The Letter

Nick grinned at the gaping Linda.

He returned with a sun-tanned brown haired guy who was lean and looked about thirty-four.

"I hear you're looking for me but are too sexy-looking to be with immigration or the Australian Tax Office."

The publican grinned, "There's the wife calling, I'll leave you two to get into it.

"Are you Rex Kirkman formerly of Plymouth, England. I nursed your father Mr Reginald Kirkman."

Linda knew he was but she was acting according to the instructions of the solicitor Mrs Wilson.

"Yes."

Linda's eyes rolled up and she slumped to the floor.

* * *

Marco Cotti (also known as Rex Kirkman) knew it was time to move on as he'd been in Charters for two months. So he finished with schoolteacher Pamela Olsen who, like most of them, gave a great impression of being heart-broken. Christ they knew he was only with them for the company and the fucking. He also arranged to be paid off by the pool contractor on Friday (Marco was employed at a lower rate because he was an itinerant worker and didn't wish to sign on).

He thought he might head up to Cairns and try to get a job on a tourist boat going out to the Great Barrier Reef because he'd heard it was a great way to make contact with horny women on vacation. It would have to be a second or even third-tier operator because the guys running top operations screened everyone they employed and everyone had to sign on for employment requirements including insurance and tax extraction purposes.

Nick, who had the friendly openness of typical Aussie country publicans, ambled over and whispered, "A sheila you probably have got pregnant is waiting in the lounge bar to see you."

"Are you sure or is she from the tax office or immigration and citizenship?"

"Nah looks too relaxed and too sexy to be a bureaucratic official. I can spot them a mile off. The truth is she told me she's been searching for you for someone back in England."

"Christ mom or dad must be dying?"

"Or already dead."

"Oh thanks mate."

"Think nothing of it."

"Forget what I said about England."

"Mate you never said anything to me about England or having parents."

"That's why I love you Nick."

"Back off your homosexual."

They laughed, slapped each other on the back and they headed to the lounge bar.

Marco looked at the babe's face and tits and his eyes watered. He doubted she could be Australian.

Nick left them, they exchanged a few words and Marco watched fascinated as the babe's eyes rolled up and she fell.

"Woman down in the lounge bar Mavis," he yelled, standing with his hands in his pockets to try to avoid any accusation of assault or sexual molestation.

Mavis came lumbering in. "Christ Marco what did you do to her?"

"Nothing."

"If you showed that cock of yours to this poor lady in my bar I'll whack you."

"Fair go Mavis, do you think I need to pull a stunt like that?"

"Then why has she fainted?" Mavis said, bending and picking up Linda as if she were picking up a sack of wheat. Six-foot Mavis weighed about 220 lbs.

"Because she found me."

"Christ Marco, lying to me like that disappoints me. I thought you had flair and imagination."

Mavis placed Linda, whose eyes had flickered open, on to a sofa.

"Where's Marco?"

"Why do you want him darling?"

"Because I've found him."

Mavis glared at the grinning Marco who now had a group of people standing round him looking on, probably wondering why Marco had hit a woman.

"Darling I can tell you that after he's dumped you, you'll be wishing you'd never met him."

"But I have a letter for him. I've come from England to deliver it."

The small group of people leaned forward.

"A letter," Mavis said mystified. "Wouldn't it have been cheaper to post it?"

Everyone focused on Linda, waiting for the reply.

"We didn't have an address. By remarkable good fortune I found his trail out of Brisbane and traced him to here."

"What's in this letter?"

"I don't really know. I'm only the delivery person but I guess it's a name and a phone number for him to call."

"England you say?"

"Yes."

"But why would someone in England engage an American to deliver a letter to someone in Australia?"

"It gets complicated doesn't it? Could we go somewhere private for a drink and you too Marco."

"Yes darling, come on Marco. Can you walk or do you wish me to carry you?"

"Oh I'm too heavy to carry. I'll walk. What perfume are you wearing? I don't recognize it."

"It's a cheap scent my cheap husband gave me for my recent birthday darling. It would be unknown to someone of the likes of you. All Americans are millionaires aren't they, including the Blacks and illegal Mexicans these days."

"Not according to what I know."

Mavis called for three nip glasses and a bottle of best brandy and they got underway in her lounge, Linda saying carefully, "You father is no longer with us Marco."

