Gerry paused in mid-stride, then seemed to deflate. He turned away.
"Come on, guys," he said. "Let's get out of here. We'll take care of this later."
As the three disappeared down the hall, Don turned back. Pete was staring at him curiously.
"How do you do that?"
"Do what?"
"Oh, you know what I mean." Pete shook his head impatiently. "Make people do things. There's only one of you and three of them. And they're all bigger than you are. Why did they just do what you told them without making a lot of trouble?"
Don shrugged, then touched the button in his lapel.
"They were in the wrong and they knew it. They've got enough trouble now. Why should they look for more?"
Pete shook his head again. "They didn't have to give their names," he said. "All you did was tell them to."