Dave Adkins

> *It's not revenge, it's justice.*
>
> Dave Adkins to Nathan Harwick, moments before he fatally shot him, 2018

David "Dave" Francis Adkins (born 1978) is an English contract killer and former member of The Firm. Aged thirteen, he witnessed his father Frank Adkins being fatally shot by Nathan Harwick, inside King William IV and exacted his revenge in 2018, after shooting Harwick at his home in Marbella.

He was the fourth and final landlord of King William IV, which was closed for several years, following the murder of his father. He reopened the public house in 2007 and managed it for ten years. He was a prominent figure within the Whitechapel area of London and was respected as a businessman. Upon travelling to Marbella, for a bacholor party in 2018, he went on a one-man investigation to find Harwick and was later recruited by him to join his gang. He was used as a hitman and took the lives of several targets, before departing the country, after a shootout with the police and the other members of The Firm.

## Life

Adkins was born in Battersea, South West London, the only known child of publican Frank Adkins. When he was born, King William IV was owned by his paternal grandfather Arthur Adkins. It was not until the mid 1980s, that it was passed down to his father. He was educated at Brick Lane School in Bethnal Green. At the age of thirteen, while he hid in King William IV, he watched his father being shot to death, as he stood behind the bar. The impact of the trauma, left him with violent flashbacks, that exceptionally affected his life.

#### The Firm

After discovering that Nathan Harwick lived in Madrid, Adkins suggested to his friend, who was getting married within a few weeks, should have his bachelor party in Marbella, so Adkins could seek Harwick and exact his revenge. He first encounters Harwick, when he is evicting someone from his nightclub Caláda and they formally meet inside Juego casino, where Harwick challenges him to a game of poker. After Adkins gambled one thousand euros, which he loses to Harwick, he is left impoverished and tries to start a fight with Harwick, but is restricted from doing so by the bouncer and police officer Martín Adolfo, who threatened him with apprehension.

Adkins later visits Caláda and questions the bartender Tony Morrison, who is a member of The Firm, on whether he knew Harwick. However, initially he never received an answer, an interrogation soon began. Adkins refused to give up and insisted to meet Harwick and confessed to why he wanted to meet him, claiming it was about the money he lost to him. Although Morrison told him several times that he could not allow him to meet Harwick, he eventually began to feel exasperated and took Adkins to Harwick's office. Adkins revealed to Harwick that he was left broke after their poker match and is offered the chance to earn money, by becoming a contract killer, a proposal which Adkins accepts.

While his plans of revenge against Harwick was in progress, there was only one person who tried to stop him, Martin Adolfo knew the honest reason why he wanted revenge and tried his best to desist him acting on his plans. However, Adkins eventually shoots Adolfo, while in the Juego casino and he spends several weeks in the hospital recovering. A while later, Adkins breaks into Harwick's mansion Boutique Villa and eliminates his bodyguards, before a violent showdown begins. Adkins confesses why he wanted revenge, by telling Harwick that he watched him kill his father, although Harwick tried to deny it. Adkins then held Harwick at gunpoint, before firing it and shoots him in the chest, leading to him falling into the nearby swimming pool. The police and members of The Firm then arrive at the scene and conflict begins. Adkins somehow manages to escape from the shootout and is never seen in Marbella again.