The Man Who Couldn't Stay Dead. (Part 5)

MILAN, ITALY. AUGUST 16th. 4.30pm. STAR DIAMOND DEALERS.

The street door to the office of Star Diamond Dealers was halfway along a litter strewn alley that led nowhere. Just the rear of shops and offices where they put out their bins.
It was the kind of alley you walked past with one hand on your wallet and one eye on the shadows.
Anthony stood outside, sweating and dizzy, fighting off a fit.
Sophia needed all of her strength trying to hold him upright. The last time he'd had been outside this door, his body was wrapped in a bloody carpet being thrown into the boot of Paolo Solquine's car.
Anthony leaned against the wall, breathing heavily. All those childhood nightmares were going round and round in his head. His brain felt like a radio dial spinning frantically trying to tune in to a station.
“I don't think I can do this.” Anthony said weakly. “I feel like I am reliving it all. Like I'm going to be murdered all over again.”
Sophia sat him down on a concrete bollard outside the doorway.
“Stay there and get your breath.” without another word she disappeared into the doorway. Anthony tried to stop her but he was too weak to get to his feet.
Sophia climbed the dingy stairway to the first floor office of Star Diamond Dealers. The last time she'd been here was the day before Antonio disappeared. To discuss their wedding plans. It had been a happy visit, full of laughter and kisses and hope. This time, it was very different.
She stopped outside the office door she used to know so well. The door was splintered and crooked, hanging awkwardly on its hinges. Plaster had fallen off the wall beside the door frame and lay on the bare floorboards outside the door. Sophia felt sadness at how derelict the once thriving office had become. She pushed on the door with one finger, it creaked halfway open before sticking, lopsided on the floor. She pushed further and entered. Paolo was slumped over the desk in a drunken sleep.
The office looked as though it had been ransacked. The desk draws were lying over the floor, as were the contents. Empty liquor bottles littered every surface. Piles of mail, mostly red bills lay unopened. The walls hadn't seen paint since the day after Antonio's murder when Paolo did an urgent clean up job to save his own neck.
Sophia went to the small sink in one corner of the office. She poured cold water into a filthy pan lying unwashed in a filthy sink full of empty bottles and dirty glasses.
She walked over to the desk and hurled the water over Paolo. He shot up with a noisy grunt, water dripping off his nose and chin. Sophia stepped back at the sight of him. She knew he'd let himself go, but she didn't expect to see his battered bruised and bloody face.
They stared at each other for an age, both in shock. Sophia felt no pity.
The sight of him reinforced all the rumours she'd heard about his tacky life and the people he was mixing with.
“Serves the son of a bitch right. “ she thought.
Paolo eventually managed to focus his bloodshot eyes and broke the silence.
“Sophia ?”
“Yes Paolo, Sophia.”
“How lovely to see you.” he slurred with open insincerity as he dried himself with a filthy handkerchief. There had never been any love lost between them.
“You're looking as good as ever.” she replied in kind.
“What can I do for you ?” he asked, puzzled.
Sophia was temporarily stumped by the question. She wasn't sure what she wanted from him or why she'd come here and left Anthony outside.
It was impulse. Curiosity. Anger. But her overriding feeling was hatred. She wanted to hurt him, but somebody had already done that. Paolo couldn't help noticing the disgust on Sophia's face as she looked at him. He realised what a mess he must look.
“If I'd known you were coming I'd have made an effort.” he said as he stood up unsteadily behind the desk and made a useless effort to tidy himself up. He half tucked his dirty, blood soaked shirt into his stained trousers, then grappled a pile of papers from the floor and 'tidied' them onto the desk.
“Business is doing well then.” said Sophia sarcastically.
“Brilliant. Couldn't be better.” he didn't realise how stupid he sounded.
“So you could do some business for me then ?
“Of course. Anything you want.” he was lying of course and Sophia knew it. All his business contacts had long since disappeared. But if he could get any money out of Sophia it might keep the heavies from the door for a few more days. Or buy another box of liquor to drown his considerable troubles.
“What is it you want Sophia darling.” she hadn't heard him call her that in twenty five years. The patronising smarm always raised her hackles. It still did.
“I want a ring.”
“Easy. That's my business.” he bluffed.
“A very specific ring.” she pulled out a page torn from a book and handed it to Paolo.
“I'd like you to get me that please.” it was the picture of the ruby and diamond ring. Paolo looked at the picture and threw it to the floor with a yell as though it had bitten him.
“What's the matter Paolo. Don't you like it ? You liked it enough twenty five years ago.”
Paolo gingerly picked up the picture without taking his eyes off Sophia. He couldn't work out what was going on. Where had this suddenly come from after all these years ?
What exactly did Sophia know ? He nervously searched through his empty liquor bottles, eventually finding one containing some dregs. He emptied the dribbles into a dirty glass and noisily swigged it down
“What do you mean Sophia darling. I don't understand.”
“You know what I mean Paolo. You stole that ring from Antonio. On the night he disappeared.” Paolo sat down heavily on the desk in shock. He tried to respond but nothing sensible came out. Sophia seized the moment.
“On the night you murdered him.”
Paolo gave a hollow, frightened laugh. “Sophia, darling, have you gone mad ?”
Sophia repeated her charge. “You murdered Antonio, in this very office and you stole that ring from him.”
