A Young Man's Game

by Paul Blake

  He looked for Brigette as he came out, she wasn’t where he’d seen her before. I may be too early. He walked around the station, past where it seemed like a city’s worth of bicycles were stored. There. She was standing with a group of other women, some young, some a little older. He heard her dirty laugh and smiled. He tottered over to her, his cane occasionally catching on the uneven block paving.

  ‘Hello, you Geiler alter Mann,’ horny old man, she said with a touch of distaste in her voice. ‘I’ll be with you in a moment. I don’t think you’ll be able to handle me though. Maybe one of the younger girls will be better.’

  ‘I don’t think I could have handled you when I was younger,’ Alec said. ‘Sometimes I wish I had tried.’

  Brigette’s eyes widened, ‘Stefan? Is that you?’ Her voice changed to one of excitement. It reminded Alec of how she sounded all those years ago. He smiled at her and made an awkward little bow.

  ‘I promised I’d be back to take you for coffee.’

  ‘I can’t believe it.’ She crossed the gap between them and gave him a hug and a kiss on the mouth. He winced when she tightened the clinch. She must have felt him tense. She released the embrace and looked at him.

  ‘Oh my god, are you ok?’

  ‘Is there somewhere around here that does a decent cup? I’ll tell you all about it.’

  Brigette took him to Miss Honeypenny on Winterfeldtstraße, a sports bar. Alec smiled at the name. Is she hinting that she knows I’m a spy? They walked past the empty tables out front into the bar, it wasn’t much busier. They sat at a table away from the bar and away from the outside. Brigette sat facing the wall, leaving the opposite seat with the view of the bar for Alec. She remembers after all this time?

  ‘I’ll have a coffee and a brandy,’ Brigette said.

  ‘I’ll have the same, that’ll warm us up.’ Alec hobbled over to bar. He ordered the drinks and pointed at the table. The bartender nodded, and Alec returned to the table and sat down.

  ‘I didn’t think I’d see you again,’ Brigette said

  ‘I did promise. After the help you gave me I couldn’t go back on it.’

  ‘I didn’t do anything. Did you catch up with Makary?’

  ‘Yeah, he was DJing at the club like you said. Thank you. I had to agree to a night out with him, but he helped me.’

  ‘So, what happened to you?’

  ‘If you remember I said I was in trouble.’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Well,’ he waved his hand in front of his face. ‘It found me.’

  The bartender brought over the drinks. The coffee was steaming, the brandy welcoming. Alec lifted the brandy and toasted, ‘To renewed friendships.’ They clinked their glasses and took a drink. The liquid burned Alec’s throat and made him cough. Brigette laughed.

  ‘That’s not the Stefan I remember.’

  ‘It’s been a while since I had a drink. Where was I? Oh yes, trouble. Did you hear about an attempt on the British Prime Minister a couple of weeks ago, and maybe a Russian being shot in a bar?’

  ‘Yes, didn’t a man fall from the top of the palace onto spiked railings and the police found a rifle there or something. I didn’t hear about a Russian being shot. Wait, a couple of weeks ago? There was a city-wide manhunt for a man, the picture on the newspapers wasn’t very clear, but I thought he looked familiar.’

  ‘The man from the palace kidnapped my niece, he also killed my friend, from the Russian embassy and tried to kill me. He didn’t fall. I made sure he couldn’t do it again. The picture was me. The police thought I killed my friend.’

  ‘So, you stopped the man from killing the Prime Minister, rescued your niece, how is she doing by the way? I remember when she was born; you couldn’t stop talking about her. It was like she was your own child. You rescued her and avenged your friend’s murder. Wow, that’s hot,’ she smiled. ‘Why hasn’t there been any mention of this on the television. You’re an action hero, like James Bond, or the German equivalent at least. You could make a fortune selling your story to Hollywood.’ Her eyes were sparkling.

