I could have made it a violent scene, and I could have injured – or possibly killed the lot of them.

I didn’t want to, however. Not when that could lead to arrest, to personal injury, and to general unpleasant things.

So I handed over my wallet and kept walking. The identity was false, I could get more money, and it just didn’t matter if I lost it.

I would tell him that I had lost it, however, and so my false identity would be traced.

I smiled to myself. It wouldn’t be worth it for those muggers.

Besides, I was meeting him within five minutes. It was our weekly cafe meeting. We did miss meetings frequently, due to his work, but when we met, it was worth it.

I entered the cafe and came over to sit with him. We ordered our drinks, and exchanged jokes and the weekly update.

I laughed freely, and felt better than I had in a long time.