Tag Archives: kappa so

Three’s A Crowd

Time Line Main

It had been a wild night. Most nights were wild for Buddy Owen and his bros but in search of some extra spice they had decided to leave their Filton haven, depart the Chapter House and head on in to City Main.  

Buddy was excited. “We’re gonna fuck shit up!”  

His Kappa So Frat brother, Cooper, was already on his phone looking for the best spot.  

“What about the Diamond Lounge?” he suggested. “The casino?”  

Buddy grinned. He already had an idea of in his head of what they’re weekend was to bring. He was high on cocaine already and with a pocket full of singles the casino was a good start.  

“A lot of Loyalists go there,” Chad stated. “Let’s go make some new friends.”  

The loyalists of City Main were the support of Reginald Penn of the Penn Auction House. He called himself the King of Main and for that Buddy decided someone should put things in perspective for him. He and his weirdo triplet sons had long been a headache to the Owen family. A family heirloom falling into the Penn’s hands had caused a deeply rooted feud.  

“The Loyalists are all pussies, brah,” said Buddy.  

By the time the bros arrived at the Diamond Lounge they were euphoric with powder and alcohol. Buddy’s reddening eyes burned under the glare of the harsh lights.  

“I’m cleaning this place out” Buddy announced his arrival. “Get me some booze and bitches,” he requested at a casino worker.  Chad lowered the Brad Schroeder branded sunglasses he still wore even though they were now indoors.  

“Kappa So is in the house,” he exclaimed.  

The casino worker did not need to be told this. It was very much evident by their full-on attitude and the Kappa So jackets they wore. She left to fetch but it wasn’t bitches or booze.  

Buddy looked around. He wished they didn’t have to have such harsh lights. The racket from the slot machines was irritating where a line of geriatrics were feeding them with coins. It was quieter than it had been the last time Buddy and the bros had been in. Then again it was only four thirty in the afternoon. This didn’t ease Buddy’s disappointment though. Where were the girls clad in Diamonte bikinis the ads offered? Why were the craps tables crowded by coffin dodgers? And where the fuck was the bitches and booze so he could get his weekend started?  

Buddy and his bros always ready to fuck shit up.

“It looks like care home in here,” Buddy commented. “Are they playing bingo? What the fuck Coops?”  

Cooper shrugged. It wasn’t really living up to his last visit to the casino either, at least what he remembered of it. The ads claimed to be the hottest spot in City Main. Issac Bergman who ran the casino wasn’t living up to his end of the bargain. It wasn’t supposed to be the hottest spot for the pension patrol. Chad was already helping a giddy old woman to a seat at a vacant puggy.  

“Fuck it,” Buddy decided. “I’m winning something.”  

Barging his way into a roulette table he dropped his money down.  

“Chip me,” he demanded.  

The casino worker raised her finger to her ear. The cameras were watching. The advice she was receiving was to exchange the money for chips as she would for any other customer. The powers that be were watching closely though.  

“Red twelve,” Buddy threw some of the chips he was given down.  

The wheel was spun. The bet was not met.  

A little exasperated Buddy threw more chips down. “Red twelve,” he bet again.  

The wheel spun a second time. Black fifteen.  

Buddy scowled at the casino worker as she raked the chips away from him. He wasn’t giving in so easily so he took one last attempt. “Red twelve,” he requested again.  

The whir of the wheel and the click as it slowed again was almost as irritating as the damn coins dropping from the slot machine two living fossils wearing what looked like tea cosies on their heads were celebrating over.  

“Black thirty three.”  

Buddy raged. His disappointment peaked. He hated the lounge and he hated losing. The weekend of debauchery he had planned was starting to suck.  “You Jew mother fuckers!” Buddy raged. “This game is rigged.” 

No one had explained the laws of probability to the son of the Owen Inc. CEO. The racial slur was directed towards the Bergmans who owned the lounge. Issac should have known better. He was a Kappa So brother too.  

Clang. Clang. Clang.  

More coins started dropping from the slots.  

The bros carried on with getting their night in Main started. It was looking quite positive until they heard a grumpy old man yell, “Keep it down, arseholes.” 

The bros ignored it. If they paid attention to old people telling them to keep it down they’d never get anything done.  

Buddy cheered when he won a spin on the roulette wheel. His powder high made him extra exhuberant and he could swear the casino girl was giving him the ‘I need to bone you right now, eye.’ For the casino girl it was more of a, ‘just how much powder have you snorted?’ eye. The boning eye and the drug disapproval eye tended to get mix up for Buddy.  

“Keep it down,” an old man holding a single solitary chip barked at the excitable bros. 

Buddy groaned. As he turned to see the old man he started to laugh. “I’ll be damned! He looks like what would happen if a bull dog fucked a turtle. Look at the glasses!” He pulled the man’s glasses off and put them on. Glaring at him through the corrective lenses he said, “get outta ma face old timer. You’re weirding me out.”  

Cooper took note of how large the lenses made Buddy’s eyes when The Kappa So chapter leader turned to his bro. “Brah, you gotta try these. They’re better than pills.” Through the glasses he started to look around the casino at the odd shapes created by the tables and machines and the lighting caused by the bright colours.  

As Chad and Buddy tried on the glasses and glared as though they were tripping Cooper suggested, “Maybe we should go somewhere else, brah?” The amount of old folk in the casino was starting to make him think of a zombie movie. Ever since he watched a terrible B movie called The Dead Walk he had been weirded out by too many old people in the place at once.  

Buddy pushed the spectacles to the top of his head, shoving the old man away. “I’m not going anywhere. I got myself a fight with the Jews. They killed Jesus you know…”  

Whilst Buddy’s voice could be heard above all the machines and Chad was trying to start some kind of mosh pit with the bingo players, from the manager’s office he had seen the triplet sons of Reginald Penn emerge. There was Marcus, a bespectacled, menacing young man with a long fair pony tail. Beside him was his brother Simon, better known as Punchline Penn. He was a professional boxer and reputedly a very angry young man.  

“Must have a tiny cock,” Buddy had decided when he learned of this. “He’d only be that pissed off all the time if he had a tiny cock.”  

Finally there was Reggie. He was the youngest of the three by a few minutes. He was the most vibrant of them and he looked the least interested in whatever business had brought them to the casino. He was busy looking to his phone.  

“Well if it isn’t the whackos. What they doing here?” Buddy wondered. 

Hearing Buddy’s voice rise above the others it had been Simon Penn who noticed the old man reaching out to get his spectacles back. Buddy was enjoying the trip looking through the lenses was giving him.  

“You’ll get your turn, brah,” he told the old man waving his hands in front of his face and seeing his fingers grow really long. It was better than heether mushrooms. 

The Kappa So uniform suggested a more ridiculous confrontation than even a Stoker Circus jacket would hint. The blonde hair of Buddy’s and his square set jaw confirmed an Owen on site.  

“One of the mutants is causing a scene,” Simon said to Marcus. Marcus looked over and noted the old man trying to retrieve his glasses. He was now clutching at Cooper’s arm not really able to see properly. They decided to approach and intervene. No matter the location and no matter its owner, no hassle was allowed in City Main where the King reigned and his prince sons were around to keep order.  

Marcus approached. Simon followed. Still not looking up from his phone Reggie was at their backs.  

“I think the gentleman wants his glasses back,” said Marcus. “I give you only one warning.”  

Buddy hadn’t expected to be confronted by the triplets so eagerly within the casino setting. Without saying anything the casino worker had departed her table. The cameras were still watching. Buddy couldn’t let his chest deflate too much. His coke high was beginning to wear off.  He couldn’t help but take note of Marcus’ nostrils, just aching for a line. It was then he noticed all their nostrils were the same. Fucking weird. That meant they all must have tiny cocks.  

Buddy pulled the glasses back over his eyes. The distorted view of the triplets hadn’t been quite what he had expected. It reminded him of a really bad trip where he was plagued by talking trees.  

“We’re just playing, brah,” said Buddy. 

“Yeah!” Chad confirmed enthusiastically. “Just a game, brah.” 

Reggie had stored his phone away by this point. It was like they were deciding among themselves using some kind of triplet telepathic powers which one was going to have the joy of smacking the grin from Buddy Owen’s face. It turned out it was Reggie who won the coin toss. He pulled the glasses from Buddy, snatched his ear and with a sharp tug sent him falling to the floor. Marcus stepped on his chest. Before Cooper could intervene Simon had pushed him back with a shove to his solar plexus. Reggie gave the glasses back to the old man. He affixed them again and gave a swift kick at the bro.  

“Ya arsehole!” He barked before storming off.  

“Alright, let him up.” Finally someone had arrived on scene. A long featured, pale looking man wearing a black waistcoat with a diamond logo.  

Marcus stepped off of him.  

Casino owner Issac Bergman pulled Buddy to his feet.  

“This ain’t over,” said Chad. “We’re gonna raise some tiny dick awareness for you.”  

Reggie scowled. “Come at me and I’ll just drop you on your ass too, like.”  

“Get out. The whole lot of you.” Issac barked.  

Marcus nodded to his brothers. They had made their point. The bros? Well, they decided the party was better off taken elsewhere.  It seemed he had to take that matter into his own hands and deal with the triplet beeatches.  

The Penn triplets watch their Coldford City football team.

