Fire in the Blood by George McCartney Read Free Book Online Page B

ultra-thin device, which Annie had paired to her iPhone for internet access, and also to a small Bluetooth printer. ‘But other than doing really basic stuff, like pressing the start button and then thumping the box on the side, when it froze up in the middle of doing something, I didn’t get past Go . To be perfectly honest, I never really got to grips with the technology. It’s a bit of an age thing, I suppose.’
‘That’s rubbish. Anybody can learn how to use one properly, if they’re taught properly. Seriously, these days if you don’t use the internet to gather together information and email to communicate with clients, you’re working with both hands tied behind your back. People will think you’re some kind of dinosaur.’
‘It has been mentioned. By you in fact.’
‘The thing is, if you don’t keep up to speed with all the latest developments in social media and messaging, then you’re totally handicapped. I don’t mean just for self-promotion, because people are incredibly indiscreet when they’re communicating with so-called friends online. So, if you know you way around all the different platforms, it can be a terrific free source of gossip and information that you just wouldn’t discover any other way.’
Jack snorted and said, ‘All this social media crap doesn’t really affect me, of course, because I don’t have any friends. But mark my words, Annie, no good will come of it.’
Shaking her head, Annie replied, ‘You’ve got to get with the programme, boss. There is no alternative, unless you want to live in a cave somewhere and completely ignore the outside world.’
‘I have thought about it, but you’re right, Annie. That’s why you’re here, remember? To drag me kicking and screaming into the twenty-first century. So tell me what you’ve been doing?’
Annie indicated several A4 pages, which she had printed off from the internet. ‘Look, already I’ve been able to read up about Frankie’s car so-called accident, from articles that were in the local papers at the time of his court settlement. Apparently, at the time, it was one of the biggest compensation pay-outs in Scotland for a traffic accident, so there was a fair bit of coverage. Then I went into the property records site, to see how much he paid for his house, it cost £175,000, and I’ve also done a search for all the five-a-side football league venues in Glasgow. So, if we’re tailing him and, ahem, something unexpected happens again, we’ll still have a good idea where he’s heading.’
Dazzled by the array of cutting edge technology displayed on the desk, Jack took a closer look at the MacBook and shook his head. ‘Jesus, but it’s so small and it’s not even plugged in.’
Annie Proudly describes the spec of her prized possession. ‘This bad boy is the latest Air model with 1.3 GHZ Intel dual-core processors, HD graphics, with an all-day battery and, of course, Bluetooth and WiFi.’
None the wiser, Jack nodded and then picked up her iPhone. ‘So this is what five hundred quid gets you. It’s nice, but if I had one, I would just worry about losing it.’
Annie nodded and explained that she was now on her third iPhone in less than eighteen months. ‘I dropped the first one into a pint of cider and blackcurrant, when I was on a night out. I managed to claim on my insurance for that one, after getting the third degree from them when I explained how it was, ahem, accidentally damaged. The second one I left in a taxi, I think. But I had just fallen into a hedge before I flagged down the cab, so I’m not absolutely sure about that one. And, of course, the insurance company really took the hump big time and would only pay out on half the value.’
Smiling, Jack fully sympathised with the follies of the young. ‘If you don’t mind me saying, there seems to be a recurring theme here, Annie, of reckless over-indulgence combined with an almost criminal disregard for personal possessions, when you’re out on the