Path of the Tiger, стр. 26

‘It never ceases to blow my mind, Ben,’ Ricky exclaimed, using one of William’s aliases, which was indeed the only name Ricky knew him by, ‘just how well you’re ageing. I know I say this to you every single time I see you, but I swear to God you haven’t aged a day since we first met all those years ago in, when was it, the late seventies?’

‘As I’ve told you many times old boy, it’s simply a matter of a clean, healthy diet, lots of water, regular exercise and good sleep. It’s that simple, it really is.’

Ricky laughed uproariously.

‘Get the fuck outta here! It’s uncanny is what it is, Ben! I mean it when I say that you literally haven’t aged a day! I mean, I was nineteen when you and I first met. I had a sixpack that you could bounce a quarter off of, biceps like two firm apples, jet-black hair halfway down my back. Now look at me! What little hair is left up here is all grey, and the rest seems to have migrated all down onto this fat gut … but you, man, your stomach is still as flat as a teenager’s, and if there’s a single strand of grey in that healthy mop of yours I can’t for the life of me see it through these freakin’ glasses of mine. Jesus Christ, Ben, you’re freaking me the hell out!’

William chuckled and squeezed Ricky’s shoulder playfully.

‘Well, just between you and I, there may have been a few cosmetic surgical procedures over the years,’ he said with a wink and a smile.

‘You old dog!’ Ricky whooped. ‘So that’s how you’ve kept those looks!’

At this both men roared with laughter, and with a smile William draped an arm over Ricky’s shoulder and led his friend over to the chess table.

‘Just as we left it from last time, my friend. I have a feeling this session is going to be the one that finally ends this battle.’

‘Yeah, yeah, pal. And it’s gonna be your king stuck in checkmate, I personally guarantee that!’

‘By the way, I thought you might fancy a tipple,’ said William as he hauled out the whiskey bottle.

Ricky’s jaw dropped at the sight of it, and William’s eyes sparkled with unabashed glee.

‘Jesus Christ Ben, is that what I think it is?’

‘Thirty-year-old single malt, yes. Let me check the label quickly … yes, yes it most certainly is!’

‘Oh my God Ben, this is freakin’ insane! What’s the occasion? Has one of those fine young dames finally ensnared you with her feminine wiles?’

William chuckled.

‘No, nothing like that, Ricky, just that…’ He paused as a stab of pain sank its burning wasp sting into his throat at the anticipation of telling his friend that this would be the last time that he would ever see him.

‘Uh, just that what, Ben?’

‘I, er, nothing my friend, nothing,’ William stammered, lacking the courage to break the news to Ricky. ‘I was just clearing out my liquor cabinet, you see. I’m planning on giving up boozing altogether soon, you know, pursuit of this eternal youth thing I’ve got going and all that. So I thought that before I put down the bottle for good, I’d share this special rarity with you.’

Ricky grinned with childlike delight, his bristly cheeks ruddy with joy.

‘You sure picked the right guy to share it with, pal!’ he spluttered, unable to contain his excitement.

‘Well what are we waiting for?’ William asked, desperately trying to conceal the sadness that was lodged tight his throat, like a jagged stone. ‘Let me fetch the tumblers and we can get this battle underway.’

A few minutes later the two friends were engaged in a joyous conversation about shared reminiscences as they savoured the dry, smooth decadence of the vintage whiskey. Just as William was about to position his knight and set up a five-move trap, though, another of his personalised ringtones cut through their conversation.

‘Christ, who’s bothering me now?’ he complained with a sigh of exasperation. He answered the call and spoke for a while, and then turned to Ricky. ‘It’s my mechanic. He’s sorted my bike out sooner than I’d thought. Listen, I need to pick it up before we drink any more of this fine scotch. If I leave right now, I’ll be back in around an hour. Will you be all right here on your own, mate?’

‘Sure Ben, although I can’t promise that there’ll be much of this fine scotch left when you get back! But yeah go on, go get your ride, I’ll be here when you get back.’

William gathered up his things and strolled over to the kitchen, where he covertly slipped his revolver into his pocket when Ricky’s head was turned.

‘I’ll see you in an hour,’ William said as he walked out of the apartment.

At the table Ricky finished off the final sip of his glass of whiskey, and he then stood up to stretch his legs. He ambled around the apartment, enjoying the mild buzz of fresh inebriation as he admired the expansive collection of antiques, books and artworks.

‘Christ, look at all this stuff! I’m surprised Ben’s collected so much crazy shit in the few years that we’ve been on this planet,’ he mumbled to himself as he carefully removed a Zulu assegai from its wall mount. ‘Jesus, I wonder if this thing ever killed anybody over there in Afric—’ He jumped with fright and dropped the assegai on the floor as a ringtone cut with accusatory suddenness through the silence. ‘Jesus Christ,’ he muttered, ‘perfect timing, as usual!’

He shuffled over to the bookshelf, picked up Hernández’s phone, and answered the call. ‘Hello, Ben’s phone.’ His voice was met with a few seconds of silence and then a curious beep. ‘Yo, hello? Anybody there? Hello? Hey, is this a prank call or some shit?’ There was another strange beep, and then the call ended abruptly. ‘Sheesh, some people,’ Ricky sighed as he placed the phone back on the shelf and shuffled