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You never really know how quickly things can go from good to bad until it really happens to you. The horror stories played constantly on the news for the next month onward. It was the same headline over and over again, the crime rate continues to increase due to local gang activity. I can't help but wonder to myself if there's really a point for the news to continue relaying the message. It is especially pertinent when the anchorman pointed out this interesting detail.

"It just seems like an increasingly bad horror movie stuck on permanent repeat," and he's right, because it seems that every time that a report of a recent mugging or murder occurs, the culprits simply reciprocate by adding another rap to their laundry list of crimes. It's about a week and a half after Spring break, near the beginning of April, and we were watching the nightly news covering this story for who knows how many times now. We were watching simply for the lack of anything better on at the time. I was currently at Nokemy's house, whose parents was currently leaving us alone, and was in the company of my monkey friend himself. I was also accompanied by my long term friend Jason, the fox's only movement the idle twitching of his tail.

"What are the cops doing in this town anyhow?" Nokemy joked in response, "they can't be that obsessed with donuts can they?" Jason chuckled a bit.

"Nah, just donut holes, if you catch my drift," The fox winked and I rolled my eyes a bit.

"You know if Jake was here," I began, "he'd have pounced on you by now."

"Oh I'm all too familiar with that Ry," he gave me a glazed look and returned to the screen. It was then that I heard a knock at the door. It was in a particular pattern and rhythm so we knew it was someone from our group.

"Come in the door's open," Nokemy shouted. The door opened and Dustin walked in smiling with a wave.

"Hi guys," he began, "what's going on with you guys?"

"It's what we call the news," Jason said, "come have a seat and watch." Dustin shrugged and sat down next to me. My fellow human was never picky on what he wanted to do, but he loved hanging out with us, like everyone else. He particularly liked to hang around me, which was particularly flattering. He wrapped an arm around my shoulder and smiled, closing as much distance as he could. If Morrell saw this he would only giggle and joke about how cute it was.

"So Ryan isn't Morrell around?" He asked me. I shook my head.

"No, he's currently practicing basketball with Lucian Blaze," I explained, "he won't be back until late tonight." Nokemy looked at me.

"I didn't know that phoenix could play," the monkey said nonchalantly, exercising a bored yawn.

"He's actually really good," I said, "kind of a show off too. He keeps trying to convince me that I can play too, but I'm no good at sports."

"But chess is a sport," Jason pointed out.

"A mental sport at least," I explained, "even if it is as physically tiring as any other sport, I'm not good at anything predominantly physical."

"I know you're good in bed," Nokemy chuckled and winked at me.

"Sex isn't a sport," I stuck my tongue out at him playfully. Dustin chuckled.

"I don't know about that one Ryan," he smirked.

"Yeah it can be physically tiring," Jason giggled before huffing as he got pounced by the orange monkey.

"I think he needs a live demonstration," Nokemy giggled, and Jason returned in kind.

"Maybe, but I was thinking more hands on," he teased, before the news came back from its commercial break.

"Breaking news," came the voice from the speakers and we sat up to watch what could be happening.

"Another murder has been recently discovered in the Dixie downs area, this time the victim is a fourteen year old teenager," the anchorman began, "we now go live on the scene with Donna Ninovah with the breaking story, Donna?"

"Thanks John," The lady vixen began as the scene transitioned to the troubled area. "The body of a fourteen year old teenaged male has been recently discovered on 700 West Boulevard today, and police recognize it as more gang activity that has been wreaking havoc in this troubled part of town for the past six weeks."

"Just the same bad news repeating again," Jason shrugged, and Dustin sighed.

"The police have stated that the recent murder has revealed some new patterns in the investigation," the lady continued, "the police chief is only revealing this much to the media at the time. They say that more than 70 percent of victims in the last four weeks have been males of age 18-30 years old. Out of all the victims' total, about 75 percent have been reported as openly gay people in the community. The fourteen year old victim of this crime was an openly gay student at the nearby Dixie High School. The police have then concluded that the spree is a collection of hate crimes built to target the gay community. The police chief also states that the pattern of the crimes show that the gang is much smaller than earlier expected." The screen then switched to the current police chief with a mike held near his face, as the large Clydesdale horse began to speak in a baritone voice.

"We believe the group responsible operates in very small numbers, around as small as three to as many as probably six."

