by Keith Nixon
He pushed open the gate, which took considerable effort and the cascading of much rust from the weary hinges. There wasn’t a slot for the mail, so the postman bent down and shoved the card under the door.
As he left the postman glanced over his shoulder, suspected the card would still be there in another thirty years’ time. He’d left a legacy, at least…
***
Preener opened one eye. He couldn’t open the other, it was welded shut with caked blood. He spat on the floor, left crimson drool on his chin and chest. He glanced around, his head pounding with the bright lights, white walls. He saw his brother, head down, unconscious still. It was cold and he shivered involuntarily, the smell of damp in the air. Felt like a cellar. He couldn’t move because of the tape binding his arms and legs to the chair, tie wraps pinching his wrists.
A shadow fell across him. The big guy, Konstantin he’d heard Ken call him. Sounded Russian.
“You’re awake then?” He spoke in a surprisingly accent less tone.
The job of taking the Stanley twins out had been split equally between Konstantin and Ken. At the merest of signals Ken had shoved the table into Preener, pinned his arms down by his side, put his lights out. But not before he’d seen his brother take a swing at the Russian with the wedge. Konstantin had caught the club in one hand, yanked it out of Ginger’s grip and bent it.
“Sandra!” Ginger had squealed, the unexpected utterance bringing events to a momentary pause before both the Stanley’s received punches to the skull and blackness descended.
“You put Dick in hospital,” said Ken. Preener heard the voice from behind, where he couldn’t see. He twisted and turned, but couldn’t catch any more than a glimpse. He thought Ken was holding a blow torch, but he couldn’t be sure. Panic flooded through Preener now; usually it was him meting out justice. To have roles reversed, have someone sorting him out, his mind couldn’t take it.
“I’m sorry your friend got in the way,” said Preener. “We couldn’t have him talking.”
“But he did.”
“And he’s not a friend,” said Konstantin, “although that’s not the point. He’s a fixture. And only we get to mess with those.”
“Okay, we apologise,” said Preener. He didn’t think he’d ever said sorry before, however he wasn’t thinking straight.
“Who hit Dick?” asked Ken.
“It was him!” Preener nodded his head at his brother, desperate to please.
“Okay, we’ll deal with that in a moment. Fidelity, where is she?” said Konstantin.
“Fuck, I don’t know! That’s why we came down here.”
“Why do you want her?”
Preener repeated the whole sorry story then. How the twins had grown up with Fidelity, the trouble she’d been. How she’d disappeared for years, turned up again a couple of weeks ago and knocked off a bookies at the twins’ behest.
“Her two partners were killed, she walked. One of them, Jimmy Vaughan, was a medium. My brother and mother believed in him. The family blames Fidelity for getting one of their assets killed. Me, I couldn’t give a shit. Even less so now.”
“Sounds about the right sort of stupid,” said Ken.
“If you’d have just asked properly in the first place we could have avoided all of this,” said Konstantin.
“I swear, if you let us go we’ll never return.”
“Doesn’t work like that,” said Ken. “What would you do if someone pissed on your turf?”
Preener didn’t answer. There was no need. He knew what was coming. He closed his eyes and prayed.
It really was a day of firsts.
***
It was into the afternoon before Konstantin got back home. He nudged the Bullet into his garage, closed the doors behind him. Went inside the house and this time made a coffee. He was drained, it had been a hell of a day. He hated hospitals, but Dick had been delighted to see him, even promised free beer when he was back on his feet. Konstantin politely declined; he didn’t want to take Dick’s bed due to blood poisoning.
Konstantin saw something sticking out from under the front door. A white triangle. He knelt down, got his fingertips to it, snagged it, revealed a rectangle. The front was brightly coloured, some childish cartoon joke he didn’t get. British humour, it was humourless.
But on the reverse were a few words in neat handwriting and signed with a grandiose ‘F’.
She was coming back.
Konstantin smiled.
CONTACT DETAILS
GARETH SPARK
Blog : garethspark.blogspot.co.uk
Twitter : @GarethSpark1
TESS MAKOVESKY
Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/tessmakovesky
Website : http://www.tessmakovesky.com
Website : http://www.tessmakovesky.wordpress.com
GABRIEL VALJAN
Blog : http://www.gabrielswharf.wordpress.com
Twitter : @GVALJAN
Website : http://www.gabrielvaljan.com
CRAIG FURCHTENICHT
Blog : http://feartheindie.blogspot.com/
Twitter : @furchtenicht
PAUL D BRAZILL
Amazon Author Page
RICHARD GODWIN
Website : www.richardgodwin.net
AIDAN THORN
Twitter : @AidanDFThorn
Website : www.Aidanthornwriter.weebly.com
GARY DUNCAN
Facebook : www.facebook.com/GaryJohnDuncan
Twitter : @garyjohnduncan
Website : www.spelkfiction.com
DAVID JAGGERS
Website : www.straightrazorfiction.com
CAL MARCIUS
Facebook : www.facebook.com/CalMarcius
Twitter : @CalMarcius
MARK COOPER
E–Mail : [email protected]
WALTER CONLEY
Blog : www.katharinehepcat.wordpress.com
Facebook : www.facebook.com/wconley2
E–Mail : [email protected]
BILL BABER
Twitter : @BillBaber1
Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/bill.baber1
RYAN BRACHER
E–Mail : [email protected]
LIAM SWEENY
Facebook : www.facebook.com/liamsweeeny/
Twitter : @liamsweeny
Website : www.liamsweeny.com/
T MAXIM SIMMLER
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GRAHAM WYND
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Twitter : @grahamwynd
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ROBERT COWAN
Website : www.robertcowanbooks.com/
Amazon UK
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BENEDICT J JONES
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MATT MATTILA
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ALAN GRIFFITHS
Blog : www.britgrit.blogspot.co.uk/
Twitter : @AGriffy
KEITH NIXON
Blog : www.keithnixonauthor.blogspot.com
Twitter : @knntom
NEAR TO THE KNUCKLE
presents
Gloves Off
Gloves Off is a collection of hard hitting fiction from the cream of the literary crop. These stories have one thing in common: they will come at you, all guns blazing. There’s a story lurking down every dark alley. Just when your back is turned a plot-twist is ready to attack.
