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From: Lazlo Zalezac <lzalezac@yahoo.com>
Subject: {ASSM} The Portal: Doorway to Adventure 05 (MF, Sci-fi, Fantasy)
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Date: Sat, 12 Mar 2005 10:10:02 -0500
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Lazlo Zalezac
http://www.asstr-mirror.org/files/Authors/Lazlo_Zalezac
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<1st attachment, "Intro 5.txt" begin>

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fiction. If you are offended by 
sexually explicit material or are under the age of 18, stop reading 
now. This material cannot be reproduced for commercial purposes 
without the consent of the author.

The Portal: Doorway to Adventure
Chapter 5
By
Lazlo Zalezac
Copyright (C) Lazlo Zalezac, 2005

Sid stood in the middle of the road waiting for the three men to 
arrive with the damsel he was to rescue. It was approaching noon 
and that was a problem. He had expected them to arrive by now 
and wondered what was holding them up. He hoped that it was 
because they were lazy or the damsel was fighting her situation. It 
wouldn't be good if they were late because she was holding them 
up because she couldn't keep up. It would be even worse if they 
had changed routes. 

He resumed his stretching exercises expecting that he was going to 
have to fight soon. The exercises also helped pass the time. 
Another half-hour passed before the party finally came around the 
bend of the road. As they approached his location, he had his first 
chance to study his opponents. There were three of them, each a 
very rough looking character. He recalled his briefing about each 
of the men. 

Leading the trio down the road was the man they called Harold 
One-Eye. He got his name after loosing his left eye in a bar fight. 
Physically he was a very short and stocky man, but very strong. 
Often he would earn money by bending horseshoes with his bare 
hands. He looked like a hard man, but was actually a man who 
became tired of working too hard for the little he earned. It was 
clear by the large club he carried that he wasn't a highly trained 
fighter. Of course, a man with a club didn't need to be highly 
trained. 

Walking behind Harold was the man they called Smart Art. He was 
the true leader of this little gang, primarily because he was the 
smartest of them all. That wasn't saying much since the other two 
were challenged in the brains department. He had a bow slung over 
his shoulder. The bow wasn't as much a cause for concern since it 
was broken. The real threat was in the form of the beat up sword 
that he carried in his hand. The fact that he carried it in his hand 
suggested that the sword wasn't his normal weapon. If it were, he'd 
have gotten a sheath for it and taken better care of it.

Stumbling behind Smart Art, a young woman struggled with the 
rope tied around her hands. He recognized her as Jennifer 
Secretary of Norwalk, the damsel who he was supposed to rescue. 
She appeared to be somewhat overweight by earth standards, but 
he thought her attractive. At 5'7" and 150 pounds, she wasn't 
exactly fat. She had the same kind of figure as one of the sex 
symbols of the late fifties - an hourglass figure with soft curves.

Bringing up the rear and prodding Jennifer along was Giant 
Johnny. At 6'6" and 250 pounds, he was a very large man for 
Chaos. He tended to use his height and weight to overcome his 
opponents in a fight. He could take a punch to the chin and gut 
very well, to the point where it had almost no effect. His only 
weapon was a club and Sid knew that he was fairly good with it. 
However, the big man never turned down the chance to fight 
unarmed against another unarmed man. Giant Johnny, stupid as a 
post and just as mean as he was stupid, enjoyed the sensation of 
breaking bones with his bare hands. 

The party stopped about ten paces from Sid taking in his relaxed 
posture with his staff clearly in hand for use. Irritated at the delays 
that they had already experienced that day, Smart Art waved Giant 
Johnny up to the front to take care of the problem. As Johnny 
stepped forward, Art challenged, "Who are you to stand in our 
way?"

"I am Sid Jones," answered the young man watching Giant Johnny 
move. The one word that Sid would not use in describing Giant 
Johnny was graceful. The big man had a grin on his face as if he 
were looking forward to a chance to fight someone.

"Why are you here?" asked Art.

Sid looked over at Jennifer and saw that she was uninjured. He had 
expected as much since that would make it easier for them to sell 
her. He answered, "You are trying to sell that young woman into 
an indenture using forged papers. I am here to stop you."