"The mayor gave a public announcement earlier this week to exercise caution," The lady began again as the screen switched back to her, "people should stay together at least in pairs when walking on the streets, and to avoid walking in nighttime travel. It is also good to stay in well-populated, well-lit areas. This is Donna Ninovah with the Nightly News, waiting here for any new updates and developments, John back to you." We all looked at each other with worried looks on our faces as the news returned to its usual boring stuff.

"What can this mean?" Dustin asked.

"Nothing good at all," I began, "it definitely shows that whoever the culprit is knows a lot about the people in the area, if they can specifically target people like this."

"What if the group comes to Pine View High?" Nokemy asks, "we could all be in great danger, especially you and Morrell, Ryan. I mean think about it, the whole school knows about you two, and if someone there knows..."

"It doesn't matter," I said, "We all will just need to take necessary precautions and be careful. And Morrell knows all of this too, that's why he and Blaze agreed to walk home together after practice." Nokemy and the others nodded slowly, and decided to change to a four player video game, so that we didn't have to watch anymore depressing news. I couldn't hide the fact at least to myself that I was nervous, possibly of what may come in the recent future.

***

Morrell was quicker than his phoenix compatriot. With a quick motion he slipped the ball between his legs and with a jump slammed the orange basketball into the designated hoop. The phoenix could only whistle in amazement as the Orca skillfully landed back onto the gym floor.

"Very impressive," Lucian Blaze began, "I'm surprised you didn't join the team with those skills."

"Well that's because I was too busy with Football in spring, and Wrestling early this winter. And Chess made me too tired to continue the professional stuff for the rest of the year," Morrell explained as he quickly tossed the ball to the avian. "Even superstars need a down season."

"So why not give it in the summer?" Blaze pried.

"Well the answer to that is simple," Morrell chuckled a bit, "but I'm afraid that will have to wait for another day. I have a particular surprise for that."

"Is it that important?" Blaze joked as he set his ball back in his bag.

"Just think of it this way," he said, "it will make a nice surprise for Ryan."

"Speaking of Ryan," Blaze began, "has he made it home ok? The city government has put out a mandatory buddy system because of the growing crime rate around here."

"I know Ryan was spending time at Nokemy's house today, and Jason lives right next door to Ryan so they promised me they would walk home together." Morrell nodded, "I'm sure he's fine."

"If you say so," Blaze said and shot another ball clean into the hoop. It was then the basketball coach came in, the towering tiger addressed the two.

"Time for you two to hit the showers," He said, "it's getting late and you should be home before sundown. Good form by the way Blaze."

"Thanks coach," he nodded and headed off, the tiger turned to the orca.

"You too Mr. Monteque," he chuckled.

"Whatever you say stripey butt," Morrell howled out in laughter, the tiger merely chuckled.

"I told you not to call me that."

"Well don't call me Mr. Monteque."

"Well it's your last name isn't it?" Coach began, "besides it's a cool name."

"Yeah whatever," The orca grabbed his nearby gym bag on the floor, but the tiger addressed him as he was about to walk out.

"Before you go," He began, "You may be concerned that he's fine, but Ryan is a very well-known name. If the stories are true, he's a goner if he gets in their crosshairs, so keep a close eye." Morrell turned to face the coach, his cheerful grin quickly replaced with severe conviction.

"Right," he began, "but I'm an even bigger name, I could be in just as much danger. All my friends could be, but I'll make sure nothing happens."

"We can't live on certainty," the tiger stated, "don't try to be a super hero." The tiger then turned and walked out. Morrell simply shrugged and walked out. He figured he would shower at home after he got Blaze back home first.

***

"So tell me again why you aren't going to kill him?" the hyena asked confused. He looked up at his bovine superior with a questioning look, and he was met with a cold stare.

"He's not our target," Jeremy began as he inhaled his cigarette, "besides, the customer specifically said to leave him alive."

"Why does she like him so much?" The hyena asked, "that oversized fish only belongs in one place, and that's my dinner dish."

"She's merely lost in pointless high school fantasy Bones. I would love to rip his heart out, but she's paying us big money to get this deed done, and do it right, which is why we've been doing the proper planning."

"Sounds like she has you whipped eh boss?" Rodney teased as the lion walked up containing another bag of shoplifted cigarettes. "out of camera surveillance again."

