‘It’s not quite true to say there have been no men in my life,’ Minnie said cautiously. ‘And, since you live right opposite me, you know that.’

‘Sure. I see them come and I see them go. But I don’t see them stay.’

‘I don’t invite them to stay,’ Minnie said quietly.

Netta’s answer to this was to give her a crushing hug.

‘No man ever had a better wife than my Gianni,’ she said. ‘Now it’s time you think of yourself. You need a man in your life, in your bed.’

‘Netta, please-’

‘When I was your age I had-’

‘A husband and five children,’ Minnie reminded her.

‘That’s true, but-ah, well, it was a long time ago.’

Netta had a generous nature. In all things.

‘I’m quite happy without a man,’ Minnie insisted.

‘Nonsense. No woman is happy without a man.’

‘And, even if I wanted one, it wouldn’t be Charlie. I’m not a cradle-robber.’

‘Of course not. But you could make him listen. Where is he tonight? I don’t know. But I’m sure he’s with bad people.’

‘And I’m sure that when you get home you’ll find him there looking sheepish,’ Minnie assured her.

‘Then I go home now. And I tell him he should be ashamed for worrying his mother.’

‘I’ll tell him, too. Come on, I’ll walk home with you.’

Minnie’s home was on the third floor, overlooking the courtyard. Some of the other homes were also occupied by Pepinos, since the family had always liked to live within hailing distance of each other. As they went out on to the iron staircase that ran around the inside of the courtyard, they could see lights in the other windows and shadows passing across them.

Then, up the stairs to the fourth floor on the other side, to the front door of the home Netta shared with her husband, her brother and her youngest son, when he was at home. There was still no sign of Charlie.