by Lee Wood
He takes the dog’s lead and walks the animal away.
As a parting shot, Daniel can't resist and gives the man a hard kick.
He opens the passenger door of his small van.
"C'mon boy, hop in."
The dog jumps onto the seat with his tail wagging. Daniel strokes his head.
"What a good boy."
Daniel isn't someone who makes friends easily. In the two years since he moved to Trentbridge from Romania, there isn't anyone he feels close to. He finds it hard to connect with people.
A dog would make a perfect companion. His mind goes back to the dog he had when he was growing up. Unfortunately living in a tiny one-room bedsit makes it impossible, much as he would like to.
But there is a place where this beautiful four-legged creature will be given a new home and loved.
He drives to the edge of town to a dog rescue centre called A Dog for Life. He heard about them on the local radio station. The dog will be safe here and find someone who loves him rather than beats him.
Once they reach the place of sanctuary, Daniel removes the leather collar with its silver embossed lettering, spelling the dog’s name.
He walks to the entrance, making a fuss and stroking the dog as they go.
"I found him abandoned", he lies. "Looks like he's had a rough time.”
"Leave him with us. We'll make sure he's looked at by the vet and I'm sure someone will want him. He is a lovely dog. Can you suggest a name for him?"
"Eh, how about Rufus?"
"Rufus it is then."
Daniel goes over to the dog and bends down so they are face to face.
"These people will look after you better than I can. I don't have the room. Take care of yourself, boy."
Daniel walks away. He must have some dust in his eyes. That would explain why they are watering.
Chapter Two
Daniel Zugravescu was twenty-six when he came over to the UK from Romania two years ago.
Back home he worked for a company fitting intruder alarms to houses and commercial properties. So far the only job he's been offered is working for Metro Security as a night security guard.
From what Daniel can see, English people don't have the same work ethic. They expect something for nothing.
The long hours and low wages don't attract native English workers who receive more money being on unemployment benefits. And since the uncertainty with Brexit, fewer people are coming over from Europe to fill the jobs.
Like all the people who travel here, Daniel is not afraid of hard work. No-one who comes here expects a free ride. He had been told the streets are paved with gold. He only wants a small share, just enough money to enjoy a decent life. He is not a greedy man.
His mother passed away six years ago and his original intention was to head for Germany until last year when his father was killed by a German coach driver as he walked along the side of the road in his home town of Pitesti. So he no longer likes the Germans. Daniel decided he would move to the UK instead.
On the coach journey from Bucharest to London, he got talking to a fellow countryman called Lagan, who told Daniel he was heading for Trentbridge, a town about one hundred and eighty miles north of London.
Apparently, he knows some people who moved there years ago and it's one of the cheapest places to live in the UK.
Just before the coach reached Victoria station and the pair went their separate ways, Lagan suggested they swap phone numbers.
Daniel's original idea had been to apply to work for MI5. It was his dream to become a spy. He's watched every James Bond film at least a dozen times, although his hero is Ethan Hunt in the Mission Impossible films. He can recite every word from memory.
He loves the spy gadgets and electronic wizardry they use.
His hopes were dashed when he found out all candidates have to go through a vetting procedure in addition to the recruitment process and it can take from six to nine months.
He does not have enough money to stay in London for more than a couple of weeks. So Daniel decided to change his plans and follow the man he met on the coach and try his luck in Trentbridge.
With his mother and father both gone and no brothers or sisters, there seemed little point in going back to Romania.
He figures if he works hard it will pay off in the long run. His idea is to find an English girlfriend, settle down, buy a house, get married and start a family.
The problem is Daniel has never been good with girls. He is still a virgin and only ever kissed a couple of girls.
Back home in Romania, one asked him to go babysitting with her. All he did was tell her jokes. He never even tried to kiss her. She told her friends he was slow. He later found out she asked someone else and had sex with them on the living room sofa before the parents got home.
Chapter Three
On the second of February 2001, Diane Mitten gave birth to identical twins. She and her husband Francis named the first Erica, who was born at 6.02am then Leona born twenty-three minutes later.
Identical (monozygotic) twins occur when a single egg (zygote) is fertilised. The egg then divides into two, creating identical twins who share the same genes and are always the same sex, so if your twins are identical you'll have two girls or two boys, and they'll look very alike.
On one occasion they were spotted by a representative of a child modelling agency and featured in a range of magazine adverts promoting all kinds of products.
Boys can't help but notice Erica and Leona Mitten with their long blonde hair and ever-expanding chests. Every time they walk down the street, they turn heads and seem to attract men like a magnet.
Like most girls, they learned at an early age how to use their assets. A flash of their pure white teeth, a pout of their full shapely lips or a flick of their long hair, and the way they learned to wiggle as they walk.
