Two Years After ; Friends Who Lie ; No More Secrets

by Paul J. Teague

  ‘Are you all right, mate?’

  All eyes in the bar turned towards Porter. He was pulling off his trousers in a panic. As his legs became visible, the extent of his wounds could be seen. There was a collective gasp from the other drinkers as they saw the damage that had been done to Porter’s leg.

  ‘Oi, the song’s called ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’, so why have you stopped playing?’

  Caitlen recognised the voice immediately. It was Terry. Worse than that, it was drunk, loud, noisy and offensive Terry.

  ‘What’s he doing over there?’ Caitlen asked, distracted for a moment.

  ‘Dancing with Emmy,’ Kasey replied, ‘They’ve been at it ever since they started playing “Crazy Little Thing Called Love”.’

  ‘I didn’t think those two had that much in common,’ she said, turning back to Porter. His leg was a mess, burned and bloody.

  ‘Is he alright?’ the lead singer asked over the microphone. ‘Would one of the bar staff call for an ambulance?’

  Two members of the bar staff escorted Porter over to a chair, tucked behind a counter. The band started to play a new song and before long, the rest of the drinkers at Erin’s Bar had got back to their beers and sing-along.

  ‘Had somebody better go over and tell Emmy, what’s happened? Her and Terry seem oblivious to what’s going on.’

  It was Kasey who suggested it.

  Terry was back to the air guitar, while Emmy was dancing around him as his fingers moved frantically over an imaginary fretboard.

  ‘I’ll go,’ Caitlen said. ‘Somebody just stay with Porter please, until the ambulance comes.’

  Caitlen walked over to Terry and Emmy. They were tucked away from the main area, dancing at the side of the room with a few other drunkards.

  ‘You’re pissed, Terry!’ Caitlen said, disapprovingly.

  ‘And you’ve got a face like a pit bull chewing a toffee!’ he responded, not bothering to interrupt his guitar solo.

  ‘Porter’s had an accident Emmy, he needs to go to the hospital. You should go with him.’

  ‘Porter’s always having accidents,’ she said in a slurred voice. ‘The prick is a walking accident!’

  ‘Shut up moaning and give us your money! I’m ready for another drink.’ Terry blurted out.

  Caitlen ignored him. This was no time for a debate.

  ‘He’s pretty badly burned, Ems. His e-cigarette exploded in his back pocket. It’s done some serious damage.’

  One song ended and the cover band started to play ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’. The bar erupted into cheers. Terry and Emmy readied themselves for an operatic vocal duet. Caitlen gave up on them, they were too far gone. They wouldn’t thank her for sending a pissed Emmy in the ambulance with Porter.

  ‘She’s the worse for wear, I suggest that somebody else goes with Porter. Who’s game? I’m paying the bills, remember, so I’d better hang around here.’

  There was a general lack of enthusiasm. Porter gave out a loud wince as one of the bar staff attempted to place a cotton wool pad over his wounds. He was keen to remind them all that he was still there.

  The ambulance team arrived.

  ‘That was fast!’ Rhett said. ‘Nothing like the UK. You’d have been dead before they turned up!’ he laughed.

  Nobody was in the mood for it. It was a relief when the ambulance team arrived. They seemed surprised that they were dealing with a sober Brit for once. It was a genuine casualty. They knew exactly what to do with Porter, they got on immediately with cleaning up the wound.

  ‘So who’s going with him?’ Caitlen asked again.

  Rhett, Naomi, Harriet, Becky, Matt and Kasey looked at each other. Gina was absolved by virtue of her being a tag-along. She’d barely had a chance to get to know Porter.

  Kasey broke first of all.

  ‘I’ll go,’ he said. ‘I was rather hoping to check out one of the gay bars in town tonight. Looks like that will have to wait now.’

  The others were relieved. They hung around long enough to wave Porter and Kasey off in the ambulance, then headed back into the bar, greeted by the fading notes of ‘We Are The Champions’.

  ‘Thank you, you’ve been amazing!’ the lead singer said, his amplified voice filling the place.

  ‘We play here every night but Saturday, so we’ll see you again soon. Coming up next, a change to the advertised programme. It’s a new singer called Wes Nolasco and he’s going to be playing some wonderful songs for you. He’ll be up in five minutes ... goodnight!’

