starter rope.
The engine burbled, hesitated. Another pull — and it started. He cast off, rammed the engine into gear, twisted the throttle, spun the boat round hard and headed upstream.
At full throttle he powered under Cherringham Bridge leaving a wake behind him that would certainly rock all the other boats.
But this was no time for obeying speed limits.
He could see the two sculls a couple of hundred yards ahead, almost level now with the Grey Goose.
As he raced towards them he saw that the Army boat had drawn level with their prey — and then with a flurry of blades the two craft came together.
Magnusson seemed to jump — or maybe he fell. Jack saw him disappear under the water.
As the four pulled alongside the empty single scull, one of the soldiers dived in.
Jack arced to a stop next to the drifting boats and killed the outboard just as Magnusson burst to the surface of the water in the arms of the rescuing soldier.
And what happened next so surprised Jack … just when he thought these days nothing could surprise him.
The soldier held Magnusson firmly above the water with one hand, then raised his other fist and punched the Swede hard in the face.
“That’s for Donna,” he said.
He punched him again.
“Bastard!”
And much as Jack was happy for the unknown avenger to carry on punching, he knew he couldn’t allow it to continue.
“Whoa! Hang on. That’s enough!” he shouted.
He paddled the little tender round to the side of the sculls and with the help of the other soldiers dragged the two men out of the water.
Soon Magnusson lay moaning in the well of Pat’s boat, blood streaming from his nose.
“My nose … it’s broken,” said Magnusson with a groan.
“Yep,” said Jack. “Looked to me like you hit it on the side when you jumped.”
He grinned at the soldier who now sat facing him in the boat, singlet and shorts dripping, his feet on Magnusson’s back: “Nice to meet you,” he said to the soldier. “I’m Jack, by the way.”
“Carl,” said the other.
Jack offered his hand — and the burly soldier shook it.
“Job done, eh?” he said, grinning.
“Job done indeed,” said Jack.
And Jack fired up the outboard and headed for the bank. Down on Cherringham Bridge he could see the flashing blue lights of police cars arriving.
Even if things hadn’t gone quite as planned, there’d been the undoubted bonus of seeing Magnusson hammered.
Some surprises are good.
And though regular justice would take its course for sure, sometimes it was the irregular kind that gave the most satisfaction …
15. One Last Surprise
Jack flipped the burgers on the barbecue and shuffled the chicken wings away from the direct heat.
“You sure you guys are going to be able to eat all this?” he said.
The look of amazement on the four soldiers’ faces was all the answer he needed.
“Should be okay for us, Jack,” said Carl, reaching down for another beer from the bag which dangled in the water off the side of the Goose. “But what are they going to be eating?”
He gestured to the deck of the boat where Sarah, Donna and the other wives and girlfriends of the Army team were sitting at Jack’s garden table laughing and drinking wine.
Jack laughed.
Being with the soldiers reminded him of squad days back in New York. Lot of laughter, ribbing, joking.
And often evenings like this where the guys would huddle round the barbecue and the wives would sit on the deck as the sun went down, the darkness of ‘the job’, the world of NYPD receding.
If only for a bit.
Until later, when they all kinda rearranged themselves again into couples …
It had been Sarah’s idea to get Carl and Donna over to celebrate the arrest of Magnusson and his cronies. And Jack’s idea to invite the rest of the crew too.
Without the help of the Army team, Magnusson might have got away with it.
The police had picked up Viola Kent just a mile upstream, where she’d been waiting, engine running, to spirit her
The engine burbled, hesitated. Another pull — and it started. He cast off, rammed the engine into gear, twisted the throttle, spun the boat round hard and headed upstream.
At full throttle he powered under Cherringham Bridge leaving a wake behind him that would certainly rock all the other boats.
But this was no time for obeying speed limits.
He could see the two sculls a couple of hundred yards ahead, almost level now with the Grey Goose.
As he raced towards them he saw that the Army boat had drawn level with their prey — and then with a flurry of blades the two craft came together.
Magnusson seemed to jump — or maybe he fell. Jack saw him disappear under the water.
As the four pulled alongside the empty single scull, one of the soldiers dived in.
Jack arced to a stop next to the drifting boats and killed the outboard just as Magnusson burst to the surface of the water in the arms of the rescuing soldier.
And what happened next so surprised Jack … just when he thought these days nothing could surprise him.
The soldier held Magnusson firmly above the water with one hand, then raised his other fist and punched the Swede hard in the face.
“That’s for Donna,” he said.
He punched him again.
“Bastard!”
And much as Jack was happy for the unknown avenger to carry on punching, he knew he couldn’t allow it to continue.
“Whoa! Hang on. That’s enough!” he shouted.
He paddled the little tender round to the side of the sculls and with the help of the other soldiers dragged the two men out of the water.
Soon Magnusson lay moaning in the well of Pat’s boat, blood streaming from his nose.
“My nose … it’s broken,” said Magnusson with a groan.
“Yep,” said Jack. “Looked to me like you hit it on the side when you jumped.”
He grinned at the soldier who now sat facing him in the boat, singlet and shorts dripping, his feet on Magnusson’s back: “Nice to meet you,” he said to the soldier. “I’m Jack, by the way.”
“Carl,” said the other.
Jack offered his hand — and the burly soldier shook it.
“Job done, eh?” he said, grinning.
“Job done indeed,” said Jack.
And Jack fired up the outboard and headed for the bank. Down on Cherringham Bridge he could see the flashing blue lights of police cars arriving.
Even if things hadn’t gone quite as planned, there’d been the undoubted bonus of seeing Magnusson hammered.
Some surprises are good.
And though regular justice would take its course for sure, sometimes it was the irregular kind that gave the most satisfaction …
15. One Last Surprise
Jack flipped the burgers on the barbecue and shuffled the chicken wings away from the direct heat.
“You sure you guys are going to be able to eat all this?” he said.
The look of amazement on the four soldiers’ faces was all the answer he needed.
“Should be okay for us, Jack,” said Carl, reaching down for another beer from the bag which dangled in the water off the side of the Goose. “But what are they going to be eating?”
He gestured to the deck of the boat where Sarah, Donna and the other wives and girlfriends of the Army team were sitting at Jack’s garden table laughing and drinking wine.
Jack laughed.
Being with the soldiers reminded him of squad days back in New York. Lot of laughter, ribbing, joking.
And often evenings like this where the guys would huddle round the barbecue and the wives would sit on the deck as the sun went down, the darkness of ‘the job’, the world of NYPD receding.
If only for a bit.
Until later, when they all kinda rearranged themselves again into couples …
It had been Sarah’s idea to get Carl and Donna over to celebrate the arrest of Magnusson and his cronies. And Jack’s idea to invite the rest of the crew too.
Without the help of the Army team, Magnusson might have got away with it.
The police had picked up Viola Kent just a mile upstream, where she’d been waiting, engine running, to spirit her
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