‘What do you mean, he won’t?’ Gus Bender pushed his hair from his forehead.

The black man nodded at Marcus, smiled. ‘You want to come in the office, boss? I got some dandy news.’

Gus hurried after him, pushing past the girl without a look and closed the door, leaving her outside. She dropped a cigarette butt to the floor, screwed it into the boards with a silver foot.

‘I’m so sorry. We have bad news, I disturb you.’ Her voice was husky, low, almost a whisper with a strong German accent.

‘It’s okay. I was just delivering some stuff.’ He indicated the horse with a jerk of his head. ‘That thing …’

She looked at the horse with indifference. ‘You don’t work here? An actor?’

‘No.’

‘I think you don’t. I haven’t seen you before.’

She looked in need of care and protection, he thought. The waif type, small white face, intensified by an ill-applied ashy make-up, green eyes, drab fair hair cut like a boy’s, a shaky side-parting marked by a plastic airplane pinned, it would seem, to her scalp. Without the rabbit coat and tartan skirt she’d look like a plucked starling.

‘What’s happened to the Dieter character then?’

She looked over her shoulder to the office where Gus was jamming the telephone into the side of his head and waving a hand in helpless, silent, anger.

‘The “fuzz” picked him up. At Harwich. He’s in, I don’t know the word, not prison … but he’s locked up, they say.’

‘Custody?’

‘Like that, I think. He came this morning from Hamburg, and they searched the car.’ ‘What was he doing?’

The rabbit coat moved up to her ears, the green eyes widened with innocence. ‘I don’t know. With Fritzie and Bennie. Mr Seeger is his boss and Mr Seeger made me this telephone call to say what happened. From London Airport two hours ago.’ She rummaged in her coat pocket, found a packet of Gauloises, shook out a cigarette and held it between worn, stubby fingers. ‘Mr Seeger has quickly gone to Paris for a few days. Have you got some fire for me?’

She inhaled deeply, blew smoke down her nostrils with professional skill. ‘It is trouble for Dieter, trouble also for Mr Gus … it is a pity.’

‘Trouble for me. I’ll have to cart this lot back again.’

She nodded sadly. ‘It is a big pity, Dieter was the most popular with all the Arab clients. He was so German, you know? Blond, blue eyes, they like that. And is also big trouble for me too. I stay in his flat for no money, just cook for him; good German food he likes; I clean and make it nice …’ She hugged herself with thin arms. ‘But now … if he is away, or if they send him back to Hamburg, something terrible. What will I do? Mr Seeger said I must clear out right away. Take everything and “get lost”, he said, before they come to search the rooms. So I came here to tell Mr Gus. I don’t know where else to go. Maybe …’ She laughed uncertainly. ‘Maybe he will give me a little bit of moneys. He is liking Dieter, and I think he is also liking me. I make Dieter happy and be on time for the sessions, you see.’