MORNING SERIAL

HE was thick-set, but had that intelligent look to him, an open brow and a jaw that one could imagine doing some athletic bouts of talking.

The younger man held less of a presence; medium build and dark hair combed back behind his ears – he gathered the two girls together and seemed to say something to them as they waited by the car, and then they all put on dark glasses in a smooth choreographed movement. They were Russian I guessed on seeing them, or at least of that Russo-Slavic stock – they have a look, people from that part of the world, no less than people from other parts of the world have their look, and painters, like me, like Francis, have a trained eye for shoulderwidth and cheekbones.

“Is this Mr Prostakov?” I said to the priest under my breath, but the priest shrugged.

The four of them walked up to the graveside; one of the girls had some flowers and she placed them onto Francis’s coffin and then took a few steps back into the arms of the dark-haired man. It was impossible to tell if any of these four had as yet acknowledged the presence of either myself or the priest, until the tributes had been paid and flowers offered, and the older man raised an upturned palm to the priest in a pliant gesture to continue. When he was still, the older man had a hunched demeanour, and he curled his bottom lip and bobbed his head slightly as the priest spoke. It might have been approval, it might not. The younger man was more alert, glancing occasionally over his shoulder to the gravediggers, who had stood from their positions, their tools ready at their sides like sentries whose sergeant had turned up. The girls aimed their shades toward the coffin respectfully, and did not move.

The priest continued on from his generic praise in English – he knew nothing of Francis after all, as he had admitted; not even that he had been a famous artist – and went on to read some verse from the Bible in Greek. The older Russian continued to bob his head and curl his lip.

> The Golden Orphans by Gary Raymond is published by Parthian www.parthianbooks.com CONTINUES TOMORROW