*** 

“Thrown out by a brother,” Buddy was reiterating their treatment by Isaac Bergman. “Got a good mind to fuck his shit up. You don’t turn your back on a bro.”  

Chad fell into excited planning mode. “We go in there, we wreck the casino and we piss all over the floor.”  

Buddy and Coops looked at him. They didn’t know why but pissing on the floor seemed to be the most important part of his plan. 

“There’s cameras everywhere,” Cooper reminded them.   

He didn’t have to complete the sentence. Buddy’s father could be a little sensitive about the fraternity. He was especially sensitive when it came to anything involving the Penns. If he found out that Buddy was responsible in any way for making his dealings with Reginald any more difficult, he wouldn’t be forgiving.  

“What if the Penns wreck it?” Chad continued his planning. “Then the elders are going to be pissed at them.” 

“How do we get them to do that?” Asked Buddy. He was liking the sound of it but he needed his bro to hand out some more of the details.  

“Duh!” Chad gasped. “We dress up to look like them.”  

The other two nodded like it was the most brilliantly obvious plan in the world.  

“You know Chad, you can be a bit of a genius sometimes. It’s like you’re a scientist or some shit.  Those damn misfits don’t know who they messing with.”  

Chad has experience in costuming.

*** 

Admiring his handy work in the mirror Buddy adjusted the cap over his feathery, blonde mass of hair that was supposed to give him the shaved head look of Simon Penn. In his black T-shirt and jeans – signature of the loyalists of Main – he would sure fool them.  

The door opened. Buddy turned.  

“No way!” He cried. Cooper had also adorned the cap to look like Simon. “You were supposed to be the spooky one!” Buddy complained. “Where’s the glasses and the rapey ponytail?” 

The door opened again. “You’ve gotta be kidding me. We can’t all be Simple Simon!”  

Chad too had opted to dress as the middle triplet.  

“Does it matter?” asked Chad.  

“Of course it matters,” insisted Buddy. “If we’re all the same one it’s going to look fucking stupid.” He looked to Cooper as though to ask, ‘can you believe this guy?’ 

Cooper was shaking his head as though to answer ‘no.’ 

“I’ll be the spooky one since I’m the leader. Madman Marcus or whateva’ he’s called. Coops you be simple simon because you’ve got the bod. I do too but I’m a bit out of swimming season.”  

Chad groaned. “Does that mean I need to be the retard?”  

“Yes, it does,” informed Buddy.  

With the blonde ponytail and glasses, the cap and the wild frizzy wig (that was just a Stoker clown wig sprayed yellow) the bros were dressed and ready for their great heist.  

They looked at each other. Buddy couldn’t help but laugh. The things they could do dressed as the triplets had his rather imaginative mind clambering for ideas. 

“Triplet powers activate!”  

They gave a leaping high five. 

*** 

Meanwhile, at the Penn Auction House, Reginald Penn was overlooking the damage accompanied by his sons.  

“Those Hill Billy cunts!” Reginald was growling.  

The previous night someone had tried to drive a four by four into the Auction House. Luckily the fortified structure of the building hadn’t let them get very far. The small army of loyalists who had been on hand to guard it had drove them off before any real trouble could start.  

“They were giving some trouble at ‘Diamond’,” explained Reggie. “They were thrown out and so were we.” 

Reginald thought about it. It was time to address the Cappy directly.  

“You will compensate for the damage your boys have caused,” Reginald insisted.  

Still in his office in the Great States, Charles ‘Chick’ Owen held the King of Main’s gaze. 

“You have no proof that my boys had anything to do with it. So might I suggest, sir, that you throw your accusations elsewhere.”  

No proof perhaps. All that was seen by Reginald’s own team were three grown men dressed as parody’s of the triplets. The one imitating Reggie throwing rubber rats at them. He knew, however, it was Buddy and his bros. The Cappy knew too but pride would prevent him from admitting it.  

“I suggest that if your boys come into my area I will cut their fucking balls off. If they come near my Auction House again I’ll send them back in boxes.” 

The Cappy glared. “I will warn them. However, you will offer the same courtesy and tell your progeny that if he ever touches my son or any of my brothers there will be consequences.”  

The call was ended. As predicted the long held feud escalated. Now the threats of violence were in the air.  

*** 

The following morning gave for a huge headache. As Buddy began to come around he realised he had fallen asleep on the Kappa So Chapter House lawn. Someone turned beside him and laid his arm across his chest.  

“Morning Bud,” Chad said sweetly.  

“Aaaaah!” Buddy screamed. “I can feel your morning wood against me.”  

He rolled over and he was offered a close up of Cooper’s face.  

“Morning Bud,” Cooper said.  

Buddy sat up. “What the fuck happened last night?” He finally thought to ask when he realised none of them were wearing trousers. Chad was wearing diving fins. Cooper’s feet were covered in cream. Buddy was wearing a pair of sneakers. That wasn’t so bad. Although when his eyes continued to adjust to sobriety he realised they were royal blue sneakers with black trimming. They had either been stolen from a Coldford City player or a Penn.  

“I think I’m being called home,” Cooper said.  

Buddy lay back on the grass. “Don’t listen to it Coops. Stay alive, brah.”  

“No I mean I think I can hear my phone.”  

Urging themselves to stand they could finally take in some of the debris left on the lawn from the last nights escapade. There was a Bobby’s lunch box sign, a whole collection of Kappa Si cheer leader uniforms one of them size XXXXL and a Cooper four by four which had left track marks on the lawn and was now totalled against the wall.  

‘Wait?’ Buddy thought. ‘Was that the sign from the Auction House?’ He couldn’t read it properly. Whatever he had been taking the night before was leaving him with some blurry vision. When the blurriness suddenly dropped away, he realised it was because he was wearing spectacles not prescribed to him.  

“What the fuck?”  

Cooper had followed the noise of his phone and he managed to find it among a cow pat.  

“Coops brah, you better check the bro cam.”  

With so many lost nights the bros had decided to fit themselves with pro cams. The footage automatically uploaded to Cooper’s phone and it made for some interesting memories.  

Wiping the bull shit away Cooper was happy to find his phone as good as new. He checked the bro cam. First there were the photos. A photo of Chad’s ‘Reggie’ fingering the backside of a rubber rat. A photo of Cooper’s Simon humping a donkey. A photo of Buddy’s Marcus with nipple tassels. Then there was the video footage.  

“Triplets assemble!” Called Buddy as Marcus. 

The other two leapt into frame. Cooper as Simon was scowling dramatically. Chad was still fingering the rat. 

The next alert was a message from The Cappy.  

HAVE BUDDY CALL ME IMMEDIATELY.  

Trouble is never far off with the bros.

The bros are certainly in trouble this time. It is the Hickes Agency, better known as the Good Gang that are on their tail. September 18th we’re off to the Great States on an adventure!

Enjoy this?

Check out these other thrillers. Available now!

Knock Knock: Episode 31: Smash and Grab

“I think a name change should be the first point of order,” suggested the bailiff Colette as she led The Cappy into his newly acquired auction house.  

“The name is already established. It might be a better idea to keep it as is,” suggested Ronnie Owen.  

Chick agreed with the bailiff. “It’s a well-known name but I want the people to know that this hall has well and truly fallen.”  

Ronnie had meant that it would be a better chance of a fresh start. It would keep already established clients of the auction house sweetened until they got used to the new management. His brother was determined to put his stamp on City Main, starting with the toppling of their king – figuratively and literally.  

“The archives list,” Jeremy passed the list of items the Auction House had available. Chick Owen couldn’t disguise his excitement. He had seen Captain Henry Owen’s compass once as a boy. His father had been so proud of it. He had been too. The compass had led Hen to making Coldford what it was. The people owed a lot to that compass, including the so-called King of Main. 

The Cappy sat down a box. It was a small, mahogany box that had housed the compass on that fateful expedition. The compass had been lost after the vicious divorce of Bobby from his second wife.  Chick kept the box, waiting for the day it would be returned. Ronnie had never seen his brother so giddy.  

Chick beamed. “Smile, Ron, you miserable son a bitch,” he cheered. “It’s a good day. When the compass is back in its box, we’ll have the reporters right down here.”  

Ronnie laughed. He too was pleased to have such an heirloom returned. Even if it took 4.5 million and the restructure of a Shady City institution to do it. He read the list.  

“The compass,” he began. He didn’t know how to break the news. “It was sold on.”  

Charles stopped wiping the interior velvet of the box. He closed the box lid over. Embossed in the mahogany was the image of Hen’s ship.  

The Cappy turned to Colette. “I apologise ma’am for what I’m about to say.”  

Colette frowned. She was a Coldford City Law Maker. She had heard curse words before.  

“Where is my compass?” he growled at Jeremy. “You, sir, better hope I get it back.” 

Ronnie laid his hand on his brother’s shoulder. Colette said nothing. Jeremy found himself edging towards the door.  

Ronnie read on, “It says here it was sold on to Ernest Beckingridge.”  

The Cappy looked to Jeremy. His facial expression showed fury but his vocal tone had calmed again. 

“It seems mighty impolite that this information was not disclosed prior to auction. Slipped your mind did it, sir?”  

“I’ll talk to Elizabeth,” Ronnie offered.  

The Cappy shook his head. “It’s no use,” he said. “She knew exactly what she was doing and she’s tougher than a two-dollar steak. I have mind to watch this place burn to the ground if it were not for the Penn mother. Elizabeth on the other hand, we’re not at auction anymore.” Again, he addressed Jeremy, “You are going nowhere until your little deception is put right.” 

