Leveling Up With My Rebate System

Two guards escorted Nathan to the yard.

While they walked, Nathan recalled Catherine’s refusal to give her account number.

She didn’t know he was a millionaire and he didn’t want to reveal the system to her. In her own way she was watching out for him.

An amused smile played on his lips.

Guess I’ll be crashing your stream later.

The gate to the yard opened and the guards shoved Nathan in. He adjusted himself and stood straight.

He found Theo by Moe’s kiosk. Both of them were talking but as he approached, they burst into laughter.

"Theo told me you fell for the password joke," Moe said, chuckling.

Nathan kept a straight expression. "Funny. What’s on the menu?"

Before Moe could respond, footsteps echoed behind Nathan. He turned to find three inmates behind him.

The one in the middle was shorter than Nathan, but had a firm build. His head was shaved, and a scar ran from his eyebrow to his jaw.

The two beside him were leaner, meaner. Tattoos crawled up their necks.

Nathan recognized them. They were the same guys who beat up the other inmate yesterday.

"Hello, fish," the scarred man said. "Come over here, let’s talk."

Nathan met his gaze. "I can hear you just fine from here."

The man shook his head. "Are you scared? I don’t bite."

His grin implied otherwise.

A moment passed. Then Nathan walked up to them.

Behind him, Theo reached out but Moe grabbed his arm and whispered.

"Let’s see how he handles it."

Theo turned to Moe. "Even if the odds are against him?"

Moe nodded. Theo relaxed but kept his eyes on them.

Nathan stood before the man. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Yeah." The man played with his nonexistent beard. "I noticed you haven’t paid your dues."

Nathan raised an eyebrow. "Dues? For what?"

The man smiled like he was explaining something to a child. "For protection, of course. You don’t want what happened to that guy yesterday, right?"

Nathan glanced across the yard. The man from the beating was nowhere to be seen. He was probably still in the infirmary.

"No," Nathan said. "I don’t."

"Very good." The man extended his hand. "Now, hand it over."

Nathan crossed his arms. "I’m not paying any dues."

The smile on the scarred man’s face didn’t waver. "You see, I don’t think you’re hearing me."

"I can hear you just fine," Nathan replied. "I’m just not paying."

The man’s eyes flickered with amusement. "Alright. We’ll do this the hard way."

Without warning, his fist connected with Nathan’s gut.

The air left Nathan’s lungs in a rush. He doubled over, gasping. The other two moved in. One of him sent a fist to his ribs, the other kicked his knee. A final punch send him tumbling.

Nathan hit the ground, tasting blood and concrete.

The scarred man crouched beside him. "Ready to pay now?"

Nathan coughed, raising an arm for them to stop. "I’ll pay."

The man smiled brightly and stood up. "See? That wasn’t so hard."

Nathan forced himself upright, wiping dirt from his clothes. "I’ll pay. But before that..."

He spat blood on the ground. "I want to apologize properly. Let me buy you something to eat."

The scarred man raised an eyebrow. He turned to his two cronies. "Well, it seems we have someone with common sense here."

The cronies laughed but Nathan kept his expression neutral and walked back to Moe’s kiosk.

Theo’s jaw was tight as Nathan approached. He opened his mouth to speak but stopped as he met Nathan’s gaze.

Nathan leaned against the counter, winging. "Give me a metal tray with whatever food you’ve got. I’ll pay for all of it." his gaze met Moe’s. "The hotter the better."

Moe grinned. "Of course."

He turned and prepared a tray with various food items. Steam rose from it.

He handed it to Nathan. Theo watched the exchange in silence. Nathan took the tray and walked toward the trio.

Theo looked at Moe who was smiling. "What’s funny?"

Moe chuckled. "Nothing."

The trio were sitting on a bench now, the scarred man in the middle with his lackeys by the side. Nathan could feel the eyes of the other inmates on him.

He didn’t care. The old him would have paid off quickly, even let the beating slide.

But things were different now. Even if this was prison, he wasn’t going to let anyone walk on him anymore. Especially not now, when he had money to change things.

But first things first.

The two cronies stepped forward, blocking his path.

"We’ll take it from here," one of them said.

Nathan didn’t budge. "If I’m apologizing properly, I can’t do it from here."