Jennifer reacted to his pronouncement by looking up at the young 
man with hope in her eyes. Her excitement quickly fell as she 
compared him to the three men guarding her. She decided that he 
didn't stand a chance against the giant. Disheartened, she stared at 
the ground hoping that the man wouldn't get killed on account of 
her. So far, her trip to Chaos had been perfectly miserable and it 
promised to get worse. If they sold their forged papers of indenture 
to someone else, the new papers would be legal. She faced a future 
of prostitution to pay off the indenture. 

The fact that the young man knew about the forged papers 
disturbed Smart Art, but he didn't dwell on it. A quick beating by 
Giant Johnny and this guy wouldn't be able to create any problems 
for them. All they had to do was get one person to pay for her 
indenture and they'd get away with at least a thousand conches. He 
laughed and replied, "It's no business of yours. Get out of our 
way."

"I can't do that," replied Sid bracing himself for the attack that he 
knew would come. The time spend stretching had been well 
invested.

"Get him, Johnny."

The huge man lumbered up waving his heavy club as though it 
were as light as a feather. One blow from that club and Sid would 
be history. The story of David and Goliath flashed through his 
mind. Sid didn't waste a moment and jammed the end of his staff 
into the center of the giant's forehead with as much force as he 
could. The big man took another step forward as though 
sleepwalking and then fell to the ground unconscious. Sid stepped 
back to avoid the falling giant, hoping that he hadn't killed him. 

Smart Art shouted in dismay and anger at seeing the big man fall. 
Without a second thought, he raised his sword and charged 
forward with the intent of skewering Sid on the point of his sword. 
Expecting the reaction, Sid stepped to the side while swinging his 
staff to the back of his attacker's head. Art flew past and landed on 
his face, not to move for the next several hours. 

There was only one man left facing Sid and he looked shocked at 
what he had seen. Without waiting for Harold to attack, Sid landed 
a blow across the top of the squat man's head. Sid had a vision of a 
cartoon character crumpling like an accordion as the man went 
down to the ground in a heap. Harold One-Eye would see double 
for the next few days as a result of that blow. 

Facing the amazed young woman, Sid bowed and said, "Greetings, 
Jennifer Secretary of Norwalk."

Jennifer stared at him for a moment unable to believe that he knew 
her real name. Only a hero from Earth could possibly know her 
real name. The smile that broke across the young woman's face 
was priceless. It was motivated by more than a mere rescue from a 
life of prostitution, but the realization of a dream come true. She 
curtsied and, in a voice that promised pleasures untold, said, "I am 
yours to do with as you please."

That was not exactly the response that Sid had expected. Smiling, 
he said, "That must wait for later. For now, we must make good 
your rescue."

Jennifer came over to Sid and took his hand. Her eyes practically 
devoured his body. She had heard rumors about how heroes 
performed in bed. After seeing him in action, she started to believe 
that those rumors were true. She thought that the sooner she was 
off this planet, the sooner she would know the truth. Excited, she 
said, "Yes, let's go."

The sound of a man clearing his throat from a spot beside the road 
caused Sid to spin around with his staff ready to use. Derek, 
leaning against a tree with his arms crossed against his chest, was 
watching them with an amused smile on his face. He wasn't 
amused by the skill he had seen, but the willingness of the woman 
to do whatever Sid might ask. Gesturing with his head towards the 
men on the ground, he said, "You may wish to collect your spoils 
of war before you go. You are entitled to all that they carry."

Surprised to see the man standing there, Sid asked, "What are you 
doing here?"

"We were curious what you were doing and Gregor sent me to 
watch," answered Derek. The strange routine of bending and 
stretching had puzzled him for the first hour that he had watched 
Sid. It reminded him of the sparring matches, but there was no one 
on the road. It was when the men showed up that he realized that 
Sid had been preparing to fight. The fight in the middle of the road 
was an extraordinary example of martial arts. He would remember 
what he had seen for the rest of his life. He nodded in the direction 
of Jennifer and said, "I see that you had a rescue to perform. I shall 
not speculate as to how you knew where to be."

Sid shrugged his shoulders in a gesture that didn't convey anything. 
He was not sure that he trusted Derek. The sudden appearance of 
the man here in the middle of nowhere was rather disconcerting. 
Gregor had asked a lot of questions, most of them dealing with his 
background. He waited to see what the other man would do before 
moving.

Raising an eyebrow at the delay, Derek went over to Giant Johnny 
and retrieved the coin purse. Opening it, he removed the contents - 
three quids and nine pinches. He tossed them over to Sid and 
dropped the coin purse next to the large man. A search of the body 
didn't reveal any other possessions or weapons other than the club. 
Looking up at Sid, Derek asked, "Do you want his club?"