"I'm not whipped," The bull retorted, "I'm just making sure she gets what she paid for. Is there something you need to get off your chest Rodney."

"Are you ever going to call me Rod?" The lion teased.

"Fag," The bull snorted, "just get to the point."

"This has to be completely sinking under your skin," Rodney explained, "the very reason you formed this gang was for the sake of revenge, if I remember correctly. The orca socked you one right on the kisser, and humiliated you in front of everyone who mattered. And true to your stereotype, you let rage fill you and make you power hungry. That's what I like, just to go out and do whatever the fuck you want. And that bitch is keeping you from your goal with the provision of coin. I thought you want to kill the hypocracy."

"Think of it as future funding," he began, "we can't just go picking nickel and dime products off of convenient store corners to fund our activities and of course, our toys."

"Didn't stop you from killing that unfortunate 14-year-old the other night," The lion chuckled, and bones gave a shrill giggle.

"Oh that was priceless," he began and in a mimicking voice, "please don't kill me please, I didn't do anything wrong. All while he was whimpering and wetting his pants, and that made it all the more fun to torture him. I like making weak things scream."

"You realize we can't do that all the time anymore," Jeremy sighed, "you run the risk of attracting the fuzz."

"Still wasn't a fun excuse to just end my fun by shooting the kid in the head," The hyena twitched, "I didn't even get to taste his blood."

"Has anybody ever told you how fucked up you are?" Rodney stated bluntly.

"Oh lots of people," he chuckled, "my parents, my grandparents, my dead sister, and all my teachers. I didn't even get into high school because I was and I quote, "such a menace to society."

"Enough," Jeremy said, "and Rodney, I have my own reasons for going along with her orders, but just because I don't kill him yet doesn't mean he's out of my crosshairs."

"That's fine," he began, "just know that as long as your goals are true, you can count on me. We're all hellraisers." The bovine nodded and stepped forward, hand on the gun in his pocket.

"Then let's head out," he smirked, "I've kept close watch on certain patterns, and tonight's the night we make our move, so let us shove out."

***

It wasn't a long walk home from Nokemy's house, but it certainly felt like an eternity. Jason and I kept quiet during the walk, to try to avoid attracting attention. Increasing crime rates will put anyone on edge, and just thinking that someone could be watching us right at that moment made my hair stand up on end. The day ended faster than expected, and we were way past curfew. I looked at Jason and asked a quick question in a quiet tone.

"So why didn't we take Nokemy's offer to stay overnight again?"

"I promised my parents would be home tonight," He explained, "they're even more paranoid of these boogie men than the rest of the town combined."

"It may be because these guys are possible homophobes," I said, "the poor kid on the news was a particular target."

"Exactly," The fox began, "but they won't listen to reason, it's either get home or face severe punishment." I looked down as we continued to walk.

"I'm sorry," I told him, and he shrugged. The conversation stopped until we finally came across our block. As soon as we got back up to his doorstep he began speaking again.

"So, is your mom home?" I shook my head.

"No, she decided to take another shift at the hospital, overtime pays her time and a half."

"You're welcome to stay here if you need to," he implied.

"That's ok," I said, "My house is right next door. I think I'll be fine." Right, famous last words, I joked in my head. He nodded and gave me a quick hug, before rushing inside. I looked around a bit, thinking for a second about this mess, before stepping away from the step.

It was only a quick twenty steps away from my house, but a lot of things can happen in ten seconds. And everything passed by so quick when it happened. I pulled out my key as I stepped to the front door, and was about to unlock it. The door never opened though. A pair of strong arms grabbed me from behind hard, and before I could even gasp, another pair of strong hands gagged my mouth shut in powerfully adhesive tape.

I continued to struggle as the mysterious men retrained my limbs, and I cried out for help. The feeble attempts to reach someone were stented by the tape covering my mouth, and after my arms and legs were tied the man grabbing me let go, and punched me hard in between my neck and head. I collapsed, instantly weakened from the hit, and shortly lost consciousness.

***

"Is this fucker going to wake up yet or what?" I heard an unfamiliar voice say as I slowly came to my senses. I was trying to piece together what happened, and it didn't come back to me until I tried to move. I was jumped right in front of my house, I remembered that now, and I opened my eyes slowly to an unfamiliar territory. As I did I heard another voice, and this one was very familiar. It was one I encountered from school before he mysteriously vanished.

