David Peace - Red or Dead

Aye, said Bill Shankly. I have my train to catch, son. My train back to Liverpool. My train back home. But I know we have won, son. I know we have won. And so I’ll still be here in spirit, son. In spirit.

And Bill Shankly thanked the supporter of Liverpool Football Club. Bill Shankly wished him a good night. But he asked him to take care. And to have a safe journey home. A safe journey back to Liverpool. And Bill Shankly shook his hand. And Bill Shankly patted his back. And then Bill Shankly said goodbye to this supporter of Liverpool Football Club. And Bill Shankly walked out of Wembley Stadium. Bill Shankly searched for a taxicab. Bill Shankly spotted a taxicab. And Bill Shankly took the cab back to Euston Station.

In his seat on the train. The train back to Liverpool. The empty train back to Liverpool. Bill Shankly thought about the things he was missing. The victory and the celebrations. The party and the speeches. All the things he was missing. His home and his wife. His home he was missing, his wife he was missing. And Bill Shankly smiled.

In the house, in their hallway. Bill picked up the paper from the table in the hall. Bill looked at the photographs of the celebrations. Bill looked at the pictures of the parade. The faces of the players of Liverpool Football Club. Smiling, smiling. The faces of the supporters of Liverpool Football Club. And Bill smiled. In the front room, in his chair. Bill turned to the inside pages of the paper. Bill read the interview with the manager of Football Club Bruges. Ernst Happel had said, It was a weak final. It is no excuse but we were handicapped by lots of injuries. I would have liked to have been more offensive. But our injuries were against us. And I was disappointed with Liverpool Football Club. Because we played them two years ago. And tonight they were just a shadow of that team. They were just a shadow. And Bill shook his head. Bill closed the paper. Bill put down the paper. Bill got up from his chair. Bill walked over to the writing desk. Bill sat down at the writing desk. Bill opened the top drawer of the writing desk. Bill took out a card and an envelope from the top drawer of the desk. Bill opened the card. Bill picked up a pen. A red pen. And Bill wrote inside the card, Well done, Bob. I’m very pleased for you. Liverpool have proved once and for all we are the real champions. The best team in Britain and the best team in Europe. Congratulations, Bill . Bill put down the pen. The red pen. Bill picked up the card. Bill put the card inside the envelope. Bill held the envelope up to his mouth. Bill licked the two edges of the envelope. Bill sealed the envelope. Bill put down the envelope on the writing desk. Bill picked up the pen again. The red pen. And Bill wrote on the front of the envelope, To Bob . Bill picked up the envelope again. Bill got up from the chair at the writing desk. Bill walked out of the front room. Bill walked up the stairs. In the house, in their bedroom. Bill changed into his shirt. His tangerine shirt. Bill walked over to the dressing table. Bill opened the top drawer. Bill took out his cufflinks. His gold cufflinks. Bill closed the drawer. Bill did up the cuffs of his shirt. His tangerine shirt. Bill walked over to the wardrobe. Bill opened the doors. Bill took out his suit. His freshly cleaned grey herringbone suit. Bill left the wardrobe doors open. Bill walked over to the bed. Bill laid out the suit on top of the bed covers. Bill took the trousers from the coat hanger. Bill put on the trousers of his suit. His freshly cleaned grey herringbone suit. Bill went back to the dressing table. Bill opened the second drawer of the dressing table. Bill took out a tie. His red Liverpool Football Club tie. Bill closed the drawer. Bill walked back to the wardrobe. The doors still open. Bill stood before the mirror on the back of one of the doors. Bill put on the tie. His red Liverpool Football Club tie. Bill went back over to the bed. Bill picked up the jacket from the bed. Bill took the jacket from the coat hanger. Bill put on the jacket of his suit. His freshly cleaned grey herringbone suit. Bill walked back over to the dressing table. Bill opened the top drawer of the dressing table again. Bill took out one white handkerchief and one red pocket square. Bill closed the drawer. Bill put the white handkerchief in his left trouser pocket. Bill laid the red pocket square on the top of the dressing table. It looked like a red diamond. Bill brought the bottom point of the red pocket square up to the top point. It looked like a red triangle. Bill brought the left corner of the triangle to the right corner and then the right corner to the left corner. It looked like a long red rectangle with a point at the top. Bill folded the bottom almost towards the top. Bill walked over to the mirror on the back of the wardrobe door. Bill stood before the mirror. Bill placed the red pocket square in the breast pocket of his grey jacket. Bill looked in the mirror. Bill adjusted the pocket square until just enough of the point was coming out of the pocket. The red point out of the grey pocket. Bill stepped back. In the house, in their bedroom. Bill looked at himself in the mirror. And Bill smiled. Bill closed the wardrobe doors. Bill walked back over to the dressing table. Bill opened the top drawer of the dressing table again. Bill took out a badge. His Liverpool Football Club badge. Bill closed the drawer. Bill attached the Liverpool Football Club badge to the lapel of his suit. His freshly cleaned grey herringbone suit. Bill picked up the envelope from the top of the dressing table. And Bill walked out of the bedroom. Bill walked back down the stairs. Bill walked into the kitchen. And Bill saw Ness at the sink. The kitchen sink. Ness peeling the potatoes. The potatoes for their lunch. And Bill said, I’m just going to nip down to the ground for a bit, love. To drop this card in for Bob.

Ness looked up from the potatoes. Ness turned from the sink. Ness looked at Bill. In his suit and in his tie. His Liverpool Football Club tie. Ness nodded. And Ness smiled –

All right then, love.

Bill kissed Ness on her cheek. Bill walked out of the kitchen. Bill walked down the hall. Bill put the envelope in his pocket. Bill opened the front door. Bill stepped out of the house. Bill closed the door. Bill went down the drive. Bill got into the car.

In the sunshine. In his car. Bill drove down the West Derby Road. And Bill saw the people walking in the street. The people busy, the people occupied. In the sunshine. In his car. Bill turned onto the Belmont Road. And Bill saw the people getting off the buses, the people getting on the buses. The people busy, the people occupied. In the sunshine. In his car. Bill turned into the car park at Anfield Road. Bill parked in the car park at Anfield Road. In the sunshine. Bill got out of the car. The only car in the car park at Anfield Road. In the sunshine. The car park was empty, the place deserted. In the sunshine. Bill closed the car door. Bill took the envelope out of his pocket. In the sunshine. Bill walked across the car park. Bill walked up to reception. In the shadow of the Main Stand. Bill tried the door to reception. But the door was locked. In the shadow of the Main Stand. Bill knocked on the door. But no one answered. In the shadow of the Main Stand. Bill turned away from the door. And Bill walked round to the back of the Anfield Road Stand. And then round to the back of the Kemlyn Road Stand. The stands empty, the stands deserted. But in the sunshine and in the shadows. The stands were whispering, whispering to Bill. And Bill kept walking, walking round the ground. The empty ground, the deserted ground. Until Bill came to the back of the Kop. The Spion Kop. And in the sunshine and in the shadows. Bill stopped. Behind the Kop, the Spion Kop. Bill touched the bricks of the Kop. Bill touched the stones of the Spion Kop. Bill felt the bricks, Bill felt the stones. In the sunshine and in the shadows. The bricks were warm and the stones were hot. Red hot. The bricks alive, the stones living. Living and breathing. Bill listened to the bricks, Bill listened to the stones. The bricks speaking now, the stones singing now. Revolutionary songs, revolutionary words. Words of anticipation, songs of transformation. Singing to Bill, speaking to Bill –