“He didn't steal the ring Sophia. I know exactly where it is.” Anthony spoke from the doorway where he'd been listening. Paolo saw him and screamed an obscene blasphemy as he retreated backwards across the office so fast he backed into the window and finished up sitting on the windowsill and half out of the open window.
“You look like you've seen a ghost Paolo.” said Anthony.
“What's going on ?” he looked pleadingly at Sophia. “This is your joke isn't it. Who's put you up to this ?”
Anthony stepped into the room and years of flashbacks hit him all at once, he thought he might pass out any second and had to lean heavily on the desk. His old desk. Sophia rushed to help him. The last time he was in this room he was lying dead on the floor with a shard of glass in his skull. He'd seen it a thousand times since then in his nightmares.
He knew every inch of this room and he hated it. Being here felt like waking up in his own own coffin.
“Who are you. What do you want. “ Paolo pleaded from his perch on the windowsill, his heart beating hard and fast with fear.
“Don't you recognise me Paolo. You should do. You murdered me in this room. Right there on the floor.
Paolo thought his heart was going to burst out of his chest. He considered jumping from the window to escape.
“This isn't funny, whoever you are. Stop it. The joke's over.”
“It's no joke Paolo. I am Antonio Petrini, your business partner.
You battered me to death, right here. You battered me with a cast iron hand mirror. It was Sophia's actually. You cursed me with every blow. Called me a snivelling sewer rat, amongst other things.
You haven't even fixed the ceiling fan after all these years. You broke it banging on the ceiling with a broom handle.”
Paolo made a noise like a whipped dog and edged further out of the window. He looked down at the pavement and wondered how much the drop would hurt. He wasn't man enough to risk it. Anthony carried on.
“Eventually the mirror broke and a piece of glass pierced my head. Right there.” he pointed at the scar above his left eye.
“It's not possible. You're just guessing.” Paolo snivelled.
“Oh and there is this too.” Anthony opened his shirt and approached Paolo to show him his star birthmark. Paolo backed away with a fearful noise as though a pack of snarling wolves were attacking him.
“You can't be him. It's not possible. You were dead.”
“I was Paolo. But my soul wasn't. You wrapped me in the filthy carpet from the floor, and put me in the boot of your car. Then you took me to a wood and buried me in the ground like an animal. There was a full moon shining through the trees.”
Paolo let out a long pitiful cry as though his insides were slowly being ripped out.
“I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. It was an accident. What do you want from me ?”
“Well I'd like my business back. But you've wrecked that. I'd like my life back. But you took that. I'd like my future back. But you took that too. But there's one thing you didn't take Paolo. The very thing you killed me for.” he waved the picture of the ruby and diamond ring at him. “You searched everywhere for this ring. It would be worth a fortune now. It would solve all your problems wouldn't it. When you killed me, you forgot to check one place.” Anthony held open his hand with the mark of the ring on his palm.
“You didn't check my hand Paolo. It was in my hand the whole time.
You buried the ring with my body.”
Paolo's whine grew into a loud wailing cry. He put his hands to his head, raking his fingers down his face as though he were trying to tear the skin from his cheeks. Then he repeatedly banged his head on the window frame, over and over. With each thud, he repeated to himself; “Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.” suddenly he stopped. His battered, swollen face looked up with an expression of revelation. He looked as though he'd found the meaning of the universe. Momentarily forgetting his fear, he jumped off the windowsill and grabbed Anthony by his shirt.
“We can go and get it. It'll still be there. We can share it. Half each.” he laughed hysterically. Anthony didn't respond. He just looked at the snivelling half mad figure and silently removed Paolo's hands from his shirt. Paolo's insane laughter morphed seamlessly into pitiful wailing sobs as he slid down Anthony's body and knelt, hugging the legs of the man he'd murdered, crying and pleading forgiveness.
Sophia finally felt a twinge of sympathy, witnessing a man disintegrate as he reached the end of the line. All pretence of dignity or machismo or success, dissolving onto the floor in a pool of tears, saliva, snot and self inflicted despair. A broken man with nothing left and not a glimmer of hope. Anthony felt no such sympathy.
“You expect me to give you half of what you cheated from me when you murdered me ?”
Paolo suddenly remembered the fear of seeing his victim return from the dead. He quickly let go of Anthony's legs and scurried backwards against a wall, sitting in a heap, looking at Anthony like a scolded dog.
“Where did you bury me Paolo ? It was in a wood. Where ?”
Paolo, trembling on the floor, mumbled something inaudible through his fear and blood and tears. To say the location out loud would be his final admission of guilt.
“Speak up. Where ? Where is my body ?” Anthony's question should have sounded ludicrous. Illogical. But after all his nightmares, seeing his own murder, it made perfect sense.
“Legno di amore.” Paolo spluttered, ashamed.
“Lovers Wood. Of course, I should have known.” said Anthony. “Where you always took your cheap bar room conquests.”
Anthony headed for the door quickly followed by Sophia.
“Antonio wait. What about him ? Sophia looked at the crumpled wreck on the floor.
“What about him ? . The Mafioso can have him. It's the least he deserves.”
“But where are you going ?” she pleaded.
“Legno di amore.” he said, taking a long last look at the room where he was murdered before turning on his heels and leaving it all behind.

LINK TO FINAL PART.
http://www.abctales.com/story/mayman/man-who-couldnt-stay-dead-final-part