"That's fine. I thought as much. Tell us what you know."

Linda did that, starting on the day Reginald Kirkman was admitted with chronic breathing difficulty with the suspicion he'd been gassed before having second thoughts about leaving his head in the gas oven. A chronic if not deadly lung infection then became suspected and after laboratory tests that was confirmed but by then the infection was rife and all counter efforts failed.

Linda then explained her conversations with Mrs Wilson.

"Then what's in this letter?"

"As I said I have no idea, no firm idea, but I suspect Mrs Wilson wants you back in England urgently to prove your identify and to claim your rightful inheritance. I suspect it will be a major inheritance with Mrs Wilson going to this extreme length to have you found."

"So what about my mother?"

"My understanding there was a divorce years ago and she went to Hawaii where she lives with the guy at the center of the divorce and they later married."

"You know a lot for a courier."

"A courier-tracker please and yet don't I know a lot. Am I to sleep with you?"

"What?"

Mavis swallowed and her eyes bulged and she held her breath.

"I have heard of your reputation and have met a very informative cast-off woman."

Marco checked out Linda's body again. "I ought to say no but you appear to be a fine woman."

Mavis held her breath.

Linda said, "Gosh you sound more like a gentleman and the allegations you are nothing more than a carnal philanderer. I had reserved my judgment because I know some people when they get sore can make wild assertions."

"That is very intelligent and gracious of you to say that. Mavis may we have the bridal suite?"

"Yes certainly."

"No thanks Mavis, some other time. Just permit Marco to share my room. It is plenty large enough for what we might do, if this guy can be convincing enough. I am traveling on expenses so the extra charge will be claimed as well."

"Oh there will be no extra charge ma'am. I dearly would like Marco to sleep with you and experience a woman with class."

"Most woman have class Mavis, it just comes out differently. Please call me Linda. You know what, I'm hungry?"

"The dinning room is still open. Go through as my guests, no charge," Mavis beamed. "You know I haven't been involved in a true romance in this hotel for neigh on two years."

"Huh?" said Marco while Linda just smirked.

After they had dinner they went to Linda's room. She looked at her watch and said, "I calculate Mrs Wilson will be having her lunch break about now. What can we do for the next hour?"

She saw Marco slide a hand down over his cock.

"If you want to do that well why not? I haven't had sex for two months (her stock comment to any new guy)."

She removed her top.

"Show me your tits."

Linda unhooked her bra and tossed it aside.

"Jesus Linda, you have a great pair."

"Yes I know and I'm been told my cunt looks great as well."

"A-are you supposed to talk to me like that?" Marco queried.

"Only because I thought you'd like me talking to you like that."

"Yeah baby... well let's she how you react to some tit-play before we move into deeper things."

Linda thought, omigod how deep would it go? She wet herself in excitement.

But quite unexpectedly Marco stopped and staring at Linda shook his head.

"What?" she asked in alarm.

He said, "This is not right. You have no idea of how a slut acts. You are dumbing down to lure me back to England so you get your finder's reward."

"No that's not true."

"Oh isn't it," he said. "Well come down and we'll have coffee and then call the executor of father's estate. You can make yourself useful and talk to the solicitor first."

He left and Linda turned and buried her head into the pillow and wailed in frustration, beating her fists on to the mattress. She'd been looking so forward to being fucked by Marco Cotti ever since she'd begun to imagine him at the height of his swashbuckling adventures in Australia.

Linda walked into the lounge and Marco jumped up and pointed to the seat on the sofa next to him.

"Please sit and I'll fetch you coffee."

Later Linda made the call and got through surprisingly fast to Penny Wilson half a world away.

"I've found him."

"That's unbelievable. I'd given you only 15% chance of success. Australia is a continent, very big. Is he with you?"

"Yes I'll put him on."

The lounge was deserted because guests were having dinner, so Linda switched her phone on to speaker to follow the conversation.

Mrs Wilson questioned Rex (Marco), requiring answers that few people other than the son of the late Reginald Kirkman would know and came to the final question.

"Do you have a scar large enough to be a minor disfigurement?"

"Yes, at a 30-degree angle across the top of my left foot, suffered when I was seven when playing with a boning knife and acting stupidly."

