Edgar's perspective
In a special place in my heart, I know I hate the job I do, being the one they call to terrorize the greedy, selfish and many times the poor. However, any time I am on my jet black suit, my straight black tie as sharp as a two edge sword, and my shiny black monk straps shoes, with heels of hard metal, I swallow my weak emotions because it is the Merciless Monday.
Stepping out of my one bedroom apartment in this God forsaken blocks of flats has always been one of my favourite things about the day, the murmurs and mumbles of my lazy neighbours waking up as my shoes goes "Clop! Clop! Clop!" Hastily down the stairs always starts the interesting day, to God whom created cash in abundance, it never gets old.
My first stop is the coffee shop, where I have earned a little bit of respect for myself, well… that was just last week, I took down three spoilt brats oweing Mrs. Stephanie £900 for three months, common boys! She only sells coffee, not cocaine! So, I screwed their asses so badly they ended up paying £984.65, and yes I did get the extra £84.65.
And it looks like they are back again, and this time they brought more fella's to play with, I can see five of them, and one of them is Crazy Joe–The boulder, he is as big as three men combine, I can take him though—with my gun that is, but so unfortunate for them I don't intend to look bad while I collect my dough from my subjects so I'm gonna have to skip coffee this morning. Shit!
As I turned to take another route to work, I found my face in front of Maxwell-the monster's chest, men! I could smell a bit of trouble around me , he is almost 7 feet tall with arms and chest as buffed as an inflated monster truck's tyre, his dark skin, bald head, untrimmed beards, and tattoos speaks authority, he is the leader of the Earth and Blood gang, he was of a fact a monster. I wonder what business he has with me this beautiful morning, I took two steps back and squeezed my face to look as tough as I can be, then I raised it up to look at his,
"Good morning Mr. Maxwell, why don't you look so well?" I asked.
Immediately I asked, I noticed the five men at the coffee shop were majestically approaching, Shit! its gonna be a long day.
I already knew it was gonna go south so I started planning my escape route, just then, I saw a pregnant lady slowly alighting from a taxi, it was at Maxwell-the Monster's back few metres away by the other side of the street.
"Well, I don't look well, because you offended three of my lads the day you collected £984.65 to pay Mrs. Stephanie…" he moved a bit closer to me wiping his face with a face towel.
"just pay back triple of what you took from them and I'll have you meet up with that taxi behind me." Maxwell replied, stretching forth his enormous hand. I could already imagine destroying him in my mind but then again, I am outnumbered, if I try anything stupid now, the cost I'll bear will not worth it, while I imagined, the five already engulfed me, making it more difficult to even speak, true that I love causing a scene, but not a scene where I am the oppressed. So I dug my hand into my pocket to reach my Redmi note 14 pro worth about £300.00 then I handed it over to him, then I took off my 50 carat wrist watch ⌚ worth about £1,500 and I handed it over to him, one interesting fact is they were not aware of whom they were messing with, Maxwell knew for certain that what I gave to him wasn't triple like he asked for, but he knows better than to questions or argue with me. As he walked past me, he said "I don't take valuables, so come by my place to retrieve your things with the cash by 19 o'clock."
Oh! Sure, I'll come in a way you bastards will never expect, wait a minute, 19 o'clock?that's 7pm, Maxwell doesn't stay till 7pm… I see what's up now, these five bastards don't know they are actually screwed when I come back for my stuffs. They'll never know what hit them.
With my day already wrecked by those five scallywags, I decided to turn the anger into my motivation to work. I landed at the office: Hell Born lands and properties, picked up my medium size journal containing the list of debtor and their figures in debts. My black and red Bic pens, I picked another wrist watch from my drawer… obviously, time must be noted after each payment, and my little wallet. Before I left the room I looked around me and I realised that I was forgetting something, yes! It was my soul silencers, the wrathful Glock 19 pistols they have both been faithful side kicks, as usual, they are always by my sides, slotted them inside holster beside my torso.
