‘Jimmy, please,’ said Dónal. ‘Will you sit down for God sake?’ ‘I can’t man. Where the fuck is Norman?’ ‘He’ll be here soon.’ ‘It’s been an hour, nearly. I’m calling him.’ ‘He knows what he’s doing. Just let him …’ ‘Bollocks. I’m calling him.’ ‘Okay Jimmy. Okay.’ Jimmy dialled Norman’s number, but there was no answer. It rang out and went to voice mail. ‘Jesus Christ, now he’s not answering his bleedin’ phone!’ ‘Jimmy, in the name of God, sit bloody down for five minutes and leave him alone, will you?’ ‘He should have been back ages ago, Dónal. Either Aesop is at home or he isn’t.’ ‘Norman will want to check the place over. This is his thing, Jimmy. Let him get on with it.’ ‘But Dónal, why …’ ‘Jimmy!’ It was Sparky, and his face was good and purple. ‘Sit fucking down and wait for Norman to come back. It’s bad enough in here without you losing the plot on top of everything, okay?