"That's exactly what you father told me. Please come home Rex Kirkman."

"This woman, Linda Regan. I suppose she gets a wad of money when she returns home with me."

"Oh no Mr Kirkman. Her contract ended as soon as I identified you in this phone call."

Rex looked at Linda rather astonished, recalling what he'd said nastily to Linda in the bedroom about her luring him back to England for reward.

Linda smiled lightly back, thinking, apologize to me you rude man but he made no attempt to even mouth an apology.

Penny Wilson advised Rex to surrender to Australian immigration authorities and he'd be deported back to his claimed country of nationality but held in custody while British representatives made inquiries to confirm Rex's claim that he was the legitimate holder of a British passport.

"Will I be convicted of being an illegal over-stayer?"

"Probably."

Rex hesitated. "I'll have to think about this."

"Pray tell me what other way do you believe you can exit Australia without a passport and re-enter England without a passport?"

"That's why I need time to think this out. I'll call you back within an hour Mrs Wilson."

Switching off the phone Rex said, "Well I've landed myself in the shit thanks to you but I guess claiming my inheritance will be worth the humiliation."

He looked to where Linda had been sitting and found she'd gone.

* * *

Linda left the room furious. Still smarting at being reminded of the claim she'd been attempting to be extra nice to Rex Kirkman to 'lure'' him back to England for reward and now hearing him wavering on Penny Wilson's legal advice to give himself up to the authorities to initiate the process that appeared the only way legally for him to return to England. That baulking made her think she'd had more than enough of him.

What an oaf.

Had she baulked on the difficulties she had to face to find him, and miraculously had done so by persistence and logic plus a dollop of self-belief? Of course not. She focused and tried to do it right, but not him. Oh no. Penny had offered him good advice and he appeared on the edge of rejecting it.

What an oaf!

She went and found Mavis the publican's wife and attempted to hand her money equivalent to the cost of a single room for the night.

"We don't want your money dear, you're our special guest. Marco (Rex) will benefit being associated with a proper woman like you."

"But you don't understand Mavis. It hasn't worked out because he's too insensitive for me and he'd backed off because he stupidly thinks I'm too good for him."

"Well darling take my advice, loose your politeness and bare a breast to him and he'll be all over you."

"No I'm off. I've loved meeting you Mavis. You and your husband are like the Aussie icons I've seen in Australian films. Until I met you I thought that characterization was way over the top. It has been a real privileged meeting you."

"I'm not quite sure what you are saying dear but I'll say this, you are nothing like those loud-mouth American women I see in Hollywood movies."

They kissed and parted. Only when Mavis had sniffed, watching Linda walk out of the lobby did she look down and see the money beside her on the counter.

"A real lady," she sniffed. "Marco you stupid cunt."

Marco came in a few minutes later and said, "Mavis have you seen Linda in the last few minutes?"

"No you stupid cunt."

"Cripes Mavis, wanting a shag but you've found Nick is poking one of the maids instead of you?"

"Your insensitivity or perhaps it's also stupidity blinds you Marco."

Marco caught himself and apologized. "Sorry to have spoken to you like that Mavis. I had no intention of being nasty. You usually like me revving your up."

"She's gone Marco."

"Where?" he asked, mouth falling open.

"How the fuck would I know. How could you be so stupid?"

Guilt ravaging his face, Marco ran out towards the street shouting, "Linda wait, Linda wait."

But Linda was already out of sight and driving towards the east coast to return to Sydney to spend a few days resting before flying home.

CHAPTER 2

Linda sat in Penny Wilson's office drinking tea with her after Penny had apologized saying none of her other clients ever requested coffee so she didn't have it on hand.

"Where is he Penny?"

"Negotiating with authorities through a lawyer he's hired in that place with that odd name, Charters Towers."

Linda repeated what Mavis had told her: Gold was discovered in 1871 and after the prospecting rush took out the gold a prosperous community developed. The town took its name from a mine overseer named Charters, with the addition of Towers, the name of the hill at the foot of which gold was first discovered.

"Well that is an odd name but not as odd as some of the names in England. For instance I've been on the walk on the South Dorest Coast to Scratchy's Bottom."

Linda almost fell off her chair laughing.

