‘You’d be different poor?’

‘I probably wouldn’t admit to the poetry. Next time she gets in touch – and she will – call me, any hour. Hell, call anyway, how would that be. Here’s my card.’

‘Aston Towers.’

‘Yeah, impressive huh?’

As we left, he said, ‘My old man, he was like… fifty-five when they had me. Yeah, on his deathbed he said, “Sorry I was old.”’

I didn’t know how to respond so I said, ‘Just like my old man.’

‘He said the same?’

‘No, he said… Argh…’

Thought of something, then thought… check it out. Called, ‘Em… David… Dave, wait up.’

Calling your own name, you feel like a horse’s ass. He had the same thought as he answered in a high-pitched voice, ‘Yes David.’

Shades of Tiny Tim and other obscenities.

‘Cassie’s daughter, wot’s the story.’

He shook his head. Not good, said, ‘There is no daughter. She had an abortion when she was nineteen… a botched job. After, she began exhibiting signs of psychosis. Then she invented a daughter and to explain her absence, she added abduction, not by aliens but Moroccans. Hardly an X-File but certainly spooky.’

I said more to meself, ‘No Ariana.’

He gave me a playful puck to my shoulder. Jesus, I loved that! And said, ‘No more eagles either but is that really such a bad thing.’

I said, ‘She needs help.’

‘Yo… Mister Cooper… didn’t I just run that by you… didn’t I just goddamn park in that space… pay attention… alright.’

And then he was gone.

Of all the things I was doing then, paying attention was definitely not one of them.

I didn’t head for home till late in the evening. Turning from Clapham Road, coming along Ashmole Estate, I saw the fire engines. The entrance to my street was cordoned off but I could see the blaze clearly. My house was in full flame and I thought, ‘Jeez, lucky I removed the guns and ammunition else it’d have taken out at least three firemen.’