The Book of Tragic Short Stories Part Three

The Pendulum of Luck

Dean was knackered after work. He was a project manager and had completed another eleven-hour day. He was going to head home but decided to stop off for a beer before he went back to his wife. Dean wanted to unwind and didn’t want to go home in a mood and annoy Lisa. The only time they ever row is when he comes back in an irritable and impatient state. It only takes Lisa to ask him how his day was, and he explodes. Dean wanted to avoid any unnecessary drama, poor Lisa didn’t deserve it. They’d been married for ten years so they knew each other’s bugbears. 

On his way home he often drove past a pub called The Dog and Duck, but this time he stopped. He pulled into the car park, walked in and noticed the football was on the TV. The pub was old fashioned, but he liked it, it was quaint. He said,

“Evening, I’ll have a pint of lager please, how’s the match?”

The barman started to pull the pint, looked over to him and said,

“The games good, it’s still 0-0 but it’s end to end. Who do you support?”

Dean replied, “I’m a Villa fan, but I want Palace to beat United, I would love it if they got relegated.”

The barman handed the pint over to Dean and said, “That would be funny, I’m a Palace fan, so I obviously want the eagles to win.”

Dean paid and sat down on a bar stool, took hold of his cold beverage and gulped a quarter of it down. He felt better already. 

A few minutes later another man walked in, he knew the barman’s name, “Evening Mohammad, I’ll have a pint of lager please?”

Mohammad replied, “No problem, how have you been Evan?”

“I’m okay, I’ve had a long day.”

Evan sat down at the bar and spoke to the barman about the match. 

The game was exciting, and Palace took the lead just before halftime. It was just the three of them and a couple in the pub who were sat near the back. They were deep in conversation and were oblivious to the football. 

During halftime, the three men commented on the game, and each had their moment to explain how Palace should play in the second half. As the second half kicked off, Dean finished off his pint and was about to leave. However, he was enjoying himself and instead of going home, he thought he’d have one more pint and watch the rest of the game. As the barman handed him his lager the other customer, Evan said, 

“I should really go home, but I think I’ll have one more and finish the game off. I think United will make a comeback.”

The couple who were sat in the corner drifted off home and the game ended with Palace winning the match 3-1. Evan and Dean said their goodbyes and left in their respective cars. Evan drove the eight miles home in his BMW without incident and after some food, he went to bed.

Dean only had six miles to travel; however, he never made it home. A woman called Johanna intercepted his journey. Her boyfriend had just broken up with her in the same week she’d lost her job. Her life was in tatters; she had been drinking and was walking down the road after buying some cigarettes. She stopped to light one and began to cry, she was in her fifties and realised that she had lost everything. Johanna began to scribble down a goodbye note to her adult daughter, however she hadn’t finished it and held it in her hand. She looked down the street and saw some headlights driving towards her, she had one of those moments where she thought no one would notice if she was dead. The car was almost upon her; Johanna stepped out onto the road and was hit by the car. She smashed into the windscreen and was flung into the air where she span around and crashed onto the tarmac. Her head collapsed like an eggshell and bled out. She died almost instantly; the handwritten note blew away like a leaf in a hurricane. 

Dean hit the brakes like a formula one driver and a few cars travelling in the opposite direction screeched to a halt. Dean froze and before he knew it the police and ambulance with their flashing blue lights were on the scene. The road was closed off; the ambulance had taken Johanna away and the police officer approached Dean with a breathalyser. He began to sweat; he thought that he could be in big trouble. 

The officer told Dean to give a long continuous blow into the contraption, he then waited whilst his intoxicated breath was being analysed. The officer then showed Dean the outcome, it was positive, he blew 44. Just over the legal limit, however that didn’t matter, he was over. The officer arrested him on suspicion of causing death by careless driving while under the influence of alcohol. 

Dean was arrested and handcuffed, he couldn’t believe what was happening, what an end to what was a relaxing and pleasant evening. He was taken to Crawley custody and dumped into a cell. The cell was grey and cold with a thin uncomfortable mattress and a smelly blanket; there was nothing Dean could do other than wait. He was locked up for the first time in his life like a common criminal. He reflected on his life whilst just having four dull walls to stare at. It didn’t take him long to figure out what was important to him, it was his wife, Lisa. Not his stressful job. It paid well and he had spent years working on his ability, but to what cost, we’re all important until we’re not there. He had plenty to talk to Lisa about, if she still wanted him.

The following morning, he had been given a duty solicitor and was advised to go ‘no comment’. The solicitor, Des, had the unfortunate news to confirm that the victim had died and the charge carried a life sentence. Dean almost collapsed, he never had it confirmed that the woman had died up until that point and the thought of a lifetime in prison was overwhelming to him. He became lightheaded and his hands started to shake. 

