NAME: Francisco Vidal.
AGE: 49.
PLACE OF BIRTH: London, United Kingdom.
AFFILIATION: The Rutherford Family.
OCCUPATION: Lieutenant.
FACE CLAIM: Santiago Cabrera.
AVAILABILITY: TAKEN.
If the Russians thought they would have a monopoly on London’s violence, they were wrong.
Vidal had been doing it a lot fucking longer and a lot fucking better than many of those who’d shown up in his city with their delusions of grandeur in-tow.
Perhaps that bitterness came from an old-school pride that had been with him since Brixton. People like him had fought so fucking hard to get where they were today; a constant war on their doorsteps against the petty drug dealers and gun-wielding gang bangers that had once been intent on driving Lambeth into the ground. That was his fucking borough. The place his family called home, despite the fact once upon a time it had been so unsafe he’d wanted them anywhere else.
It wasn’t until the Rutherfords came along that things really changed.
Before their vice grip on his part of the city came into effect, Vidal and a handful of others had acted as vigilantes; sick and tired of the police’s lack of involvement or desire to keep things under control. The authorities saw places like Brixton as a lost cause. They were poor, mostly minority communities who seemed to have a taste for violence, so it was much more palatable to sweep their problems under the carpet than use actual resources to address them. Vidal took things into his own hands. It’d been a foolish and naïve endeavour to assume that he could really change anything, though. For every gangster he paralysed or drug dealer he forced to taste too much of his own product, there were ten other kids to rise up and take their places.
Vidal didn’t have much going for him—his school life had been a disaster, and he couldn’t hold a real job down to save his fucking life—but a sense of responsibility for the people he cared about came easily. All he wanted was to make the streets a little safer for people like his sisters, because they were ones who could have a decent future.
When the Rutherfords eventually swept into the area, they’d noticed him quickly.
Most people who had any connection to the criminal world had heard about their presence in the richer parts of the city. When Vidal had realised they were looking to make themselves known in Brixton, too, he’d feared the worst. If he thought going up against poorly organised street gangs had been a struggle, trying to face off with a group this influential would be pointless, but luckily for him, he quickly realised that the Rutherfords didn’t intend to come to Lambeth to cause more problems. In fact, their presence meant forcefully expelling or subduing the other gangs all together. It was then he learned that the nature of their work in general wasn’t particularly violent; it was the competition that caused most of the problems.
If the Rutherfords controlled everything, there was nothing to be fought over.
Their initial rise to power in the area had been obscene and bloody, but it was a takeover just swift enough that it could be forgiven. Even though Vidal had been helping them from a distance—taking out key players from the gangs he knew so well—he was never formally offered a position within their organisation until a few years later. Part of him is glad they waited, because it gave him plenty of time to see how much of a difference they made in his area of the city. All he had after that was respect, and much to his surprise, with a reputation that preceded him, they seemed to feel the same way.
Vidal was never anti-violence—he’d used more than enough of it in his younger years to keep the animals of Brixton at bay—but he appreciated that the Rutherfords avoided it where possible, even if only to maintain their reputation. When they did need to keep someone in line, though, they either approached him and his friends or the Walthamstow boys to sort it out. The Rutherfords might not have been known for their aggression, but people realised quickly that when Vidal and the like were sent their way, they weren’t averse to using it to keep their house in order.
When he acted, it was without mercy.
After almost twenty years of working for the Rutherfords, the loyalty he showed them paid off in a more meaningful way. In terms of respect within the family, he had excelled years before, though. Vidal was fiercely loyal to his friends, and always willing to offer a helping hand to the newer recruits. He lived humbly and refused to flaunt his wealth, despite the fact he had amassed a fair fortune over the years. Instead, he made sure those he cared about could live comfortably. There were few people in the Rutherford organisation who knew him who didn’t regard him with appreciation, awe, and a healthy respect. That was why when the main bulk of the family moved back to London from Porto Velho, he was promoted to Lieutenant in an instant.
Even though he’d never had any real ambitions of leadership, he wasn’t one to turn down a nod to his commitment, and as tensions began to rise with the French, Vidal knew a little extra power so far as retaliation in Lambeth went wouldn’t go amiss. Natural charisma and a care for his people meant leading his own crew of men came naturally.
For the first time since his tenure with the British family began, however, he has started to question whether they’ve become too sloppy in their desperation to remain on top. The fact they invited the Russian mob to London is knowledge his new position affords him, and hearing all about how the brutes conducted themselves back in the States makes him wonder whether the peace that he’s finally managed to attain for his corner of the city—and the rest of it, for that matter—might be under threat.
Vidal is loyal to the Rutherfords; perhaps more so now than he’s ever been. But if the Russians bring a breed of bloodshed back to London he’s worked so tirelessly to stamp out, he’s not so sure he can sit back and watch.
The Russians do not have a monopoly on violence in London.
RELATIONSHIP STATUS: Kathleen Zhao (partner)
FAMILY: None playable.
CONNECTIONS:
Johnathan Parsons: Boss. Johnathan’s reputation was always well known amongst those working in London, despite the fact he operated on another continent for most of his time with the family. Vidal never met him before he returned to London, but he’s worked with enough Walthamstow boys to know that the rumours about his work ethic are likely not unfounded. Vidal can appreciate he’s not the only one with a penchant for violence.
Mateo Herrera: Best friend. The two grew up in Brixton together, and Mateo was one of the first people on board with his idea to start cleaning up the streets themselves. Whilst he knows his friend isn’t as convinced by the Rutherford family as he is, Vidal appreciates that he joined them anyway. Mateo was the first person recruited to his squad when he became lieutenant, and there’s nobody he trusts more to have his back.
Melissa Lin: Good friend. Whilst he hasn’t made a solid judgement of Johnathan, he and Melissa hit it off almost immediately. Vidal appreciates her cold and calculated approach to things, and likes how she would rather outsmart their opponents before a need for violent confrontation. It’s not a secret that he’s her favourite lieutenant, and he enjoys the fact that there is a lot he can learn from her.
Delphine St. Clair: Enemy. Vidal is disappointed that the relationship between the French and the Rutherfords broke down in the way it did. That doesn’t mean that he holds out any sentimentality for them, though. Knowing Delphine is the one who has assumed control of Lambeth on their behalf, he will stop at nothing to make sure that she and her men don’t return his borough to the war zone it once was. Though he would prefer diplomacy, if things get so bad it means cutting the head off the snake before they can formulate a solid resistance, then so be it.
