Marabou Stork Nightmares by Irvine Welsh Read Free Book Online Page A

the French windows, he plucked a book from the shelf and handed it to me. — For you, he smiled. I looked at the title:
    YOUTH IN ASIA
    I stuck it in a plastic bag I had been carrying.
    — I see you have the toolkit handy, he smirked. Damn and fucking blast, I felt a little uneasy at this statement. I started to remember something, no, not remember a thought, but an experi ence, I started to feel something unpleasant and was happy when Sandy came through and interrupted this sensation before it could flower into recall.
    Sandy had said something about a jeep. Our rusty ancient blighter had buggered up badly on reaching the lodge. As Sandy had suspected, Dawson was pleased to sell us an old one from Jambola Park, at about three times the normal price. — This one, he smiled, and looked at Sandy in a way which caused him to visibly twitch, — is surplus to requirements.
    As well as being ripped off with the jeep, we were forced to accompany Dawson on a visit to his favourite spot in the hills, a place he visits regularly for its natural beauty. We had to walk about two and a half miles from Lodge 1690 and it was now overpoweringly, miserably hot; a smudge of sweat on the back of Jamieson's shirt had become a large heart. I made reference to this and Dawson smiled approvingly, lavishly, from his one-man buggy. Sweat trickled down my legs. Sandy looked quite fresh but Dawson, despite the motor cart, was saturated and breathing in a laboured, heavy manner. One of the wheels of his vehicle crushed a snake, mashing the animal into the path. His head poked out the side of the cart and grinned hideously back at us.
    — Unfortunately, only one available, he'd smiled widely as he'd twisted his girth into the motorised cart. Starting it up, he had, with snapping jocularity, bade Sandy Jamieson and I to follow him on foot. Dawson's skin was the colour of barbecued tandoori chicken; clashing vividly with a Brylcreemed shock of brown, thinning hair, white and blue eyes, and pearly teeth which seemed permanently hanging out to dry. He also appeared to be covered in a strange, translucent oil.
    Dawson stopped the buggy, climbed out and swept a doughy paw around his terrain. Our track wound around the precipice of a spectacular gorge, which swung down towards a fast-flowing river. — Not bad for a lad who left home with the less than princely sum of ten pounds sterling in his pocket, he smugly observed.
    I saw a dead rodent by the side of the path. I picked it up by the tail. It had a fat slimy leech attached to it. I dropped it and looked at Sandy. — I came to Africa to study parasites, I told him, glancing back at Dawson. Sandy appeared a little bit uneasy, and gestured at me to keep my voice down.
    I remembered Sandy saying that he once worked for Dawson. Gosh and golly.
    Our destination was a building which on the outside looked rundown and ramshackle, but internally was very stark, modern and functional, its harshness only dissipated by a number of large, exotic plants in pots. We were greeted by a stout, middle-aged African woman, who made a particular fuss of Lochart Dawson.
    — This is great pleshah, Missuh Dossan, she smiled.
    — On the contrary, Sadie, the pleasure is always mine in visiting your fine establishment.
    His smile made me feel as if I'd eaten or drank something decidedly unpleasant.
    — For my guests, he smiled, turning to Sandy and myself. — You see, I own this place, and I use it as a sort of unofficial hospitality suite for potentially special customers. Special being defined as those who can advance the interests of Jambola Park PLC. This facility was specifically constructed on the impetus of the board of Jambola Park PLC, of which I am a member.
    Dawson owned seventy-eight per cent of the Jambola Park PLC shares.
    At that point Sandy went to light a cigarette but stopped after noting the look of disapproval on Dawson's face. He extended his palms and looked at me in appeal. I shrugged briefly.
    I felt