"Patience," he said, "we'll get our chances soon enough. Ah, speak of the devil." I was in a warehouse, still wondering how I ended up here. The tape was still around my mouth, and my rope bindings kept my hands and feet still, now bound to a chair. I looked up to see three men sitting on some crates in front of me. Each of them was clad in similar clothing, mostly black and blue, with a discernable blue bandanna wrapped around their right biceps, covered in a specific crystalline pattern.

"Where am I?" I mumbled through the tape. It was a sentence they could barely understand through the tape, and one of them, a hyena, quickly walked up to me and ripped the tape off of my mouth. I tried my best not to scream from the pain, but my eyes began to water from it.

"He is a crier," The hyena giggled menacingly, "I'm going to have fun with this."

"Hold off Bones," The familiar one, a bull stated and walked up to me, "We meet again."

"Jeremy?" I asked looking up at his smug face, "what are you doing here? Everyone thought you disappeared."

"You should know by now," he stated, "killing fags, just like you. The sadist right here is Bones, and the lion over there is Rodney. The blue bandanna gang not here for your service."

"Call me Rod," The masculine lion interjected. And the bovine frowned.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to use that gay ass name?" He turned back to me, "anyway, with you it's just merely another job to finance ourselves with." I was confused.

"Who would want to pay money to snuff me out?" I asked them, I knew I was treading on hot water, but if these guys really were the ones responsible for all the crime going on recently I wasn't going to last long with them anyway.

"Some bitch interested in that gay orca lineman or whatever you call them," The lion shrugged, "she's paying us quite a handsome amount too."

"So that's that," The bull said, pulling out a knife and twirling it a bit, "Although don't feel too bad, we would've killed you soon enough anyway, regardless."

'Orca lineman,' I thought, and only one name came to mind, 'Morrell? But who would..."

Gloria. That goddamn bitch. I knew she was obsessed with Morrell, but this is really going too far. Does she really think her idiotic plan is going to work? Jeremy seemed to have read my mind.

"But I wonder," he smirked, "she must be pretty naive to think that she can have her crush's crush killed, and then try to slip in when he's mourning. Fags can't be dealt with or converted after they've expressed faggotry. No, the only way to cleanse the disease is to nip it at the bud."

"Disease?" I looked up at him angrily, "we're flesh and blood like you. We're normal people who can function normally in society. We're not the ones going out and hurting other people to suit our agenda. You claim to be doing a favor, but you're nothing more than a monster." I kind of regretted that statement, but only from the backlash that followed. He pulled out a handgun from his pocket, and fired. I felt the bullet pierce through my hip, leaving a hole in my right side. I cringed, and cried out in uncontrollable pain. The bovine's strong hand came around and silenced me with a backhand smack across my face.

"You should show your superiors more respect," he said, and the hyena giggled.

"Oh please sir let me have a shot," Bones smirked, "I always wanted to try castration."

"Now don't get carried away," Rod said, "that could kill him a little too quickly. I mean look he's already losing blood now." I looked down, and saw the nearby rope slowly changing crimson in color.

"Good point," Bones said and pulled out a crooked knife, but the bull stopped him.

"There's plenty of time for torture later," he said, "come with me and help keep an eye out while I make a phone call. The police can be a nuisance sometimes. Rodney, keep an eye on him." The lion nodded, having not moved once since I woke up and the other two walked out. Under strenuous pain I kept my thoughts out, outlining the situation. I mentally mapped out the place nonchalantly, and then thought about the gang in general. Jeremy has a total vendetta against me and anyone else, especially my friends since most of them are gay. The hyena seems to sadistic to be reasoned with. I looked over at the lion, who kept a sharp eye on me. He walked closer as I thought about it.

'Yeah, he's perfect,' I thought, 'my situation is very bleak, but he's calm minded and reasonable. Trying to negotiate with him may be my only chance to get out of these bindings.' I felt around myself through the ropes, and noticed that my pockets had been emptied. That means no money or cell phone to call for help. I was completely on my own.

***

Morrell was whistling a little tune as he got back to his house. Despite how much he like practice he always liked getting back home and spending time with the family, and of course his boyfriend. He walked into the back door leading into his kitchen, using a key from his set to unlock the door after curfew. When he shut the door, he was greeted by his grandfather, the wise looking orca taking a sip out of a cup.

