By Stephen Taylor
Salmon Arm, BC
EXCERPT FROM SHORT STORY
KNIVES
….These men seemed to be chatting amongst themselves quite urgently.
Catching the eye of one of them, the young man raised his pint and and chin in friendly greeting. To which the man smiled back and beckoned him over.
Obliging the polite invitation, the young man walked to their table, “Grab a seat and join us, mate.” The gruff voice of their leader came from a weather-worn and smiling face, “Eh lads, move over so he can sit down.” The three men made space between them on the bench so he could sit with his back to the window, across from the smiling man, “What’s yer name, son?”
“Nice to meet you, sir. My name is Halcyon.”
Giving a short chuckle he responded, “I ain’t no sir, that’s for sure. Me name’s Harry, we’re fresh off the trail like yourself. We came to enjoy a few pints and have a few games, din’t we lads?” The lads all mutter in differing forms of agreement, “Awwww, now don’t you mind them. They just ain’t used to being around the classes such as yerself. But I reckons yer just like us, deep down: you likes a good pint and a good game, dontcha…Halcyon, wasn’t it?”
“Sounds like a fun time, Harry.” The young man smiled enthusiastically.
“Great! What did I tell yer lads? We’ll be laughing and joking and piss drunk before you know it! Alright! Here’s the game: you ever played Knives before lad?”
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Knives,
Copyright © Stephen Taylor, 2020