it got corrupted to Bull and Mouth.”
Tay turned to look at him. “How do you know all that?”
“I like to research places I discover. You want to get out and have a walk on your crutches?”
“Not really.”
“I don’t want to have to buy a cattle prod, and I don’t have a pocket full of chocolate, but it seems to me as if you need more physio. Did they give you exercises to do?”
“Yes.”
“And do you do them?”
“Sometimes.”
“Okay. New regime. Every day you do the exercises. Every day you walk a little further on your crutches.”
“Or what?”
“Or…you don’t get to see my tattoo.”
“Who says I want to?”
Ink clutched his chest. “You don’t?”
Tay huffed.
“It’s really good.”
“Where is it?”
“Do the exercises and you’ll find out. I’m putting the brake on.” Ink took Dog’s lead from Tay and passed him the crutches. “Now get up and walk.”
“Thank you, Jesus.”
Ink laughed.
Once he was sure Tay was steady on his feet, he took the brake off the chair and pushed it as Tay walked round.
Tay was pale and sweating by the time he’d done a complete circuit. Ink thought a couple of times that he’d been going to give in, but he hadn’t. Ink put the brake on again and stood ready to help if Tay needed it. Tay put both crutches in one hand and sank down on to the cushion.
“Well done.”
Tay let out a low growl. “Fuck off.”
“What? I’m not allowed to offer praise and encouragement?”
“I walked around a small park. Big deal.”
“Small park today, Hyde Park tomorrow.”
“Right.”
Ink sighed. Dickhead. Dog jumped back onto Tay’s lap, licked his face and Tay stroked him.
“Oh, so it’s okay for Dog to lick you and not me? Verbally, I mean.”
Dog was standing on Tay’s lap, trying to caress all of his face with his tongue and Tay was laughing and holding him back.
A woman heading towards them smiled first at Tay, then at Dog. She crouched down and said, “What a gorgeous doggie. Aren’t you a cutie?”
“Him or the dog?” Ink asked.
She laughed. “Both of them.”
Ink could see Tay bristling.
“Not me?” Ink put as much indignation into his voice as he could. “Why does he get all the attention? It’s not fair. No one ever takes any notice of me and I’m the one who has to put up with all his whining and moaning.”
The woman stood up. “He can’t walk. Don’t be so mean.”
“He likes it when I’m mean. We have to go now and change his nappy, don’t we, baby? He luuurves that.”
She widened her eyes and hurried off.
“She thought I was cute,” Tay said.
“Only because she doesn’t know you.”
Ink was relieved when Tay laughed. Everything he hated—someone crouching to talk to him, people talking over him… and he’d laughed.
“Is she not your type?” Ink asked.
“Not if she’s going to freak out about my nappy. We going back now?”
Christ. “I was joking about the nappy. You don’t—”
“No, I fucking don’t.”
“Do you want to go back?”
“No.”
“Don’t tell me you’re enjoying yourself.”
“No, don’t worry. I’m just entertained by you struggling to push me.”
Ink smiled and kept pushing. It wasn’t long before it was clear where they were heading.
“The Barbican?” Tay turned to look at him. “You think taking a guy in a wheelchair to a centre for the performing arts is a good idea?”
“We’re going to the housing estate not the centre.”
“Why?”
“Oh God, do you have to know everything? It’s a surprise.”
Ink pushed the wheelchair along the walkway around the water. He’d been here a few times when he wanted to be someplace quiet, somewhere he could hear birds sing, though he wasn’t sure he liked the stark buildings. There was a lot of concrete.
“Brutalist architecture,” Tay said.
“Is that what it’s called? It’s like its own little world here. Lots of locked doors and barred gateways. The residents get a key so they can access everywhere. It reminds me of a computer game with lots of levels. Us poor mortals are stuck on level one. Oh look, that’s what we’ve come to see. Ducks.”
He wheeled the chair to the edge of the water. “Putting on the brake.”
Ink took Dog from Tay’s lap and fastened his lead to the back of the chair, then retrieved the bag of peas and sweetcorn and handed it to Tay.
“Feed the birds. Tuppence a bag,” Ink said. “Bread’s not good for them.”
Within moments, all the ducks on the water were zooming towards them, some of them almost taking off to get there first. What he’d not factored in was Dog’s reaction. He’d