‘You’ve had problems?’ ‘One or two.’ ‘That cat? You think he might have…’ Mark was looking at me. I nodded glumly. I’d buried Pinot in the one corner of the back garden that Gilbert’s windows didn’t overlook. God knows how I was going to explain any of this to Nikki but it gave me a dogged satisfaction to deny Gilbert the sight of the grave. ‘So what happens next?’ I asked. ‘Are you giving up?’ ‘Course not. Just wondered if you could have a word, that’s all.’ ‘Who with?’ ‘This geezer upstairs. Tell him he’s out of order. Tell him whatever you like. But get him to back off, eh?’ I folded the Law Society form and slipped it into my pocket. The notion of facing Gilbert, of having a quiet word - so logical, so obvious - brought a smile to my face. Mark was shepherding me towards the door. ‘And another thing you might try is getting in touch with the freeholder. Geezer starts chucking tiles around, that’s gotta be against the lease, hasn’t it?’ He smiled at me, opening the door.