  There was a huge cheer. Terry and Emmy worked their way back to the bar, deprived of their music now and desperate to refuel themselves via Caitlen’s endless bar tab.

  ‘I was going to suggest moving on,’ Caitlen said, ‘But we’d probably better hang around long enough to show Wes some support. What do you say?’

  ‘Will he be playing more of that Ed Sheeran shit?’ Terry asked. His arm was now around Emmy’s waist. She removed it, she wasn’t so drunk that she’d lost her senses.

  ‘If you mean acoustic songs, then yes, I think he will be,’ Naomi replied.

  ‘Mind if we move on then?’ Rhett asked. ‘There’s a rockier bar along this street, can we meet up with you there? Are you coming, Tez?’

  ‘Of course I’m coming,’ Terry said, placing his arms around Rhett’s shoulders and giving him a kiss on the cheek. As if it had been planned beforehand, Terry, Emmy and Rhett left the bar.

  ‘See you in about half an hour!’ Rhett said, as the break-off group took its leave.

  Caitlen bought another round of drinks and walked with Naomi over to Becky and Matt who were in earnest conversation about something or other.

  ‘Are you joining us?’ Caitlen asked Harriet and Gina, who were quite happy chatting away on bar stools.

  ‘I think I’d better give Becky and Matt a wide berth, don’t you agree?’ Harriet smiled. ‘It was alright when there were more of us sitting at the table, but that’s a bit too intense for my liking.’

  ‘Fair enough!’ Caitlen said, ‘Mind if we join you then?’

  ‘Pull up a stool,’ Gina replied, ‘We were just chatting about Wes.’

  ‘Really? It’s amazing that they’ve given him a gig just like that.’

  ‘Their next act has cancelled due to laryngitis, I think he saved them actually. The barman was telling me. He thought we were in for a double-dose of Lady Ga-Ga, so Wes got his timing just right. He’s a bit of a chancer that one, I said that you need to watch him.’

  ‘I like him,’ Caitlen defended, ‘And he’s got a singing voice to die for.’

  Perfectly on cue, the speaker system fired into life.

  ‘Ladies and Gentleman, it gives me great pleasure to welcome – for the very first time in Erin’s Bar – the wonderful acoustic sounds of Mr Wes Nolasco, playing for you this evening, the songs of James Blunt, David Gray, Ed Sheeran and more!’

  There was polite applause, not quite as enthusiastic as it had been for the Queen covers band.

  ‘I’ve been burned by his type before,’ Gina continued, ‘I was just warning Harriet off him. He’s already pulled his special request move on her too. What was your song, Harry?’

  ‘“9 Crimes” by Damien Rice,’ she replied, ‘I love that song.’

  ‘Thank you for giving me such a warm welcome at Erin’s Bar!’ Wes shouted confidently down the microphone. There was a big cheer from the crowd.

  ‘It’s great to be playing out here in Benidorm, who’s from the UK?’

  There was a huge cheer.

  ‘Wow, he knows exactly what he’s doing,’ Caitlen said, impressed by his immediate presence on stage.

  ‘I’d like to dedicate this first song sung in Erin’s Bar to a very special lady in the audience. This is “Babylon” by David Gray!’

  There was another cheer from the audience, bigger and much more enthusiastic now.

  ‘Yes,’ Gina said, after taking a sip of her wine and looking earnestly at her new friends. ‘He knows exactly what he’s doing
.’

  Chapter Fifteen

  Kasey and Harriet: May

  ‘You look like you got lucky last night!’ Kasey smiled as he stood up to hug Harriet.

  ‘Well done on getting a table at this time of day,’ she replied, avoiding the subject.

  ‘Don’t try and hide it from me. I can tell. You Brits are so stuck up most of the time, you can spot when you got laid a mile off!’

  ‘I’d rather not talk about it,’ Harriet said. ‘Besides, I was hoping to have a chinwag about Caitlen’s bombshell.’

  Harriet’s Americano arrived, along with a square of brownie.

  ‘I ordered for you when you texted to say you were on your way, perfect timing! I take it you’re still leading with Americano?’