I walked down the stairs with a little bit of haste, I could sense a little tension around the guys minds as they did their jobs they wanted to be occupied so I don't get to pick them, some were truly busy, while some tried to be, but it was known to me, for that matter, I do not care who is on a hot seat or not, I just pick the most reliable around and I move without hesitation.
"Dark son... Boundage... Daniels... Lensky... you four are with me today, let's move".
"Okay boss!!!" They chorus.
We met outside, then I gave the boys their role
"Lensky, you get the wheels, pull up your Lincoln SUV. Dark son you own the streets, most of those bartenders and store owners use the emo blackmail, you don't fall for that as I remember, so round my money up. Boundage, I gat an assignment for you, meet with five of your best amigos we gat a party to crash by 7pm tonight, I'll send you the location. Daniels, you and me take down those selfish and fake tycoons. We're good?"
"YES BOSS, YES COLLECTOR." They replied.
"Dark Son! Come take some pictures of the debtors list we must collect by the end of today" I called towards Dark Son. Of all of the guys, Dark son is the most ruthless and the most reliable, I wonder what built him to this extent, what his dark past may be about or where he got such a name. Well, Only he can tell.
My boys and myself raid the town of Portsmouth as usual, from little store owners, to local bars, to restaurants, to car washes, to motels, to hotels of multiple stars, hospitals, pharmacies, gas stations, all in the name of debts and protection money. The only places safe from us are schools whether private or public, religious houses, The Winchester Royal hotels and the governmental organisations.
It wasn't very easy collecting money which you didn't give yourself but, the bursting down of doors, the insults, the punches, the kicks, the beating, the confiscation of valuables, seems satisfying. Life of a mafia is born with pain, pleasurable pain, and painful pleasure.
We arrived at the Wellington's library by 2pm after lunch, Wellington is actually a good friend to my boss Bruce, but if I know any better, money is a best friend to Bruce and not man— his money is his soul.
I turned the knob and pushed open the large entrance door, the receptionist noticed us instantly, I guess she knows our dealings, so she suspended the attention payed to an elderly woman of a customer and concentrated on us, immediately, the atmosphere entered a gloomy one.
"Mr Edgar, good afternoon to you, I… I trust you are well today?" she said almost cheerful but timid.
"No, I'm not, its Monday for God sake, where is your boss?" I asked.
"He... he isn't in the vicinity cu...currently, but I'm sure he'll be back before sun set" she continued.
Damn! I could feel the lie in every of her words, I looked her deep in the eyes for three seconds, then I glanced at my wrist watch, then I said:
"He has an appointment with me by 2pm, why has he choosen to disappoint me? Daniels, go to through the door at the back of the counter and fetch me Mr. Wellington."
Daniels turns his neck left then right, approaches the door, while being resisted by the receptionist whom was screaming No! No! No! Like her nudes were just through the door, Daniels carefully flung her to a huge sofa by the side, she land with her back.
"Sssshhhh! This is the library, no noise allowed" I teased her with a smirk on my face.
Daniels brings Mr. Wellington to me, carefully and unharmed, his face was looking really down, no egos today, he looked like a humble sheep lead by a shepherd. Instantly, I knew there was no money on ground.
"I'm very sorry Francine lied to you, she is just trying to protect her father, Mr. Edgar... it's no news to you that your boss and I are friends right? So please I know I promised today, but unfortunately my plan didn't go so well, so I promise I'll pay up by this week Friday, please." Mr. Wellington explained.
Woo! No wonder she was screaming so bad, she is Francine Wellington, daughter of Mr. Wellington.
"You know, I'm not a fan of too many words or explanation, you owe my boss £135,000 no interest added for that matter, plus he gave you seven months to pay back, now this is the ninth month, if your daughter was pregnant the day you were loaned, she would have birthed a baby debtor by now!… Bruce has no friends, according to him: money is his one true friend, not man. Daniels seize whatever you find valuable around here." I ordered.
Daniels looked at the whole library and said
"Collector, it's all books around here, nothing truly worth up to £1,000 in singular, except we load all of them into three or four vans."
