Chapter 1
Blood- then pain, shooting up his arm as it connected with bone. The sound rang hollow as his body crashed to the ground. All he saw was the boys’ expression. Not shocked, nor scared; simply hurt that it happened. Wide eyes meeting his own and asking why. It made him furious. The noise around them returned with a fury as the school yard filled with excited shouts, begging for violence. And he complied. The pain turned numb and the scars on his knuckles healed horribly, forever reminding him of that day.
Nine years later and Calum Thorn still resolved most of his issues with a hard-headed beating. There wasn’t a drunk fool or short tempered teenager that he wouldn’t beat to a pulp if they pissed him off, and there were many of them. And it was only in those moments he felt his mind go still. He could get drunk or high, but nothing trumped the feeling of rising rage that made the world shut up. Over the years he managed to reel himself in- perhaps beating puberty helped- but the noise inside his head continued to torment him.
Calum tapped his fingers against the steering wheel as he stared into the mirror. He watched silently as one of his friends; Asif, exchanged product with one of their clients. He took his sweet time, but the younger man had always been the talkative type.
“Come on, dickhead…” he murmured beneath his breath and checked the time. Only about forty minutes till pickup. The girls would be pissed if he was late again.
Calum took a quick look in the side mirror, checking to see if he was presentable. They were going to a club after all. His dirty blonde hair was slicked back, newly cut on the sides. The fade looked good. Still no luck growing a beard though, but at least his face had hardened as he passed into his twenties. No more baby face, he thought. Though some of his friends would disagree.
Asif abruptly got into the passenger side and tossed him a stack of cash, quickly checking to see if they were being watched. Calum wasted no time and shifted gear, heading seamlessly into traffic.
“That boy has too much on his mind I swear, he’s high every time I see him,” Asif complained, though he was grinning.
“And you got no backbone, just get the money and go next time. I told you I had another appointment to get to,” Calum replied as he stuffed the cash into his chest pocket.
“Man chill. Your whores can wait for fucks sake, this was a big load off. Our stash is almost gone, gone man, which means next time we’ll get double. Think you can sell it?” he smiled again, showing off his perfect white teeth.
“Don’t call them whores,” Calum simply replied.
“It’s what they are!”
“Yeah, well. It’s sex workers to you.” Asif laughed.
“You’re being nice cause they pay you. Man, wish I was a pimp, life would be a breeze. Think you can hook me up?” Calum rolled his eyes as he switched lanes, heading unto the highway.
“I told you I’m not a pimp. I’m just security. You got no idea how many creeps and weirdos are out there, willing to gut someone over twenty bucks. Besides,” he cleared his throat, “Someone’s got to drive them home.” He sounded soft and he knew it. It was his true feelings but saying it out loud felt somehow cowardly. Asif clocked it and slowly started laughing. Wisely though, he changed the subject.
“I’ll pull up with the twins later and see how you’re doing. Could be fun, seeing you at work,” he teased. Calum managed a smile.
He picked up three very well dressed girls later that night, noticing one missing.
“Where’s Chanell? She sick or something?” the woman next to him, Dee, leaned in and gave him the briefest of pecks on the cheek.
“Nah, she got a customer. Said it was too good money to say no,” she sighed and brushed strands of platina hair off her shoulder.
“Leaving us behind on girl’s night!” shouted Cicily from the back as she tapped away on her phone. “Speaking of; you going to join us today Thorn, or just stare at across the room like a stalker?” she asked playfully.
“It’s what you pay me for,” Calum shrugged, but returned her smile. “I might buy a round of shots if you treat me nicely,” he winked in the mirror at her.
“With our money?” asked Liz drily, slamming the back door shut as she got in. Cicily shot her a glance but said nothing.
“You got that right,” replied Calum, driving off as soon as they were all seated.
They arrived at The Lux, one of the finest clubs in the city. The night life was already taking off. It filled the streets lights and music, coming to life as the seconds passed by. Calum walked just a few paces behind the girls, blinded by their glittery dresses and jeweler. He wondered briefly, as he had so many times before, how they could walk in those heals. Dee reached out and grabbed his hand as he was falling behind, holding him close as they entered the facilities. The girls had booked a table and could skip the line easily. Calum nodded briefly to the security outside.
