Prologue
Solomon Gray leaned on his mop and watched the crowd in front of him. Of all the mundane jobs he had to do, this was his favourite. It was getting late and the last flights had already come in. The wave from the security guard that followed the last passenger through the automatic sliding doors was Solomon's cue to push the extra wide mop up and down the arrival's hall scooping up all the debris that passengers saw fit to discard and leave to the nameless people who cleared up after them. It wasn't the cleaning he enjoyed – it was the people-watching, especially in the arrivals hall.
As he waited for his cue he surveyed the 'waiters' : a large family group loudly waiting for a loved one called Jessie, their hand-made sign decorated with streamers and balloons; a young man holding a bunch of flowers nervously glancing at his watch every thirty seconds; three bored-looking drivers with their boards patiently waiting for their fares; a hassled young woman with a wriggling infant; and the man in the long black coat. Solomon shifted his weight slightly to relieve his aching joints as he watched. He was intrigued by the man in the coat. He stood slightly apart from the others. He didn't move. He didn't check his watch. He just stood totally at ease like an island in the middle of a bay, aware of the activity all around him but not concerned by it. Military, thought Solomon to himself, no ... maybe ex-military!
The doors swished open and Jessie made her appearance to the joy of the excitable family whose screams of delight could be heard at the other end of the concourse. A tired-looking business-man followed her out dragging a black bag and computer case. The three drivers raised their boards hoping that he was their fare and they could be on their way home. One of them smiled a greeting as they made eye-contact and the other two lowered their boards in resignation. All the while Solomon watched the man in the black coat. His eyes followed the arrivals but still he didn't move. As the doors swished open once more revealing a young man with a large suitcase, the woman with the baby raised a hand and lifted the infant to see it's father. She pecked her husband on the cheek and turned to go without further ado desperate to get away from the airport and put the restless baby to bed. Another business-man arrived and made another driver sigh with relief. The impatient young man got his reward as his girlfriend made her way through the doors and threw herself into his arms with a squeal. Solomon frowned at their enthusiastic kissing, the flowers temporarily forgotten in their eagerness. "Young people these days!" he muttered shaking his head.
As other passengers filtered through the doors they made their way round the man in the dark coat as though it was his job to sort them, some to the left to find cabs and shuttles, others to the right to the car park. At last he moved. He raised his right hand, a white bandage clearly visible. Solomon straightened up to see who the man was waiting for. As he did so he realised that the right side of the man's face had an angry-looking red scar bisecting one eyebrow and the yellowing remains of a large bruise on the edge of his chin. Solomon noted his shy smile and turned to see a stunning looking woman approach, her steps carefully measured, her head of golden-brown curls swaying gently as she moved. As she drew near she stood her suitcase upright freeing her hands. The man pulled her in close and she eased her arms around his waist beneath the coat and buried her face in his neck. They did not kiss nor did they move. The embrace was both intimate and passionate and, to Solomon, it seemed to last forever, though in reality it could not have been more than a few seconds. For a moment Solomon felt like a voyeur intruding on their private moment but he was unable to look away such was the intensity of their embrace. Passengers continued to flow around them as the woman pulled away and raised her hand to the man's face. He smiled at her reassuringly as though nothing was wrong but Solomon knew she wasn't fooled.
A movement from the doorway told Solomon that that was his cue and he shuffled forward as the man and woman left. He stared after them for a moment in sadness remembering when he had had someone to love before she was taken from him, and for a moment he was jealous of the man in the long black coat.