The stories in this anthology are mainly crime, but there is also grim humour and the supernatural; dark tales for an adult audience featuring hit men, mobsters, bikers and stalkers. Are you prepared for the bloody scenes within?
This anthology was spawned from the dark, talented minds of:
&nbs
p; Gareth Spark, Richard Godwin,Paul D. Brazill, Aidan Thorn, Pete Sortwell, B.R. Stateham, Brian Panowich, Ryan Sayles, Chris Leek, David Barber, Vic Errington, Graham Smith, Walter Conley, Tom Pitts, Allen Miles, Jim Spry, Veronica Marie Lewis-Shaw, Mike Monson, Alan Griffiths.
Praise for Gloves Off:
“…This is an in your face helping of gritty stories from some of the finest talent the indie scene has to offer. Considering that I prefer my fiction to lean more toward the dark and twisted variety, I appreciate the raw quality of the writing offered in these dirty little gems. These authors pull no punches when it came to drawing me into the seedy underbelly of the criminal world. Each and every one of them served to knit the entire anthology into an all around great read. Well done.
“I would highly suggest checking out any or all other works by these masters of the craft. A few I have read before. Some I have been turned onto because of this collection. None have disappointed. Also, check out the Near to the Knuckle website for other great stories by these authors as well as many other truly entertaining ones.” 5 Star Review, Craig Furchtenicht (author of Dimebag Bandits), 1 March, 2015
Get it now on Amazon Kindle or in print HERE.
FIRE MISSION
The Diary of a Firing Sergeant
Craig Douglas
Craig Douglas was a Firing Sergeant for an Artillery Troop in Afghanistan. He spent 6 months in FOB Inkerman: also known as FOB ‘Incoming’ due to the amount of attacks it was subjected to by the Taliban. His tour was from October 2007 until April 2008.
In the month of November the base was practically attacked every day and resupply was few and far between due to the hostile location.
Put on your body armour, don your helmet and take cover. The shells fall thick and fast with devastating consequences. Inside these pages you'll find frustration, humour and fear.
Welcome to Helmand Province. Look through the eyes of an ordinary soldier in an extraordinary country.
Praise for Fire Mission:
“…Craig Douglas doesn't mess about, he gives a straight forward warts and all account of his time in Afghanistan. The honesty here was the most refreshing part and his military sense of black humour comes shining through. A great read which never succumbs to sensationalism or propaganda…” 5 Star Review, Amazon Customer, 5 Nov, 2013
Get it now on Amazon Kindle or in print HERE.
THE BANK MANAGER AND THE BUM
Darren Sant
When branch manager Giles Macintosh arrives to open up one morning and finds an injured bum and his battered dog lying in the doorway of the bank, he little suspects what lies in store for them all.
Giles does the decent thing and calls for help, then puts the incident out of his mind. However, having been witness to things he cannot explain, he feels drawn to the man and tries to track him down … only to find he has vanished.
But who is the enigmatic, homeless Frank? Why are two very nasty men trying to find him? Why has a prostitute been abducted? And what does the future hold for Giles’s seriously ill son, Jake?
Darren Sant skilfully weaves the various strands to create a compelling story that is as unflinching as it is heart–warming.
As the story unfolds, the tension increases and the true nature of Frank’s amazing secret begins to be revealed. The stakes are high as the criminal and the supernatural come together for a final, inevitable showdown.
Praise for The Bank Manager and the Bum:
“A Story to be enjoyed by all.” — Allen Miles author of 18 Days.
“After finishing reading this novella, the story and the characters stayed with me long after. And not many books do that. Highly recommended.” — Ian Ayris author of Abide with Me.
“Sant mixes Brit grit with magic and creates an interesting and refreshing piece of work.” — Warren Stalley.
Get it now on Amazon HERE.
RYAN BRACHA
Author of The Dead Man Trilogy, Strangers are Just Friends you Haven’t Killed yet and the forthcoming The Switched.
“Scrape your pennies together, get it bought & come join us in Ryan Bracha’s twisted world - you won't regret it…”
“I’ve read and reviewed pretty much all of his books and remain convinced this is a writer with a massive future…”
“Brutal, funny, but with the originality, warmth and empathy to avoid pastiche. Typical Bracha? I have no idea what that is…”
“Bracha has established himself as one of the very best British authors, Indie or otherwise, with this wonderfully nasty, intelligent and exciting novel…”
“It is a rare experience to read a book that is as original, both in the style(s) in which it was written, as well as in the telling of its story, as this one…”
“A bastard offspring of Jack White, Irvine Welsh and Chuck Palahniuk…”
“If you like Brookmyre at this most violent you will love this…”
“Bracha is a brilliant wordsmith with a penchant for spinning a tightly woven web of action and suspense that will keep you glued to the pages right to the very end…”
“An innovative, comic, skillful, articulate writer with his finger on the pulse of modern Britain…”
“All in all, badly written, infantile and boring – a total waste of time…”
Facebook : www.www.facebook.com/ryanbrachaauthor
Amazon Author Page
Website : www.ryanbracha.webs.com
Twitter : @ryanbracha