"Hi grandpa Joe," he said giving him a hug.

"Well good evening big football star," he chuckled lightly and teased as he returned the hug, "how was practice?"

"It wasn't half bad," he stated, "Lucian Blaze has a talent for the sport, even showed me a couple of things."

"Good," grandpa Joe replied, "how was your date with Ryan the other night? When you aren't talking about sports you're talking about him." The younger orca had set his equipment bag down while the elder was talking.

"Well I can't help it," he began, "he's smart, he's sweet, he's caring, and excellent in the... uh kissing. I mean kissing."

"Right," grandpa Joe teased, "why don't you just admit it?"

"Admit what?" Morrell asked.

"That you love him," the elder orca teased, "Even if it's just teenage love you can't deny that."

"Well I do really like him," Morrell said, "but I don't know if I'm ready for that yet."

"I think you already are," the elder smirked and after seeing Morrell's glare he changed the subject, "anyway how was the date? Getting back to the subject..."

"It was pretty good," he said, "we went and saw a nice movie."

"How did it end?" Grandpa chuckled.

"I don't remember," the younger chuckled.

"Atta boy," the elder laughed and stood up, "now, you going to take a shower? Because you can really use one."

"Yeah yeah," Morrell sighed and walked up the stairs.

"Oh don't spend too much time thinking about scrawny lil' human boy in the shower now," Grandpa Joe chuckled, and Morrell stopped and turned to face him.

"I can see where dad gets his perverse attitude from," they both gave a laugh as Morrell's mother walked into the room, holding the telephone to his shoulder.

"Hey Morrell?"

"Yes mom?" he looked at her.

"Ryan's mother is on the phone," she said, "she's wondering if he's with you."

"No he spent all day at Nokemy's house."

"Well she called Nokemy's mom earlier and she said that he left with a friend shortly before curfew."

"And he didn't make it home yet?" Morrell seemed concerned hearing this but figured they could just be running late. The mother orca got back on the phone.

"He said he's not here," she paused as she listened to the other lady on the line, "uh huh. We'll certainly keep an eye out. What? Ok, yes we'll definitely keep an eye out. You're very welcome, bye." She hung up and looked at Morrell.

"Mom," he began, "what's going on?"

"Well I don't know how to tell you," she said, "but when Mrs. Lewis got home Ryan was nowhere to be found."

"Well maybe he's still walking on his way," Grandpa Joe said taking another sip.

"Well, just before she hung up, she pointed out blood on the front porch," she replied. Morrell's heart sank when he heard those words, and he jumped down the stairs.

"I gotta go find him," he began.

"Morrell stop-" the mother began.

"He could be in real trouble," he opened the door, "what if that gang from the news got to him?"

"Then the police will handle it and find him," Grandpa Joe began, "it won't help Ryan if you get lost and caught by them too. That is if Ryan has actually been kidnapped."

"But I have to do SOMETHING," Morrell shouted, "he's my boyfriend, I need to be able to keep him safe, and that means rescuing him when he's in trouble."

"Then let's just start by heading over to Mrs. Lewis's house," the mother began, "she could use some comfort. Now go get your coat I'll get your father." Morrell ran upstairs to grab a coat. And the two other orcas looked at each other with a look of worry.

***

"Treading in despair already?" The lion teased.

'Alright Ryan, my sharp chess games trained me for this,' I thought and looked up at him, "You're not from around here, are you?"

"Sharp lad," he began, "you recognize my accent eh? Yeah, I'm a foreigner, you could say I'm not supposed to be here but here I am."

"Why are you here?" I questioned him.

"Digging a little deep aren't we?" he questioned.

"I've seen the horror stories on the news, and the way your boss shot me shows that I'm not going to have much longer to live right?"

"Uh huh," he nodded.

"So wouldn't it be fair to tell me a little more? I mean it's not like anyone else is going to know about it." He thought for a second and shrugged.

"I guess it won't hurt," That opened the first door for me, I knew then I could somewhat influence and reason with him. Now it was time for the next test.

"So why are you here?" I continued.

"Simple, I like this kind of life, it's a rush," he explained, "so I just walked from town to town and found those two with similar aspirations to refute authority."

"And killing gay people was a thrill for you too?" I know, a direct question, but it was a good fit for this situation. He gave me a stern look.

