Die Tryin'

by Stavro Yianni

  Jesus, he could remember it like it was yesterday. Clear in his mind like just waking fresh from a vivid dream or nightmare.

  Then suddenly: ‘Oh no, it’s him!’ Gemini Number 1 stated with horror.

  Charlie’s head snapped upwards and was met by the towering figure now standing next to the bench. The hairs on the back of his neck stood to attention like perfectly trained soldiers.

  ‘We better get out of here!’ Gemini Number 2 suggested.

  ‘Yes. He’s Mean! Mean! Mean!’ Gemini Number 1 added.

  And with that, they were gone, and Charlie was thankful.

  He smiled thinly at the bloke who had scared them away, just as he took a seat on the bench next to him. Charlie adjusted, and had a sly look round to make sure there was no one watching.

  No one was.

  ‘Did you tell him what I told you to?’ the bloke asked, his eyes dark and brooding.

  Charlie nodded solemnly and placed a hand over his mouth. ‘He believed that I’ve still got my cut,’ he replied in a quiet voice.

  ‘Good. Now let’s work out what you’re going to do next…’

  And with that, Charlie leant back in his seat and listened, the rain wetting his head, and the memories of that night at the fair playing once more in his mind like a looped projection reel.

  PART TWO—SEE NO EVIL

  THREE

  Nick Mavro sparked up the spliff he’d just rolled and took a long drag. Straight away he could tell it was good shit. Skunk. And already it was giving him a nice numbing buzz.

  ‘I could see this shit happening from last year,’ Tony Savva said, typical anger lacing his voice, crunching a finished can of Stella Artois in his hand. ‘Rammed full of kids back then too, I’m telling you.’

  Nick barely heard what Tony was saying. When Tony was bitching like a little girl, it was best to just lay back, switch off, and chill…

  ‘Look at it!’ continued Tony, waving his hand out in front of him. ‘Full of fucking kids, just like last year, except now we’re one year older and they’re even younger. Skata!’

  From the small grassy knoll they were perched, Nick gazed down at the centre of the park to where the funfair had been erected. The Waltzer was waltzing, bumper cars were bumping, Techno music was thumping, and kids were screaming. And yeah, Tony was right. It was full of kids. But, what did he expect? It’s a funfair. Who goes to funfairs? That’s right, genius! Kids! Nick reckoned he could have let him in on that little secret before they left their houses and saved them all a wasted trip. It was Tony’s bloody idea to come down here anyway, so if anyone had a right to be pissed, it definitely wasn’t him.

  Nick couldn’t care less. As long as he had weed and a place to chill, he was happy. And there were no better places to chill than outdoors, in a park alongside Nature. Tony on the other hand didn’t do puff; he drank too much instead. Didn’t vibe with the mellow buzz the good weed dealt, and Nick realised long ago that was the essential problem with Tony Savva. It was his hamartia, his tragic flaw.

  He took another long drag on his spliff and sighed absently, only now noticing Tony was wearing a brand new Ralph Lauren while sporting his chunky gold wrist chain. In that respect, Tony and the other Nick, Nick XR2, had a lot in common. They both loved the flash—gold, nice cars, designer clothes. Nick Mavro didn’t give a monkey’s about all that materialistic bullshit. It was unnecessary, and not the thing to judge people by.

  ‘We’re in our twenties now, re,’ Nick XR2 then said to Tony to try and placate him. He was sitting on his arse, hands outspread behind him. ‘We’re too old for shit like this.’

  Tony waved his hand on the air and placed a fag between his lips. ‘Whatever. I thought we was gonna come down here, bump some cars, then bump some nice pussy, but I weren’t intending on getting nicked in the process.’ Nick XR2 laughed. ‘It ain’t funny, re,’ Tony said with a serious look on his face. ‘You know, I ain’t had none since that Marcia bird.’

  Nick XR2 stopped laughing. ‘Which one was that?’ he asked. ‘The one with the lazy eye?’

  ‘No, man. The Brazilian tart. Remember?’

  ‘Oh yeah. The one with the moustache.’

  ‘She never had a fucking moustache!’

  ‘Yes, she did, Tone. At first I thought it was a caterpillar crawling across her top lip, till I realised it wasn’t moving.’

  ‘Whatever. ‘Tache or no ‘tache she was a good fuck. And I ain’t had none since her, and it’s fucking killing me, man, believe me!’

  ‘Count yourself lucky, re. You could have to wait as long as Charlie. You think you can hold out that long?’

