The Watcher

Calvin & Terry "The debt collectors"

Calvin worked for a man known as the local loan shark, his boss, Terry, would loan money to those in desperate need at extortionate repayments terms that he knew they couldn't afford. Basically, what Terry did was to keep the person in debt to him so they'd keep borrowing and keep paying, anyone who missed a payment got a warning and then it would escalate from there depending on how much they owed and how long they'd gone without a payment. One of the solutions that Terry was known to offer to young women was to "work it off" which meant he turned them out for sex working and got to keep most of their earnings to pay off the debt. Terry was a nasty piece of work, and he looked like one too, his square face was hard and unmovable with a white scar that curved down his cheek to the tip of his mouth. He lifted weights and took steroids so he was huge, his short, squat body pumped up as far as it could go without bursting. Calvin wasn't a particularly small man; he was taller than Terry for starters, but his broad shoulders and narrow waist made him a smaller build. Calvin could handle himself; he'd had many a scrap and was known for it around the estate which is what had bought him to Terry's attention. Calvin's mum, unbeknownst to him, had borrowed off Terry to help with Christmas and before she knew where she was the interest had mounted up higher than the original debt. One week she hadn't been able to make the minimum payment and Terry had responded by coming round, smashing the front door through and then taking a baseball bat to his mum's favourite ornaments. He'd come home to find her bawling her eyes out, crouched down on the floor picking up the pieces with shaking hands, she'd cut herself on one of the sharp edges and blood was dripping on the carpet. He'd had that familiar feeling of rage building up inside him, burning a path to his brain where it would cloud all rational thought until he'd lashed out at something or someone. His mum had begged him not to get involved and warned him that he'd get hurt but Calvin wouldn't listen, he'd pushed her away and stormed out of the flat. Terry's flat was in the next block and Calvin had raced in and called the lift; his hand was shaking with adrenaline as he pushed the button for the top floor. When the lift doors opened the first thing, he noticed was that two huge guys were stood at the end outside Terry's door, you didn't upset as many people as him without being aware there might be repercussions one day. Calvin clenched his fists and marched over, he took care of the first bloke swiftly with a kick to the nuts and then a stamp to the back of his head, the second one took a little longer and Calvin took a punch to his ribs at one point but he soon joined his mate on the floor. Calvin didn't bother with the niceties of knocking at Terry's flat, lifting his leg he booted the door in and then stormed through shouting for Terry as he went. Terry was sat on the sofa in his dressing gown, he looked up as Calvin slammed open the living room door and to Calvin's surprise, he smiled at him. Calvin wished he hadn't, on most people a smile brightened their face and made them more approachable but on Terry it looked more like a leer. When Terry smiled, small children ran screaming to their parents, it was the look of nightmares. "Cal, I was expecting you." Terry offered him a toke on the joint he had in ashtray, but Calvin shook his head "I don't want none of your gear I want to know what the fuck you're playing at terrorising my mum like that." Terry shrugged "she owes me Cal; I can't just ignore that can I? Look sit down, I've got an idea how we can resolve this without any more bloodshed or damage to property." Calvin narrowed his eyes "I'd rather stand if you don't mind" more a statement than a question and Terry's expression said that he'd got that. "Fine. Makes no odds to me. As I was saying I've got a proposition, you come work for me, and I'll write your mum's debt off. More than that I'll pay you, can't say fairer than that son, your mum's out of bother and you'll be earning. I pay a percentage of money collected, so it's in your interests to make sure the customer coughs up when we go round." Calvin's first impulse was to refuse and not only verbally but hand out the beating he'd come round to give out, but a more rational voice spoke in his head. The voice told him that the beating would be short term satisfaction, but this way would mean a longer-term opportunity for revenge and his mum not being harassed in the meantime. Cal glanced at the front door, one of the thugs from outside was coming round and could be heard groaning loudly, Terry jerked his chin in that direction "I need to replace them as well, who'd have thought a bloke your size could take that pair of lumps down so easily." Cal shrugged "alright you're on but I do have some conditions." Terry looked amused "go on?"