  ‘The irony of this set-up isn’t lost on me, you know. There’s you, an American, with a pot of tea and a scone, and here I am, a true Brit, with my Americano and brownie. We’re never happy with what we’ve got, are we?’

  ‘You’re in a pensive mood,’ Kasey said, pouring his tea. ‘What caused this? Bad date?’

  ‘I’m not telling you who it was. I’d rather hear your thoughts on Caitlen’s news. Do you think that’ll be the end of our little group? It’s been strained enough recently.’

  Kasey folded down the lid of his laptop, placed the device in his bag and moved the items on the table around to create some more space.

  ‘I can’t say I’m not jealous,’ he said after a while. ‘Who couldn’t use a windfall like that at our stage in life? But you can’t knock her for it, it’s a wonderful surprise.’

  ‘I think she’ll leave Terry,’ Harriet picked up, as if desperate to share her take on events. ‘Did you see the way she was looking at him during the meal? I think he’ll be history soon. He’s a nice guy, but he doesn’t really fit in, does he? I never really understood why they ended up together.’

  She bit into her brownie.

  ‘Ah, chocolate, all I need to drown away a dull morning at work!’

  ‘I find Terry’s gay references a bit tiresome. It’s like, get over it, Terry, I’m into men. I don’t get excited about him being heterosexual every five minutes. I know he doesn’t mean any harm by it ... but, you know, it stops me warming to the guy. He keeps putting this thing between us. I wish he’d just forget the gay thing and talk to me as a mate. I should say something ... but I don’t. I can’t.’

  Harriet sipped on her Americano.

  ‘There it is, just the midday kick a girl needs. How long have you been working in here?’

  ‘I got in just after nine. They’re happy to let me sit and work as long as I buy drinks every so often. It’s the joys of not having a boss. You get to sit in Starbucks all day and spend your evenings running backwards and forwards to the restroom because you drank so much tea.’

  ‘Are you going to Spain? It’s a lovely treat for us all, I thought that was really generous.’

  ‘Of course I am! I wouldn’t miss a free trip to Benidorm. I’ve never been before.’

  ‘What?’ Harriet asked. Kasey’s face had changed.

  ‘Nothing. You have a secret, I have a secret. We’re allowed secrets from each other, right?’

  ‘Yes, of course. If you tell me yours, I’ll tell you mine. How do you work in these places by the way, I couldn’t concentrate with all this noise?’

  ‘This is my office darling. Besides, it’s only packed like this at lunchtimes when you office drones file out for your lunch. It’s you lot who make all the noise.’

  ‘Ha, you’re probably right about that, we’re all desperate for our freedom. So, what’s your secret?’

  ‘Promise you’ll tell me yours, Harry?’

  ‘Yes, but it had better be a good one, because you’ve got to keep quiet about mine. Besides, I’m dying to share. But you have to promise to keep it to yourself!’

  ‘You’re like the sister I never had Harriet, I’d trust you with my life. I’ll go first. I have to tell somebody, it’s pushed my blood pressure through the roof.’

  Kasey had that look on his face again. Most of the time he seemed relaxed and approachable. Recently, Harriet had noticed a furrowed brow on more than one occasion.

  ‘Go on then, you show me yours first.’

  ‘You have to promise not to tell. This is serious, Harry. It’s not gossip. I need your advice.’

  ‘Promise,’ Harriet replied, forgoing a second bite of her brownie because Kasey now had her undivided attention.

  ‘You know I was moaning about Terry earlier? Well, it’s worse than that. The gay thing, I mean. He just uses that to tease me. Did you know he’s bent?’

  ‘What, gay? Or like a bent copper?’

  ‘A bent copper, you of all people should know I wouldn’t use that word!’

  ‘That’s what I thought. How is he bent?’

  ‘You have to promise not to say anything, Harry.’

  ‘I told you, I promise.’

  ‘I’m not supposed to be in the UK. I came over here to study and never went back.’

  Harriet sat there and just looked at her friend. She’d never even thought about it. She’d known Kasey for several years and knew that he’d been a student. But she had no knowledge about visas or any of the technicalities.

  ‘How can you even do that?’

  ‘Well, I’m not proud of it, but it turned out to be quite easy. It’s why I stay in that damned flat though. The identity checks are so strict these days, I daren’t risk a move. Or it might be game over.’