  ‘Work wouldn’t like it. We’re supposed to keep a low profile. I’m glad the photo in the papers was so bad. I would have been forced out of my job otherwise. Oh, Sara’s doing good. She’s met a man, Peter. He’s English, a little older than her, but seems like a really decent man. So that’s good.’

  ‘I’m glad for her. You talked so much about her, when we met up, it’s like she’s my own niece. I could have sworn you were getting broody. So, how’s your love life? Any children? Married?’ She rested her arms on the table, and her face was cradled by her hands, she looked into his eyes. Alec had the thought that there was something behind the question, something deeper than the usual how-are-you-doing chat between friends. Be kind.

  ‘No, no children. I missed that boat. Because of something that happened I couldn’t let myself believe I deserved a second chance at love, so I pushed away from the two of the three women I have loved.’

  Brigette sat there, her mouth open wide at his words. I hope I haven’t made her believe there’s a chance for us. That wasn’t my intention. If Claudia hadn’t happened, then maybe it could have been.

  ‘One of them was Stefanie, she’s in the picture you have from the other night. She died in my arms, shot because of me. Shot because of a difference in political ideologies.’

  ‘The other two?’ She asked.

  ‘Well… you’re one of the two. I did love you, you know. If I had been stronger things could have been different, they should have been. I’m sorry. I was an emotional wreck. I do still love you, but it’s not the same. I would do anything for you, I hope you know that. But that leads me on to the other one…’

  Alec could see the disappointment clear on her face, then saw it change to forced indifference. Shit. I’m sorry Brigette. I’m not good at this.

  ‘Who is she?’

  ‘Her name is Claudia, we were together a long time ago, after Stefanie. We ended it as she wanted commitment and I couldn’t allow myself to give it. She married my friend and has two amazing kids, they’re grown up now. My friend died, about a year before my brother and his wife did. Cancer. That fucked me up: them all dying so quickly together. I retreated into a bottle and away from the world, until Jaromir, my Russian friend, was killed. Somehow, Claudia and I got back together, and things are good between us. I’m sorry Brigette. I never wanted to hurt you, and I mean it I’ll always be here for you like you were the other night for me.’

  ‘I hope you and Claudia are very happy.’ She wiped a traitorous tear from the corner of her eye. Alec reached over and held her other hand. She swiped it away. Took a deep breath and stood up. She reached into her handbag and took out the picture of Stefanie. ‘I suppose you want this back.’ She dropped it on the table and walked out of the bar. Alec collected the photo, put it in his jacket’s inside pocket. He laid twenty Euros on the table and rushed as fast as he could in his state after her. Out of the bar, he looked both ways for her but couldn’t see her. Shit! He started walking to the right and then back to the left. He couldn’t decide which way she could have gone. He held his head in his hands and ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. You idiot! He kicked one of the chairs. It scraped across the pavement on metal legs and toppled with a clash. He stood there for what seemed like ages, then picked the chair up and put it back. As he did so, he saw her on the other side of the street, partially hidden by a tree. He smiled and crossed the road. Thank you.

  ‘I thought you had gone.’

  ‘You didn’t have to take it out on that poor chair.’

  ‘It was asking for it. Shouldn’t have got in my way. I’m sorry I’m no good at talking about emotions and feelings. Even having any is new ground for me. I meant what I said though. I do love you and always will. It just never was the right time for us.’ He took the beige brick out of his pocket. ‘This is what you said I owe you, I don’t think it covers it, but it’s yours. My number is inside. If you ever need m
e, I’ll come running. I promise. However, I’m not planning on leaving it another ten years before I see you again, if you don’t mind, I’d like to keep you in my life. You are one of my dearest friends, and at my age, you need as many as you can get.’