"Fuck! Well, it's the hard way then, drive all the customers out, then give him some corrections. No hard feelings Francine, we just want daddy to take us a little seriously." I said in a gentle tone. She tried to stop Daniels, but I restrained her with my arm around her tummy, suspending her a bit in the air, though she struggled.
The customers rushed to the door the moment Daniels shot the roof with his pistol, he grabbed Mr. Wellington and fixed seven punches in his guts, five on his face, and then he threw him down to the ground, stamped his face with his feet, Mr. Wellington was coughing and wheezing, blood was all over his face and some stained his Italian grey suit.
Francine had cried her eyes to nought, she was a beautiful damsel to be honest, but I guess she knows nothing about the mafia world.
Men! Did I just screwed a 52 years old man all in the name of money? Or should I say loyalty to my job, or is this just my loyalty to Bruce? Or is it just my painful pleasure?
"You have untill Friday to pay up, failure to comply will result into the total loss of this freaking library of an investment, we'll be back, and next with our lawyer and the contract. Shit!" I said these as I walked towards the door. Francine was on the floor close to her father, adjusting him while she tries to call an ambulance, common girl! A few bandage here and bandage there he'll be fine. To be real Daniels was even easy on the old man.
By 6:50pm, Boundage and his five were already waiting for us at the local car park, as soon as we arrived we zoomed down to the Earth and Blood base, inside Crazy Joe's compound, south east of the city, the guys were preparing themselves in Boundage's van with guns, knives, bullets, compressors, silencers and some more guns, the funny fact is I have no plan B, if things go south like, let's say the cops come, or maybe they are about 20 guys waiting for us 10, all I know how to do is to predict people's move and act accordingly, if you change your mind, it's none of my business, I'll still make sure I get through to you.
The arena was already in motion, we parked in front of the house opposite the place, the van's boot was directly facing the compound of Crazy Joe's house. As I predicted Maxwell-the Monster was unavailable but the guys were still looking able, Crazy Joe was watching out, but the three fools who started this whole beef were smoking weed with the 12 others, 16 against 10, the numbers are cool with me. I told my guys to show no mercy, they'll wait in the van while I go collect my stuffs with the cheque of £2,953.65. If the guys are people we could take down without casualties, then we strike, but if not... well, we'll still strike, but with extra back up.
"Hey!!! Bull heads! I'm here for my stuffs, it's 7pm isn't it?" I alarmed them.
Crazy Joe and his guys stood straight,
"The cash!!!" Crazy Joe asked, as I walked closer, I noticed a gun by the side of Crazy Joe, it was held by another hench men, these people were in for some drama.
I threw my wallet to the ground,
"It's in there." I replied.
One young lad of whom I'm sure is a rookie, came to our midst and picked the wallet, he opened it and saw a cheque of £2,953.65, "confirmed!" The lad said.
Then they brought my stuffs in a bag, they handed it to me, I looked around if they were any innocents, fortunately for me they weren't. I turned around to take my leave, I walked slowly towards the van, and the moment I entered the van passenger's seat beside the driver's, both back doors opened, it was fucking Christmas day, only this time it rained lead from a van instead of snow, my Gee's shot down those bull heads that only five escaped, Crazy Joe inclusive... well that's if he survives a bullet to his back, his left shoulder, and his right lap, men! Crazy Joe was fat, that's why he couldn't run much. I alighted the van once again, pull out a pistol from my hostler, went in to pick my wallet from the lad's corpse, as I crocheted low, I got a call from Bruce, Bruce? My boss? He rarely calls, for one fact, he is the best at emails and text messages, and all of his messages are the ones you certainly cannot reply.
"Hello boss."
"Hello Edgar, I trust you are fine? Come over to Winchester Royal hotel, I need to see you concerning a troubling issue, please make sure you're there clean, without blood on your suit, or fist." The call ends.
The three words which rang on my mind were troubling, issue, bloody suits or fist. Am I screwed?