Then he sensed something else.
A change in the air.
Someone had entered the fight.
Walter didn't turn around.
He trusted his instincts.
A water bottle struck Brody.
Then a young woman attacked with a bicycle chain.
Walter moved.
The nearest attacker fell.
Chaos erupted.
A wrench hit concrete.
The chain whipped through the air.
The girl fought with surprising determination.
Walter stepped between her and the remaining attackers.
“Walk away while you still can.”
They ran.
Walter finally allowed himself to sit down.
He looked at the girl.
“Casey.”
She looked surprised.
“You remember my name?”
“Names matter.”
A police officer arrived eleven minutes later.
Officer Reyes recognized Walter immediately.
“Walt.”
“Officer.”
“What happened?”
Walter glanced at Casey.
“These boys made a bad decision.”
The security footage told the rest.
Brody Kane and his friends were identified.
Their previous assault reports were reopened.
For once, they could not disappear into the shadows.
The Blue Bandana
An ambulance checked Casey's arm.
“It could have been broken,” the medic told her.
Casey looked at Walter.
“You didn't have to stop.”
Walter gave a quiet laugh.
“Most people don't.”
“Most people have a reason not to.”
“I ran out of those a long time ago.”
Then he handed her a card.
Doyle Custom Cycles.
“If you ever need anything, call.”
Casey looked at it.
“I don't need charity.”
“Good.”
Walter's expression softened.
“I wasn't offering charity.”
He nodded toward her grease-stained hands.
“I'm offering work.”
Casey looked up.
“A girl who fights six men and still carries a wrench in her back pocket on a day off isn't somebody who needs saving.”
He smiled.
“That's somebody worth investing in.”
Then they heard motorcycles.
One engine.
Then another.
Then dozens.