Wonga!

12 Jocko's Lair

They had arrived at Jockos office at the end of the hallway. A brass plaque announced that they were about to enter the preserve of the 'Head of Interdepartmental Liaison Group, Quango Controls Group, Inter Department Relations and Human Resources.' It was evidently designed strictly in line with the Civil Service Brief on the use of titles that indicated that they should be written in such a manner to support the private sector in particular the substantial engraving community that had grown up around Thames House that craftily charged by the letter.

Jocko didn't so much as open the door as kick it down before throwing his voluminous coat over the coat stand and slumping irritably into his leather chair behind a monumentally sized walnut desk. He dismissively waved a hand at the chair in front his desk into which Pawser carefully lowered himself with due regard for his damaged Cojones.

Pawser took it that the incident in the lift must have unbalanced Jocko's normally benevolent nature -for the next five minutes they sat in silence while Jocko sulkily reorganised his desk furniture and slowly stewed.

Pawser couldn't really see his problem, a little light banter and he seemed totally put out. After all it wasn't Jocko sitting there nursing a couple of throbbing strangled testicles. Pawser looked around the room for a diversion to pass the time until Jocko deigned to talk to him. Finding much to his irritation that his chair was set at an unusually low height he began jiggling up and down on the chair in an attempt to locate the height mechanism.

Apparently satisfied with the ascetics of his desk furniture Jocko picked up his phone and barked 'Where's my coffee. I've been here five minutes and nothing.' Slamming the phone down with such force the pencils on his desk almost exited the jar they were residing in. He turned to Pawser. 'Stop fiddling Bingham. Sit still dam you.'

Having regained Pawser's attention Jocko sat back and slowly flicked through a stack of memos on his desk glancing at each one before placing it back on the pile.

Fiddling with the chair was, Pawser had concluded, a waste of time. It was clearly nonadjustable. No doubt chosen by Jocko to ensure his eye line was always higher than the chairs occupant. Looking round the room Pawser had to concede that Jocko had managed to wheedle himself a dam fine room, with its huge desk, sumptuous red carpet and two small sofas placed around a coffee table, it gave visitors an excellent view through the low slung windows back over Horseferry Road Street, the river and the City beyond.

A tap of the door preceded the arrival of a suitably apologetic secretary bearing a substantial mug of steaming coffee, a plate of shortbread biscuits and this morning's post which Jocko grabbed before unceremoniously dismissing her from his presence. The secretary paused briefly and looked expectantly at Pawser.

'Nooo he'll not be wanting anything. You can go.' remarked Jocko glibly from behind his mail.

One of the envelopes caught Jockos eye. He pulled it out and carefully laid it on the gold and red embossed ER leather blotter of the desk. He fumbled under his desk to produce a large paper knife which with shaking hands he gently slid under the base of the envelope and cut along the bottom edge. The contents were a single piece of paper which he read with a look of trepidation across his face before gingerly laying it back on the desk. Looking somewhat upset he reached for the phone, punched in a number and whispered, 'Leatherbottom get up here, another one has just come in.' For a moment his placed his head in both his hands. Then with the realisation that his was not alone he rose and walked quickly to the window. For a moment his shoulders sagged and he let go what Pawser might have believed in anyone else but Jocko, a noise remarkably similar to a sob.

Pawser, sensing an opportunity in this fleeting diversion, stood up, stretched across the desk, flipped the letter over and read its contents. He then picked up the memos on the desk and reviewed these whilst keeping one eye vigilantly cast over Jockos back.