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“Even though you’d have to join a long queue of fellow worshippers early each morning?”
“Michelangelo lay on his back for four years to achieve this unique masterpiece, so I’d be only too happy to queue for a couple of hours to pay homage to his memory.”
* * *
The phone on William’s desk was ringing again. If it hadn’t been the third time that morning, Lamont would have ignored it.
“Answer it,” he said in exasperation. “But don’t tell whoever it is that William’s still on his honeymoon.”
Jackie picked up the receiver and said, “DS Warwick’s not available at the moment.”
“I need to speak to him urgently.”
“Can I pass on a message?”
“Tell him Faulkner has placed his dinner order.”
“Anything else?”
“I’ll call back in an hour’s time, when I’ll expect him to be on the other end of the line. I can’t believe he’s got anything more important to do than catching Faulkner in the act.”
“That won’t be possible,” said Jackie, but the line had already gone dead.
* * *
The phone began to ring just as William finished shaving. He grabbed the bathroom extension in the hope it hadn’t woken Beth.
“Good morning,” he said quietly.
“William, it’s Jackie. Your OSC has just called, to say that Faulkner’s placed his dinner order, whatever that means. He needs to talk to you about it urgently. Do you want me to give him your number when he next rings?”
“Yes, of course. Tell him to get in touch as soon as possible,” whispered William, before putting the phone down.
“Another woman?” said Beth sleepily when he returned to the bedroom.
“That’s never going to be your problem,” William said, as he sat down on the bed beside her and gently rested an ear on her stomach. “I can hear something.”
“A little boy?”
“No, it’s a little girl.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“She’s grumbling.”
“About their father wanting to desert both of us and go home, rather than spend another day with the other man in my life.”
“So is that what you have planned for today?”
“Yes. I want to go back to the Sistine Chapel.”
“Fine by me. But we’ll have to queue.”
“I’ll queue and get the tickets, and you can join me there in a couple of hours’ time. That should give you enough time to take any messages from the office without me finding out who’s been calling you,” she said before disappearing into the bathroom.
* * *
“I’m delighted to report, Mrs. Faulkner,” said Sir Julian, “that the other side have accepted our latest terms unconditionally, so I can now draw up a final settlement.”