"No," replied Sid as he examined the quid. It was twice the size of 
a pinch, but had four times the gold embedded in the glass.  He 
added the coins to his coin purse.

Derek moved over to Smart Art and removed his coin purse. After 
untying the purse strings, he dumped the coins into his hand and 
shook his hand to spread the coins out so that he could count them. 
Although it wasn't a huge amount of money, it was more than he 
had expected to find on such a low-life. Frowning, he said, "Here's 
another ten shells."

At the statement, Jennifer's eyebrows shot up. She was aware of 
how much money a shell represented. She hadn't expected that any 
of those men had more than one shell ever in their lives, much less 
ten. That much money was two weeks worth of wages and could 
keep a person at an inn for three weeks. 

A pinch was named after a pinch of gold and would buy a meal in 
most inns. Four pinches became known as a quid and two quid 
would pay for one night at an inn. Four quids made up a shell 
because that amount of gold dust would fill a small shell. A shell 
was the basic wage for a day of work. Fifty shells made up a 
conch. Most people would never see a conch although many might 
have that much in savings stashed in a jar buried somewhere.

Sid caught nine of shells while dropping one. He knelt down and 
picked up the one that he had dropped. A shell was twice the size 
of a quid and had four times the gold embedded in the glass. He 
added the coins to his coin purse. He commented, "The guy 
probably robbed someone. It would explain the money and sword."

"They grabbed me a couple of day ago. I don't think he had a 
chance to rob someone."

Sid went over to where Smart Art lay on the ground and picked up 
the sword. Despite the abuse that it had been given, the blade could 
be salvaged. As he examined the blade, he said, "Judging by the 
condition of the sword, he got it a couple of weeks ago."

Derek pointed over at Smart Art and said, "He's got a knife in his 
boot. That's yours if you want it."

After slipping the sword into his belt, Sid searched the boots and 
came up with a knife. It was far better than the knife fragments that 
he had been using up to then. He looked at the bow strapped to the 
back of Smart Art and frowned when he realized that it had 
broken. Bending down, he saw that the wood layers had separated 
a long time before this particular fight. The bow was worthless.

Derek, bending over Harold, commented, "You noticed the bow."

"Bad glue job," said Sid while shaking his head. It was a bad glue 
job coupled with poor treatment that had ruined the bow.

Derek threw a couple coins to Sid as he said, "Here's another three 
quid and six pinches."

Sid added them to his purse, which now was very heavy with 
coins. He tied the coin purse to his belt. He went over to where 
Harold One-Eye lay and kicked away the club. A search didn't 
reveal any other weapons. He looked at Derek squatting on the 
other side of Harold and said, "We're going back the way we 
came."

"Good. I'll walk with you until we reach the orchard," replied the 
man.

Jennifer, still afraid that her ordeal wasn't over, waited until Sid 
had stepped over to her. She whispered to him, "Can we trust 
him?"

"We shall see, won't we," answered Sid with a wink at her before 
glancing over at the man. 

As they walked, Derek replayed what he had seen in his mind. One 
man against three and the one had won with ease. He said, "It took 
you three blows to take out three opponents. I don't feel so bad 
about losing to you when we sparred."

"Thank you. Of course, I knew they'd never had any training," said 
Sid. 

"Why would you think that?" asked the man although the answer 
was obvious to him. 

"They didn't know how to take care of their weapons," said Sid 
with a snort of disdain. The edge of the blade was nicked and it 
would take a major sharpening effort to fix the problem. The bow 
had been ruined by mistreatment. The clubs were basic weapons 
that required no maintenance. 

"You're right," said Derek who had recognized their lack of 
training by the amateur moves they made when attacking. It was 
interesting that Sid had known before they had attacked. He 
walked beside Sid and Jennifer lost in thought as he considered the 
pair. It was an interesting question concerning how Sid knew that 
the woman needed rescuing. 

As they walked down the road, Sid considered what they would do 
about lodging for the night. The delay in waiting for them to arrive 
and then going through their possessions had pushed the time into 
well after noon. The town was too far to make by nightfall. The 
nearest place to stay was the orchard where he had worked and that 
was a good two-hour walk. As far as he could tell, that was the 
only possibility. He would have to pay for a room in the owner's 
house for the night. 

