Chapter 4

Within moments a police cruiser appeared. Two uniformed officers got out and approached. At that, the smaller of the two thugs looked anxious in spite of his efforts to appear cool and in control. He tried to bluster, first in Spanish, which the officers ignored, and then in heavily accented English. He babbled about rights and complained Troy had manhandled him, but the cops were not buying it. They patted him down, found the snub-nosed semi-automatic pistol at his back and another in an ankle holster. He did not have concealed carry permits for either one, so it was enough to take him in. There was a warrant out for the bigger man, which gave them reason to pick him up as well.

The excited crowd soon dispersed, leaving Troy and a few regular customers waiting for their lunch, notsure what to do now that the immediate danger was past.

He looked Juan over with a keen eye. The younger man was a bit pale, but did not seem to be injured. “Are you okay? Did that big bruiser hurt you?”