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As the DIB got under way, Mamo’s boys did not disappoint. The promise of a better life made even the most mechinsed of players find their long-lost human touch. The whole team, players, staff and Manager, were very united and determined to rid themselves of Conz. Davina become an icon for the players. Mamo had used her tragedy to his advantage: the players’ mission was not to avoid the drop anymore. It was to save Davina’s dignity.

The debut against REAC saw Alec Horth hit home two penalties, split by a Robert Loczi strike which would win the Goal of the Month Award. The first home match, against Tatabanya saw a wonderfully spirited side beat their rivals by an 8-0 scoreline. Alec Horth opened the score again, but Imre Domokos was the hero with five goals, and Sallai and Loczi claimed their share of glory.

September saw KTE reconfirm their superiority, which in reality was a potential previously oppressed as fear turn into an anger which could be safely exerted on the pitch. The only downside was a serious disciplinary problem with the insurmountable number of yellow and red cards waved at KTE players. But as long as the results kept coming, and Conz was happy, Davina was safe.

Domokos , Sallai and Loczi ensured the three points at stake against Mosonmagyarovar, before a disappointing 0-0 draw at home against Szolnok. Conz was still too happy with the standing though, as this time he spared Davina, or anyone else, any humiliation. The trip to Vac saw another six being hit home, ( Peter Kiss twice, Domokos three times and finally Alec Horth ). Oroshaza somewhat braked KTE’s ambitions, so to speak, as they managed to limit the damage by holding the score to a 2-0 defeat, courtesy of Netherlands Antilles’ Dani and Kislorincz .

In October, it was the same music all over again, with Peter Dani single-handedly beating Heviz, and repeating himself (together with Sallai and Gimmenes ) against Mako. Dunaujvaros were the next in line, succumbing to an Anka goal to loose by just one goal. Still the three points were KTE’s. However, Haladas could not keep up with the trend as Domokos , Dani (three times) and Loczi made them count.

Turning colder, and wetter, Kislorincz , Anka and Loczi consolidated KTE at the top of the standings at the beginning of November, against Bodajk, before Szeged were the first team to beat outstanding goalkeeper de Consuelo in the league. Nevertheless, victory was ensured through Defenders-cum-Strikers Nagy and Farkas . BKVE were beaten by another defender, Horth , who scored twice from the penalty spot before heading in a corner. With half the league gone, it seemed that even the press started realizing that this year, everyone should reconsider their ambitions to the Runner-Up spot – at best.

In December, two matches were scheduled. REAC and Mosonmagyarovar conceded twelve goals between them, Domokos , Sallai , Horth (twice) and Loczi making REAC bow and Mosonmagyarovar kneeling to Forbes , Loczi , Horth (twice) and above all hattrick hero Domokos .

By the end of 2004, Conz had not been given another chance to be violent. And Davina was a beautiful as never before. Mamo was going on holiday during the Christmas Recess, for as much as he had started to love and respect his players, he really did need a break.

He’d be sorely missing Davina though.

In those few previous weeks, her smile had become the driving forces behind his ambition. She had become his very energy. He couldn’t leave her behind…

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<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Matches Summary:REAC 0-3 KTE (Horth 2, Loczi)KTE 8-0 Tatabanya (Horth, Loczi, Domokos 5, Sallai) Mosonmagyarovar 0-3 KTE (Sallai, Loczi, Domokos) KTE 0-0 SzolnokVac 0-6 KTE (Kiss 2, Domokos 3, Horth) KTE 2-0 Oroshaza (Kislorincz, Dani) Heviz 0-2 KTE (Dani 2) KTE 3-0 Mako (Gimmenes, Dani, Sallai) Dunaujvaros 0-1 KTE (Anka) Haladas 0-5 KTE (Dani 3, Domokos, Loczi) KTE 3-0 Bodajk (Kislorincz, Anka, Loczi) KTE 2-1 Szeged (Farkas, Nagy) BKVE 0-3 KTE (Horth 3) KTE 5-0 REAC (Horth 2, Gimmenes, Loczi, Sallai) KTE 7-0 Mosonmagyarovar (Horth 2, Loczi, Forbes, Domokos 3) </pre>

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Oh, something HAS to go wrong...

