Chapter 3 Victor's Henchman

The bald man and his goons gained ground on Alexander and the rest before they knew it. He pointed at them and yelled angrily, "You two oldies! When are you going to grow up? You are old, but you still don't use your brains. Why do I have to come here to demand the money before you will pay? Do I look like a joke to you?"

Seeing this, Rory quickly bypassed Alexander and walked towards the man named Richard Smith. He took out a pack of cigarettes and handed it to him with a smile.

"Please don't be angry. It was never their intention to make you come here. I actually just paid them. They were planning on handing it over after lunch, but you came early. What a coincidence!"

Surprisingly, Richard-a chronic smoker-didn't look at the pack of cigarettes. He just slapped it away from Rory's hand.

"You fat man, have you become delusional just because I've shown you some respect before? Do you really now see yourself as a big shot? This is not about you! Get out of my sight! If you piss me off, I'll get my boys to fuck this entire construction site up!" Richard cursed, his saliva splashing on Rory's face.

The smile on Rory's face froze when he saw that Richard was big mad.

Alexander's face darkened and he said, "Mr. Williams, don't worry about us. We'll be fine. You shouldn't get into trouble because of us."

Rory looked back at him. After several beats, he sighed and left helplessly.

Hearing what Alexander said, Richard pushed down his sunglasses and gave him a good stare-down with his eyes squinted.

He smiled and said, "Oh, it's really you, Alexander. I'm Richard Smith. Remember me? The man who lived next door when you were a child!"

"Cut the bullshit! Your face and voice makes me sick!" Alexander snarled with his face contorted.

Richard's face darkened all of a sudden. "Do you think I am here to play? You must think you are something, huh? So arrogant just because you spent a short time in jail!"

As soon as he said those words, his men let out loud peals of laughter. They pointed at Alexander as if he were a clown.

Richard swaggered up to him. Flashing his yellow teeth, he sneered, "I admire your guts, young man. If I were you, I'd be so ashamed to show face here. It's nice that you showed up anyway. Since your parents are already working here, you can start picking up trash on the streets. That way, you would be able to pay off the debt in like ten years. Not bad, right?"

Santino had put up with a lot of humiliation from Richard and his men. He never said a word or fought back when they ganged against him.

But now that they were insulting his son, he couldn't take it at all.

"Fuck you, Richard! You are such an ungrateful bastard. I was nothing but nice to you when I was still living comfortably. I have lost count of how many times I got you out of trouble. But how do you repay me? You became the Johnson family's henchman and have continued to make up lies to torment me. Now, you want to move to my son? Look at yourself. You have turned yourself into just for a few coins. You are worse than a pet dog that can at least wag its tail."

Surprisingly, Richard didn't take offense in that. He just chuckled and said, "Santino, how can you blame me? The one to blame is right under your nose. All this wouldn't have happened if not for this criminal!"

Richard reverted his gaze to Alexander and pointed at his eyes. "You fool! Why did you step on the Johnsons' toes? Don't you know that one of them is way more powerful than all three of you combined? What made you think that you stand a chance against them?"

Richard was so busy being complacent that he didn't notice the storm that already gathered in Alexander's eyes. If looks could kill, Richard would be dead at this moment.

"Did Victor put you up to this?" Alexander suddenly asked.

"Ha! You think Mr. Johnson gives a shit about a loser like you? No one put me up to this. I just don't like scums like you!"

Alexander nodded at those words. Then, he turned to his father. "Dad, you shouldn't have been so harsh to him. Who said he's worse than a dog? He only wags his tail at his master. Doesn't that make him a loyal dog?"

Richard's face changed and then he laughed. "At least, I'm the henchman of someone rich. What are you? A criminal like you doesn't even stand a chance to work any good job. Anyway, your father is right. He was nice to me before. For that, let's make a deal. If you slap yourself until I'm satisfied, I might just forgive you. That reminds me! Mr. Johnson is currently in need of a toilet cleaner. I can put in a good word for you so he can hire you. You'll be perfect for the job."

Hearing this, Alexander held his belly and cackled.

"He needs a toilet cleaner? Why would he need one when you are already eating up his shit? Tired much?"

This clapback made Richard lose his temper. He raised his hand to slap Alexander. "You motherfucker!"

Seeing this, Santino roared, "Richard! Don't even dare lay your filthy hands on my son! Take the money and get the fuck out of here! If you don't leave, I'll call the cops! Do you and your goons want to go on a vacation in jail?"

At the mention of the police, Richard's hand froze in the air. Fear flashed in his eyes. Although he worked for Victor, he was still nothing but a debt collector. The immunity he had was because he worked for the Johnsons. If he got arrested, there was no way they would bail him.

"Okay, hand it over. I'll circle back to that insult later."

As he spoke, Richard shoved Alexander aside and walked to Santino. He snatched away the envelope and opened it.

Richard gave it a quick count. His face darkened immediately. "Are you two old fools trying to trick me? Why is this eight hundred short?"

"No way! We didn't take a single bill from that envelope, so it should be more than the required installment." Nadine panicked instantly.

"This ain't enough!" Richard waved the stack of dollar bills as if it was really nothing and said fiercely, "We collect debts according to the number of debtors. Since this criminal has been released from prison, he has to contribute to offset the debt faster! Listen here. If your son doesn't chip in something, none of you will leave this place even if you call the cops."

With that, Richard gave Nadine a hard push.

Nadine staggered back. If not for Alexander who caught her, she would have crashed to the ground.

"Bastard!" Alexander cursed angrily.