Penny took details of Linda's new address and said the $20,000 would be paid into Linda's account by the end of the week. She was interest to learn Linda was hoping to secure a contract with the Plymouth City conducting a survey of commercial interests in the city about their satisfaction/dissatisfaction with the quality and scope of council services.

With that contract almost ending and thinking about applying to immigrate to Australia as a nurse, Linda's life took a new twist when she received a call from her solicitor, Penny Wilson.

"Linda dear I have Rex Kirkman here with me. He would like to see you, to apologize. He's asked me to act as an intermediatery."

"I'm not sure if I wish to see him. However I'll think about it and call you back."

"When do you think that will be?"

"Within an hour."

Penny smiled wryly aware it was Linda's way of turning the screw. The last person to delay making a decision for an hour for her had been Rex in the first contact call when Linda had found him in Australia. She sighed and wondered if those two were compatible... they both seemed to be highly charged and focused. She was quite sure Linda would call back within the hour so she asked Rex to wander about in Drake Circus and to return in fifty minutes because Linda would be calling back soon after that.

Rex sat in the waiting room looking at his watch and stewing. He ought to wring that Linda's neck treating him like this. He was always the one who kept women on tenterhooks. A minute later he conceded well that's what made her so interesting; no one would say she was a pushover.

The assistant at the desk took a call and said to Rex, "Mrs Wilson will see you now. Please enter."

Rex hurried in expecting to be handed the phone.

Instead Penny said, "Perhaps I might know Miss Regan a little better than you do and understand she has high standards and won't give an inch if challenged."

"What the hell does that mean?" Rex said, bristling.

"She's no pushover so I suggest Mr Kirkman if you wish to try to restart your association with her you should ease back and remember your manners."

"This is crap. Well I'm finished with her."

Penny was used to dealing with difficult clients and didn't think she'd pushed too far. She had the information to interest him. "If you are interested, you'll find Linda shopping right now at Marks and Spencer in Old Town Street."

"Jesus, that's great. Um where will I find her?"

"In the lingerie department she said."

Rex frowned. "Why would she be there?"

"Although she's American she's probably one of those women who still wears underwear Mr Kirkman."

Rex grinned weakly at Mrs Wilson and said he must dash. "Tell her I'm on my way if she calls thinking I'm a no-show."

Penny smiled and watched him leave after saying goodbye and noted the time for billing purposes.

* * *

Linda saw Rex approached and pulled of a black lace and purple satin garment and held it out.

"Do you know what these are?"

On the brink of greeting her, Rex looked down at the garment and noticed her fingertips.

"Yeah I do."

"Are you sure? Name the garment."

"Crotchless panties."

"Ah so you're a connoisseur?"

Rex sighed. "I guess I'm a guy with heaps of stored information in my head. Look, Linda... I was a fool, a complete idiot. I deserve this treatment for being such an ungrateful and arrogant bastard to you. I can only..."

"That's enough," Linda said, placing the garment back on the rack. "I accept your apology. I now realize you'd spent most of your time in Australia in male company and that could only help you be a rude, ungrateful and arrogant bastard."

"You do?"

"Yes I just told you I do. Do you require it in writing?"

"Have you forgiven me sufficiently to associate with me again?"

"Yes, definitely. I found I'm missed you Rex. In the very short time I met you I found you, well, exciting."

"Me exciting."

"Yes I think because I've never known any other person who's been on the run. I had expected you to be shifty-eyed and waiting in fear for the cops or the authorities to land you in jail but there you were, charming to almost everyone I saw around you and to find you were happily working your way around Australia fucking half of the women you came across, thought not Mavis I imagine."

Rex grinned and said no not Mavis. He lost that grin and said, "In that pub that morning after I found you'd gone Mavis gave me a right royal roasting, saying I'd lost you because of my insensitivity and stupidity."

"Well Mavis is not particularly well educated Rex and told me she'd never been farther afield than Townsville but she has a heart of gold and knows people. She regarded you as incorrigible Rex but with love in her heart as if you were a favorite nephew."

"Struth!"

"What does that mean?"

"It's Australian slang for, um, for goodness sake."

She smiled, "Nice word."

"Yeah."

They went to a coffee shop and kept on talking and when casual chat slowed Linda sighed. "Well what now?"

"I can accompany you shopping."

"What about coming back to where I'm living Rex? We can have something to eat and then you can take me to bed."