The Few Read Online Free PDF Page B

seems like a very nice place — it must cost you a fortune.’
    She waved the thought away. ‘I don’t have to worry about the rent. Arthur saw to that.’ Her gaze fell to her lap — maybe she was reflecting on her sudden change of circumstance.
    He couldn’t square it away. How could Arthur afford to pay one rent in Trastevere, let alone two?
    â€˜He must have had a good job.’
    â€˜He never talked with me about his work. He only stayed at Il Lupo — the cabaret place — two months, and then he said he couldn’t make ends meet and needed to find something better. I had a feeling he’d gone on the street. I think he’d got an intro at the bar — customers wanting more, you know? He probably realised it was a way to make more money more quickly, so figured it was worth taking up.’ She paused. ‘But, like I say, he never discussed it with me. After Il Lupo we stayed friends, saw each other often, and I guess I kind of became like a mother figure to him, being that much older. Also, we’re both from Argentina, so it gave us that link to home, you know.’ She tailed off, lost in another thought. ‘But he never discussed his work with me. Never.’
    â€˜Arthur was from La Quiaca, right?’
    â€˜That’s what he told me. But I don’t think he was close to his folks — there was a falling out with his father, and his mother had to take sides, and it was all downhill from there. Arthur left when he was 17, went to Buenos Aires, found work in a bar. Then he fell in love with an Italian, and ended up here.’
    â€˜The Italian, you have a name?’
    â€˜Only a first name: Fabio, I think. But he didn’t talk about him much. It ended just a few months after he arrived — ended quite badly. They were no longer on speaking terms.’
    â€˜How old was Fabio?’
    â€˜Mid-thirties.’
    â€˜Was he happy to be dating someone so much younger?’
    Ms Santa arched an eyebrow. ‘I imagine so. That’s not why they split, if that’s what you mean.’
    â€˜Well, it’s not the usual choice.’
    Her gaze was cool. ‘Maybe not for you, detective, but it drives some people wild.’ The words were neutral and matter-of-fact — there was no outrage. Ms Santa seemed too tired and worn-out for that, as if life had dealt her too many bad hands.
    â€˜Why did they split?’
    â€˜Fabio cheated on him. Broke his heart.’
    Scamarcio let that sink in for a second, wondering if a betrayal like that might push you onto the street.
    â€˜Were there any other boyfriends in his life? Anyone you knew of?’
    She shook her head. ‘He was always working and, when he wasn’t, he was sleeping. He never spoke to me about lovers — there never seemed to be anyone special.’
    â€˜And you have no idea what line of work he could have been in to afford to pay two rents in Trastevere?’
    â€˜He wasn’t paying the rents. He owns both apartments.’
    Scamarcio lost his breath for a moment. By his reckoning, that was well over a million euros of real estate.
    â€˜I don’t think you make that much money working the streets,’ he said, searching Ms Santa’s face for some kind of answer.
    â€˜You don’t. If you did, I’d be doing it.’
    She looked away, losing her gaze to the window once again. He sensed that she knew something more and was deliberating whether to share it.
    â€˜His parents weren’t wealthy?’
    â€˜No, and after the row with his father they wouldn’t have given him a cent anyway.’
    She fell silent again, her eyes off to one side, like Princess Diana in that famous TV interview.
    â€˜So you don’t have any idea how you come to be living in a rent-free apartment in Trastevere?’
    She sighed and got up from her seat. ‘I need a drink. You sure you don’t want anything?’
    â€˜Quite