We walked back through another quickly-cleared path towards the door. As we left the club, I couldn’t help noticing the band finally returning to the stage.

Back out in the street, Bully turned to me, handed back the bottle, and grinned.

“It was good to see you again, Jimmy. And thanks for the drink. I hope the information I gave you was helpful.”

“So do I, Bully,” I said. “So do I.”

“So, I guess I’ll see you round.”

“I can’t make any promises.”

“Well, good luck anyway.” He turned and began walking quickly up the street.

“Good luck to you too, Bully,” I said. It felt strange wishing good luck to the guy who had shot me down. But I guess when you share a drink and shoot some pool with them afterwards, it puts everything into a different perspective.

I began walking the other way, pondering the new information I’d received. They say dead men tell no tales, but Bully had told me plenty. After our conversation, the plot hadn’t just thickened—it had congealed. I needed a place where I could think in peace, but more importantly, I needed somewhere I could sleep. It had been a long day and I was absolutely exhausted.

My plan was to return to the warehouse at the end of the alley where I’d first arrived, so I could have a brief lie-down on the mattress Jessie had left behind. Unfortunately, there turned out to be so many dark side alleys that finding the right one was virtually impossible. After a while, I gave up trying and decided that the first unlocked door I could find would provide sufficient sanctuary.

I turned into the next alley, but I hadn’t taken more than a couple of steps before I began to get that feeling when you know you aren’t alone. I turned to see a large shadow blocking the end of the alley. From out of the shadow, a voice hissed.

“This is what happens to people who stick their noses in places they don’t belong.”

The shadow split into five smaller but still significant shadows. Closer and closer they advanced, rapidly cutting off all of my light. For a fraction of a second, there was pain, and then my whole world became nothing but a shadow.

Chapter 13

I WOKE UP. I WAS LYING ON A HARD BED, with a head that felt as if it had recently become acquainted with a very large rock. Too weak to even consider opening my eyes, the most I could manage was to let out a low groan.

“Just try to relax,” said a voice I had no trouble recognising. It was a soothing melody, a soft light in the heavy darkness.

“Angel,” I said. “Am I back in Heaven?”

Jessie laughed. A bitter, mirthless laugh. “Open your eyes and tell me if this looks like Heaven.”

I opened my eyes. I was in a small room. The walls initially appeared to be covered with brown, patterned wallpaper, but a closer inspection revealed that it was actually a swirling mix of grot and grime. Tatty olive carpet covered the floor, and the only furniture apart from the bed I was lying on were a table and a couple of chairs that looked as if they’d been carefully crafted from scrap timber and splinters. Jessie stood beside the table, a joyless smile on her face.

“This isn’t Heaven,” I said.

Jessie shook her head.

“I’m still in Hell.”

Jessie nodded. “I found you lying face down in an alley and I brought you here. What happened to you?”

“I’ve been spending my time getting to know the locals, but it seems they’re not so keen on getting to know me.”

Jessie sighed. “I tried to warn you, Jimmy. I tried to let you know that Hell is worse than you could have possibly imagined. How do you feel?”

“As good as anyone would feel if they’d just received a back massage from a steamroller. But why are you here? You’re not telling me that—”

“Yes, I’m afraid I am. Sally discovered who I was and made sure everybody in Heaven knew about it. So I’ve been sent back here to serve my penance.”

“I’m really sorry,” I said, feeling uncomfortably like someone trying to cheer up a friend after their grandmother died.

“I guess it was bound to happen eventually. There’s only so long you can keep someone like Sally fooled.”

At the mention of Sally’s name, I couldn’t help thinking of my last encounter with Jessie. I’d had lipstick on my face and a semi-clothed Sally draped around me. Despite everything I’d said to Jessie, I had a horrible feeling she figured I was the one who had turned her in.

“Please trust me, Angel,” I said. “It wasn’t me.”

“It’s a little difficult for me to trust anyone at the moment.” Jessie sat down and buried her head in her hands.

“But you’ve got to believe me. I don’t know how Sally found out, but I promise you I didn’t tell her anything.”

She looked up again. “You don’t have to worry, I know it wasn’t you. It was actually an unfortunate accident that gave me away.”

“What happened?”

“My batteries went flat.” For a moment, Jessie looked almost embarrassed. Then she frowned again. “As for you and Sally, I guess that’s none of my business. I can see why a man like you would be attracted to someone like her.”

I started to laugh, but protests from my body stopped me mid-guffaw. “If you’d only stayed another minute, you would have been seen me pick Sally up and throw her out on the street.”

“You threw Sally out on the street?”

“Dumped her like a broker dumping stock in a bear market.”

Jessie almost smiled at that. “How did she take it?”

“Not well, I’m afraid. Apparently, as far as she’s concerned, I’m about as welcome in Heaven as the bubonic plague.”

“You’re right, I wish I had stayed to see it.” Jessie paused. The smile that had flirted with the idea of appearing on her face clearly thought the better of it. “You’re a brave man to take her on, but it looks like she’s not going to let you have the last laugh.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Isn’t it obvious? Just look at you.”

“So I got beat up by a local gang. It could have happened to anyone.”

“Come on, Jimmy, you’re not that naive. You don’t think this happened purely by chance.”

Jessie was right. Who was I kidding? This had definitely not been a random attack. Those thugs, whoever they were, knew exactly who they were targeting. And the fact that Sally had some serious connections within the underworld was as clear as a teenager’s skin wasn’t.

“Okay,” I said, “so Sally and the Devil are hatching something, but for what purpose? Sally seems pretty comfortable as it is. She’s got her mansion on the hill, and she’s got God practically eating out of her hands. What else could she possibly have to gain?”

“I don’t know,” said Jessie, “and to tell you the truth, I don’t want to know. I’m in enough trouble as it is, and I’m damned if I’m going to get embroiled any further.”

“Seems to me you’re already damned.”

“That’s not funny.”

“I’m sorry. I’m not usually at my funniest straight after I’ve been beaten up. I’m usually much funnier while they’re doing the beating.”

“I assume from that comment that you’re starting to feel a little better.”

“I feel well enough to eat a horse.”

“Then perhaps I can get you some breakfast?” She stood up and walked towards the door.

“Please do. But before you bring it out, can you do me one favour?”

Jessie stopped and turned to me. “What would you like?”

“Whatever you bring me, mash it up just a little. I think I’m going to have to drink it through a straw.”

Jessie chuckled and then disappeared through the door. While she was gone, I finally managed to sit up, and by the time she returned, I had made the momentous journey from the bed to one of the chairs.

Jessie placed a bowl on the table in front of me and handed me a spoon. I dipped the spoon into the thick brown sludge in the bowl, took a mouthful, and then spat it straight back out again. I’d never actually eaten mud before, but I was sure it would have tasted like nouvelle cuisine compared to what had just passed my lips.