Vengeance is Mine Inc.
Vengeance is Mine, Inc is a short story by British author Roald Dahl. It was first published in the 1980 collection More Tales of the Unexpected. Synopsis Two young men (the narrator Claude and his friend George) are lamenting their poverty and discussing the morning newspaper. In it, a society columnist named Lionel Pantaloon gossips about prominent citizens. The narrator gets a brilliant idea. He reckons the people Pantaloon insults would like to punch him in the nose, but they're unable to because of their standing and position. He proposes he and George start a business named Vengeance is Mine, Inc., performing such acts of vengeance for a price. Their list of services includes a black eye, a punch in the nose, getting tossed naked into Fifth Avenue and putting a rattlesnake (venom extracted) in their car. They have cards printed explaining their business. They deliver these to the offended parties, and within two days they have several customers. They dream about the riches they'll be paid and life in grand hotels. The narrator has another brainstorm and realizes they can get paid multiple times for the same act. Each customer will think the vengeance was for them alone. Noting