"Sid Jones," said Jennifer as she recalled his name. She didn't 
know much about names on Earth, but the name Jones couldn't be 
all that common. She did not know that her assumption was 
incorrect. With a real sense of hope in her voice, she asked, "Are 
you related to Gerald Jones?" 

"He was my uncle," answered Sid.

"Was? You mean he's dead?" 

"Yes."

"Poor Elizabeth Caretaker. She must be crushed," said the lovely 
woman. For years, women of Cassandra had sung the praises of 
Gerald Jones. Elizabeth Caretaker was the envy of many women 
because she was able to share the bed of Gerald for so such a long 
time. She sighed and said, "All of my land shall mourn his 
passing."

Walking a little off to the side of the couple, Derek listened to the 
conversation with considerable interest. He wasn't sure what land 
Jennifer was from, but it was clearly different than any lands of 
which he knew. In as casual of a tone as he could command, he 
asked, "Who is Elizabeth?"

"The one true love of Gerald's life," answered Sid. 

"That's such a sweet thing to say about her," said Jennifer.

"He loved her more than life and I know that his only regret in 
dying was that he would never feel her in his arms again," said Sid 
knowing in his heart that it was true. After meeting Elizabeth 
Caretaker, he could see how his uncle would love her in such a 
fashion. He was halfway convinced that he felt the same about 
Sally.

The young woman by his side burst into tears. Sid stopped and 
hugged her to him as she openly wept. She kept repeating, "That's 
so romantic."

Derek watched the couple trying to figure out what was going on. 
Although Gregor seemed to know a little about this Gerald Jones, 
he knew nothing. He became convinced that this woman and Sid 
came from the same place, but he didn't know where it was. He 
waited patiently for the woman to calm down so that they could 
return to the orchard.

It took several minutes for Jennifer to recover from the news. 
When she did, they continued on their way despite the fact that she 
was quiet and withdrawn. In an attempt to make conversation, 
Derek asked, "What are you going to do with that sword?"

"I'm going to keep it," answered Gerald. He reached down and ran 
a finger over the grip. He added, "I prefer using a sword over the 
staff."

"You are trained in multiple weapons?" asked Derek surprised at 
the information. If his claim were true, then he would have to be 
one of the greatest swordsmen in the land. 

"Yes," answered Sid. He was trained in weapons that didn't even 
exist on this planet, but he couldn't say that. His uncle had 
suggested that he learn to use a sword, staff, bow, and sling. His 
worst weapon was the sling, but he could still bring down small 
animals with it.

"Not many men take the time to learn multiple weapons," 
commented Derek. The common philosophy among men who 
earned a living with weapons was to study one weapon and master 
it. Taking the time to learn another weapon detracted from the time 
one could spend mastering the first. 

"You never know what is going to happen, so it is best to be 
prepared to use whatever is on hand," replied Sid. 

Derek thought about that in terms of how he had been trained. The 
descendants of nomadic tribesman established the Rider Clan and 
their weapon of choice was a saber since it was easy to use from 
atop a horse. The charges of the Rider Clan were famous 
throughout the land. Since then, almost all members of the clan 
kept to the use of the saber. 

Derek had learned to use a sword in the training camp of the Rider 
Clan and it was the only weapon that he knew. His training had 
included a two-sword technique and he had specialized in it. That 
training had made him a very unusual opponent and a very 
valuable hire. Would multiple weapon skills have the greater 
value? He would have to think that over. He said, "Interesting 
philosophy."

"I take it you have only studied the sword," said Sid. 

"Right," answered Derek. He glanced over at Jennifer to see her 
reaction. She appeared to be totally disinterested in him and totally 
enamored with Sid. 

"Perhaps we can spar again tonight," suggested Sid. 

"Swords?"

"Sure, swords," answered Sid with a smile.

They arrived at the orchard two hours before dinner was to be 
served. Derek left to report to Gregor, while Sid and Jennifer went 
off to locate the owner. It took them a few minutes to find the 
owner. He was working at a barn where the apples were being 
processed. At the door of the building, the first thing that Sid 
noticed were the hundred huge barrels lining the walls. A large 
press was located against the back of the barn and people were 
pouring apples into the press. 

Based on the set up, Sid decided they were making apple juice or 
apple cider. Stepping into the barn, he smelled the unmistakable 
odor of fermentation. He realized the owner was making applejack. 
It made sense that in a world without refrigeration, applejack was 
the best mechanism for getting cash out of a large apple orchard.