By the time they reached sixteen, boys were virtually queuing round the block to ask them out.
Both girls love to party. Their favourite hangout is The Alley Club, where they also work as part-time hostesses, taking drinks to the VIP area and representing the various brands of alcohol that the club helps to promote.
A party bar specialising in copious amounts of booze, cocktail en masse and a playlist that gives air time to just about every music genre you could wish for and the liveliest place for nightlife in Trentbridge.
Situated in the centre of the town, the club is extremely popular, especially with the student population. The entrance double doors at ground level display a solid wood portcullis design and cathedral-shaped tops, which propel you down the stairs.
The 'decor' gives you the false impression of actually being in Morocco.
Archways and passageways around the outside of the central dance floor display their Mediterranean influences of solid oak dark wood panels with stunning carvings and embellished wrought ironwork.
The huge wall mirrors in carved wood with metal frames, augmented by linen canopies hanging from the ceiling help to provide a feeling of high-end splendour to the whole atmosphere.
The interior is dark. There is seating with heavy wood tables to rest your drinks. VIP areas, booths where you can be served by a young female hostess and a bar with every cocktail you could ever imagine, and many you probably couldn't.
The doors open at 10pm and stay open until 3am, with last entry time at midnight.
This is to make sure you don't go off and buy cheap booze or spend your money at a rival club and only come in for the last hour.
The club enforces a strict over 18s policy and not much gets past the bouncers when it comes to fake ID.
Their ideal customer is one who books a VIP table. For the cost of £500, the customer and their guests receive a free bottle of Smirnoff Vodka, a range of mixers and table drinks service all night.
Straight or gay or undecided, everyone is equally welcome. The whole idea is to give everyone a night to remember so you want to come back time and time again. Good music, alcohol-drenched cocktails and a
great atmosphere are guaranteed.
Taxi drivers love the 3am closing time when no buses or public transport are available. It helps when most of their passengers will be worse for wear and don't bother to keep an eye on the meter.
When it says £12 and you tell them it is £17, most are so drunk they can't see straight and pay up without bothering to check. Many will hand over a £20 note and tell the driver to "keep the change". Nice work if you can get it.
Originally each twin had their own Facebook page but as time moved on, they switched to Instagram and within a few weeks, their followers numbered over 10,000.
Every day they receive DMs from people who present them with all sorts of offers.
At the moment as well as being part-time hostesses they make a small income from modelling work for up-and-coming clothing brands.
They are looking for their lucky break. The way things are going it won't be long before they achieve their ambition to become top social media personalities.
After all, they are fully aware of the effect they have on the opposite sex.
One of their friends told them about a website called honeydads.com where attractive girls can hook up with rich older men for a wad of cash and 'fun without attachment'.
The girls signed up and were amazed when offers started arriving within two minutes of their photos appearing inside the private membership area.
Honeydads’ policy is for men to prove a net worth of at least five million dollars before you can be approved for membership.
Once approved, you pay a $50,000 yearly fee to become a Silver level member. For $100,000 you get Gold level access and for a mere $250,000 you gain Platinum level. For a lot of men looking for a good time, a quarter of a million dollars is chicken feed.
Some people live in a different world to the majority.
The Honeydads website vets each client and no-one other than members would be aware the girls are registered on the website. Everything stays private.
Once approved, girls receive $10,000 for a few days in the company of a member and a chance to see the world, enjoying luxury holidays, flying on private jets, staying in the finest hotels, attending top nightclubs, and being driven round in limousines. A life they could only ever dream of before.
Any 'other' arrangements are strictly between the girls and the clients.
They went on a few 'dates' but ultimately made the decision not to continue using the website. If they want to enjoy this sort of lifestyle where they can afford the things they desire on their own terms, they need to concentrate on turning themselves into online celebrities.
Chapter Four
Barford, population 1,400 is situated on the edge of Trentbridge. In the centre is a garage and petrol station called Mitten & Son. You can't miss it. It's been a landmark of the village for the past fifteen years.
Francis Mitten is looking out of the window in his office. He's the owner of the business his father started from nothing five decades ago.
He turns around as his secretary knocks and enters, handing him a copy of the local newspaper.
The Trentbridge Times dated Friday 5th July 2018 includes an eight-page supplement dedicated to the fifty-year history of Francis’s family business.
The front page is the usual headlines of drug crime and a story about four people living in a house without water or electricity thanks to a rogue landlord.
He glances at both stories before moving on to the part of most interest.
The article starts off with details of the founder Albert Mitten marrying Beatrice Thomas in 1964 and goes on to say two years later they are blessed with the birth of a son who they decided to name Francis.
He smiles as he reads the first mention of his name.