*** 

Elizabeth had asked her driver to take a route home to Beckingridge Manor via Pettiwick. She wanted to look upon it. Hopefully it would spur some ideas on how she was going to get it back. The bidding war had left her exhausted. Maybe an exchange? She could return The Cappy’s precious compass if he agreed on the resale of the school. 

The limousine stopped. Elizabeth leaned forward and lowered her window into the driver’s seat.  

“What’s wrong, Thomas?” she asked. 

“The road’s blocked off miss,” he replied. “I can’t get any further. I have to turn around.”  

“Blocked off?” They had driven into the school’s drop off point. The area where she had waved goodbye to Gramps on many a morning and skipped off to her lessons. It should not have been blocked off.  

“Construction, miss,” explained the driver.  

“No!” Elizabeth barked. “Not happening.”  

She climbed out of the car to a bright and dry but frosty day. Just as the driver had said, fencing had been erected around the surrounding area.  

FULLERTON – BUILDING BRIDGES. DEMOLITION IN PROGRESS. 

“Building bridges, huh?” Elizabeth growled.  

Thomas was now by her side.  

“In the car, Thomas. I don’t plan on staying long.” Thomas obeyed.  

She could see a man through the fence. He must have been a site manager.  

“You!” Elizabeth called to him. “You there!”  

He either ignored her or couldn’t hear her over the site noise. She collected a stone and threw it over the fence. It hit his hard hat with a clunk. He looked up.  

“You!” Elizabeth uttered again.  

The manager approached the fence. “Can I help you?”  

Boards were up. She was unable to see what was behind them.  

“You can start by telling me what’s going on here?”  

The site manager was disinterested.  

“Demolition,” he said. “We’re busy so clear off.”  

Elizabeth scoffed. “Clear off?! You better tell me what you’re pulling down or I’m going to drag you through this fence by your testicles.”  

“The Beckingridge Wing.”  

Elizabeth shook her head. She thought so. Chick, you bastard.  

“You can’t do that,” Elizabeth protested.  

“What is it to you?” the site manager asked.  

“Because it’s my name that’s on the bloody building.”  

Ernest had donated the wing. 

“Pettiwick did us well, Liz,” he had said. “Gramps would have wanted it.”  

It was one of the best things Ernest had done during his tenure as head of the family. “I’m not here to speak to a minion. Send out whichever Fullerton fucker is heading this up.”  

The site manager shook his head.  

“Jenna!” he called. “Jenna, you had better come see to this.”  

Fullerton contracts were split between the Fullerton siblings. Caleb had gone off somewhere without notice and the eldest, Jake, was serving time in The Boss so it was up to the sisters to hold the fort. No bridges being built that day, they were being burned. 

Jenna had had to step up and take what would have been most of Caleb’s contracts.

“Elizabeth?” she sounded surprised. “I thought you lost out on the school.”  

Elizabeth clutched the fence. “You have no right to pull that building down.”  

Jenna looked to the boards. “I don’t, but the new owner does and he wants it down. It’s just fulfilling a contract, innit?” 

Elizabeth growled. “I’ll sue you. Not Owen, you personally. Pull that construction missy.”  

Jenna pursed her lips and folded her arms. “No can do, Liz. You know I have all the papers in place, right? I wouldn’t be here otherwise.”  

“Pull this construction now,” Elizabeth ordered.  

Jenna removed her hat. “Not a chance, Liz. We’ve already been paid and that building is coming down. Your name may have been on it but it was a gift to the school. It’s up to whoever owns the school what they want to do with it.”  

“What reason were you given for it to come down? It was a perfectly fine building. Ernest was good to you.”  

Jenna agreed. “Ernest was a sweetie, he was, but we’ve got a job to do and I’d tell him the very same thing. I do have something for you though. I kept it. I thought you might like it.”  

Elizabeth thought about Ernest’s memorial plaque. Maybe she could at least hang that in the manor until she got the school back. It had Gramps’ name on it too. Jenna nodded to her site manager. He ran to the office to fetch like a good puppy. When he re-emerged, he wasn’t carrying the plaque. He was carrying a newspaper – a Coldford Daily. He passed it through the fence to Elizabeth.  

“What’s this?” she asked. 

“This morning’s news. Open it to page 2.”  

The headline read: 

SMASHING TO SUCCESS. 

The story detailed The Cappy’s plan for what was going to be standing in place of the Beckingridge Wing. The image showed Chick Owen and Jenna Fullerton shaking hands in front of the building.  

“I thought you might like to keep it and remember the building as it was. You can frame it or something.”  

Elizabeth threw the paper down. “Don’t do me any favours,” she snapped.  

Jenna shook her head but she was smiling. “I’m just doing my job. It was Caleb who built it in the first place. I’m not happy about it either.”  

Jenna scoffed. Demolition was already set. There was no stopping it. Elizabeth could still elicit some damage of her own.  

*** 

When Elizabeth reached Chick, he had been hosting Buddy and his bros at Owen Estate.  

“Elizabeth,” Chick had been waiting for her. “I thought I’d be hearing from you.”  

Elizabeth smiled but her lips were drained of colour and her fire was now resting in her eyes. The video call gave a good clear view of her expression. Elizabeth could see Buddy and his bros standing behind him. Billy was out of frame.  

“I was passing Pettiwick this morning and you can imagine my disappointment when I was informed by Fullerton that my brother’s donated building was to be pulled down.”  

The Cappy continued to speak calmly but the icy temperatures of his words made Buddy shudder.  

“Imagine my disappointment when, after spending a generous amount on the Auction House, I find out you had my compass all along.”  

On screen Elizabeth had set a golden compass on the table.  

“You mean my compass? Bought and paid for fair and square.”  

Chick frowned. “It is mine and you know it. Those oddballs had no right to sell it in the first place. I am a reasonable man. I will offer you a fair price for it.”  

Elizabeth shook her head. “I like it. It’s a very nice piece.”  

“Tread carefully Liz,” The Cappy warned.  

Elizabeth brought a hammer onto her table.  

“You better back off bitch!” yelled Buddy when he saw what she was about to do.  

Elizabeth ignored him. “If you’re going to wreck property of mine then I guess I’ll do the same. How dare you pull down that wing.”  

“I don’t really need a compass after all. I’m quite good at finding my way about.”  

Elizabeth lifted the hammer. “Hen Owen, wasn’t it? There is an inscription.” She brought the hammer down as heavily as she could.  

CRACK. 

“Stop!” Buddy warned.  

The Cappy kept his focus on the screen saying nothing.  

CRACK. 

Elizabeth brought the hammer down again.  

CRACK.  

The Compass, despite its study build, was damaged beyond repair. Elizabeth stopped for a breath and smoothed her hair.  

“Are you finished?” The Cappy asked.  

Elizabeth smiled. “I’ll be in touch.”

  

The call ended. Buddy rested his hands on his head. “Holy Mary that fucked an angel!”  

“Charles,” Ronnie warned. “Don’t be rash.”  

The Cappy paid no attention to his brother. Instead, he turned to Billy.  

“Do you still have the rat boy?”  

Billy nodded. He too was quietened by what had just happened.  

“Yeah, Captain.”  

“Then it’s time for Reginald Penn to see what happens when someone toys with something that belongs to me.”  

Ronnie pleaded again. “Chick, please think this through.”  

“I have thought about it. I have thought about it long and hard. He murdered our father, he humiliated my boy, and now our heirloom is passed around like a common whore. My fucking compass is destroyed because he sold it away, property that did not belong to him.”  

Ronnie knew there was no use arguing with Chick. Heirlooms were precious to most. They were especially precious to Charles ‘Chick’ Owen, better known as The Cappy.  

*** 

Having made their presence felt in the Mid-West village, at a small Kappa So outpost used for registrations and the occasional meetings, they had skipped across the city to the Mid-East. 

Reginald was overlooking the area they had taken. They had been met with some resistance, more than they expected. The combined Fleet and Loyalist groups took a moment to catch their breath.  

“We’ve got them on the back foot,” Reginald was observing, speaking to Paddy Mack. 

Kieran Mack was busy scrubbing blood stains from his jacket.  

Paddy agreed, “We’ve been smooth so far but the resistance is getting heavier and heavier each time. We need to move back towards the south before one final push into City Main.”  

Reginald nodded in agreement. They had been so successful so far because their attacks didn’t follow any particular pattern, but Billy Owen had been manoeuvring CPD and success was becoming more and more difficult.   

“They have Junior, sir,” he said delicately.  

Immediately Reginald’s attention diverted. Emmerson passed him a phone. That’s when the screen showed the youngest triplet, Reggie, in pain, screaming and calling for the eldest triplet, Marcus.  

“Woooh boy! This whore here likes her ass pounded!” Cheering could be heard. “King Daddy ought to see this.”  

The screen showed Marcus held helpless. His support inside The Boss had been gunned down. Simon was flat on the ground with guns to his head.  

“Say goodbye to your brother boys. You ain’t ever going to see him again.”  

Kieran and Paddy shared a look. Reginald’s lip curled.  

“Reg…” Paddy warned. “Think about this.”  

Reginald shook his head. “Our next stop is City Main.”  

Paddy continued to plead, “That’s why they wanted you to see that. They hope you’ll do something fecking stupid.”  

