STARSHINE, THE OCEAN AND THE UNICORN
Chapter Three                                                                                                             Part Eleven




               The hollow clanging of barrels echoed from outside where the draymen were loading empty kegs and unloading full ones from the lorry and rolling them down the hatchway in the pavement to the cellar.  Joe sat up at the bar, the morning paper spread out in front of him and a cup of black coffee to one side.  The chairs were stacked on the tables and Mad Maria was mopping the floor.  Joe could hear the sounds of the water slopping and the mop being wrung through the holes in the metal bucket.  Maria's presence made him prickle.  He looked at her quickly but saw nothing but an old Italian woman, her thick grey hair drawn back and knotted behind her head, a pink nylon overall over her black dress, varicose veins on her white, stubby legs and a pair of dirty, torn espadrilles.  She was Mad Maria.  She was pathetic.  She responded to everything with a shrug and a nervous laugh.  She did not understand enough English to have said the words she had said to Joe.  Joe put it down to his ears playing tricks on him and forgot her.
                    Annie tottered in in a tight red skirt and stiletto heels.  She had a note pad and a pencil.  Joe watched her checking the shelf stocks.  Her hair was pinned up, her nails were polished and there was just a hint of make-up on her pretty face to emphasise her gorgeous eyes and high cheek bones.  She  marked things down on her note pad.  Joe kept gazing at her and then he remembered that he had yet another favour to ask of her,
" Annie ? "
" Yes luv."
" Can I borrow your car on Saturday ? "
" Of course you can luv.  If you can get it to go.  It just sits in the yard getting rusty.  I never use it. "
" Thanks ! "
Annie turned round and looked at his cup of coffee.
" That's your breakfast is it ? "
" I'll get something later on, " Joe lied.  Food was no longer part of Joe's life, he never remembered to eat and hunger had been forgotten too.
" I've got to get on, " said Annie, she kissed him quickly and was gone.
                 Joe rifled through the paper and found the star signs, but the old witch broke into his reading with her heavy Italian accent and her clear English words.
" Then I'll light another candle on Saturday Joe.  There are three already. "
                 Joe swung round and his anger met her look of pity.
" Yeah, " he tightened and spat out his words, " Light four more ! "
                 Mad Maria was unmoved and her voice still calm,
" I'll light three more.  The fourth will be yours and I don't know yet if I should light it. "