Fallen Gods

Fifty-Five

"So that's it," Paula exclaimed, 'you've actually moved out?"

He nodded. "I'm in the process of, yes."

"You're not giving yourself time for second thoughts? You're not just giving yourself a bit of breathing space?"

"No; neither of us needs any breathing space. We both know it's over."

"But why has this happened all of a sudden, Mario? You told me what your problems were, but you said you were handling them, and that you and Maggie were content to go on the way you were. God, I never felt like a whore before, but I do now!"

She turned away from him, but he put his hands on her shoulders and brought her back to face him once more. "You can stop that right now," he said, firmly. "This has got nothing to do with you."

"You can say that, but the rest of bloody Edinburgh won't see it that way. I suppose I'm a bit late to be thinking of that now'

"The rest of bloody Edinburgh can think what it will, but I can tell you this; they won't hear it from Maggie, and they sure as hell won't say it in my hearing. Paulie, the things that killed our marriage have nothing to do with you and me. They were covered up for too long; now they've got out of the box and we can't handle them. Losing custody of

Rufus might have been the catalyst for this, but in a way it's been a blessing too."

"But you were so fond of that wee guy."

"Yeah, I know, but he's going to be much better off with his uncle's family." He wrinkled his nose. "Hell, I can always get a puppy."

"And what's Maggie going to do on her own?"

"She's going to do her job; get on with her career. As for being on her own, she's been that way since she was a kid. Even when we were married, there was a part of her that I could never get near."

"There's a part of me you'll never get near, too; I hope you realise that."

He grinned. "Hell. I wouldn't want to get any where near her. She's a dangerous woman."

"You'd better believe it," she said, in mock warning. "But this part of me isn't." She slid her arms around his waist and pressed herself against him, burying her face in his chest. "This part's just a selfish bitch; she's glad that you're out of it. And if it's been wrong all along, I suppose I should be glad for Maggie too. You never know; maybe she'll find the right man, in time."

"Maybe she will, but it sure as hell ain't me."

When Paula looked up at him, she was frowning. "That should worry me, you know," she whispered. "Maybe you'll find the right woman."

"Maybe I've found her," he replied. "Maybe she's been there all along.

Maybe this is the way it should be; me in your mum and dad's old place, you here, living our lives and getting together when we feel like it."

"And maybe you should stop trying to see the future. Look at your friend Neil; you could never have guessed what would happen to him, after his wife died."

"That's true, but there aren't too many women like Lou around. Anyway, you have to be looking to land one."

"And was Neil?"

He frowned. "No," he said slowly.

"There you are then. Don't you tell me that you don't know a single woman that you fancy a bit."

He ran his fingers through her silver hair. "I will tell you that I don't know a single woman… or a married one for that matter… that I fancy as much as you."

"Aye," Paula murmured, doubtfully. "Let's see if it stays that way.

"Speaking of Neil," she continued, 'how's he going to take you and Maggie splitting up? He's close to her as well as you, isn't he?"

"Neil was more or less the detonator that set off the explosion," he told her. "He sat me down and talked to me and made me see the whole thing the way it really was. Your ex, Stevie, did something similar for Maggie, at around the same time."

"Stevie, eh," she mused. "He's a deep one, that. You think I'm secretive? He's a kind bloke, though; too gentle for me in the end, but those big soft eyes of his… Oh they have an effect, I can tell you."

"He needs to watch who he looks at then," Mario muttered, darkly.

"What do you mean?"

"Remember Alice Cowan, the girl who worked for me in SB?"

"Yeah, she shops in my deli. What about her?"

"She saw Stevie in a wine bar with someone he definitely should not have been with; a married lady."

"Knowing him, it was probably perfectly innocent; he was probably counselling her."

"Not the way Alice told it."

Paula's eyes widened; she smiled. "Oh dear," she said. "It's not like

Stevie-boy to be indiscreet. Did you talk to him about it?"

"No danger. I'm not getting into that. If he wants to shaft his career, he can get on with it. No, I filed it away mentally, and I told Alice to forget what she had seen, for ever."

"And will she?"

"For sure."

"Won't she tell Neil, now she's working for him?"

"God, no. Anyone but Neil."

Paula's eyes widened even further. "It wasn't his wife, was it?"

"Of course not; I'd have fucking killed Stevie myself if it had been."

"I'm intrigued."

"Don't be. I'm telling you no more. I shouldn't have let that much slip."

"In that case it's forgotten already, honest. But speaking of Neil and his wife, now that we're sort of legit." will I get to meet her?"

"Probably. I'll let the smoke clear, then maybe invite them to dinner at the new place. By that time Neil may have solved his problem."

"What problem?"

"A woman called Agnes Maley."

"Black Agnes? What's she been up to? I thought she'd cut her links with the shady side of Edinburgh."

He threw his arms wide in a dramatic gesture, and his head back.

"Jesus," he laughed, 'you know about that too! Police intelligence; a contradiction, like they say."

"I'm from Leith, Mario," Paula reminded him. "And I'm in the sauna business. So what about Agnes?"

"She's been making trouble for the boss, that's all. Now it looks as if she's about to get a Holyrood seat. Neil wants to fix her wagon before that happens."

"He's going to have trouble then; Agnes covers her tracks, plus she's got a lot of friends."

"How does a female scumbag like her have friends?"

"She helps people. They remember it, not least because Agnes never lets them forget. I heard a story about her the other day, as it happens." She paused.

"Let's have it then," he said, impatiently.

"Okay, hold your horses. Do you know a woman called Joanne Virtue?"

Mario laughed. "Joanne Virtue? The Big Easy? Every copper in

Edinburgh knows her; one or two have known her intimately as well, so they say."

"True enough; your colleague Superintendent Jay for one, from what I hear. Joanne was on the game for years, but she was an honest worker; no drugs, no clap. A couple of years ago, she hung up her G-string and got a job as manager of a sauna at the bottom end of the New Town.

A few weeks back, the neighbours started giving her trouble; it's in a half-posh district and there were one or two noisy incidents. They sent a petition to the council asking for the licence to be withdrawn.

This would not have been happy news for the owner, and might have had consequences for Joanne, so she was really worried."

"I'm not surprised. What did she do?"

"She went to see Agnes. The place isn't in her ward or anywhere near it, and the local Labour councillor had even signed the petition, so you'd have thought that would have been that. But no; Agnes said "leave it with me". A few days later, the petition came up before the committee, and the Labour members voted against it, en masse. Agnes had taken it to the group and told them she wasn't having the girls who work there forced on to the street."

Mario stared at her. "But why would she do that? It's not that long since Agnes had a sauna in her own ward closed on just those grounds."

"Don't ask me. That's as much of the story as I was told. If you or Neil want to hear the rest, you'd better ask Joanne."