  Tony glanced over his shoulder. Charlie was on his haunches, staring at the funfair, not listening to a word they were saying. He resembled a meerkat, concentrating on the landscape, paranoia stamped all over his face.

  Tony exhaled smoke from his lungs. ‘Re, Charlie!’ he shouted at him, but Charlie didn’t flinch. ‘We’re talking shit about you. When was the last time you got your dick wet? Huh? You remember it?’ But, it was like Charlie had suddenly gone deaf. ‘Earth to space cadet Charalambo,’ Tony mocked, placing his hands round his mouth. ‘Come in, Charlie…’ Still no response. Tony looked back at Nick XR2 and shrugged.

  ‘What’s wrong with you, Charlie?’ Nick XR2 then asked. ‘What are you looking at?’

  ‘There’s a bloke down there wandering around near the rides,’ Charlie immediately responded as if the ‘on’ switch inside his head had suddenly been flicked. ‘Keeps looking over at us. Something tells me he’s bad news.’

  Tony spun his head round to where Charlie was staring. ‘Who? Where?’ he asked eagerly.

  ‘Down there. Shaved head; black tee. Think he’s got a tattoo on his neck,’ Charlie informed them.

  Both Tony and Nick XR2 scanned the area. Nick Mavro could sense something brewing here. If there was some bloke staring at them, then not only could it send Charlie into a wave of paranoia, it could also send Tony into a boiling rage. And right then he didn’t know which would be worse.

  ‘Here, Charlie,’ Nick said to him, handing him his spliff. ‘Take a lick of this and just forget it.’ Charlie glanced down at the joint before he took it and had a drag. Nick hoped that would do the trick.

  Tony on the other hand, wasn’t about to let it go as easily. ‘I see him,’ he then said, making Nick Mavro’s head snap round to face him. He could see that Pit Bull snarl developing on his face. Bad news. ‘And he’s coming over.’

  Nick turned back round and he now clocked the bloke they were talking about. He was around their age, with a mean, hardened look about him like he didn’t have a clue how to spell ‘parent’ never mind knowing what having one actually felt like. He had an arrogant sway in his stride that was accentuated by his baggy jeans. He was bowling from the fair over to where they were sitting and he didn’t appear intimidated one iota. Nick intuitively guessed that that fact pissed Tony off more than anything else.

  Nick Mavro quickly decided that the best course of action at this juncture was to lay back and let things unfold. Tony was too far into this now and could do anything as a result. And when that happened, it was best to just leave him to it. But—to Nick’s mild surprise—as the bloke got closer, Tony stayed put, just staring at him hard. Probably trying to psyche him out. But, it wasn’t working.

  ‘What does this malaka want?’ Tony said, loud enough for the bloke to hear.

  The bloke’s eyes just flicked off to the side for a second and came back again, telling Nick that he had heard what Tony said. He carried on regardless.

  ‘Just watch it, yeah?’ Charlie replied in a high-pitched whisper. ‘This fucker’s trouble.’

  Tony glanced nonchalantly at Charlie and rolled his eyes. One thing was for sure, Nick knew that if it was trouble he was after, then Tony was the right man to seek out.

  The bloke started making his way up the small hill they were sitting on and now that he was this close, Nick noted his Pantera tee (hmm, a Metal-head?)
and could now verify that he did indeed have a tattoo on his neck—a Yin Yang symbol. How Charlie spotted it from so far away was anyone’s guess. Another mystery of the homo sapiens sapiens known as Charlie.

  Tony reached out for another Stella, and snapped it open, causing beer to froth out the top and spill down the side of the can. He put it straight up to his mouth before any more was wasted, just as this mysterious tattooed bloke in the Pantera tee and baggy trousers stopped about two metres away from them.

  He waited for a second, looking them over, before he pointed his open palms towards a spot on the grass nearby. ‘Mind if I join you?’ he said.

  His voice was a tone or two deeper than Nick expected. He looked young, but his voice was of someone a lot older. An experienced man trapped in a young man’s body? And there wasn’t a jot of fear or nerves in his voice. He wanted to break bread and the way he asked the question, it was almost as if he was giving them permission to sit with him. I guarantee this bloke’s dined at the table of some proper low life scum to have that much front with Tony Savva, Nick thought to himself with bizarre admiration.

  Tony was having none of it though. ‘What you wanna sit with us for?’ he asked curtly, wiping beer from his lips with the back of his hand. ‘Fucking do one, ya prick,’ he added before taking another swig of beer.

