Howard was panting hard. Sweat dripped from his forehead and he was going in and out of consciousness. He was kept in a dark room, tied to a chair while Tobias and his partner, Juan, sneered at him in disgust. They had brought Howard back to their base which was located in a shady neighborhood downtown.
Tobias punched Howard on the cheek. They had been taking turns in beating him up for not returning their money.
"You son of a bitch!" Tobias yelled and hit Howard again. Blood was flowing out of his cheek and his eyes had swallowed up, forming a yellow pus. Howard was barely conscious, trying his best to tolerate the abuse.
"I-If you could give me some more time!" he gasped. "Just…"
He trailed off. Juan spat on him.
"Yeh go' a lo' of time!" he claimed. "One month! We gav' yeh one month!"
"It's too little!" Howard protested but Tobias kicked him in the shin, making the old man writhe in pain.
"You're just useless!" Tobias sneered. "You can't even work!"
