many men have you killed, James?”

Taken aback, Fallon had replied. “I don’t know. I don’t count such things.”

“But you’ve killed. You shot men in that embassy attack.”

“Yes.”

“I’ve never killed, James.”

“Good. I wish I could say the same. I’m pleased for you, Kit.”

“I’ve never fought or been in a war.”

“That’s even better. A peaceful life.”

“Did you enjoy killing, James?”

“No, I didn’t. Not a bit. I shot men in the conditions of battle. I prefer a man to put down his weapon and surrender.”

“You’re a good soldier, James.”

“Thank you, Kit.”

Fallon smiled at the recollection. His meal finished, he poured a fresh coffee, his thoughts returning to General Montri.

If a coup d’etat was in the pipeline as Peter Dance had implied, Montri has a year to do it in if he wishes to hold onto power and avoid that trip to the golf course and obscurity. But would a coup affect the Special Forces training? Something to consider. Fallon shrugged and turned to the newspapers and was reading when Pierce finally surfaced and joined him.

“Good morning, James,” Pierce mumbled. He sat down and swallowed a pill with water.

“Good morning, Simon. If you feel as sick as you look, it must be bad.”

“I felt like ten pounds of shit in a five pound bag when I awoke, but I’m all right now. I took a cold shower, and that helped. That whisky was rough. What’s on today?”

“Today we look for office premises and a residence for a liaison man.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.