And Cress, thinking now was as good a time as any to make a start on the lingo, said Allora? too.
So what else do you need to know, Signor Temper?
And Ulysses said, I made a list, signore, and he handed it to Massimo.
Massimo scanned the paper. Lavanderia – laundry, yes yes, I suggest Manfredi. （Mumble mumble） Schools?
Who said anything about school? whispered the kid.
Shh. We’ll talk about it later, said Ulysses.
I didn’t come here for school, she said. I could’ve got that at home.
You like ice cream, signorina?
Who doesn’t? said the kid.
Ice cream’s a way of life here.
Keep talking, she said.
Two places for you: Perché no! and Vivoli.
Kid turned to Ulysses. You got that?
Got it, said Ulysses.
Massimo continued: The cemetery where Arturo is buried? I think it’s up at San Miniato al Monte – he looked through some paperwork – yes, yes it is. In the family vault in the Cimitero delle Porte Sante. And what else? Ah, telephone. Easy. You need tokens – gettoni – for the public telephones and from the post office you can call England. You want to call England now?
Could we?
Your wish is my command. And when the coffee was finished, he took them down to an office where a young woman dialled the number and made the connection. Un momento, she said before handing the receiver to Ulysses.
It was Col who picked up. Un bloody momento?
Col? It’s me.
I know it’s you. And thank God for that. Cressy’s missing. I told the cops to dredge the canal. Poor old fucker.
Cressy’s with me.
What? What d’ya do? Kidnap him?
No, I didn’t kidnap him.
Cress leant into the receiver and said, I came voluntarily, Col. I’m having a lovely time.
Traitors. Both of you. You got that bloody parrot too?
（PAUSE.）
What makes you think I’ve got the parrot? said Ulysses.
I don’t. That was a joke. Pete reckons Tubby ate it.
Why would anyone eat a parrot?
To show me what he’s capable of.
And what’s that? A varied diet?
It probably tastes like chicken, said Cress.
What’s he saying? said Col.
Cress said the parrot probably tastes like chicken.
God help me, said Col.
Guinea pigs taste like duck, said Cress.
What’s he saying now? said Col.
Something about guinea pigs.
Jesus Christ. Just when I started to miss the old boy. Tubby should have eaten him first. Anyway, Temps, what d’ya want? I know you didn’t phone me to tell me the weather.
Hot and sunny.
Fuck off.
Tell Peg we’re here.
Let me just write that down: Tell … Peg … Temps—
Yeah, funny. And look out for her for me.
Don’t I always?
Ginny OK?
（Ulysses could hear a peppermint being unwrapped.）
She’s fine, said Col. She’s over at Mrs Kaur’s. Dunno what it is about that woman, but she makes her happy.
Col. I gotta go. Take care of yourself, right? And don’t forget Peg.
I never forget Peg.
Ulysses replaced the receiver.
Massimo held up a set of keys and said, Shall we? and he ushered them out of the door. You can tell me about the parrot and the guinea pig in the car, he added.
Despite Massimo’s outward appearance, he was at heart an unconventional man. Always had been. And to be sitting in the front passenger seat of an English car named Betsy with a parrot on his shoulder was as good as life got. He issued clear instruction to get them to the south of the city: Left here. Mind the tram, Signor Temper. Right here. The tram, Signor Temper! And he nodded and smiled at pedestrians who stared at him, as if to confirm their eyes were not deceiving them, and yes, it was he, Signor Massimo Buontalenti, popular notary and all-round legal expert, revealing his closeted bohemian side.
They crossed the Arno on the cusp of evening; the water flared with colour and buildings surrendered their reflections to the untroubled surface. A solitary rower passed under the bridge and the scene drew a gasp from Cressy. Look, he said. Look there, he said. Such wonder.
A maze of narrow streets brought the Jowett Bradford to a stop alongside a church at the north-eastern corner of a tree-lined piazza. The last of the contadini, the farmers, had gone and all that remained of the daily market was straw and donkey scat, and damaged fruit that sent the flies crazy. Over the far side, people were gathered outside a café as they had been nine years before. Ulysses opened the door and climbed out. He leant on the bonnet and took in the scene. He was careful with the memory. A bicycle traversed the stones, handlebars piled high with gilded picture frames.