"Nah, this urge to purge is Jeremy's baby. I'm not really that interested in killing myself. It soils my beautiful hands. I'm more interested in saucing it up with the bad girls out there, and showing my masculinity by flipping off the authority."

"And Bones?" I asked.

"He's a sadistic little fucker," he smirked, "he witnessed a guy mutilate his parents with a chainsaw when he was six and was never the same since. That's at least what Jeremy tells me."

"But if you don't like killing people, why are you hanging around with them?" I asked, putting the pieces together.

"I like the thrill of being around people so dangerous," he said, "It makes me look stronger." Finally, I had an opening. Just like opening a vulnerability to the opponent's king. Now it was time for me to get aggressive.

"Well I already think you look strong," I began.

"Well thank you," he smirked, "good to see someone realizes it."

"Well if you want my honest opinion," I began, "I bet you're a stronger man than Jeremy is."

"Now where are you getting at with the compliments here?" He seemed suspicious, but I was prepared for that question.

"In my eyes, a strong man is someone who makes his own decisions and earns respect from his peers and comrades. When you said that killing was of no interest for you, you ended up earning my respect for that." He seemed to ponder what I said for a moment.

"Wow," he began, "that's a first to hear that from a captive. But do you show that respect out of formality or fear? I wonder..."

"That's true, both you and I can't deny that I fear for my life. But even then I can come to appreciate and respect someone with a segment of their moral principle that is actually beneficial to others. As long as I'm breathing around you I can be more respectful to you. And do you deny that respect I have?"

"Of course not," he stated, "merely surprised is all. In fact, I'm actually a little grateful to hear that." I was getting closer with that statement. It was time to play the next phase.

"What do you mean by that? Don't your two friends respect you?" I asked innocently.

"I wouldn't necessarily call them friends," he stated, "more like partners. As for respect I can't really say."

"If you want my opinion," I began, "I don't think they have any respect for you at all."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, has Jeremy ever had anything good to say about anything you like, say, or do?" I thought for a quick moment, "what about your nickname? He didn't seem to have much respect for a decision you made on your own."

"Hm, I guess that's true," said Rod, "but maybe it is too gay a name."

"I don't think so," I said, "it actually sounds cool. I know that's not much help coming from a fag like me, but I'm pretty sure there are some women out there attracted to a name like that."

"You really think so?" he smiled, "well it's about time someone appreciated the Rod."

"Yeah," I smiled, "and I think you're a stronger man than those other two are, huh? You were the one who decided to tag along. It's not like he recruited you forcefully." He looked at me closely and I continued. "Think about it, perhaps you could be the one in control, he ought to show you more respect for the strong man you actually are." He thought for another minute, although I was hoping I was getting through to him. I don't know how much longer the other two would be out.

"You know, you're right," He stated, to my relief, "They should show me more respect, I'm the Rod damnit."

"Absolutely," I agreed and he turned to me, "you know, you're not that bad a person. I mean since I got to the States you're the only person who seems to be kinder and more respectful towards me. That really means a lot to me."

"And you know I think we've just made a real friendly connection," I began, "And friends like to do favors for each other."

"I guess so," he turned around pondering a bit, "where are you going with this?"

"Well," I explained, "when a friend needs a favor, another friend helps out in exchange for something else they may want or need. So I guess I could find something to help repay a friend like you in time of need." Once again he pondered it, and I gave a little incentive. "You wouldn't want something bad to happen to a friend right?"

"Hm..." He sounded, "I guess you're right. But I would prefer not to make it look like I let you go. But one condition I propose."

"Name it," I said smiling.

"You got to find me a girlfriend," he smiled, and nonchalantly slipped behind me, and slashed the roped binding me.

"That's no problem," I said and slowly stood up.

"Good," he said, "now hurry, because when they come back and see you gone, I'm going to have to hunt you with them, and if we find you, it's game over." I nodded, and sucking up the pain, I look around for an exit, and found a door to the opposite of the door the other two left in. I quickly ran to it and headed out the door. I was unaware of what the lion behind had to say after I left.

"Now this ought to be more interesting," He chuckled, "just like back home, hunting ought to make the game more fun, although, he did pose a few interesting points."

He turned to face the opposite direction, taking a long stretch, just as the other two walked back in. 'Let's see how the other two take my act.'