Tim’s Tenth Trade

“How could he resist me?” Tim asked, “Usually everyone just obeys as if it’s no big deal.”

“You’ve been spoiled,” Justice said in a very patronizing tone, “You've finally encountered someone with enough authority to resist. How’s it feel to not be top dog?”

“I was too worried about getting shot to think about being top dog,” Tim said, his girlish voice making him sound petulant, “Honestly, this was the first time using my authority would have mattered for anything other than sex, and it blew up in my face.”

“Almost blew up,” old woman Justice corrected, “I put a stop to that. You’re welcome, by the way.”

“Thanks,” he said, “and I don’t mean to be ungrateful. You’ve saved my life three times now.”

“Babe,” she croaked, “you’ll never know how many times I’ve saved your life. Three is just the amount you know about. Each one of your trades has changed the course of your fate, each time setting you on a new path toward better things that would never have come your way. Even today,” she waved her hand toward the man aiming the gun, “you’ll come out of this with your life improved. I’ll make sure of it.”

“But how can I change it?” Tim turned to his would-be killer, “should I just trade for the gun?”

“Won’t work,” she said, “too many guns in room. If you were in this bar waving a gun around, you’d already be dead. Every one of these goons fears and respects their boss too much to let anything bad happen to him.”

“That’s it! I need his respect! If I take that, they won’t let anything bad happen to me!” Tim snapped his fingers at the idea.

“Hmmm…” Justice wiggled her fingers as she considered, “it just might work. A little risky, but I think… yes, it’s a great idea!”

Without hesitation, she began to fan her hand in front her face, weighing out the trade options. She hummed and hawed, completely engrossed in her options. Then she paused, a smile growing on her cracked and wrinkled face.

“This’ll do nicely,” she said.

Then, before Tim could ask for clarification, Justice punched a fist forward, which briefly smoked, waved both hands over her head, then announced, "It is done! The trade is complete.

“Now you be a darling,” Justice said without missing a beat, “and try to get that poor girl out of jail. I have a few things to attend to, so I’ll see you later to check on your progress.”

The familiar metallic smell filled the air, and she vanished, leaving Tim wondering not only what he had lost, but whether he would live through the next few minutes.