It was only a mild coronary.

I did my shopping and then turned the boy back to the parking lot.

Voice:  I never figured you for the domestic type, Flash.

I stopped in my tracks and felt the huge body bump against 
my back.

Deb:  You’re in prison, Tonto.

Another bump.

Cole:  You wish, Flash.  We got some unfinished business, baby.

Deb:  I’ve been done with you, sucker.

Another bump, and the contact was maintained.

One:  Who’s this guy, Ma?

One had his back up, was hovering protectively at my elbow.

Deb:  Nobody to worry about, Bumpus.  Go on, open up the truck.  

Cole would destroy him.

Cole:  Who’s this?

Cole regarded One lazily.  He ran his hands up and down my 
arms and when I tried to move away, cruelly gripped my wrists.  
He crossed my arms over my belly and held me there, immobilized.

Deb:  None of your business, long, tall and ugly.

Cole:  I like it when you shake, Flash.

This last, low and threatening, into my ear.  I jerked my 
head away and it bounced off the hard shoulder.
  
One stepped up, ferocious as a puppy next to Cole’s silent 
menace.  One of my wrists was released and the arm lashed out, 
casually, and caught One in the midsection.  The boy dropped 
like a stone.

I managed to twist out of the man’s grip.  I took advantage 
of my proximity and turned to pummel the freak.  

Deb:  Goddamn you, you do what you want with me, you will anyway, 
but keep your fucking hands off my son…

Cole let me whale on him for a minute, then flicked me away 
as though I were no more than a bug.

Cole:  Don’t worry, Flash… I won’t hurt your baby boy.

He laughed, an evil sound.

Cole:  Might be a certain little punk’ll talk to me.

One:  Ma, he means...

Deb:  I know who he means.  You stay away from my baby, 
you fucker.  I’ll kill you…

Cole grinned, rocked on his heels as I crouched beside 
my biggest boy.

Cole:  We’ll see, Flash.  We’ll see.  Hope that redhead 
knows not to talk to strangers.

I watched him walk away, sick with rage and fear.  My 
little ratbrain chanted the need to go home...

Deb:  Gotta tell Bill, gotta tell Bill...

One:  Ma, if he touches the catwipe...

Deb:  He’s a lotta talk,  Bumpus.  Come on, let’s go back home.

I sounded sure.  I wished I felt sure.

One was still pale and shaky when I pulled into the driveway.  
Elmore was waiting to perform more resuscitation on the truck.  
He got a shoulder under the boy’s arm and held him up effortlessly.

Elmore:  What happened to ‘im?

One:  I’m okay.

Elmore:  Quiet, li’l buddy.  Ma?

Deb:  Where’s Bill, Elmore, I need to talk to him.  Cole did this.

Elmore:  That fucker!

Deb:  That fucker.  And he was making noises like he 
was going to pester the little one.

Elmore:  I gotta bone t’pick with him.  He touches the little 
guy I’ll bust ‘is ass myself.  Bill’s talkin’ to a distributor 
'bout the Corner.  He’s inside.  You need somethin’, say so.  
C’mon boy, we’ll have a beer…

Deb:  Elmore!

Elmore:  Damn near grown, Ma.  I’ll mind ‘im.

I headed inside, cursing Elmore for putting the idea in One's
head, but mostly cursing time for putting it in Elmore's.

Deb:  Shit!

Bill listened, regarding me steadily.

Bill:  You go nowhere by yourself, hear?  Nowhere.

He didn’t need to say it twice.

Bill:  And you tell that fool father of theirs they’re 
comin’ here 'til I get this under control.

Deb:  Billy...kids?

Bill:  They ain’t babies.  You gonna leave ‘em there for that 
bastard to mess ‘em up or bring ‘em here where we can watch ‘em?

Deb:  But you’re not...

Bill:  I’m grown, I’ll manage.  That little guy of yours has 
the sense of a gnat.  Cole’d have him before he knew t’run.

Deb:  Thank you, Bill.

I sounded humble, because I felt it.

Bill:  Never mind that, you get those rugmonkeys over here 
‘fore someone gets hurt.

Deb:  He already put Bumpus on the ground.

Bill was very still.

Bill:  He’ll pay for that, baby, I promise.  Get busy, now.

Incredibly, it was a couple of days before I could get 
everything arranged.  Their father knew nothing of the 
threat and didn’t want to let them come.  Bill had to go 
over and lay down the law.  I’d have paid money to see that.

I came in late one afternoon to find Two nursing a split 
lip and Three huddled in Sam’s lap of all places.  Bill was 
gone, as were Elmore and Ryan.

Deb:  What happened?

Two:  Big sucker… tried t’grab Soupy…

Sam growled.

Sam:  Boy.

Two:  Anyway...

Three:  He tried to grab me...Sam came...he won’t let nothin’ 
happen to me, he’s a U.S. Marshal, Mama, did you know...

Deb:  Yes, buddy, I know.  Sam?

Sam:  Visiting their friends, I drove them.  They wanted to 
see their cats, so I left them for as long as it took me to 
get gas.  When I got back, Cole was there.  Said Two-Face 
Harvey Dent got him off.

None of us had heard Bill come in.  He examined Two’s lip 
briefly, saw that Three was secure.  

Bill:  Looks like I’m gonna have to make the pretty side 
‘a that bastard’s face match the other side.  Damn!  What 
happened, boy?

Two:  We needed some stuff and I wanted to see Two-phat...

Bill:  Is every goddamn thing fat?

Two:  You’re phat.

Bill growled.

Two:  Sam dropped us off and told us t’stay in the house.  
Simmons heard a car...

Three interrupted this tale with a howl of outrage.
                 
Sam:  What’d I tell you ‘bout name callin, boy?

Two:  ...whatever... anyhow he went outside ‘fore he knew it 
wasn’t Sam.  This big shiz-nit haddim an’ was tryin’ to 
stick ‘im in his car.  I got up in ‘his face an’ tweaked 
on ‘im but he decked me in the face an’ then Sam came.

Sam:  Didn’t do more’n scare ‘im.

Three was not a large boy, but Sam positively dwarfed 
him.  Bill called him out of Sam’s lap and knelt in front 
of him.

Bill:  Listen here, monkey...from now on, you don’t do 
anythin' ‘less one of us is within shoutin’ distance.  
Understand me?

Three:  Mama...?

Bill:  Not your mother, not your brothers.  Me, Ryan, Sam or 
Elmore, else you stay put.

He turned to One.

Bill:  As for you, boy… no more ramroddin’ around in that shit-heap.

One bristled, and Elmore punched him lightly.

Elmore:  Y’listen t’Bill, boy.  That bastard’ll put ya in the 
ditch and leave ya for dead’n what’ll that do t’your Ma?

Meantime, Three looked troubled.  Bill waited impassively.

Bill:  Talk t’me, midget.

Three:  The man...said to tell Sam something.

Sam was on his feet, towering over the child, every inch 
the protective policeman I’d always tried to teach the boy to 
trust.

Three:  He said...it made things...cleaner...cause she never 
yelled.  He said to tell you that.

Sam went white and Three's lower lip began to tremble.  I
could read his mind.  He had said something wrong and Sam was
going to holler.  We all waited for what was surely going to 
be an explosion of awesome dimension...

Bill:  Dawg?

Sam said nothing.  He managed to cuff Three in a gentle way 
with the big paw...and then he strode out of the house.  We all
stood listening to his car as he drove away.

Three:  Is Sam mad at me?

Bill:  No, boy.  But there's another reason I wouldn't wanna be 
George Cole 'long about now.

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