  ‘Of course, I’ll still be in your life. You are stupid you know. You’ll have to introduce me to Claudia, I’ll judge if you’re worthy of her.’ She took the envelope from him and dropped it in her bag. ‘I’m going to go now, maybe spend some of this. I love you, Stefan, don’t be a stranger.’ She kissed him deeply, he felt her tongue force its way into his mouth, could taste the brandy on it. She abruptly broke the kiss off. ‘Just so you’ll know what you could have had.’ She walked off towards Viktoria-Luise-Platz, her head held high. He watched her go. Damn. I won’t tell that part to Claudia.

  Alec returned to Nollendorfplatz and took the U1 train to Uhlandstraße. He sat in thought, rocking to the motion of the train, oblivious to the other passengers thinking of the events of the call from Jaromir, that night and the following ones, thinking what he could have done differently. It was what he had been doing in the hospital when visiting times were over, and he was alone. He thought about Jaromir, Brigette, Makary, Roger, Claudia, Newbury, Peter, Sara, Mihael, and Olegovich. I’m damn lucky to still be here. It was the conclusion he reached each time.

  The train stopped in Uhlandstraße and Alec got off and headed up the stairs onto Kurfürstendamm, he walked down past Douglas perfume shop, The House of Villeroy & Boch store, and when he reached the Steiff toy store turned right onto Knesebeckstraße then left onto Mommsenstraße. Almost home.

  He came to Claudia’s building and entered the lobby. He walked up the stairs to her floor. It took him a long time, but the cane helped his stability. She’s always right. He pressed the intercom with its harsh buzzer, and she opened the door to him with a wide smile and embraced him.

  ‘I’m glad you’re home, how did it go?’

  ‘Better than expected. We’ve made plans to elope, I’m only here to collect my stuff.’ Alec saw Claudia’s face drop, and he realised that she had been worried, not about his safety but his past. ‘I’m only kidding. Don’t you remember me saying I’m never letting you go ever again.’

  She kissed him passionately, taking his breath away. When they finished his knees were trembling, his heart was pounding.

  ‘I thought you were worried about what your neighbours would say.’ He said once he was able to speak.

  ‘Fuck ‘em,’ she said. ‘I’m never letting you go again either.’ She pulled him into the apartment and closed the door.

  That night, Alec woke from his sleep. He felt there was something amiss. He got out of bed, careful not to disturb Claudia. He put on Roger’s robe and opened the bedroom door. Nothing. He went into the hallway and closed the door behind him. He looked in the kitchen, the children’s rooms and the living room. Nothing. There’s no one here. He sat on the sofa in the dark and tried to think. It came to him, eventually. There had been no faces in his sleep, no mist, no blood, no accusations, no guilt. He hadn’t had the dream; the nightmares had stayed away. Well, isn’t that something. He stood up and crept back into the bedroom, he got back into bed as carefully as he had left it. He slowly backed himself up against Claudia’s naked form, enjoying the warmth of her skin against his, the feel of her breathing. He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep with a smile on his face.

  THE END

  Acknowledgements

  First, I would like to thank my wife, Helen for all her support, and patience. I’m sorry for all the late nights, and for continuously talking about my book. She was also the one who pushed me to submit my opening to Pen to Print. So, it’s all her fault, really.

  I’m going to give a big shoutout to my boys, Ethan, Logan, and Brandon, because I know the older two will get a kick out it (and hopefully the little one will when he learns to read). Hey little dudes, stop fighting, you’ve got each other for life, be nice and always be there for each other.

  Thanks to Lena Smith and Zoinul Abidin at LBBD for organising the Pen to Print Book Challenge, and giving me this opportunity to shine.

  A huge thank you to Barbara Nadel for letting me take up her precious time to mentor me, giving me great advice and support, and for the arduous challenge of editing my very rough words into a decent shape. Buy her books.

  Thank you to Lesley and Peter for their all help, comments, and time to make sure the first chapter was good enough to submit.

