Darien raised his hand, unwilling to hear the rest of the HOA spiel. "Got it. That's a pretty handy tool you've got in a situation like this." He grinned. To say that they'd stumbled upon a gold mine was an understatement. Not only had they found shelter and a fully stocked house, but they’d found an attractive woman who seemed ready to cooperate and had in her possession keys to every house in the neighborhood. After four days of grueling, sweaty walking with little food and water, Darien's luck had finally turned around.
And it was about time, too.
"Let me go!" the skinny burglar squealed. "You guys are just here to rob the place, same like us! Look—we rolled two kids earlier, got a couple backpacks full of veggies and fruits or something…take ‘em! Take ‘em both!”
“Oh, we already did,” Lopez said. He held up a backpack and pulled out a big green zucchini. “Anyone know how to cook these things?”
Darien excused himself from Harriet and turned to face the burglar pinned to the wall. "There's a difference between you and me, pal.” He raised a finger. “First, my associates and I didn't just barge in here and start ransacking the place," he said and purposely ignored Cisco and Lopez, who were doing just that in the pantry, and had made a fine mess of the kitchen in the process. "And second,” he said, and raised another finger, “we didn't try to take advantage of Miss Harriet here, like you did. And we certainly wouldn’t rob a couple kids. We have standards, my man.”
"Whatever—you're no different than me,” the burglar croaked around Spanner’s hands on his throat.
"But I am,” Darien insisted. “Never in my life have I raised a hand against a woman.” He took a step back and rubbed his knuckles. “Nor will I tolerate someone who does.”
"What we do with them?" asked Spanner.
"Just break his neck and throw him out in the woods," suggested Lopez as he munched on an uncooked packet of Ramen noodles clutched in his grubby hand. A box of granola bars was in his other hand, ripped nearly in half in his haste to reach the prepackaged snack.
"I'm no murderer either," Darien replied evenly as he ignored the suggestion. "You owe Harriet a debt of honor," Darien pronounced as he stared at the burglar. "I believe everybody deserves a second chance. So, I’m gonna give you yours."
"Oh, give me a break," Lopez said as he leaned against the wall and munched on his dry noodles. He elbowed Cisco to turn and observe the legal proceedings. "This ought to be good."
Darien ignored them. He’d deal with them later. "I give you the choice of either joining my crew and making amends to Miss Harriet here or going toe to toe with Jon Boy. Your friend did that," Darien said and inclined his head at the unconscious pig on the floor. “It didn't work out too well for him. So, what's it gonna be?"
Spanner stepped back and let the skinny thief recombobulate himself. He glanced down at his partner on the floor, his hands twitched, and he scratched nervously at his neck, which made the red sores weep even more.
"What are you going to do to me if I-I-I join with you?" he stuttered.
“I’m not going to do anything to you. It's what you're going to do for Harriet. Whenever she needs something, you'll get it or do whatever she wants, without question, without hesitation. You'll also do the same for me."
The meth-head nodded, scratching. "That’s it?"
"No," Darien said flatly. He crossed his thick arms. "You’ll do what I say, when I say it. You’ll follow my rules, and you’ll never again lay a hand on Harriet. Because if you do, I’ll turn Jon Boy loose on you."
The meth-head burglar swallowed and looked at the massive man sitting at the table.
"Jon Boy," Darien said. When he had the child-man's attention, he smiled. "This is Miss Harriet. She's a friend of mine, which means she's a friend of yours."
She smiled in return, and Darien marveled at just how pretty she actually was, smeared makeup and all.
"Jon Boy, what do we do for our friends?"
Jon Boy stood and knocked over his chair in the process. "We protect our friends. Like a knight!" He said and raised the spoon like a sword.
"And what do we do if someone tries to hurt our friends?" Darien asked, eyebrow arched. He turned to watch the new recruit.
"We stomp them!" Jon Boy crowed.
Darien let the skinny thief watch Jon Boy spread his massive arms in a display of strength. "And Jon Boy, how do we stomp them?"
Jon Boy looked at the skinny thief, then smashed one fist down on the table which made it jump off the floor. Several glasses and boxes of food fell to the tiled floor with a crash. "We smash them!"
The skinny burglar smiled weakly and displayed several missing teeth. He nodded. “O-o-okay—you make a good point." He turned to Harriet and the smile faded, but he bowed deeply. "I'm real sorry ma'am. I-I don't know what came over me…I swear—I swear on my mama's grave…it won’t happen again."
"Thank you," Harriet said, looking down her nose. "I trust it won't."
Introductions made and ground rules established, Darien set about to ensure everyone had food and something to drink. The food in the fridge had gone bad days ago, yet Jon Boy didn't seem fazed by the awful smell that exploded into the kitchen when he opened the door. He found several bottles of water—lukewarm, but clean—and deposited them on the counter along with ketchup,