Reginald was not to be consoled. “Those cunts have my boys!”  

Paddy, still trying to stay level headed, said, “If it were any of my family, I’d feel the same way but we’re so close, so fecking close Reg, you can’t lose it now. For all our sakes you need to stick to the plan.”  

Reginald’s fury was still throwing a tension on his facial expression and across his broad shoulders.  

“We’ll get Reggie back. We’ll get all of them to safety I promise ya, but we need to stick to the plan.”  

.  

Reginald trusted Paddy’s advice. He found his center. He found his calm. Junior’s screams and pleads would be the battle cry that spurred him on. But then the phone rang again. Reginald answered. 

“Rita?” he said.  

Kieran and Paddy shared another angst-ridden look.  

“Rita? My love you need to calm down.”  

“My baby!” was all she could cry.  

“I’m going for junior right now. I’m going to get him right now.”  

“Don’t let them kill him Reginald, please! You can’t let them hurt him anymore. He must be so scared!”  

It was then that Reginald heard a voice over a speaker. It was in French. Flight 10SS to Coldford City was now boarding. She was at the airport. 

“Rita! Rita do not come to Coldford. I’ll bring Reggie to you. I’ll bring your baby to you.”  

It was too late. The phone signal was lost. Rita Penn was to board a flight to Coldford. Coldford City airport, owned by Owen Inc.  

Paddy sighed. He leaned his head back. Kieran shook his head. “Feck,” he muttered. 

Reginald may have been able to use Junior’s cries to spur him into battle but Rita’s sobs for her baby? Those would signal the end for his enemies no matter the cost.  

“My wife has just had to see that,” said Reginald to Paddy.  

“I’m sorry,” said the Mack in charge. “But my point still stands.”  

Reginald addressed his loyalists.  

“We’re going to City Main. If any of the Fleet choose not to follow, then leave them behind.”

*** 

There was little I could do as events unfolded. I tried to get a statement from Elizabeth Beckingridge but she had locked herself in the Tower. The exchange continued to accumulate. There was still no word from the distillery. Its gates were firmly closed. It was now a race against time for Lydia and her agency team to find any evidence they could on Buddy Owen or once again he would walk away after committing the most horrific crimes.  

As I worked to leak the true information to the city, Rita Penn wandered toward danger. Her love for her children had blinded her to the Owen Inc. logos that were darted all over flight arrivals. The plane she had taken from Luen even stopped close to The Cappy’s own Boeing – Dynasty.  

“Welcome to Coldford City,” the attendant greeted. Her blue uniform and carefully made-up face was glamorous, inviting.  

“Thank you for choosing Luen Air. May I see your passport?” 

Rita was in a hurry. She fished into her bag and produced a passport. The check arrivals agent scanned the name Penn and she compared the photo.  

“Business or pleasure, Mrs Penn?”  

Rita was distracted. She knew Reginald was busy. She knew he had troubles so if she could talk to The Cappy, maybe they could reach an understanding. He had a son. She had a son. They could see eye to eye. Perhaps she could speak to Ida Owen. Surely they could speak mother to mother. Buddy was her baby just as Reggie was Rita’s. If the women could just talk a while, they could find a solution and maybe then the men would make sense. There had been so much harm done already. Reginald would be angry she had come to Coldford but she couldn’t sit at their estate in Luen when the next time she saw one of her boys it could be dressing him on The Tailor’s table.  

If Reggie managed to get to safety, he would want to come home. Someone had to be home. Mother would wait for him.  

“I live here. I’ve come home to stay for a while,” she told the arrivals agent. The agent smiled. Rita tapped her fingers nervously on the desk.  

“That’s lovely,” she said. “Well, you’re all set.”  

Rita took her passport and was sent to baggage claim.  

Reggie, poor Reggie. He was such a little boy at heart. It was bad enough with Marcus behind bars. Marcus was her big boy. He was ready to take his father’s place one day. He could take the heat. Simon was physically strong. He fought, he trained and he focused. Her boxer boy would be fine. But Reggie? He was sensitive, inquisitive, nothing without his brothers. They were a whole when they were together. Apart, Reggie was the most delicate piece. 

She saw her bag, an old-fashioned trunk she had packed in a hurry. She hadn’t even given security time to collect her and escort her. She just needed to be closer to her boys. She heaved her bag from the conveyor belt. The exit was so close. The transport to City Main would be waiting.  

She felt a hand on her shoulder.  

“Mrs Penn?” an airport staff member asked. “Come with me.”  

With that she was guided to safety by Agent Franklin.


Knock Knock: Episode 21: It ain’t over ’til it’s over

It was tough going. From the best seat at the Coldford Daily newspaper to packing up my make shift home at the Weir Hotel. A lot had happened in between then. I had witnessed murder, pleas of innocence and I had watched justice fall hard. Some would argue too hard but, in a city filled to the brim with murderers, thieves, rapists and drug addicts, what was too hard? 

I had seen the city quiet before on walks through the streets in the early hours but this was different. There was a chill in the air and not just because of the rapidly changing weather. Sure, summer had closed its door with a slam and cold winter opened its embrace, but the brittle air resonated from the discarded banners outside of the Court House. 

JUSTICE FOR TABITHA. 

FREE OUR QUEEN.  

The Boss Lady of the Knock Knock Club was gone, sentenced to death for her crimes. The club itself was now in the hands of the office of Law Makers and their Bailiffs.  

Justice was served swiftly but it wasn’t the justice the south of the city had wanted. Tabitha had fought for them. The blood she shed was for them.  

The CLOSED sign over the entrance of the Penn Auction House struck fear in City Main too. Two of the Penn triplets, Marcus and Simon, were resident of Coldford Correctional, better known as The Boss because of the way it loomed over the northern town of Bournton. The third triplet, Reggie, had slipped Law Maker custody and was currently missing. Their father, Reginald, was rumoured to have returned to Coldford. The man who many addressed as the King of City Main was set on retrieving his sons regardless of the consequences.  

Fear in the city was but a prelude to the fear felt in the western town of Bellfield when the gates of the Mack and Sons Distillery closed. This was something that hadn’t been known since the days of the Great Wars of previous generations. Second eldest Mack son, Paddy, had also escaped CPD leaving behind several dead officers including Detective Hickes, a good man caught in the middle of a deadly face off.  

Then there was Tawny, the old Baroness of the Knock Knock Club and Tabitha’s beloved aunt. She had been a resident of the Harbour House rehabilitation clinic after an attack on the club caused a complete mental breakdown. Being treated for trauma she had been safe within the clinic until Tabitha’s trial. As the Law Makers moved in to take her into custody she was gone. Owner of the facility, Dr Winslow, refused to give statement until he had placed himself in the good graces of the Law Makers. Beckingridge Financial Firm had funded a campaign which sent missing person’s reports all around the city and displayed on the screen at Beckingridge Tower, in the hopes of shaking whoever had her or knew of her whereabouts. Thanks to the financial muscle there was not a corner of Coldford that didn’t show an image of Tawny’s smiling face, as all those who knew her and loved her would remember her.  

I wasn’t sure what Elizabeth Beckingridge’s thinking had been behind this. At the helm of the financial giant it would have been her decision, but Tabitha had caused the death of 59 of her clients and staff at an event known as the Free Fall Massacre. Elizabeth had no reason, nor loyalties to Tawny. I could only surmise until her part of the story became more apparent.  

I spoke with a fellow resident of Harbour House, drug addicted artist David Finn. Time in the clinic for his addiction seemed to have done him well. He had been close to Tawny, was fearful for her safety and adamant that the Owen family where responsible for taking her due a long held grudge they had with her. He was willing to tell me all she had ever told him about the Owens and the club but the word of a recovering addict was little for me to go on.  

The room at the Weir was comfortable enough. The red and gold décor matched the hotel colours. I had been housed there ever since Tabitha was taken into custody and my own home became a crime scene. I couldn’t feel safe there though, locked in the centre of City Main. I would much rather have returned to my home in the sleepy suburban spot of Jameston. But the story still lay in the Shady City and I wasn’t quite ready to abandon it when there was still so much to be told.  

My phone rang in a video call. Answering it brought me the pretty, warm and friendly face of Agent Lydia Lowe. She had been by my side and taken great personal risk to keep me safe throughout. It comforted me that she rarely allowed voice calls. She always requested video, forcing me to open up to her.  

“Hey roomie,” she smiled. “I just wanted to check on you and see how you were doing.”  

“Good,” I said. I tried to hold the camera steady offering her nothing but unflattering angles and a view of the roof. “Just packing up now.”  

Lydia giggled as I tried to hold the phone steady. 

“I’ll be back by the time you get here. I’m just wrapping things up with Kim at CPD.”  

Kim was the leader of Lydia’s agency team sent in to bring down the Knock Knock Club and its Boss Lady. She had kindly offered me sanctuary at her City Main home, giving me time and space to clear my own where the perfume of my dead wife, Theresa, still resonated.  

“We’ll get a pizza, a cold beer and figure out our next move. How does that sound?”  

I grinned. It sounded much better than another night alone at the Weir.  

“Sure,” I agreed. “I’ll be there soon.”  

“See ya!” was her cheery sign off.  

I took one last look at my room. I wasn’t sad to leave it.  

I pulled my suitcase into the old-fashioned styled elevator. Bell Boy, Ralph, was on duty wearing the gold and red uniform.  