---

Mamo knocked on Conz’s door. The tyrant’s voice cleared him permission to enter the room.

“Mamo? What business here?”
“Well, Mr. Conz. The Christmas Recess is here but there’s a lot to be done at this stage for the club. May I ask you to take Miss Horvath with me to America on some scouting assignments?”
Conz looked deeply into Mamo’s eyes. His dark cheeks did not move at all. His eyes did not move. His whole body, for that matter, did not as much as twitch at the scandalous proposal. A few seconds of thought, and Conz replied.
“No funny business, or you’re in deep trouble. Damn serious.”
“No, there are a couple of guys I just wanna watch. My trusted scout Caffiero has indicated them to me. You may rest assured by the brilliant performances being put in by his current suggestions… Horth above all, but even the others…”
“I cannot argue with that. I hope this Caffiero guy doesn’t dip his pen in my ink though. He had something funny in his way of behaving.”

Maybe Conz was alluding to the fact that Jim was gay?

Once of the office, Mamo went straight to Davina’s desk. She was not there. So Mamo scribbled a note, saying ‘Pack your things, we’re off to Miami.’

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Once out of the plane, Mamo and Davina went straight to the Hotel they’d be staying at. The young lady was delighted to be there, with Mamo. Over the past few months, she had grown emotionally attached to him. One might even dare say she grew to love him. But that was dangerous enough for her, let alone him. She’d never drag him into that pit.

As soon as they checked in and found their way to their room (for Mamo had taken the ‘liberty’ of sharing his room with Davina), another man, undisputedly Eastern European, approached the receptionist. Room 518, Madam. Please bill Mr. Conz. The receptionist handed him the key and he went up to his room.

The two weeks that followed were the most marvelous Davina had ever lived. She was deeply in love with Mamo, for the way he had entered and impacted on her life, if for nothing else. She was determined to stick to him forever, even if sound humiliation by Conz was the price to be paid.

They visited places, they ate out. They watched movies together, they got to know new people together. But something was missing. Until one night, before going to sleep, Davina told Mamo, “Chris, thank you. I don’t know how I could ever live without you”.
“Ohoh! Enjoy it while it lasts…” he replied, although he had been secretly fantasizing about this moment for a long time.
“Could we make it last the whole night?” Davinia asked, unashamedly.
Mamo’s face turned red. “You think we should?”
“I think – yes. We must!”

And the night turned into the most extended period of ecstasy both had ever known, making love to each other like there was to be no tomorrow. Like the world was going to end. Like there was no Conz, no KTE, just the two of them in the entire universe. They enjoyed it while it lasted. For the day after, the world was going to end for Davina.

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The following morning, Davina and Mamo came down the stairs together, hand in hand, with that special sparkle in their eyes. They found a table facing a man-made waterfall part of the decoration in the Hotel’s dining area. To them, it was the Niagara Falls. They had professed their love, now it was all rosy.

As Mamo kissed Davina on her lips – slowly, tenderly – he looked at eye level on the opposite table. There, on the other side, was Conz. Yes, the big man himself. And the worst part was that he had seen them kissing.

Conz got up and walked to their table. “So where’s this Caffiero guy, huh?”
“Eeerm…”
Conz didn’t give Mamo the chance to answer. His left hook was already deeply embedded in the Manager’s temple. Mamo blacked out.

He woke up again in his room, remembering his kiss with Davina as the last thing he’d done. But the appalling state the room was in spoke more than he wanted to know. To all probabilities, Davina had been beaten, humiliated and maybe raped in there, while he was knocked out, next to her agitated but helpless body.

He wanted to die. But on second thoughts, he did have a plan…

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“Jimmy, I need your help. Serious, I’m very sad. Something’s happened.”
“What’s going on. That Conz guy, still around, I see.”
“Please, Jim, it’s not the right time to have lightheaded discussions. Get dressed. Get here!”
“Where?”
“The Phoenicks Hotel, Jim. Where else?”
“Right up, I’m on my way.”

