I headed to Belltower End to look for Second Eddie. I hadn’t heard from him in some time, and that’s never a good thing. In my line of work, it’s difficult choosing a good number two. He has to be competent, but not so competent he might get ideas about taking over your role. Was Second Eddie off somewhere now, plotting his takeover? I thought of the Daddio, of Luke Pennies, of all the people who might make an offer to an up-and-coming young man... The evening was warmer than ever, and I wished I wasn’t wearing such a dark heavy suit. The orange and pink parrots were building nests in the pollarded tops of the trees. Cloth and twigs, pieces of wire and lengths of lace and braid dripped from the uppermost branches in colourful profusion. Green beetles scuttled in lines along the drains, and I saw one artful salamander standing in the shadows of a shop doorway, watching them, biding its time. I arrived in Belltower End towards the end of the after-work rush. Men in suits just like mine walked the streets, eyeing the merchandise.
