Chapter 4
Korbin and Lee, Vern’s two remaining bodyguards, start shovelling the earth over Esteban’s body. Vern will need to find a replacement for Esteban.
There is a summer-evening chill in the air now, and Vern decides he will go inside and let the two men finish their work in peace. They don’t need his help, they both know how to bury people.
Vern doesn’t suppose it’s much fun burying a colleague, but Esteban was fairly new, was constantly horny and was always sending memes to the WhatsApp group, and none of them will miss that.
He walks into the kitchen and switches on the coffee machine. A cappuccino will warm him up and keep him alert too.
He thinks about Jakob Eriksson’s threat. How to solve that little issue?
He will watch a bit of TV. Korbin has rigged up the telly so that Vern can get all the British channels.
It’s easy to get homesick. The taxation system of the United Kingdom means he doesn’t get the chance to visit as often as he would like.
Add in the fact that the Metropolitan Police would like a word with him, and the fact that Georgie thinks they have some unfinished business, and Vern feels he has little choice but to stay where he is for the time being.
Vern picks up his cappuccino and walks through to his living room.
He switches on the TV. Denzel Washington is on The Graham Norton Show.
That’ll do him just fine. Vern always thinks he’d be pretty good on The Graham Norton Show.
He has good banter. They should have people on who aren’t famous sometimes.
Through the window he sees his two remaining bodyguards, darkening shadows in the Tuscan night, covering up all traces of their erstwhile colleague. If the police were to arrive at his doorstep later this evening, they wouldn’t see a single thing out of place.
And, to be fair, even if they stumbled across Esteban’s body, the Italian police would be much more likely to arrest Vern for drinking a cappuccino after lunchtime.
One of the many reasons you have to love Italy. Vern takes a sip and sits back to enjoy the show.