Remote Control by Andy McNab Read Free Book Online

to board. I watched them get up, find their passes and walk. I followed.
    On something like this you always travel Club Class, so you’re at the front of the aircraft. Then you can choose either to sit down and watch people boarding, or let them through ahead of you and come in later on. At the destination, you can wait for the target to come off the aircraft and naturally file in behind, or get out of the way beforehand so that you’re ready to do the pick-up once you’re out of arrivals.
    I thought about a drink, but decided against; I might have to start performing as soon as we got to the other side. These boys seemed switched on and professional, so chances were they weren’t going to be doing any work after all the Bud they’d been putting away. But, still, no drink for me.
    As I settled into my seat I started to think about Kev and his family. I’d been there when he’d first met Marsha, I was best man at their wedding and was even godfather to Aida, their second child. I took the job seriously, even though I didn’t really know what I was supposed to do on the God front.
    I knew I’d never have any of my own kids; I’d be too busy running around doing shit jobs like this. Kev and Marsha knew that and really tried to make me feel part of their set-up. I’d grown up with this fantasy of the perfect family and as far as I was concerned Kev had it. The first marriage went a bit dodgy, but this one seemed absolutely right. His job with the DEA was now mostly desk-bound in Washington. He loved it.
    ‘More time with the kids, mate,’ he’d say.
    ‘Yeah, so you can be one!’ I’d reply.
    Luckily Marsha was the mature and sensible one; when it came to the family, they complemented each other really well. Their house at Tyson’s Corner was a healthy, loving environment, but after three or four days it would get too much for me and I’d have to move on. They’d make a joke of it; they knew I loved them, but somehow couldn’t handle people showing so much affection. I guessed that was why I’d always felt more comfortable with Euan. We were both from the same job lot.
    As for Slack Pat, he was completely off the scale. Half the world seemed to be his best friend, and he was still working on the rest. Even when he opened the fridge door and the light came on he’d have to launch into some sort of chat-up routine.
    When he started the BG job in Washington, a real-estate agent took him out to look at an apartment in Georgetown, by the university. The way he told the story, he saw a building with people coming in and out.
    ‘What’s that, then?’ he asked.
    ‘One of the best restaurants in Washington,’ she said. ‘Half of Congress seems to go there.’
    ‘Right, I’ll take it,’ he said. The moon was in a new quarter or some shit like that, and I thought for a while that he reckoned he’d turned into Terence Conran. He told me he used to eat there every day and knew every waitress by name. He’d even started going out with one of them. Maybe it was her that got him into drugs. I hadn’t seen it myself but I’d heard he had a problem. It made me feel sad. We’d all seen the results of addiction during our time in Colombia. Pat had called them losers, now it seemed he was one himself. Hopefully it was just one of his phases.

3
    The transfer at Heathrow had been easy. The boys didn’t get stopped at the security checks – probably because Special Branch had been informed – and the flight to Washington had taken off on time.
    Now, as we started the approach, I put on my belt, made the seat upright and looked out of the window at America. The view always made me feel good. There’s such a sense of opportunity and space, of all things being possible, and it’s contagious.
    I hoped McGear and Kerr were going straight to the hotel. I hoped they’d be playing the good tourist boys and wouldn’t blow it by not booking in. If I ever lost a target, I’d look in all the places where he might be –