"Don't worry," you say reassuringly to the thug. "After this, we'll make sure you're recompensated." The approach seems to be working. The thug starts to loosen up and looks about to say something... ...and still looks about to say something after a few seconds of waiting.
Keep up the good cop act. Maybe he's just still nervous. Flip your approach. Good cop isn't working. Time to try bad cop. Let Laine take the next step. Things may be a bit too awkward for you at this point. Letting Laine act could avoid that.