“Allow me,” he offered, taking the burden of my case. “You might want to get checked out quickly. Things are getting a bit crazy downstairs.”  

Before I had the chance to ask him what he meant the lift doors opened again.  

The main foyer had been swamped by Kappa So brothers, a fraternity based at the University of Filton and founded by the Owen family. It was accusations against this brotherhood and its founding members that caused the city to be split in two in the first place.  

An excitable Kappa So brother leaping around bumped into me, almost knocking me from my feet.  

“Watch out the way, brah!” he yelled in a strong Great States accent even though he was the one who had fallen into me.

He must not have liked the scowl I gave him in return because he shoved me with a scowl of his own. Luckily one of his brothers screamed over to him and motioned for him to join them in the bar where more of his brothers were harassing a bar maid. Glasses had been smashed and cheers rang out. Chairs were over turned in the foyer. The receptionist looked terrified.  

“We are Kappa So!” chanted another group just arriving from a bus that had pulled up outside.  

Rodney Weir himself was filtering among them. He was wearing his Kappa So blazer to show he too was a brother, but was trying to bring some order to the chaos.  

“Checking out.”  

I handed my key to the receptionist. She was a heavy set girl, mid-twenties with a sweet face but completely out of her depth when it came to dealing with the chaos that was coming her way. She accepted the key gratefully but before she could say anything a jeer erupted in the foyer where one of the brothers had climbed on a sofa and knocked it over. He was now lying on the ground. His brothers fell into peals of laughter around him. A storm hit the hotel that day and I was caught in the middle of it. Trying to speak to the receptionist was difficult through the noise.  

“What’s the name?” she asked.  

I hadn’t heard her at first. I was hit on the head with an inflatable penis, the kind one may find in a hen party. One of the brothers, without apologising, grabbed it and waved it as though it was his own penis. He launched it back across the foyer like he was pitching a baseball. The group that had just alighted from the bus were now pushing into the reception desk. The one who had tipped the couch hadn’t gotten back up. A drug cocktail, it seemed, was keeping him down. One of them kicked him. The rest of them sauntered to the bar.  

“What’s the name?” the receptionist asked again.  

“Sam Crusow,” I explained. “Room 415.”  

She started to check the computer. Her manicured nails tap, tap, tapped on the keys. There was a scream from the bar. On a dare, one of the brothers was trying to french kiss eighty-year-old Mrs Riley. He was pushing into her with his tongue protruding and his hands reaching out for her breasts.  

“Thank you, Mr Crusow,” the receptionist said having checked there was no cost left on my room. “I hope you enjoyed your stay.”  

“Hey fatty boom boom we need a room room,” said one of the new arrivals.  

“Excuse me?” she replied. It would have been much easier if she had just given them the rooms.  

“No drama,” a bro cheered. “Can’t smell it.”  

The other bros laughed.  

“Just give us our damn room,” groaned another, more irate brother. He was high on cocaine, or powder as it was known in the Shady City.  

“I’m just finishing with this gentleman,” she said.  

“It’s fine,” I assured her. “I’m done.” 

“Don’t piss her off, brah. She gonna eat ya,” said another, also high on powder.  

“Mr Weir?!” the receptionist called to Rodney.  

The hotelier’s attention was caught. It didn’t take much explanation for him to deduce what was happening.  

“It’s fine, darling,” he said. “Open up the fifth floor.”  

I checked out. I left the bedlam behind. I could still hear the screams as I stepped onto the streets of City Main. The anarchy and all the new arrivals were because Robert ‘Bobby’ Owen was touring the Kappa So Chapter Houses and his next stop was to be Coldford.  

I am reporter, Sam Crusow and my story is far from over.  

*** 

“Listen up bitches. My Pops is comin’ so this place better be ready to receive!” yelled Buddy Owen to his Kappa So brothers who were busy getting the celebrations started at the Coldford Chapter House located on the Filton University Campus.  

The excitement of meeting Bobby Owen wasn’t just Buddy blowing hot air. Despite Buddy’s father, Charles ‘Chick’ Owen – or The Cappy as he was respectfully titled – being the current CEO of Owen Inc, the grandfather was still seen as a deity among the Kappa So brothers. His portrait hung prominently in the main lounge of the house. His reputation as a founder and pioneer spread throughout all the Chapters across the world.  

“I’ve been buzzing all day,” stated Chad, one of Buddy’s closest bros at the top of the Kappa So chain. He wasn’t the only one.  

Buddy went on to address the others. “We’re talking about the Commander in Chief himself coming to visit ya’ll! The great, the legendary, the much admired Bobby fuckin’ Owen. My pops. They sing songs about him in the Great States you know. He’s going to be walking in here any minute and the place smells like a vagina factory!”  

He addressed the lesser bros, ”Ya’ll better recognise just how lucky you are to have him even want to look at ya. The world out there has gone to shit. Our brotherhood survives because the monumental Bobby Owen said it was so. He gifted us our Chapter so we could follow tradition. He set foot in this shitty city so that the people here would see our yellow and black and know it meant something.”  

“We are here so that we can remind people of tradition. Thanks to the awesome and spectacular Bobby Owen we will let the Shady City know that there is an order in life and we are top of that order. We take our place at the top of that order before things get out of hand and we can’t say fuck noodle without offending some vegan, cross-dressing, feminist asshole who identifies as a fuckin’ tree. I am sick and tired of people telling me my words offend them. They should be offended. I got shit to say that people ain’t gonna like. The incomparable Bobby Owen didn’t make this brotherhood what it was so we would have to care about other people. Am I right my brothers?” 

A cheer rang out from the fraternity. Buddy grinned. His cocaine high buzzing even harder as he absorbed his brothers’ excitement.  

“The man in charge himself, my pops, will knock all ya’ll bitches into line. You better be ready to bow because the man is royalty. He is a God here at Kappa So and you should be thanking your mamma she had the good sense to open her legs in time for ya’ll to be here to witness this marvellous…fucking awesome occasion. And don’t forget, contained within his God balls is the essence that created me, your other God.”  

Here Buddy gave a raspy laugh and the other brothers cheered some more.  

“Those are great balls, Buddy,” Chad said, caught up in the excitement.  

Buddy stopped.  

”Thanks Chad,” he said. 

”Got your back, bro,” Chad replied.  

On his right side, Dale Cooper, son of the legendary racing family, Cooper Garages, folded his arms across his chest and waited for Buddy to continue.  

Cheryl, a Kappa So cheerleader, honours student in the first year at Filton, now scraping by, was brought forth. She was so high on powder she could barely walk. She grinned as she was ushered forward and kneeled before Buddy.  

“Go forth,” he ordered, “and let all the whores know that there will be rich old cock to be sucked tonight.” He reached his hand out to Chad to summon him. “Chad?” he called. “Fetch me the golden cock!” 

Chad leapt excitedly. “I’ll get your cock, Buddy.”  

He turned his focus back to Cheryl. The aptly titled ‘coke whore’ was swaying. Her eyes were burning red with the blood vessels bursting through the whites. 

Chad returned and placed a penis made of gold into Buddy’s hand. It was generously proportioned and as anatomically correct as could be found gilded from precious metal.  

A sombre silence fell over the Kappa So hall as Buddy held the golden cock out.  

“With this cock you will summon the best whores,” he said as though a priest delivering mass.  

Cheryl bowed her head. “I will, Buddy,” she agreed.  

“You will treat it with the appropriate respect,” he said. 

“I will Buddy,” she replied again dutifully.  

He passed it into her outstretched hands as though she was accepting communion.  

Buddy pointed to the door.  

“Now go forth. Your task has been assigned.” 

Cheryl climbed onto her feet. Her drug addled stupor made it a bit of a task. She certainly wasn’t as agile then as she was on the cheerleading squads of the university. When she finally did get onto her feet she skipped off, taking the golden cock to the Kappa Si house. The sorority would see the penis etched in gold and the sisters would know that there was a sugar daddy available to please.  

The fresh air as she stepped outside hit her so hard she almost stumbled but the powder pushed her forward. She ran excitedly.  

Harsh headlights came charging towards her like a bull.  

WHAM! 

Cheryl collided with a black van. The van continued on its charge.  

SMASH!  

Kappa So Chapter House received a blow to its west side as the van crashed through.  

*** 

Before they could react – most of them too drunk or drugged to do much anyway – the brothers of Kappa So were swarmed by thugs from the Coldford City football team. They called themselves the loyalists and they descended upon the brothers under the leadership of Reginald Penn, head of the Penn dynasty and the one they hailed as King of City Main.   The Fleet from the Bellfield team had joined them.

Paddy Mack and his brother Kieran were among them.  

“Get the feckers together,” Kieran was calling. “They got some explaining to do.”  

A struggle, violence, bloodshed ensued. Buddy and his brothers were taken to the lawns of the Chapter House. On their knees, beaten badly and sobering fast the brothers looked about themselves, still trying to comprehend what had just happened.  

The loyalists were wrecking the house, whilst the Macks and their Fleet held the brothers to account. The air was tense. Buddy could only hear the noise of the search and the screams of some of the brothers they had found hiding upstairs faintly from the outside. He was in a dream like state and only taking things in in small captions.  

“The king!” cried out a City Main voice.  

“Yer fecked now,” Kieran Mack cheered.  