Jim and Mamo sat down at the Hotel bar where they talked of everything and nothing at the same time. Until Mamo finally said, “but I have an idea. It’ll send Conz for broke and he’ll be as good as dead, stuck in that shythole that’s Kecskemet.”

Mamo’s idea was to sell all players, down to the last one, for next to nothing. ‘Symbolic fees’, he called them. The staff could leave for free. He and Davina would run away together, and the team’d do so bad, he’ll have to sack me.

“And where do I come in?”
“Your’e an agent. Hello?!?! Find the guys an acquirent. Go fetch! It’s that easy.”
Jim thought about it for a second. “I get it. I’ll be these lot’s agent. Huh, I like that! I’ve always fancied breaking into the Old World. Deal!”

Mamo smiled under his breath and couldn’t help his hand sticking out to shake Jim’s.

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Back to business, in Kecskemet. It was the same dull place he’d left back in December. It was bad – very bad indeed. As he hurried into the club’s headquarters, he found a new secretary. His heart stopped. What’s happened to Davina. Was she still alive? Was she still breathing? He dared not ask Conz news of Davina. He had to keep it all inside until the right moment.

The DIB continued as planned, but despite convincing wins on the field, the players were very much aware of Mamo’s troubles and couldn’t help failing to impress off the field. Injuries plagued the team, and the disciplinary record worsened with every match. It was a disaster.

Three Dani strikes and one from Loczi won KTE the away match against Szolnok. Tatabanya succumbed to Horth (penalty) and twice to Dani , while it was Dani again, this time with Domokos as accomplice, to make Vac kneel down.

Halfway through March, Caffiero called Mamo to tell him his mission was going on well, as he had already found prime locations for some of the players. Babos was off to IFK Goteborg, while Barna had accepted a contract from Diosogyor. Anka decided likewise not to leave Hungary, and opted for Bodajk. Pandur , destination Inter, Italy, where de Consuelo would still be his teammate. Nyul was destined for Lecce, Italy too, together with Jimmy Forbes , the Bahaman who’d be playing for Juventus.

Liverpool secured the services of left winger Sallai , while the Spanish league would benefit from the enthusiasm of Koncz (Valencia) and Peter Kiss (Deportivo). Farkas had half the big guns pleading for his signature, but in the end opted for Dinamo Kiev. Gimmenes , on his way to PSG. Olympiakos, cuddling their new boy Alec Horth . And Loczi to try out the Belgian way of life with Anderlecht.

All transfers were agreed to happen on the 5th of July. Firstly so that Conz is given a big surprise. Secondly, because the 4th of July is a symbolic date. The last day in Conz’s oppression.

Mamo felt a little disappointed for the fact that Dani had not yet found somewhere to call home. As for most reserve players. But Caffiero was determined not to abandon anyone. Except Conz that is…

Matches Summary:
Szolnok 0-4 KTE (Loczi, Dani3)
Tatabanya 0-3 KTE (Horth, Dani 2)
KTE 4-0 Vac (Domokos, Dani 3)

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The season went on with Kecskemeti TE winning almost all their remaining fixtures, bar three draws against BKVE, Dunajvaros and Bodnjak. Having achieved promotion, Mamo could not concentrate on how to sink the knife in Conz’s heart. That everyone, everything was leaving, and that his little empire was about to vanish.

He opened the drawer in his desk to get a paper on which to scribble his plan. An envelope caught his eye. He had placed that envelope there not to open it. But there he was, mission accomplished and all, and now he could afford the luxury. ‘To the New Manager’ it said, and indeed it was him.

Carefully opening the yellowed-out envelope he found a small piece of paper, torn out from a diary, which merely said, “He usually locks her up in the cellar”. Was it about Davina? He hadn’t seen her for months now, and had almost lost any hope of her still being alive.