Sid watched the owner as he supervised the loading of apples into 
the press, waiting to address the man when he wasn't so busy. 
Before he had waited even two minutes, the owner noticed him and 
then the woman. Both eyebrows shot up in shock at seeing the 
woman. Dropping what he was working on, he headed over to the 
couple. Upon reaching them, he asked, "Are you back to pick 
apples?"

"No sir, I was wondering if you could put my companion up for 
the night in your house," answered Sid. He wasn't worried about 
sleeping on the ground without a bedroll for a third night, but his 
sense of chivalry wouldn't allow him to put Jennifer in that 
situation. 

The owner frowned upon hearing the request. The one thing that he 
didn't want to do was open his house to migrant workers. He 
looked over at Sid and noticed the sudden accumulation of 
weapons. The sword, a knife, and the staff made him a very well 
armed man. Still frowning, he asked, "Just for her?"

"Yes, sir," answered Sid while she answered, "No."

After a quick exchange of looks between the two of them, Sid 
clarified, "Just for her. I'll be outside keeping watch in case there 
are problems."

The suggestion that there might be problems bothered the owner 
even more. He ran a small homestead that his father had built out 
of the wilderness. There was just his wife and kids with three 
regular workers. He asked, "What kind of problems?"

"Sir, three men tried to sell her into indenture with falsified papers. 
They are disarmed, but in the general area," answered Sid.

Worried that they would try to rob him or the workers, the owner 
asked, "Does Gregor know?"

"I'm sure that he knows by now. His man, Derek, was there when I 
rescued Jennifer," replied Sid with a grin. He was sure that Gregor 
knew everything that had happened on the road.

"Let me talk to Gregor and see what he recommends. If he says 
that she's okay, I'll put her up for one night. I don't like to host 
people in my house. I usually offer the bunk in off season, but I 
doubt she'd want to stay in there with my three men," answered the 
owner. It surprised him that Gregor had sent Derek to watch Sid.

"That sounds fair enough, sir," replied Sid getting a surprised look 
from Jennifer in the process. He knew that she had expected him to 
be more forceful in trying to get a room for her and for him. She 
had accepted that he would stay outside to stand watch, but not that 
she might end up out there with him. 

The pair walked off to a place where they could be alone while the 
owner of the orchard went in search of Gregor. When they a good 
distance from everyone else, Sid gestured for her to have a seat on 
the ground. He sat down beside her and apologized, "I'm sorry 
about this, but there are some things you might need to know. This 
is my first rescue and I came into Chaos with nothing, not even a 
weapon."

"Oh," replied Jennifer fully aware that a first time rescue usually 
meant failure. The fact that he chose to go up against three 
opponents on his first time out impressed her. As it was, she could 
hardly complain about her rescue. The fact that he might be able to 
arrange a bed for the night was more than she could expect even 
from an experienced hero. 

He removed his coin purse and poured the coins onto the ground in 
front of him. Her eyes widened at the number of coins that he had 
acquired in his first rescue. For his first time in Chaos, he had 
managed to acquire a lot of money. Sid stacked the coins into three 
piles by denomination. When he finished, he said, "I've got ten 
shells, seven quid, and sixty-eight pinches."

"That's a lot of coins," commented Jennifer realizing there was a 
reason for the coin purse to bulge in the manner it had. He was 
walking around with half a month's wages. She did a mental 
calculation and then said, "I'd trade in forty-eight of those pinches 
for three shells. That'll give you twenty pinches, seven quid, and 
thirteen shells."

"I'll talk to Gregor about doing that," replied Sid. 

"Let me carry the forty-eight pinches. You don't want to count out 
that much money where others can see," suggested Jennifer. She 
had spent almost six months in Chaos and knew some of the 
dangers of life there. Although most of that time had been spent 
working as a maid in a small homestead, she had seen enough to 
know what could happen.

"Good idea," agreed Sid as he handed her the appropriate number 
of coins. This money system was driving him crazy. He hadn't 
been shopping yet so he didn't know how much anything cost. He 
put the rest of his coins into his coin purse and then stood up. 
Reaching down, he helped Jennifer stand. 

She followed him to where Gregor was seated behind the 
paymaster table. As he stepped up, he said, "Hello Gregor. Did 
Derek give you his report?"