Buddy tried to focus through his powder high. Through the sea of bodies emerged a commanding presence. Tall, greying fair hair and with an Olympian magnetism, Reginald Penn’s patience was wearing thin. Buddy Owen and his brothers were a pestilence in his way.  

“I will speak to the one in charge,” Reginald said.  

The Kappa So brothers, including Chad and Cooper looked to Buddy. Buddy stared straight ahead and said nothing. Reginald took note of Buddy’s particular discomfort. 

“I’m here because rumour has it you took a friend of mine from Harbour House. A good woman. They call her the Baroness. If she is here we will find her so you might as well make it easier on yourself.”  

Still no brother saw fit to respond. Chad kept looking between Reginald and Buddy. Buddy still made no move.  

A Loyalist brought a thick chain to his king. Reginald accepted it.  

“I call this Belta,’” he said. Some of the loyalists were giddy with excitement. Paddy Mack was expressionless. “She’s going to bash in the brains of every last fucking one of you until you tell me where Tawny is.”  

“Bud, bro,” Chad whimpered, trying to urge Buddy to speak up for them.  

Reginald circled in on Buddy. He pointed Belta at him. She hissed through her coils.  

“You must be an Owen,” he said. “You’ve got that inbred look.” 

The Loyalists chuckled. Buddy still said nothing. “Where is Tawny?” Reginald snarled.  

He raised Belta. Buddy’s sordid life flashed before his eyes. The drugs, the whores, the chaos.  

“I believe, sir, your quarrel is with me.”  

Robert ‘Bobby’ Owen arrived on scene, fresh from the Filton University spa. He had come as a matter of urgency. His shirt still hung open.  

“Leave the boys alone,” he ordered.  

Buddy had never been so glad to see his pops. 

“Bobby Owen,” the elder introduced. “This is my Chapter House you are trespassing upon and I do not care for the intrusion.”  

Reginald remained stationed. Buddy watched Belta swing from his hand like a hypnotist’s time piece.  

“If you are saying you are in charge then we have a problem,” Reginald warned.  

Bobby shook his head. “Your hooligans will not find what they seek here.”  

The elder Owen was surrounded by Loyalists. They took him into custody but Bobby didn’t resist. 

“He’s an old man,” Paddy protested but it did little good. With two of his boys contained within The Boss, another missing and now word spreading that the Owens had taken a good friend of his, the Penn father was intent on blood.  

Bobby Owen was pushed to his knees before the king.  

“Your maniac children belong behind bars. It isn’t afore long. You will join them soon enough. Your friend? I have no idea where she is and I care not. She and her lying whore of a niece are a stain on this city that needed to be wiped clean,” said Bobby.   

Reginald growled. Paddy clutched his arm. 

“Reg …” he warned but Reginald shook it off.  

Reginald took a deep breath.  

WHACK!  

The first blow of the chain sent Bobby Owen onto the grass. Loyalists lifted him back onto his knees. Already his consciousness was waning.  

WHACK! WHACK!  

Some of the brothers cried out seeing the skull of the God among them reduced quickly to a bloody mess. None of them saw fit to try and help. Paddy Mack turned away. Kieran laid a hand on his brother’s shoulder. 

Reginald gasped, catching his breath again.  

WHACK! WHACK! WHACK! 

The highly respected Bobby Owen, the one the people of the Great States sang songs of, was dead. His blood dripped from Belta’s fangs.  

“You are an Owen, ain’t ya,” Reginald hissed at Buddy. “What’s your name?”  

“Buddy,” the Chapter leader replied, trying not to look at the body of his dead grandfather.  

“He’s the son of The Cappy,” Kieran Mack confirmed.  

Reginald swung Belta as he gave it some thought.  

“Get me a phone.”  

One of the loyalists, named Emmerson passed a phone to their king who in turn threw it to Buddy. The KSO brother didn’t make a move to catch it. It bounced off his chest and onto the grass.  

“Pick it up,” ordered Reginald Penn.  

Buddy obeyed. He clasped the phone in a trembling hand.  

“Get your father on the phone. We need to talk,” the king proclaimed.

 

*** 

“Mr Owen’s office. How may I direct your call?” the secretary’s light voice answered.  

“Put me through to The Cappy right away,” said Buddy, still on his knees, still with a wary eye on Belta clasped tightly in Reginald Penn’s hand.  

“May I ask who is calling?” the secretary asked. She seemed distracted by something that was going on in her office.  

“It’s Buddy, you dumb bitch. Get The Cappy on the phone now.”  

“Oh Bernard. I’m so sorry. I didn’t recognise your voice. You sound a little different. Is everything okay?”  

Buddy was losing breath and losing patience. “Tell my father I’m in a bind. It was a phrase Buddy had been taught as a youngster. It would let his father know immediately he was being coerced.  

The secretary fell silent. Reginald scowled at Buddy.  

The secretary rang off. Within seconds the phone screamed a reply in the form of a video call directly from Chick Owen.  

“Answer it,” Reginald ordered.  

The screen opened to show the face of Charles ‘Chick’ Owen. He was in his office in the Great States and aggrieved at the disturbance. Buddy’s words to his secretary had placed him on alert.  

“Buddy?” he asked initially. “Are you hurt?” 

“No,” Buddy replied. “Pops!” The screen was turned to the battered and bloody corpse of Bobby. Reginald snatched the phone from Buddy and addressed Chick directly. The Cappy’s gaze burned through the screen. 

“I was wondering how long it would be before you reached out, Mr Penn.”  

“The old man didn’t have to die. My hand was forced. All I ask is that you hand over Tawny.”  

Cappy raised an eyebrow. “Who?”  

Reginald snarled. “You know who she is and word has it you know where she is.”  

Chick Owen remained calm. “If you are referring to the bar clown who owned the Knock Knock Club then I am somewhat familiar but as for where she is…her current location alludes me.”  

“You talk shite!” Kieran spoke up. Reginald turned to him with a warning stare. Kieran stepped back.  

“You have her and if you hurt her it’s going to be the last thing you ever do,” Reginald warned.

 

The corner of Chick’s upper lip raised. “You take the word of some junked up artist? I thought you were much smarter than that. I heard the rumours too but I challenge you to find any foul play in my Chapter House.”  

“If I find you are lying more of your blood will be shed.” 

Here Chick smiled but it was icy. “You realise we do not recognise any monarchy here in the Great States, self proclaimed or otherwise.”  

Reginald gripped Belta tighter. “This isn’t the Great States. Welcome to fucking Coldford. Have I made my point?”  

The Cappy raised his chin. “Loud and clear.” He reached over and closed the call. The screen fell to darkness.  

*** 

The night chill was setting in. It was sobering. The high Buddy had felt earlier was but a memory. He believed he had never felt so sober. The city was behind him. As they headed north they must have taken a wrong turn on the way to Owen Estate. The true north they called it. It was an expanse of farmlands and empty space. His feet were cold and wet as he and his bros skipped across open fields. None of them had the energy to complain anymore, except Buddy whose irritability was driving him on.  

“That son ‘a’ bitch is gonna pay,” he growled. “Him and his three stooge sons. Fuckin’ triplets. That’s fuckin’ weird.”  

Cooper stopped him.  

“We’ve taken a wrong turn, Bud. Where’s the estate?”  

“How should I know?” Buddy returned with a groan. “C’mon Coops, I’m freezing my balls off just as much as the rest of ya.” 

“I saw a barn about a mile back,” Chad stated. “Maybe we can rest up there and find out where we are.”  

Suddenly beaming lights spotted on them with a booming noise as though the Lord himself was laying down judgement. A voice echoed through the blinding shine.  

“You are trespassing,” it said. It was a deep voice, a man’s voice. It had the bounce of a Bournton accent.  

How far north had they come, Buddy wondered. 

“In these parts we have permission to shoot.”  

Buddy made a move to step forward. The crack of a gunshot warned him to stay where he was.  

Buddy reached his arm up to shield his eyes from the beams.  

“My name is Buddy Owen,” the Kappa So leader spoke up. He was at the end of his tether by then. “I’m having a really shitty night, brah,” he sobbed. “My pops died. One of our whores is in pieces in the street. We had to walk here all the way from City Main.” He was almost sobbing then. “I lost my golden cock!”  

Cooper laid a comforting hand on Buddy’s shoulder.  

Silence fell. Two men walked towards them; their frames silhouetted in the bright light. One was a large burly man with swept back blonde hair. The other was shorter, dark hair and a long face. The both wore shirts with a Harvesters logo.  

The smaller one looked to his companion.  

“Did he just say he had a golden cock?”  

*** 

“I’m Glenn,” the blonde one explained. “You are on Harvester Farm.”  

Buddy whined, “I just want to go home, bro. I was trying to get to Owen Estate. It’s my family’s place.” 

Glenn still didn’t seem so sure.  

It was Cooper who made their plea next. “Dude,” he said. “We gotta get some help. We gotta get some clothes man. We’re freezing our asses off.”  

Buddy turned to Chad. “Will you stop flicking your dick? I can hear you tap, tap, tapping away.”  

Chad lowered his head. “Sorry, Bud.”  

“What do you say, man? Give a bro a break here.”  

“What the fuck was that about a golden cock?” asked the other farm hand.  

Glenn scowled at him. “Leave it, Curtis.”  

The one named Curtis shrugged.  

Glenn sighed. “Follow us up to the east acre. I’ll see what I can do.”  