Without wasting any time, he grabbed his coat and headed straight to the basement rooms underneath the office. There was nothing peculiar about the place. Rooms were in perfect order, and as he neared the end of the corridor, he seriously began questioning the content of the note. He opened the last door, but nothing… Another dead end.

Dejected, he made his way to the stairs that took him back up. Something under his foot felt suddenly funny though, and as he inspected the floor he found a secret trapdoor. Opening it, he found a dark flight of stairs.

He gathered enough courage to go down, and amidst the stenches, which blended together to form a perfectly unwithstandable aroma of urine, stagnant water and God knows what else, he started to make out a few grey outlines.

Suddenly, he bumped into something soft, almost human like, he guessed. Imagination was carrying him away, though, as it was only some padding which had found its way down to the ‘cellar’. He would rather called ‘Dungeon’.

A person started sobbing just then. It was obviously Davina, unmistakably her. Mamo rushed to her side and unchained her from the cold wall. She was completely nude. The only act of mercy Mamo could do just then was to give her his coat.

And within minutes they were out.

Mamo approached Conz’s office with caution. Allowing for Davina to pass by unnoticed, he peered through Conz’s door. He was inside, asleep and lost in his dreams. Mamo shook him by the shoulder, and Conz woke up startled. That was probably the worst move Mamo had done in all those months at Kecskemet.

“What are you doing here?” Conz inquired angrily.
“Mr. Conz, I am sorry to inform you that I have come to a decision to leave KTE and head back to Malta to spend some time with my family.”
“You cannot,” Conz assured him. “You’re too good to leave Davina behind you. And let me assure you that if you do, she’ll be very disappointed. She cannot stop talking about you. The more she does, the more pleasure I get from torturing her. Thrust me, you should listen to her squealing when I give her the electric shocks.”

Mamo really wanted to land a hook on Conz’s face, but he wasn’t about to loose the battle when he was a few steps away from victory.

“No, Mr. Conz, I’ve realized this is her way of life, and yours, and everybody else’s. but not mine, so I’m leaving the club, and everything and everyone else behind.”

Conz was sure Mamo would be reconsidering, so he merely waved his hand to dismiss the Manager. Ex-Manager, now.

As Mamo was about to step out of the building, Conz was already on his way down to the cellar. Finding it empty, a rush of anger took Conz over, and with one unnaturally speedy sprint, Conz ran towards the door. He took out his pistol and aimed at Mamo.

Hearing the gun being cocked, Mamo felt a cold breeze passing against his forehead. ‘It’s over’, he kept telling himself.

“Mamo, I’m very disappointed with you. And I’m sorry this shythole of Kescemet is the last thing you’ll be seeing in your life. Goodbye.”

Just then, fire broke out, but Mamo was surprised that he didn’t feel anything pierce his body. Was Conz so bad at aiming? He turned around… Just to see Conz on the ground in a pool of blood.

Jim Caffiero came out of the door from behind the lifeless body of Conz, saying, “Sut up, ol’ buddy. Couldn’t leave you alone in a time like this. You know what, Davina’s back in Malta. The players are all flying to all corners of Europe to play for new clubs. Conz is dead…”
“Yeah…” Mamo said with a hint of doubt in his tone.
“Whee, geez guy. We’re alone here. It’ll be hours before anyone notices anything wrong. We should head back in for some intimate time together…”

JUST THEN IT CROSSED MAMO’S MIND… JIM CAFFIERO REALLY WAS GAY!

Mamo started to run as fast as he could. Jim called out, “Just joking, bstard! Listen up. You have no job. I am an agent. Any chances I might represent you?”
“Well, I need a break right now. Maybe in a few years’ time I’ll get back down to it…”
“Right up, cos I know this guy, one Fidel, who badly needs a Manager to start working in 2008. Thought you might be interested…”
“I’ll talk to him. What’s the job, anyway?”
“Oh it’s a National Team.”

Fidel… National Team… Jim Caffiero… from Havana…

“Deal. I’m in it!”

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THE END.

(Or rather, that was the introduction to how I got the Cuba job)