  I’ve tried to make the book as accurate as possible, and actually went to the Becketts Kopf Bar and the Klo Bar during my research trip to Berlin. They are both very different places, but are both high on atmosphere and customer satisfaction. If you get a chance go to Mustafa's Gemüse Kebap on Mehringdamm do so. It is out of this world. Unfortunately I don’t have Alec’s unlimited ‘company’ resources so I couldn’t try out the Goldhorn Beefclub restaurant, maybe another time. I didn’t go to the Golden Dolls strip club either, I’m not as seedy as Alec, but supposedly it is the best one in the city.

  The Bob Dylan quote in the epigraph, comes from an interview he did with AARP magazine in 2015. The article is available online and is a great read. I had written the story first and thought of a title ‘A Young Man’s Game’ and was searching the internet to see if it had been used before when I came across the quote and thought it fitted perfectly with Alec Foster’s struggles in the book.

  The Inigo Montoya quote is from The Princess Bride by William Gibson, and also the film of the same name. The book is highly enjoyable and the film is one of my favourites.

  I would also like to thank you for reading this. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Please leave reviews wherever you can and feel free to add me on Twitter @paulblakeauthor and say ‘Hi’.

  Paul Blake, London, 2018

  About the Author

  Paul Blake started writing in 2016 when he took a creative writing module to complete his Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree after failing far too many programming modules. He discovered a passion and has been writing since.

  His first novel, A Young Man’s Game was published in 2018. He released a short story collection in 2019 called A Few Hours After This. He is currently outlining the sequel to A Young Man’s Game and also working on a ninja based novel, tentative title Revenge of the Ninja.

  He has also had a short story published in the March 2019 issue of Kyanite Press.

  Paul is 43 and lives in London, England with his wife and three boys.

  Also, By Paul Blake

  A Few Hours After This: Short Story Collection

  Paul Blake, the author of A Young Man’s Game, brings you twenty-seven short stories in this extraordinary collection of thriller, historical fiction, and sci-fi tales.

  A small taste of the stories you’ll devour…

  Hazy Shade of Winter - Stephen Kemp of MI6 is recuperating in Lake District when he hears of twenty nuclear bombs detonating in cities across the UK.

  At Night – A grown-up story about the monsters under the bed finding their child has been taken. Meet Spider, Blade, Rot, and Murk the Night Terror.

  (Nothing But) Flowers - 'I see the body on the ground, and it takes me a moment to realise it is mine. I look around for my head.' A story about death and what happens next.

  Out of Space - Major Pitman wakes up to a damaged spacecraft and a dead co-pilot…

  The Rezal Principle - Stoddy Rezal is a custodian aboard the space freighter HXN8435, day-dreaming about improving his situation in life until he accidentally presses the button for the airlock.

  Settle down, put your feet up, with a glass of your favourite drink beside you (alcoholic or otherwise), and leap into this collection of exciting and suspenseful stories.

  Love in the Mind: A short story collection.

  Contains two exclusive sci-fi short stories showing the sacrifice women will make for love. These are only available in this volume.

  * Don't You Forget (About Me): An
alien object has landed on the earth, and is offering untold knowledge. Will Isabelle Bennett give up her memories to help the human race?

  * Jumping Someone Else's Train: Two women try the new legal drug, Mind, for the first time. Can their friendship survive?

  Indie Books Recommended By the Author

  Over the past year, I have read many books written by Independent Authors. It’s my way of giving back to the writing community on Twitter which, on a daily basis, inspires me and cheers me on.

  Each of these books I have loved, as much, if not more than the traditional books I’ve read over the same period. Each book contains vivid characters, well-realised settings, compelling plots, and are simply a joy to read. They wouldn’t be out of place on a rack in Waterstones or on the bestseller lists.

  I highly recommend each of these books, they cover a range of genres and styles so you’ll definitely find something you’ll cherish.

  Fir Lodge (Book 1 in the Restarter Series) by Sean McMahon

  If time shattered, taking away everything you loved, how far would you go to get it all back?