Grateful for the sanctuary Buddy and his bros followed the truck deeper into Harvester Farm. Curtis spun the wheels throwing mud onto the the already distressed brothers.  

Glenn laughed and punched his arm.  

“Leave them,” he said. “They’ve been through a lot. He said his grandad died.”  

Curtis shook his head. “The spoiled little cunt seemed more upset at losing his golden cock, whatever the fuck that was.”  

Glenn laughed again. “Let it go.”  

The brothers skipped across the gravelled pathway, yelping at the pain in their feet but they were presented with a large farm house. A light was on in the lower floor.  

Buddy beamed as he made his way towards the house. Glenn pulled him back.  

“Oh no you don’t,” he said. “None of you go anywhere near that house. Do you hear?’ 

“Yeah I hear you, bro,” Buddy relented. ”I need a phone,” he pleaded. “I need to call my dad. Maybe you’ve heard of him. Chick Owen? They call him the Cappy.”  

Glenn shook his head, not really listening. “I can’t say we’ve met.” He pointed towards a barn. “Take your brothers to the milking sheds. It will be warm enough in there. I’ll get some blankets and clothes to you.” 

Buddy’s powder high was well and truly gone by then and every pain in his body was magnified. The stench of the farm was already giving him a headache.  

Holding himself up on the fence, Buddy led his brothers to the milking sheds. Curtis was waiting on them, holding the door open.  

“MAAAH!”  

A scream ripped through the night breaking the solemn silence of the brothers.  

WHAM! 

Buddy had a blow to the side as he was knocked away from the fence he was trying to hold himself up on.  

“What the fuck is that!?” He yelped with despair.  

Sharp horns and small, glowing eyes charged at the fence again.  

WHAM! 

The fence rattled.  

“What the fuck is that!?” Buddy asked again, almost in tears.  

“It’s a goat,” Chad explained calmly taking a look over the fence at the animal beyond. “A Pygmy of an old Hathfield breed by the looks of it. Genus Caspar aegugrus.”  

The brothers were now staring at Chad, perplexed.  

Chad Perry was the heir to the Perry Zoo chain. Despite that, being a frat brother, it could be assumed his university degrees had come from special treatment. However, Chad had actually learned quite a bit about his field of zoology. 

“MAAAH!”  

WHAM! 

“Well do you know how to shut that god damn thing up?”  

“MAAAH!”  

“Fuck you, brah,” Buddy screamed at the animal. He stuck his leg through the fence to try and kick it but it skipped away. “You son ‘a’ bitch. You better run!” He yelled but this leg was caught. He tried to pull himself free again but fell into the mud. 

“Aaaah!” He screamed in frustration. “This night sucks dead dong!”  

Cooper helped Buddy up.  

“C’mon bro. They’re watching us.” 

As Glenn had said there was a warmth to the milking sheds. Having grown up on Owen Ranch the bros looked to Buddy as their authority on what to do next. All their leader could do though was kick over a bucket. Forgetting he was bare footed the pain rang through his toes.  

“Medic!” he bawled.  

A short while later the shed door opened and a woman came to them carrying a bundle of blankets in her arms. Buddy’s eyes lit like the beams from the trucks. A beautiful woman, firm bodied, healthy. Her brunette hair was tied back, serving to highlight her shining blue eyes and soft, naturally rosy lips.  

“Welcome to Harvester Farm, boys,” she said. “I’m Julia Harvester.”  


Enjoy this?

Check out these other thriller titles available now.

Three Cheers for Kappa So!

Give me a K! Give me an S! Give me an Oh boy!

When reporter Sam Crusow entered the Knock Knock club in search of the missing mayor he didn’t realise the bigger story he would uncover.

It’s game on as the Knock Knock graphic novel series returns for Season 2! Just who will you be cheering for?

The Chapter House is where the action is at.

You can place your bets, raise your banners and scream but there’s only one thing certain; With the Knock Knock club closed the Kappa So Chapter house is the next best place for a good time 😛😏😉

“Coz’ we are Kappa So and we make trouble wherever we go.”

Kappa So!!!! Cooper, Buddy and Chad may seem like overgrown man children but they can and will cause a lot of damage in the city.

#amreading #thriller #graphicnovel by @VivikaWidow and I am pledging #kappaso


Season 1 is free to read here at Vivika Widow Online or click download free with Kindle Unlimited.

Character profile: Chad Perry

“Damnit Chad!”

Occupation: Kappa So Frat bro!

Features in: KNOCK KNOCK ; HARBOUR HOUSE ; PURPLE RIBBON ; THE BOSS ; GOOD GANG: GREAT STATES

The son of Austin and Amy Perry of Perry Zoo, Chad is heir to a global zoo dynasty. Unlike most of his bros who don’t have enough of daddy’s attention or mummy’s affection Chad actually hails from a surprisingly loving family. He is especially close to Grandma Perry who was an alligator wrestler in her younger days!

Chad’s attraction to the Kappa So Chapter House comes mostly from his love of his bros, especially Chapter Leader Buddy Owen. A dedicated follower, Chad is willing to support his bros no matter what. He is a caring spirit really but when you are surrounded by chaos it’s hard for that to shine through. Chad is also wild one, the source of a lot of the trouble the bros find themselves in. They say he cannot be tamed!

What will become of Chad Perry? Who knows? But no matter what happens it is almost a certainty his bros will be there right along with him.


Enjoy this? Check out these thriller titles available now.

10 things you didn’t want to know about Buddy Owen!

So he made an impact in KNOCK KNOCK SEASON 1. After a subtle entrance into the first volume followed by a more … well … wilder, one in the second, Buddy Owen sure got the readers talking. The following may contain some spoilers from the Knock Knock series so if you haven’t read yet you can do so for free by clicking HERE.

The following may contain some things that are too much for some readers.  Ready to move on? Good. Then let’s move on. Here are ten things you probably didn’t want to know about Buddy but will be glad you do by the end.

img_1771
Buddy Owen prepares some new pledges to the Kappa So fraternity.

1: Keeping the Sabbath day Holy. 

Buddy was born on a Sunday. This may not seem very consequential but Buddy is from a family who try to maintain conservative values. His uncle JERRY OWEN was a reverend. Being born on a Sunday meant the entire congregation were rejoicing when their Reverend excitedly announced to them he had become an uncle.

The church bells rang and celebrations were carried out. CHARLES ‘CHICK’ OWEN had been given a son and heir to the powerful Owen Inc.

DDBFBFCA-00FD-4F7A-AAE2-7AF69C56AB58
Chick Owen – CEO of Owen Inc. – conducts business.

2: Owen swimmers are strong.

Before attending FILTON UNIVERSITY and taking his place as Chapter House leader of the Owen founded KAPPA SO fraternity, Buddy was a champion swimmer. He had competed at national and international levels. Because of a deepening cocaine addiction Buddy’s enthusiasm for the sport waned when he reached the Shady City.

3: He loves the pussy.

As a boy, Buddy had a cat which in true Buddy fashion he named Pussy. It followed him everywhere around the Owen Ranch and when it died it upset him. In order to deal with his grief he had expert taxidermists, who handled the finest kills from the family hunting trips, make pussy into something that would always be remembered fondly. Taking pussy with him to Coldford, it would receive the respect it deserved. With raised eyebrows the taxidermists had no choice but to the take the boy’s request fearing Chick’s wrath. So with that pussy was returned as … Well …

20191204_161755909_iOS
Buddy takes a hit of Pussy as he discusses plans with his Kappa So brothers.

4: Study up.

Buddy was sent to Filton University in Coldford to take over its CHAPTER HOUSE but also to study. The field Buddy had chosen was Sports Science which the University of Filton has the best facilities in the country for. He had shown some promise in sports in High School as previously mentioned he was a champion swimmer. It even looked like the Owen heir was going to become the man his father always wanted to be. He attended lectures, he took the pool again and he was adapting to leading Kappa So like a duck to water. The Cappy was made proud.

With it being so unlike Buddy the second brother of Chick, Ronnie, decided to pay his nephew an unexpected visit. The Chapter House was was a mess of broken furniture, the tables covered in the remnants of powder binges and girls, some naked, all drugged, were making themselves at home. Buddy hadn’t changed that much it seemed. The lectures he had attended weren’t him at all but a doppelganger. It didn’t really matter anyway because the lecturer had been held up. She was with the real Buddy having powder snorted from her breasts.

knockknock_buddyeffigy2_vivikawidow
When you need some noise Kappa So will make it. Loud and clear.

5: What’s the Rush?

When hotelier, RODNEY WEIR, urged his son, Daniel, to pledge Kappa So it ended in horror and a stay in hospital for the photography student. After discovering that Daniel was gay, in true Kappa So logic, Buddy urged the other pledges to beat him, strip him and rape him. This was homophobic nonsense brought on by a cocaine high and the excitement of having new pledges to torture, but like most Kappa So pledge parties it got well out of hand.

Being a brother himself, Rodney was hesitant to make complaints about the fraternity. To make sure the press fallout was handled properly the Owen propaganda machine spurred into action. A video of the incident was leaked not only outing Daniel publicly but also making it seem like he was participating in gay pornography.

KNOCKKNOCK_kappasologo_promo
The Kappa So banner flies high.

