The Witness - Pt 3

Dave & Vinny

Solidarity

There was a sigh of relief from what felt like the entire pub as the door closed behind McFarlane. They waited until after closing time before having a meeting. Around a table sat Ken, Dave, Vinny and Lecherous Lee. Their faces were grave.

"What are you going to do Ken? Can you afford to pay McFarlane?"
Ken pulled a face.
"I've got the ten grand."
"What about the grand a month forever after that?" asked Vinny.
"Well that's kind of the point isn't it? If I start paying him he'll find some excuse to increase the money and when I have a pad weeks takings it'll be threats and asking me to do favours for him. Can I just stash this little package for him for a couple of nights? Maybe give one of his cronies a room."
"Yep," said Lee, "And that crony will enjoy free food and drink whilst he's here and he'll bully the regulars."
Ken nodded.
"We're looking at the end of my pub as we know it. Unless I fight back. This shit is serious now. I don't expect any of you to help more than you already have. I'm proud of you all but this is my fight."
Dave looked at Vinny and Lee.
Vinny looked at Dave and Lee.
Lee looked at Dave and Vinny.
Heads were nodded.
"No it fucking isn't", the three said in unison.
"It's our pub too and we intend to fight for it." said Vinny.
Dave voice was ice cold, "He’s misjudged us if he thinks we'll roll over without a battle."
"What they said." Grinned Lee.
Ken felt the tears welling up to have such a bond with these people he'd known for so long.
"Let's get a night's sleep and talk in the morning."
They nodded.

Vinny's Errand
It was eight am and Vinny had the day off from work. It was probably as well because he hadn't slept a wink the night before. He'd been turning over scenarios in his head. No great strike of inspiration had hid him but when he woke up at seven o clock he had a plan fully formed in his head. He grinned as he shaved and turned on the radio. It was playing Take That. He quickly turned it off again.

He caught the number 67 bus into town and had a full belly buster breakfast in Margo's Café. Margo was the wrong end of fifty but still an attractive woman and Vinny gave her a smile and a wink. It earned him an extra sausage and a phone number was written on his bill. He still had it. Vinny checked the racing post and picked a few horses from the day's meetings. One horse caught his eye. Ken's Pride 66/1. Vinny wondered if it was an omen. He put a tenner on it anyway. Perhaps the day would go well after all, fingers crossed.

He left the café, looked around and slipped down a back alley. He didn't want to be spotted where he was going.

Dave's Discovery
Dave huffed as he hit his head on the roof for the third time. His wife yelled up to him.
"Dave what the bloody hell are you doing in the loft?"
"Nothing my little nest of vipers." he muttered, then louder said, "Just looking for an old fishing rod for Vinny."
She shuffled off downstairs curiosity satisfied. Dave rooted around boxes and bits and pieces from his youth. Old photos of lads outings, a younger slimmer Vinny featured in many of them. That friendship extended to before his marriage. His wife often commented that he spent more time with Vinny than he did with her. After a further ten minutes of searching and swearing he found it, a dull piece of metal in the bottom of a box of photographs. His old knuckle duster, he'd been a bad lad in his late teens and just maybe he'd need to be one again tonight.

Lee's Triumph
Lee was not by nature a worrier. He too had the day off and was at the gym. He was lifting weights in his tight muscle top and eyeing the ladies. He wasn't known as lecherous Lee for nothing. He worked out his arms and shoulders then walked over to the treadmill, strutting to see who was watching but there was just a bored looking girl on her phone, her pert bottom squeezed into some impossible tight lycra gym pants. She caught Lee looking and tutted. He stepped onto the treadmill and queued up the Rocky soundtrack then set the machine going.

Ken
Ken started the day like any other. He was a creature of habit and he wasn't about to let the threat of imminent violence from Graham McFarlane mess with his routine. He had his coffee, read the paper and let in the cleaner. Ken checked his phone and the whatsapp group the four of them had created cheerily christened by Vinny "The Dead Men Walking."
To his surprise there was an early message from Vinny.
VINNY: Chaps I woke up with an idea fully formed. I think we'll be ok if all goes well.
I'm in town sorting it. Eat well, conserve your energy. No one do anything stupid. Especially you Dave
DAVE: F U Vinster.
LEE: Bell ends.
Ken added: OK.
VINNY: Meet me in the pub around 2 pm.

The Meeting
Lee was thrashing Dave at pool when Vinny entered the pub. Ken poured him a pint. To all of their amazement he held up a hand and declined.
"I need a clear head for a while."
Lee looked at Dave.
Dave looked at Lee.
"You're still paying for it Vinny."
Vinny shrugged.
"Listen chaps time is of the essence here. Ken I need you to bugger off for a couple of hours with Dave. Go have a walk around the estate or something. Give me your keys and..."

Ken started to object.
"Trust me. I've got this. Lee you're with me I'm going to need you to help me with something."
Lee nodded.