  The bloke with the Yin Yang tattoo was unfazed. He just cocked his head to the side and stared at Tony with cold dark eyes. He then glanced over at Nick XR2, who just shrugged.

  Tony belched long and loud, and then looked back up at Pantera/Yin Yang. ‘You still here? I told you to fucking do one. Now, if you ain’t gone in the next two seconds, believe me, I’m gonna ram this can down your fucking throat.’

  The stranger crossed his arms and gave Tony a look like, yeah right, which, Nick Mavro thought wasn’t too clever on his part. ‘Look, I come in peace,’ the stranger responded. ‘Got a proposition for you. But, if shit’s gonna kick off, then you better believe me when I say I’m taking at least one of you down with me.’

  That sent Tony into a spasm. He jumped up to his feet, sending beer flying, and squared the stranger face on. Tony was big, he made the bloke look like a dishevelled Smurf. But, the stranger still showed no fear. Instead, he just stared up at Tony with that cold dark glare.

  ‘You fucking what?’ Tony shouted down at him. ‘You’ll fucking do what?’ His face was red and thick cord-like veins were bulging out of his neck. But, Pantera/Yin Yang still wasn’t scared. And that fact actually began to scare Nick Mavro.

  ‘What are you deaf as well as stupid?’ the bloke replied to Tony in a calm voice, his eyes staying steady.

  He’s fucking seen this before, Nick Mavro thought to himself. He’s fronted crazy fuckers like Tony before and survived…

  ‘I said I’ll take at least one of you down with me,’ the stranger repeated. ‘Most probably YOU!’ He added, poking a finger into Tony’s chest.

  And Tony went for him.

  He grabbed the Pantera tee, and the bloke grabbed Tony’s brand spanking new Ralph Lauren shirt. Nick Mavro was expecting blood to start flying at any second, but, the other Nick came out of nowhere like Batman and jammed himself between them just in time.

  ‘Enough!’ he shouted.

  But the fighters were in no mood to listen, and carried on with each other regardless. Charlie was on his feet, just watching them with eyes like golf balls, Nick Mavro wondering what he was making of all this.

  ‘I said enough!’ Nick XR2 repeated.

  He had a hand planted on Tony’s face and the other on the stranger’s shoulder. If he ain’t careful, Nick Mavro thought to himself. He’s gonna get a smack in the mouth for his troubles…

  ‘This prick’s gonna fucking get it!’ Tony mumbled from behind Nick XR2’s hand.

  ‘No he ain’t!’ Nick XR2 replied angrily. ‘Break it up, Tone!’

  ‘Leave him,’ Pantera/Yin Yang said. ‘I’m gonna kick the shit outta him!’

  And then Nick Mavro watched Nick XR2’s face suddenly change. It scrunched up into a snarl, a big vein stuck out of his now-red forehead that made Nick Mavro flinch. Nick XR2’s buttons had been pushed and he was now totally pissed. It was something Nick Mavro had seldom seen, because Nick Theodorou was usually such a cool customer.

  Nick XR2 let out a massive roar and shoved them both in opposite directions as hard as he could. And it was a hard shove, because they were finally separated, Nick standing between them like the referee in a boxing match.

  ‘I said end it!’ he shouted, loud enough to make passersby turn their heads.

  ‘This prick’s dissing us, re,’ Tony said to Nick, pointing at the stranger. ‘Why you wanna let him get away with it?’

  Nick took in a deep breath to compose himself. ‘Because he said he’s got a proposition for us. That’s why. Now if you kick off with him, we won’t ever know whether or not we can benefit from what he’s got to say. Get it? Now, you may wanna piss away every fucking opportunity that comes your way in life, but I don’t.’ Nick XR2 was pointing accusingly at Tony as he spoke and Nick XR2 would have to be pushed to his limits to ever do that. But, if Tony listened to anyone in this world, then Nick XR2 would without doubt be that one.

  Tony remained still, a screw face on, his anger contained. Just barely.

  ‘I wanna hear what he’s got to say,’ Nick XR2 added. ‘If it’s a load of old bollocks, then by all means you two kick the living fucking shit out of each other for all I care. But till then, you’re gonna let the man speak, Tone. Got it?’

  ‘You might actually like what I’ve got to say,’ the stranger added, now lounging nonchalantly.

