In the Closer Phase

'It's the deal of a lunchtime', he said. His blue eyes showed too much white around them, as he strove for innocent sincerity. He'd made a scratchy, patchy job of shaving. This did give him a youthful look, besides, any unblemished skin was apricot-smooth. Innocence was denied by the needle-marks in the webbing between the fingers.

John looked at him. Waited.

'Joke, huh?' the boy sniffed, wiped a hand across a nostril. Sneaked the hand under the copper-topped table.

John shifted the cartwheel-backed chair away.

'How much?' he asked.

Another sniff; 'Monkey.'

John yawned, tossed off the last of the malt. Made to get up.

'Ton?' The boy's voice broke the word into two syllables.

John sat down, 'You're still joking, right?

The boy picked at something resinous on the copper with a surprisingly manicured nail.

John looked closer at the hand. Old looking, veins proud of the rough skin, but come on, what did he expect. John looked at his watch. Ten to one. He could do with getting this over with, wouldn't do to be late south of the river. You never knew what a Turk would take offence at, worse than the Cypriots ever were. John wondered what had happened to the East End boys. All on the scrounge in tower blocks, probably. No-one wanted to graft, earn a crooked shilling.

'Fifty. That's it.'

'What? For two days?' The boy genuinely looked shocked.

John couldn't credit that. A junkie, cute alright – but there'd be no skin on skin, would there?

'You'll like the hotel. Charge room service, eat what you want. No drink, no drugs.'

He sniffed again, 'What exactly... you know?'

There was something about him again, something off.

'How old did you say?' John's gloved hand grabbed the boy's.

'Sixteen.' He lifted his chin, as though that made it true.

'You know then,' he said.

'Ahh... I've never … it's...'

'Greek, French... maybe Russian if my meeting over the river goes OK.'

The boy's face aged ten years. He winked over John's shoulder. The shoulder a heavy hand clamped down on.

John knew what the words would be before the copper reeled them off.