Dean was charged and released on bail to attend court for his plea hearing. Dean pleaded not guilty, due to the fact, he believed that Johanna had stepped into the road on purpose rather than his careless driving. He accepted that he blew over the legal amount, but that would just be a driving ban and a fine. 

Due to Dean’s not guilty plea, his hearing would be at Hove Crown Court with a twelve-person jury. Des and Dean had six months to prepare their defence and find something in Johanna’s life that would point to her wanting to end her own life. It sounded a dreadful way to go around things. He knew the drink-driving was something he should be punished for, but he was adamant Johanna stepped in front of his car. Dean told his solicitor, “Why should he go to prison for her selfishness?”

The court case came around quicker than they had expected. They had spoken to her ex-boyfriend, ex colleagues and a few family members. They had a defence ready with mitigating circumstances; however, they didn’t have anything concrete, nothing written in stone or even paper. 

The morning of the court proceedings was awful; he had a meeting with his solicitor and met the Barrister for the first time. The jury had been sworn in, and Dean had to sit in the dock. There were a lot of people in the courtroom, and they all stood up as the judge walked in. The judge and the barrister’s had their wigs on and it looked very archaic and traditional. 

The opening speeches were delivered by the prosecutor and defence barrister’s, outlining what and how they were going to prove their arguments. Dean was incredibly nervous, and he felt uncomfortable in his new grey suit he had bought for the occasion. Straight away he disliked the prosecution team, they looked cocky and stated they wanted the maximum sentence for him. They wanted to make an example of him and casual drink-drivers. There was something about the prosecutor, he sounded familiar but looked strange due to his poncy wig. Then it suddenly hit him, the prosecution barrister was Evan, from that fateful night in the pub watching football. Evan who too had drunk two pints and drove home. Now it was the same Evan who was trying to put him in prison for years and completely destroy his life. It could have easily been Evan sitting in the dock instead of Dean.

As the court case went on, various witnesses were called in and gave evidence. Some were there to give a good character witness testimony to Dean and others were there to suggest that Johanna was not the type of person who would want to commit suicide.

Then there was John Rix, a witness for the defence. He was asked questions about his relationship with Johanna. He really didn’t want to be there but was summoned, he recounted their last encounter.

John said it was a brief conversation at his front door a day after he had ended the relationship, and the night of her death. He claimed she had been drinking and wanted to get back together. When he told her no, she said she was going to kill herself. He said,

“Don’t be like that Jo, you just need to talk to someone.”

Johanna replied,

“Talk to who, who can help me?”

“Anyone Jo, just talk to anyone. It will help.”

“You sound ridiculous John. Shall I talk to the milkman?”

John said he was tired and just wanted her to leave, so said,

“If you want.”

Jo replied in a sarcastic tone, “Hello Mr Milkman. I’m not very happy, I’m going to kill myself.

Or,

Hello Mr Postman, I’m sad today, I’m going to kill myself.

How the hell do you think they’re going to bloody help?”

John admitted he sounded flippant when he said,

“Well, I don’t know, maybe the milkman will give you a free milkshake. I don’t care, just leave me alone.”

He paused, then said, “I regret it now, but I shut the front door and went to bed.”

It wasn’t until the penultimate day when Des received an email with a scanned picture of the goodbye note that Johanna had written seconds before stepping into the path of Dean’s car. They had to get the original, which Des spent the night retrieving from a dog walker who found it the day after the incident. When it was exhibited at court, it was enough to win the jury over and find Dean not guilty. Johanna’s death was recorded as self inflicted by the coroner.

Dean was a free man and had escaped years behind bars. Instead, he received what all first-time drink-drivers get, a fine and a short driving ban. Lisa stuck by him and she was now pregnant. He had left his job and had begun a gardening business. It was demanding work, but he was happy, and a master of his own future.

A few years later he ran into Evan once again. This time it was at a local children’s playground. Dean had taken his daughter for a walk around the park and stopped at the playground as she loved the swings. A young boy ran up to the empty swing and shouted for his dad. The dad came over to help his son into the baby swing and it was Evan.

Both men looked at each other whilst gently pushing their children and instantly recognised each other. Two men who had been through a lot together, who had never really been introduced. Evan looked sheepishly at Dean and said hello. After some awkward moments, the men spoke about the incident and the court case. Evan apologised for his robust approach in seeking a long custodial sentence but countered that he had not started his career well as a barrister, he was under a lot of pressure. He ended up reverting back to being an on-call solicitor, the work was interesting, he just had no need for his wig anymore.

Dean accepted the apology and told Evan that in a strange way the whole event made him focus on what he found important in life. They spoke about luck and how it could have been Evan sat in the dock. Evan spoke about the burnt toast theory, and how a negative experience can be turned into a positive. Over the years their children became friends, and eventually so did the men, after all, they shared a joint hatred of Manchester United.

The End.