  ‘So how do you do anything? Banks and travel and stuff like that?’

  ‘That’s how I got in too deep.’

  ‘Christ, Kasey, I can’t believe you’re telling me this! My little secret is nothing compared to this. Can they deport you?’

  ‘I have forged documents. It was the most stupid thing I ever did. My name isn’t Kasey, it’s David. Davy when I lived in the US. It’s why I work online, I keep my money in PayPal, you can work around most things.’

  The brownie was now unlikely to get eaten.

  ‘Say something,’ Kasey said, ‘I need to know you don’t hate me.’

  ‘I don’t hate you, I’m just worried about what might happen to you. Does anybody need to know? There’s not a problem until you get caught is there?’

  ‘That’s why my blood pressure is so high. Terry knows. And he’s holding it over me.’

  ‘How the fuck does Terry know? What business is it of his?’

  ‘Well, it turns out that he uses that police computer of his to check us all out. He says they all do it. And he realised that Kasey Gaimer suddenly appeared from nowhere. I think that he found a loose thread and couldn’t stop unravelling it.’

  ‘What did he say? Is he going to report you?’

  ‘Worse. He’s blackmailing me.’

  ‘You’re kidding me Kasey! How’s he doing that? That’s illegal, isn’t it?’

  ‘Well, I’m an illegal alien, so that makes us even. I don’t know what to do, Harry. If I keep paying up, I can stay in the UK. I can afford it, he’s not bleeding me dry.’

  ‘Have you paid him anything yet? How long has this been going on?’

  ‘No, first payment is due just before we go to Spain. I’m hoping Cait’s money will make the problem go away. Hopefully, he won’t need the cash now.’

  ‘Does Caitlen know about this? She’d be furious with him.’

  ‘He told me if I shared it with anybody, he’d have me sent back to the States. And he said it’ll never come back to him, because he’d fake a report from one of my neighbours, so he would never be implicated. Imagine the shame of it, Harry. I don’t even know what I’d do in the USA now, I’ve been gone years. I feel like a Brit now. I don’t want to go.’

  ‘I can’t believe you’re telling me this, Kasey.’

  She took his hand and gave it a squeeze.

  ‘We should have it out with him in Spain. There’ll be plenty of time to split off into groups when we’re out there. We should tell him that I k
now what he’s doing and that if he tries to blackmail you, we’ll snitch on him. If one of you falls you both fall. Mutually assured destruction. How much money does he want?’

  ‘That’s the thing. It’s not that much. He called it a contractual arrangement. He makes sure I stay in the UK, in exchange for which I contract his services. He wants £200 a month. I can pay that, my shitty flat is so cheap. I’m thinking about it. It’s worth it.’

  ‘Kasey, he’s supposed to be your friend! He’s supposed to be a friend to all of us. You can’t let him behave like that!’

  ‘When Caitlen told us about her money, I thought, thank God, Terry won’t need my cash anymore. But he’s not said anything to me yet. And I don’t want to bring it up. To be honest with you, I’ve just been burying my head in the sand.’

  ‘We have to tackle this, Kasey. He’s just being a bully. He knows that you’ll do anything to stay in the UK and he’s pitched his blackmail money at a level that you’ll be happy to pay forever. It’s perfect for him. He knows you won’t tell, because you’ll get sent back to the States if you do. But he’s breaking the law, Kasey. He shouldn’t have been snooping on you in the first place and he certainly shouldn’t be blackmailing you. Promise me, we’ll talk to him about it in Spain? We’ll let him know that I know. That way he’ll be forced to keep your secret and nobody ever needs to know what you did. But promise me Kasey, if we manage to sort out Terry, you have to work with me to try and get your situation resolved. We have people connected to the council who can help, you can contact them in confidence and see what your options are. You’ve got to dig yourself out of this lie. You’re from the USA, we like you guys a lot, it can’t be that difficult to sort out. Imagine what our attitude would be like if you came from Europe!’

  Kasey didn’t look like he was convinced, he needed time to think it through.

  ‘Anyway, what’s your secret? You promised you’d trade. It had better be good after what I just told you.’

  ‘You promise me that you’ll let me come with you to talk to Terry? Promise me that at least.’