The cronies looked at their boss. The scarred man waved lazily. "Let him through. I want to see this."

Both of them stepped aside and Nathan passed.

He slowed to a stop in front of the scarred man. The man sat on the bench, relaxed with his arms to the side.

"Well?" he said, with a grin. "You’ve got five seconds to get on your knees and beg."

Nathan’s fingers gripped the sides of the tray. Steam rose in between them from the food.

"My apologies," Nathan said, his voice calm. "I wasn’t familiar with how things were done." He moved forward with the tray as if to hand it over.

The man’s grin widened and he got off the bench to receive it. "There’s a good bo–"

WHACK!

Nathan swung the tray, smashing the hot contents against the man’s face. The metal connected with a clang, leaving a face-shaped dent on it.

The man’s body toppled sideways, crashing to the ground.

A collective gasp resounded through the yard. Theo’s eyes widened in surprise while Moe was laughing hysterically.

"BOSS!" the cronies screamed.

Nathan was already moving. He turned and drove his foot into the first crony’s groin with every ounce of force he could muster.

The man’s eyes bulged. A high-pitched whimper escaped his throat as he dropped to his knees, clutching his jewels.

The second man lunged to grab him. But Nathan stepped back, bringing the tray on his head.

The man howled and crumpled down. Nathan added a kick for extra measure.

He stood there, breathing hard. His ribs screamed with each breath and his hands shook from exhaustion and adrenaline.

A grin flashed across his face as the morning sun warmed his face.

"You bastard!" A voice shot out.

He looked back to find the scarred man standing behind him.

THUD!

The man’s fist connected with his jaw before he could react.

His vision exploded with white light. He felt himself falling, the ground rushing up to meet him.

Theo was already moving, but the guards were faster. They poured through the gate, batons raised, and the fight ended as quickly as it had started.

The last thing he heard was the voice of the scarred man. "I’ll make you regret this."

Nathan’s vision was already fading.

We’ll see about that.

And then the darkness swallowed him.

—

Veronica stood at the main desk, reviewing files with the clerk. She signed some of them and asked some questions.

The clerk listened intently, exchanging files in the process.

At one corner of the hall, two nurses were speaking in hushed tones.

"Another inmate got beaten in the yard," one of them said. She was petite with light skin and a patient’s file tucked under an arm.

"That’s like the fourth one this week," The other replied. She was slim with dark skin and brown hair. "Who was it this time?"

"The new blond guy. I heard he tried to fight three guys at once." The other replied.

Veronica’s pen froze. The gossip faded into background noise as her ears latched onto one word.

Blond.

She left the desk and walked up to the nurses who were still talking.

"Excuse me." Veronica’s voice cut through their conversation.

The nurses went still. Veronica stood with her arms folded.

"Hello ma’am. We weren’t–"

Veronica raised her hand. "I don’t care. The inmate you two are talking about. What’s his name?"

The nurse blinked and read the file. "Uhm... It’s Nathan..."

"...Ledger?" Veronica finished.

The nurse’s eyes widened. "Yes, ma’am. That’s him."

Veronica motioned for the nurse to give her the file. "I’ll check him myself."

The nurse gave her the file. "He’s still unconscious and needs treatment."

Veronica nodded and took it, then walked away. After she was out of earshot. The two nurses exhaled together.

"Whew, she can be intense sometimes," The brown haired nurse shuddered.

The other nodded. "You got that right but why did she want to attend to him personally?"

"Beats me. But I heard from Matilda that the first day he arrived, she did his examination."

The petite nurse frowned. "Hmm... Is she interested in him?"

"Maybe but why him? There are other men out there."

"Beats me." The light haired nursed sighed. "But he is handsome though. It’s a shame he’s an inmate. The things I’d let him do to my—"

"You’re disgusting."

"Says the one who’s cheating on her boyfriend with her co worker?" the light skinned shot out.

The brown haired nurse’s eyes widened. "Will you shut up?"

Both of them walked away, their voices fading off. The desk clerk shook his head and kept the files the doctor had been checking.

As Veronica walked, she opened the file, reading it briefly before closing it. Her lips pressed together.

Nathan Ledger, what have you gotten yourself into.

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