6: Jet Setter

The Owen family jet has been the source of bragging for the powerful Great States dynasty for a long time. Buddy, likes to play fast and loose with his family heritage. It’s protection over the years has left him feeling invincible. Once again, empowered by drugs and alcohol he took it upon himself to commission the jet to take him to the Asian continent. He had no real destination in mind nor did he have any prior arrangements.

The jet missing, not to mention the heir to The Cappy, caused a global search for the miscreant. He was eventually found a week later in a whore house deep in the Asian continent. Needless to say the family were furious. For Buddy his Uncle Jerry protested ‘boys will be boys’. For the pilot who accepted the commission his wings were clipped. He was rumoured to have returned to Asia but there was no verification of this. No one asked any further questions.

7: Full of Surprises

Buddy is many things but it may surprise you to learn that he is also a superstitious man. Before arriving in Coldford he had never heard the phrase ‘touch wood’ to show someone didn’t want to tempt fates. After finding the phrase hilarious with its obvious connotations he became so consumed with it he started to use it. He became so obsessed with the phrase and the idea of not tempting fate he started to carry a small block of wood with him. It comforted him having it on hand should the need arise to touch it but it also gave him opportunities to show others his wood. No, that wasn’t always innuendo.

73417714_2439297039622051_1745664963260710912_n
City Main has it’s distinctive sky line in large part due to Fullerton Construction. As viewed from the northern town of Bourtnon.

 

8: Mamma’s boy

Buddy respects his father. The Cappy gives no other option and makes no exception. However, his mamma, Ida Mae Owen, has a completely different relationship. Buddy is close to his Mama. Ida knows her son’s whims. She was a bit of a tear away herself as a girl travelling on the beauty pageant circuits.

Yes, the former Miss Star State knows her son, she doesn’t make excuses for him but she understands him.

69252527_382342275813061_7918929622257893376_n
Buddy doesn’t let his powder addiction interfere with business.

9: Brother for life.

Anyone who pledges Kappa So becomes a brother for life. For Buddy it is a way of life. His father has a huge name and reputation to live up to. Being chapter leader of his brothers gives him some kind of authority and a chance to prove himself worthy of taking The Cappy’s place one day. Mostly Buddy’s nature keeps playing against him. He is an overgrown man child but with the backing of his brothers that childish disregard for rules and laws coupled with wealth and privilege make him a very dangerous man.

20191128_204026682_iOS
Kappa So!!!! Cooper, Buddy and Chad may seem like overgrown man children but they can and will cause a lot of damage in the city.

10: He never misses a target.

Every member of the Owen family are taught how to handle fire arms from an early age. They are all expert marksmen and when they aim they aim true. Buddy feels most at home with a gun in his hand and even on a powder high he will never miss a target. If anyone or anything is caught within his scope they will meet a grisly end.

463
Father, Kevin, has pissed Buddy off. Who is the real target though?

Care to see what Kappa So are capable of?

Why not ask hotel heir Daniel Weir just how tough pledging can actually be!

What’s the Rush? Part 1

What’s the Rush? part 2

What’s the Rush? Part 3

05.02 is slaughter time for the animals on Harvester Farm but it is also the release of these animals.

Coming 05.02.2020.

When the noise at the Knock Knock club starts to interfere with business at Owen Inc. Buddy and his Bros find themselves with a party to crash.

20191128_204023416_iOS

Complete season 1 of the Knock Knock graphic novel series is free to read HERE.

Or click HERE to download for Kindle.

img_1945

We Are Kappa So!

You better believe we are and we’re coming for you, bitches.

We have no one to keep us in check so things are going to get wild.

Don’t believe us? Ask Daniel Weir the HOTEL heir, he’ll tell you. He couldn’t handle the pledging and ended up in hospital.

If you got what it takes you’re a for life. We’ll always have your back no matter what you do.

Take the pledge, enjoy the whore because when we start spilling onto the streets of the Shady City we’re gonna make some noise. KAPPA SO!!!

Care to see what Kappa So are capable of?

Why not ask hotel heir Daniel Weir just how tough pledging can actually be!

What’s the Rush? Part 1

What’s the Rush? part 2

What’s the Rush? Part 3

05.02 is slaughter time for the animals on Harvester Farm but it is also the release of these animals.

Coming 05.02.2020.

When the noise at the Knock Knock club starts to interfere with business at Owen Inc. Buddy and his Bros find themselves with a party to crash.

20191128_204023416_iOS

Complete season 1 of the Knock Knock graphic novel series is free to read HERE.

Or click HERE to download for Kindle.

img_1945

Character Profile: Dale Cooper

Age: 24

Occupation: KAPPA SO Bro

Features in: KNOCK KNOCK ; HARBOUR HOUSE

Like the rest of his fraternity brothers Cooper is from a long standing, wealthy family. They own Cooper Garage in FILTON, specialists in luxury vehicles such as Belle driven by Captain Charles ‘Chick’ Owen and Dales own Citrus.

img_1775
Cooper can always be rest assured Buddy Owen is about to do something ridiculous.


Cooper is best friend and second in command to Bernard ‘BERNARD‘ Owen, whose family founded the Kappa So brotherhood. They are essentially over grown man children with too much wealth and too little responsibility. The Chapter House always plays host to wild parties and Cooper is always in the thick of them.

Kappa So!!!! Cooper, Buddy and Chad seem like overgrown children.


As far as the brothers are concerned Cooper is considered the level head. Raised by a father who is constantly barking like a mad dog Cooper has little to say. Among his bros though he is in his safe space.

His good looks, chick magnet bod and the flashy empire he has coming his way makes him a hot commodity and fills him with potential. Let’s just hope he can put the frat boy nonsense aside to achieve that potential.


The Kappa So bros have a bone to pick with the old Baroness of the Knock Knock club. They will find her resident of the Harbour House rehab clinic. Free to read on Kindle Unlimited.

Read it here online or download the Complete Season 1 of the Knock Knock graphic novel series for kindle. Free to read on Kindle Unlimited.

Do Not Disturb: Weir Hotel

Features in:

KNOCK KNOCK

MUSE

MAESTRO

HARBOUR HOUSE

Located in the heart of City Main, across the street from BECKINGRIDGE TOWER the Weir chain of hotels is the first point of contact for those looking for an escape.

Owned by hotelier Rodney Weir the hotel is a luxury stay on the surface but an old rot runs deep within the building. It makes headlines often with the goings on of its guests but most recently it hit the tabloids because because of an explosion on the fifth floor where a conference was being held in on of the meeting rooms for OWEN INC. 

The hotel has seen many unusual guests over the years but when you check in – as long as the bill is in order – there will be no questions. It isn’t uncommon for guests to check in under an assumed name. Honey moon suites available – no marriage certificate required.

BeFunky-project (1)
Weir Hotel: Shady City Suites

Adult films, unusual delicacies, even special in room entertainment can be made available as part of the unique room service experience. Don’t worry about money exchanging hands. It can all be easily charged to the room. We

So if you want to escape the city check in, insert your key card and prepare for a night you will want to relive over and over again. We even have special rates for return guests. Don’t fancy a city break? You’re welcome to the Verde Beach Weir in LUEN. Headed by brother, Eddy Weir. A bit of a glamour and sophistication to add to your trip.

img_0897
The Kingsgate Albion football team are sponsored by the Weir Hotel.

No matter which one you choose you can be rest assured the Weir Hotel is the place to be whether you are looking for wild, quiet or a discrete time. It all goes at the Weir because at Coldford’s premier hotel the guest is top priority.

Rodney Weir has dodged a lot of bullets over the years regarding his hotel. He owes thanks to his brothers at KAPPA SO who promise life long protection if you make the pledge. He wanted his son, Daniel, to have that same protection but does the mild mannered photography student have what it takes?

KNOCKKNOCK_timetopledge

An three part series exclusive to Vivika Widow Online. Take the pledge:

What’s the Rush? Part 1

What’s the Rush? part 2

What’s the Rush? Part 3

For the first introduction of the Weir Hotel to the Shady City thriller series check out Vivika Widow’s best selling novella Maestro. Click HERE to read:

maestro_maincover_border-3

Coming 2020.

Bring me your sick. Bring me your troubled. Bring me those that society can no longer cope with. They will always have a home here at HARBOUR HOUSE.

 

Character Profile: Micky Doyle

“I’ll deliver the city; You deliver the justice.”

The Doyle family have a reputation in the Shady City and cousin Micky has his eyes set on the position of City Mayor.  He will be given the opportunity to do what he can to make sure order reaches every part of the city from the comfort of City Hall.

167ACDCF-CA8F-4B32-9CF5-F739FE6EEE8C
Micky makes plans to run for mayor.

If the KNOCK KNOCK CLUB is responsible for Mayor Feltz going missing Micky can’t be too mad. It has left a spot open for him. Micky is ambitious, so when the door of the Mayor’s office opens he sees opportunity. Why shouldn’t he? He can play a round of politics better than most. Will he improve matters in the Shady City though? He does have some skeletons he can’t let escape his closet.

9
Micky discusses future plans with his cousin.

His powerful friends need his particular charm. Whilst his cousin rules with fear from the HIGH COURT, the LAW MAKERS need someone who can win over a city. Micky Doyle is the wild card of the Doyle family. He is the happy face they put on in times of trouble.

Complete season 1 of the Knock Knock graphic novel series is free to read HERE.

Or click HERE to download for Kindle.

img_1945