Street Soldier by Andy McNab Read Free Book Online

his head upwards. Adams picked up a slim plastic folder from the desk but didn’t open it.
    ‘So. One month down, five to go, and you get yourself thrown in choky. Careless, any?’
    Sean shrugged.
    Adams opened the folder and made a show of browsing through it. ‘Twelve months for taking without consent, and obviously not your first time, just the first one they got you for. Bit of a petrolhead, are we?’
    Another shrug.
    Adams went on. ‘My sister’s lad says petrol is a chemical for turning money into fun. Here . . . I’ve been dying to show this to someone who will appreciate it.’
    He dug out his phone and flipped through screens until he had the picture he wanted, before holding it out to Sean. Sean waited – to show he was only doing this because he wanted to – then took it to see what the fuss was.
    The screen showed a couple of smiling lads, maybe a bit older than him, apparently standing in a road while they gave a thumbs up to the camera.
    He almost asked, ‘Who’re the losers?’ but something about Adams’s obvious pride said maybe he shouldn’t. He read the status caption.
    Hey, this is us on the Mulsanne Straight, hours before the 24-hour Le Mans cars were doing over 200mph down here!!
    O . . . kay. He had to admit, that really was quite cool.
    He handed the phone back.
    ‘That’s my nephew and a mate,’ Adams said. ‘They saved ages for that holiday.’
    And suddenly it was clear. Sean grinned, without finding anything funny. Different way of doing things, same old bollocks. The prison was trying a new way of making him into a useful member of society.
    ‘And . . . here it comes. The lesson.’
    ‘And what lesson would that be?’
    ‘You know, the lesson. You don’t need to steal stuff, Sean. All you need to do is work hard and you’ll get your rewards that way. ’
    ‘Well, shit, you saw right through me. Don’t I feel dumb.’ Adams was back in the folder. ‘Now, apart from that one incident with Joseph Ajayi, aka Tag, you’ve a clean record in here. So what comes next? When you’re out?’
    If it was a choice between his old life and serving up fries for a year on a zero-hours contract so he could stand on the Mulsanne Straight, Sean knew which one he was going for. So he looked Adams in the eye. ‘Back to my mates,’ he said.
    ‘Ah, yes. The Littern Guyz, right? Bit after my time, but I still know the names. Friends, loyalty, identity. That’s it, isn’t it?’
    His voice grew unexpectedly warm and Sean cocked a suspicious eye. Adams was the first adult inside to talkabout the Guyz like membership wasn’t a dose of chlamydia, and that put him on his guard.
    ‘So?’
    ‘So I know exactly where you’re coming from, which is why we’re having this chat. I’m after lads with similar sets of values who might want something with all the benefits of the Guyz and none of the drawbacks. A number of other inmates have been identified as suitable and I’ll also be speaking to them. At the moment it’s invitation only. So . . .’
    Adams opened the folder and passed a sheet of A4 paper to Sean. He took it, flipped it round, and read what was on it. Two minutes later he raised his eyes to stare at Adams.
    ‘You’re joking, right?’ he said. ‘You can’t actually be serious.’
    Adams shook his head. ‘It’s a new initiative,’ he said, nodding towards the sheet. ‘Full approval of the Ministry of Defence. The government wants to try it in a couple of places like this before rolling it out further. So it’s a test case, a pilot thing. An army cadet force in a Young Offender Institution. Still a few bits and pieces to sort out, so it goes live in January.’
    Sean shook his head. ‘I’m not a toy soldier.’ He pinched the tracksuit top he was wearing, stretching out the material. ‘And I’m sick enough of wearing green. Sowhichever dickless politician thought this up, you can tell them I’m not interested.’
    ‘I understand.’ Adams shrugged. ‘It’s not for