The black figure stepped out of the car. Nathan Marans Jr by birth, he was more infamously known as The Problem. He was a big man. Pressed black shirt, a flimsy tie hung around his neck, loosened. Faded jeans and white loafers, all of it topped off with a 50s era beret, jet black as his shirt and expression. Chiseled goatee and a chromed pair of shades were the only defining features of his face visible under the beret. The Problem was a bear of a man.
He'd started of as a thug, muscle for hire. Then the extortion industry greeted him. If you need to get something from someone, somehow, The problem was the way to go. Nothing was too much to handle. No one knows where or how he does his work, but The Problem always gets you your money's worth.
The Problem went around the back of the car and popped open the boot. He took out a baton, wooden about 3 feet long. Solid and stordy there was a tapered rubbery grip at one end. On the tip of he baton was a yellow smiley face, the signature. On one side of the baton the word "solution" was starched into the wood. gripping the baton firmly, The problem made his way into the store.
Randall owed some people a hefty sum of money. He knew that. He'd been avoiding the sharks for a month now but its all over. Last week there was a big yellow smiley face spray painted on his car. That was the sign. That was the end. He had a problem.
Bang! the lock to the office door gave way. The door mildly swang open inwards. There was a moment of silence. Randall was cowering behind the oaken desk that crowned the small office. Then he came in.
There was need for any words to be exchanged. Both men knew exactly why there were in the current situation. If you don't pay up they said you'll have a Problem.. and The Problem always has a Solution.
The ensuing minutes in the room were long and painful. Bones were crushed. Safes were broken and money was exchanged. The problem and his solution had once again found a way for the money.
The last thing Randall saw before he blacked out that day was a morbid smiley face on a solid wood baton.