Many times his friends had asked him if he did this job because he enjoyed the company of the women. And while he did like it, it wasn’t for the reasons his friends assumed. The girls treated him like an equal- weirdly enough, he couldn’t feel that way with most men. They were always sizing him up, looking for a fight, money or a favor. These women relaxed around him. Put their guard down. Talked with him without expecting anything. Well, besides him doing his job of course, he was technically their employee after all. But still- Calum had always felt a kinship with women. Easily trusted. Maybe that made him stupid, and he would never say it out loud, but at least his mind could relax for a night.
On girl’s night he was more the designated driver than security. Calum only ever had to use force when it came to their unruly clients. But he stuck around unless he had other work, to get rid of pushy assholes or intervene if anyone got overly intoxicated and needed to be carried to the car. But he felt tired that night. Little sleep lately, and his ribs still ached from an altercation he had obviously lost last week. I’m getting too old for this, he thought grimly. And I’m not even twenty five. Calum stared into his beer by the bar counter, trying to ignore the glaring blue lights from the floor. He felt much older than he was, and it wasn’t just from aching bones. Since he never finished high school he had been working since he was sixteen. Odd jobs, some even legal, but mostly driving and drugs. He was so damn tired of it all. But he had no real aspirations or clear end in sight. One day I’ll be shot cause I fucked with the wrong guy and that will be it. I’d say short and sweet, but there’s nothing sweet about it. Yawning, he surveyed the room and glanced quickly at the girls’ booth. The club was filling up and the VIP area was stacked. Deep house music was reverberating through the speakers, making him tap his feet. Calum had a feeling it would be a long night.
Asif and ‘the twins’ shower up later; their real names being Gale and Jim. Identical, but far from the same. The four of them went to school together and Calum never quite shook them off. They were all trash as far as Calum was concerned, including himself. Contributing nothing but drugs to society. He shook his head. Brain rot is setting in too soon, he thought.
“You good man? Need a hit? You look fucking sick,” Asif complained as he ordered shots for them. Calum greeted the twins with a fist bump and took the shot without replying.
“Thanks. You thought about switching profession? Your outfit screams ‘5 bucks a blowie’,” Calum replied drily, referring to Asif’s buttoned down purple satin shirt and fake cold chain. Jim barked a laugh and Asif pretended to box him in the face.
“At least I don’t look like a bad undercover spook,” he retorted, glancing up and down Calum’s cheap suit.
“Alright I’m not breaking up another fight, you two can get a room this time. Seriously,” Gale patted Calum’s chest and inserted himself on the bar stool between them. “When are you done here by the way? We need someone to drive the last ‘shipment’,” he asked, lowering his voice. Calum sighed. Being the only one with a car was a real pain.
“Can it wait till tomorrow? I really need to sleep,” he complained, but Gale’s blank expression told him everything he needed to know. “I don’t know. Let me ask the girls, and maybe I can run off for an hour or two,” he shrugged and finished off his beer.
As he turned to head into the VIP, he saw a man by the girl’s booth, leaning against the table. He didn’t seem to be particularly aggressive, so Calum took it easy as he approached, trying to make eye contact with one of the women. As he came closer he noticed how tall the man was. He seemed older, thirty something; and huge. If he wanted trouble, there would be little Calum could do about it.
“Hey Dee,” he shouted over the music. Dee turned her head to look at him and waved; smiling. “I’m heading out for an hour; will you guys stay here?” Calum ignored the man and faced the three girls drinking champagne. Dee’s smile widened as she played with her jewelry.
“Why yes, we just made a new friend,” she purred, making Cicily laugh. Calum looked up at the older man now facing him.
He expected someone annoyed for interrupting his talk with the girls. Instead, the man carried a curious expression and smiled as their eyes met. Calum felt like he had to crane his neck to look at him. Jesus, he must be 6,5, at least. Deep brown eyes, strangely kind, looked him up and down. He had dimples.
“How you doing man,” Calum said nodding, only politely registering the stranger’s presence.
“Good, thanks,” the man put his hands in his pockets, “I was inviting the girls over to our table for a drink, but I wouldn’t mind if you came along.” He replied, arching an eyebrow.