"Yes, he did," replied the big man without embarrassment. He 
examined Jennifer, liking what he saw, and commented, "He said 
that you handled yourself quite well."

"He thought I wouldn't?" asked Sid with a grin.

Laughing, Gregor answered, "Let's say you exceeded his 
expectations. That's rare for someone to do."

Turning serious, Sid asked, "Can I exchange some pinches for 
shells?"

The question pleased Gregor and he answered, "You bet. I've been 
running low on pinches. We pay out pinches for each basket, but 
run out after a while. Usually people trade pinches for quids. How 
many pinches do you have?"

"I want to exchange forty-eight," answered Sid as Jennifer set the 
handful of coins on the table. 

Sliding coins off the table in batches of four, Gregor quickly 
counted them. Sid watched thinking it would take him ages to get 
to the point where he could count money that fast. When the last 
pinch disappeared off the table, Gregor dropped three shells onto 
it. Sid picked up the three shells and added them to his coin purse 
while he said, "Thanks."

"Thank you. I was getting worried about being able to pay people. 
This is the last day of picking here and I had thought we'd 
misjudged the number of coins," answered Gregor with a smile. 

"Glad to be of service," said Sid. He turned to Jennifer and said, 
"Allow me to perform introductions. Jennifer, this is Gregor of the 
Rider Clan. Gregor, this is Jennifer Secretary."

The reaction of Jennifer to the identity of the paymaster was 
instantaneous. Almost everyone knew the heads of clans and 
Gregor was third in line for clan leadership. She asked, "You're 
Gregor? The grandson of ..."

Nodding his head at her honest reaction, Gregor answered, "I guess 
I have that dubious distinction. I'm third in line for clan 
leadership."

Sid didn't react since that was not a big deal for him. He didn't 
think much of an inherited title, particularly given his family 
background. Jennifer turned to Sid and commented, "You don't 
seem impressed."

Shrugging, Sid replied, "He's Gregor. I'm Sid. We met and dealt 
with each other like honest men. That impresses me more than his 
position in his clan."

The comment brought laughter to Gregor. The young man 
continually surprised him. It was the first time that he had met 
someone outside the clan who judged him for his deeds rather than 
his name. Even though he was third in line, he stood an equal 
chance with the other four leading contenders at being chosen clan 
leader by the clan council. Leadership of the clan was bestowed on 
the basis of blood, competition, and politics rather than inheritance. 
Most people didn't realize that. Shaking his head, he said, "I like 
you, Sid. I think that we can be friends."

Sid's reply had left Jennifer speechless. She wondered if he 
understood fully with whom he was dealing. It took her a minute to 
realize that Sid cared more about the man than the reputation and 
she turned to examine him carefully. Heroes were very different 
from the men of Cassandra, but knowing that and seeing it were 
two different things. 

"Yes, I think we can."

"I talked to Jack and she can stay in the house tonight. I 
recommended that he charge three quid since he doesn't want it to 
become a regular thing," said Gregor. It had seemed like a fair 
solution to him for both men. He had known that Sid had the 
money since Derek had told him how much he had collected off 
the brigands. It also sent a message to the other workers that it 
would cost more than they could make in a day to stay in the 
house. 

Sid thought about how much work it would be to earn three quid 
by picking apples. It took a minute for him to realize that the cost 
of renting a room had nothing to do with money, but protecting the 
privacy of the owner. He smiled and said, "That's a fair deal for all 
concerned."

"It's highway robbery," countered Jennifer shocked at paying more 
for a bed here than at a typical inn.

"Expensive yes, but robbery no. It protects the owner from having 
the people who are working for him coming to him with the 
expectation that he'll put them up for the night in his own home," 
replied Sid as he pointed to the forty or so people that were 
working in the orchard.

Gregor was impressed that Sid had understood his rationale in the 
offer. Not many people saw the various sides of an issue. It 
convinced him that Sid was in line to take control over the Jones 
clan. Sid had already told him that his weapon wasn't for hire. As 
much as he liked Derek, he knew that the man wouldn't have seen 
the balance in this situation. He would enjoy having Sid as a 
partner, despite the danger that partnering with an honest man 
entailed. Since he was an honest man, it wouldn't be a danger at 
all. 

Jennifer looked around at the migrant workers and realized the 
owner's problem. She wouldn't want them in her house. Shrugging 
her shoulder, she replied, "I see your point."

"Good. Let's get you settled in the house," said Sid.
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