The Walk
They stepped out of the pub. Ken looked back nervously.
"You trust Vinny?" He asked.
"With my life." Said Dave putting a comforting hand on Ken's shoulder.
They took a left out of the car park and Ken looked out over "the green" as it was affectionately known. It was a large patch of grass circled by houses. Once upon a time it would be kids with jumpers for goalposts now it was kids stood around look at phones with the blank look of the terminally addicted.
"This could be the end of me Dave."
Dave was silent. They walked around the estate, urban decay was everywhere but also small patches of beauty. Houses that people loved and it showed. The walked down alleyways and some of the graffiti extolled love and peace or was just beautiful art.
"It's a conflicted place," observed Dave, "it doesn't know if it wants to die or fight. The loss of the Rampant Horse would be a terrible blow to this community."
"It's only a pub Dave."
"No, you're wrong Ken. It's the beating heart of this community. You've helped thousands of people over the years and you don't even know it. Little ways that have a knock on effect. Sometimes a pub is the only place someone can come for peace and reflection and break from other pressures. You're a community leader."
Ken thought for a long moment.
"Dave, you do talk shite but I get your point and I'll until my last breath."
"Vinny and Lee and Old Pete may he rest in peace understood the importance of your pub. We're with you mate."
Ken smiled.

The Showdown
Dave and Ken walked into the pub in time to find Vinny pouring pints from behind the bar and Lee sipping a beer from his bar stool and idly flicking through a lads magazine.
"Welcome back lads. We're all ready."
Vinny whistled and from a back room came a group of men a dozen or so. They all had one thing in come. Broad shoulders.
"During our rugby days we made a pact," said Vinny as he finished pouring a pint.
"If ever one of us needed help, the others would be there."
"But Vinny..." Started Ken.
"Just insurance Ken."
"Okay, what now?" said Ken.
"You let me stay behind the bar and I'll do the talking."
Ken nodded and sat at the bar overwhelmed.

A couple of hours later Big Graham McFarlane sauntered in. He had a couple of large lads flanking him on either side. Ken was at the back of the pub at Dave and Vinny's table with Dave and Lee. The pub went quiet as the gangster approached the bar and eyed up Vinny.
"A beer now barman."
Vinny smiled.
"Can I see some ID please Sir?"
"You what?"
"Well you look like a fucking baby in a man's body so I need to verify your age."
One of Graham's goons stepped forward.
"Do you know who this is?"
"It's what Neneh Cherry would call a man child."
The goon made to step around the bar but Graham held him back with a hand.
"Where's Ken?"
"You're not dealing with Ken baldy you're dealing with me. Now toddle off I believe you're barred."
Graham drew in a deep breath. He wasn't used to being spoken to like this.
"I'll leave when I get my ten grand."
"Ten grand? What for?"
"Protection!" Snarled Graham.
Vinny beamed back at him.
"Oh we already have that but I do have one question. How did a rancid thick turd like you climb so far up the criminal ladder?"
Graham roared and lunged. Vinny stepped back smartly and emptied a pint over his head. Graham gasped for air.
Ken, Dave and Lee walked up to the bar ready.
"Now," said Vinny, "Before you do something you most definitely will regret let me point out a few things."
Graham shook lager from himself and nodded to the goon on the left who rushed the bar. Dave stepped smartly forward and gave him one in the face, his knuckle duster adding weight to his blow, and the goon hit the floor with a cry of pain. Lee gave him a couple of kicks and he stopped moving.
Meanwhile the other goon made to protect him but found his legs swept from under him by Ken, who smacked him in the guts with a rounders bat that he kept for pub emergencies such as this.
"Now. No more interruptions Graham. It's just us now."
"Who are you?" he asked staring a Vinny.
"Just a man who loves his local and hates human sputum like you. You're a cancer on this community."
Vinny whistled and the rugby lads came to the bar.
"You're vastly outnumbered not-so big Graham."
"You'll pay for this." he hissed.
"No actually you will. You see not only do I count the rugby lads as my mates I also had some nerd friends and I paid them a visit earlier and they did some work on the pub, it’s wired for sound as Cliff Pilchard might say. Your little attempt at extortion was caught on camera 4k whatever that is and the sound I'm told will be exceptional, especially as places tend to go quiet when you enter."
"You wouldn't dare."
"Oh, I'm not blackmailing you. As we speak there's a young lad on his way to the police station with a memory card. The Coppers will be drinking prosecco tonight. So if I were you I'd fuck off now. I'll send you a postcard in prison."
Graham left his two goons who were groaning on the floor and fled the pub.
Everyone cheered.

Epilogue
"Oh and there's one other thing Ken?" said Vinny.
"What?" said Ken.
"I stuck a tenner on a horse today called Ken's pride at 66 to 1."
"Three legged nag was it?"
"Probably but somehow it won so I'm six hundred and sixty quid up."
"First round is on you then Vinny." said Dave.
"You don't miss a bloody trick do you?" Huffed Vinny.

© Darren Sant 2023

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