  Nick Mavro looked from him to Charlie, who had remained quiet throughout, just watching shit go down. He still had that wide-eyed nervous look about him, his head twitching now and then like he was getting zapped with a taser.

  Tony tutted and rolled his eyes. ‘Whatever. You talk, then you can all go fuck yourselves,’ he said before squatting back down and drinking more beer.

  Nick XR2 dusted his hands and took a deep breath. ‘Good. Now that that particular rush of testosterone is over, pull up a chair, er…’ He was rolling his hand on the air, indicating that he wanted to know the stranger’s name.

  The stranger looked at him. ‘Marco,’ he replied, squatting down.

  ‘Marco what?’ Charlie asked in a manner resembling a copper instigating an interrogation. It was the first thing he had said in a while.

  ‘Marco Panucci.’

  ‘Panucci? What’s that Italian or something?’ Interrogating Officer Charlie asked.

  ‘Yeah. I’m half Italian, quarter Columbian and quarter Tibetan.’

  ‘That’s some fucking cocktail,’ Charlie commented, eyeing him up and down, and Nick Mavro wanted to laugh, but somehow he found he was too scared to laugh at this Marco nutcase. The madman squared up to Tony for fuck’s sake!

  ‘Yeah? Well where you lot from?’ Marco retorted.

  Before anyone could answer, Tony popped open his cuff, and yanked up his sleeve, exposing his upper arm, taking no care with his brand new Ralph. He showed his tattoo to Marco and pointed at it. Nick Mavro found the action a bit sad and pathetic. But, he thought all patriotism was sad and pathetic.

  Marco squinted to get a proper look at Tony’s tattoo. ‘What is that?’ he asked.

  Tony stared hard back at him and for a second and Nick Mavro thought he was gonna go for him again.

  ‘Cyprus,’ Nick XR2 said monotone, staring solemnly at Marco.

  Marco looked from Tony’s arm to Nick. ‘Greeks?’

  ‘No, Turks. Yeah, fucking Greeks. And fucking proud,’ Tony said thumping his chest, obviously still pissed that he couldn’t lamp Marco and had instead been ordered by Nick XR2 to sit like a dog.

  Marco did his best to ignore him. ‘So, now you know my name, what are yours?’

  ‘Well, the alcoholic with the anger management issues is Tony,’ began Nick Mavro. Tony kissed his teeth and murmured some Gr
eek swear words under his breath. ‘Damaged by the stress of life’ Nick Mavro added. ‘The distant space head is Charlie. Just…damaged. And our fearless leader over there is Nick Theodorou. We call him XR2 ’cos he’s in love with his souped up Ford XR2. In fact, he spends so much time in it, he gets his post sent directly to wherever it is.’

  Nick XR2 smiled wryly. ‘I ain’t that bad,’ he said.

  ‘And you?’ asked Marco.

  ‘He’s Nick Black,’ Tony said, staring at his can of Stella.

  Nick Mavro smiled. ‘Funny that, eh? A group of Greeks and more than one of ’em is called Nick. Spooky. Calling him XR2 serves another purpose: it differentiates me from him.’

  ‘Why Nick Black though?’

  ‘Cos his name’s Niko Mavro. Mavro is the Greek word for black,’ Charlie responded deadbeat, looking Marco up and down again.

  ‘And he’s got a bit of a thing for black pussy,’ Tony piped in. ‘Likes ’em black as night.’

  Marco glanced from Tony to Nick Black, rolled his head from side to side, and then shrugged. ‘Well, there’s nothing wrong with a bit of chocolate now and then I suppose,’ he said.

  ‘Yeah and the darker the better as far as the Mavro’s concerned,’ Tony added.

  Nick Black gave the back of Tony’s head the old Nescafe shake in response.

  ‘You lot all live round here?’ Marco then enquired.

  ‘Me and Tony are old skool homies from North Finchley,’ Nick Black responded. ‘Charlie’s on the East side, and our man over there XR2 controls the Southgate manor.’

  Marco smiled. ‘You’re a bit of a joker aren’t you?’ he said to Nick Black.

  ‘Hang around with this lot long enough and you’ll find laughter is the only way to cope.’

  ‘Well, fuck off then!’ Tony snapped from the side of his face.

  ‘You’ll regret saying that, Tony my man,’ Nick Black said darkly. ‘You mark my words.’

  ‘Where you from then?’ Nick XR2 asked Marco. ‘Not round here.’

  ‘Here? No way. This is like the countryside to me. I mean you got trees on the streets and shit.’