Calum stared; a bit taken aback. He felt the women’s eyes on him. Frowning, he curled his fists. Is he mocking me? But there was no sign of sarcasm in the man’s deep voice. In fact he looked awfully genuine. As the silence dragged on for a few seconds too long, the stranger chuckled and leaned a little closer.
“Tell you what, come find me if you change your mind,” then he winked, nodded at the women and nonchalantly walked back to his table. Calum strangled a blush coming on and turned stiffly to his now audience.
“…what the fuck was that?” he asked, mostly to himself. The girls started laughing as if on cue.
“Gosh, he was offering you drink Thorn!” Cicily cooed, her giggles making her red curly hair bounce around her petite head. “Well? How does it feel?”
“Well now I’m jealous. That man is the definition of tall dark and handsome,” sighed Dee. “It was obvious he was asking us for the rest of his group,” she refreshed her lipstick and proceeded to check out the stranger’s table.
“Best ones are always gay,” stated Liz and finished off her champagne. “What do you say girls? Should we check out the new potential clients?”
“Always work with you. I wanna have some fun,” Cicily smacked her tongue.
“I don’t fuck for free,” replied Liz, and it seemed to make Cicily pause. Calum felt his mouth go dry.
“I’m not a fag,” he blurted out. The girls eyed him without much of a reaction.
“We’re just messing with you,” said Dee, but Calum didn’t like the way she rolled her eyes.
“I’ll be gone an hour or so. Call me if anyone gets fucking roofied or something,” he turned and walked off before they could reply.
Nearly two hours later Calum returned. After checking in on his friends and seeing they were positively wasted and witnessing Cicily dance on the tables in the VIP, he took a line to stay awake before he headed out to the smoking area. He lit a cigarette and hoped it would take the edge off. It didn’t.
“Hey,” Calum arched an eyebrow as he glanced over at the stranger from before, leaning against the brick wall of the building. A few people passed them, heading inside and breaking the silence of the night air. They were alone besides a couple making out on a bench in the corner. “Wondered where you headed off to. Your ‘friends’ joined my associates at our table. Or maybe you’re… colleagues?” he asked carefully, as if trying not to offend. He clearly knew what the girl’s profession were, then.
“I’m their driver,” Calum replied flatly. The stranger nodded thoughtfully as he lit another cigarette.
“Damn, got my hopes up,” he said with a grin.
“If you’re trying to offend me you’re doing a good fucking job,” Calum spat, feeling annoyance turn to anger.
“Sorry, sorry. Bad joke,” the man waived his hand and took a couple steps closer. “I’m Noel.” He reached out a hand, but Calum didn’t take it. Though there was something soothing about the man’s voice that made him slightly less agitated.
“Calum. And I’m not interested.” He shut it down, feeling strangely nervous as he did so. But Noel just laughed heartily.
“Relax, I’m not trying to sell you drugs,” he leaned slightly closer, observing Calum’s eyes. “Though something tells me you don’t need it.” Calum smelled his cologne through the cigarette smoke.
The man’s demeanor caught him off guard. He didn’t have the personality or aura of a criminal, but the men he sat with was obviously no joke. Calum had only observed them slightly, and they were way above his pay grade, but he recognized a few of them. He might be actually dangerous. Let’s not piss him off.
“What do you want?” he asked, as nicely as he could. Noel shrugged and blew smoke from his lips. He had nicely trimmed stubble, Calum noticed.
“I just thought you looked pretty. That’s it,” he replied, stunning Calum yet again. His reply got stuck his throat.
Pretty? Fucking pretty? I’m a man for fucks sake, he felt his heart race, and it wasn’t just the cocaine. Noel looked amused by his reaction. The light from the building danced curiously in his brown eyes. He ran a hand through his thick black hair and dropped the cigarette to the ground.
“You got the same face as when I invited you to my table. Is this the first time someone hits on you or something?” he chuckled, and Calum took a deep breath.
“As I said- not interested,” he replied through gritted teeth. He was more annoyed with himself for not reacting the way he should. Noel shrugged again.
“Okey, Calum. Maybe I’ll see you around.”
See you around, dickhead, Calum thought as he watched the man go. He lit another cigarette and felt a tension he didn’t know existed leave his body.