It tells the story of Albert working every hour day and night and saving every penny to rent a small workshop on Cauldon Road in Trentbridge in 1968 and selling motorbikes. He named the business Mitten & Son, hoping one day his young son would follow him into the business.
It goes on.
In 1972, after four highly successful years, Albert moved the business to larger premises on Histon Road where he took out a ten-year mortgage of £18,200 to purchase the site.
The business flourished and quickly grew into a car dealership, selling some of the top brands of the day such as Austin, Jaguar, and Rover.
Page two shows a photo of the Histon Road showroom from the late 1970s with a range of cars across the front.
The story goes on to say further growth meant they had already expanded to full capacity on Histon Road. So Albert purchased additional premises on Tennis Court Road.
It had previously been the Trentbridge Paint Company warehouse. In 1984 Albert paid £34,000 for the site.
Albert's vision for the future of the business came true in 1987 when after leaving university, his son Francis joined him so it could truly hold the title of Mitten & Son.
Albert is quoted as saying Francis didn't get any preferential treatment. He started at the bottom, as an errand boy to the workshop mechanics.
The next page features a photo of Francis’s wedding to Diane Hammond in 1991 with the happy couple standing outside the front of the church.
The following year, their son Gordon was born and named after Diane's father.
Eight years later Diane found out she was unexpectedly pregnant and gave birth to identical twins in February 2001.
Further down the page, the article shows a photo of the three children who make up the latest generation of the family taken when Gordon was twenty-five and the twins age sixteen.
On the next page there are two photos showing the premises in Tennis Court Road during its heyday with cars coming and going.
The feature talks about how Mitten & Son enjoyed fifteen years of further growth until, in 1999, the council installed parking meters outside the Histon Road showroom. The effect was the first downturn in the history of the business.
The feature carries on with an interview and Albert Mitten saying when he turned sixty in 2002 he made the decision to retire and hand the business on to Francis.
The final section talks about how Albert and Francis began the search for new premises where the car showroom and the repair shop could be combined into the same location and parking restrictions wouldn't be a problem.
Albert is quoted as saying, "It took nearly a year before we found a two-acre site which had come up for sale in the village of Barford and less than a mile from the M6 motorway.”
He went on to recall, "In the end, the idea came from Diane, my son's wife. She noticed the site was for sale and persuaded us it would be the best place. She was right. Once we started to look into it we realised it gave us the opportunity to build a custom-purpose facility from the ground up and expand in new directions."
Then Francis is quoted as saying, "We always wanted the business to not only become part of the village but also to be a real boost to the community. After all, this is the village where I and my family live. By including a post office and convenience store as well as a vehicle workshop, tyre depot, used car showroom and petrol station, I think we've helped improve the quality of life for all the residents."
"To help other start-up businesses, we rent out a number of small units at the rear of the site. We currently have a carpet store, mobility centre, a sign-writer, a pet shop and a business that erects signs for estate agents. Just like Mitten & Son, these are family-run businesses."
On the final page of the feature is a group photo of the twenty-six members of Mitten staff plus the family bunched together and waving to the camera.
Chapter Five
Francis Mitten's greatest wish was for his son to follow him into the family business.
He would be the third generation and when the time was right Francis could step back and let him take over the empire the family had built.
But Gordon had other ideas.
He is the son of the owner. He doesn't see why he needs to begin his career sweeping floors a
nd doing the menial tasks for the workers. Even if it is the way his father started.
He is far better than the people who are wage slaves and he deserves to be treated with respect.
When he started in the workshop, he fell for their jokes. "Go to the stores and ask for a tin of elbow grease." Or "Grab me the glass hammer from the toolbox." Very funny. Not!
One afternoon it became too much and words got heated.
"Gordon, listen to me. There are people who've worked for the company for over twenty years. They have the experience and the knowledge you don't. Just because you're the son of the managing director doesn't mean you can treat them like dirt. These people put a lot of effort into the business. They work bloody hard and I'm not having you undermine them. Do you hear me?"
"Well, if that's the case, I quit. I'm out of here."
Two hours later, Francis received a frantic phone call from his wife.
"Francis, what did you say to Gordon? He's packing his things. He says he's moving out. Get back here and talk to him."
"Calm down, Diane. He overstepped the mark and tried to tell Bill Peters his job. I'm not having that. Don't worry. Gordon will probably go off for a couple of days, stay with a mate until they get fed up with him and come home."
"What if he doesn't?"
"He will. Believe me."
"If Dad can't trust me there’s little point in me being here, is there? Erica and Leona have no interest in the business. Their hearts are set on becoming online celebrities."
"Where will you go?" his mother asked.
"I can stay with friends until I find something."
All he needed to do is think of an idea to make some money.
And the sooner, the better.
Chapter Six
The large number of letters sent to the newspaper editor proves the majority of readers enjoy reading these trips down memory lane.