Several hours later

Dave entered the interview room along with a uniformed cop.

Dave took one of the chairs in front of the scarred iron table on the opposite side from the two men, boys really, while the cop stood by the door. "My name is David Rossi and the man you attacked is my son. You will listen to me gentleman and listen well. I have the money and the connections to make your lives, even more miserable than they are currently, if you don't cooperate."

The two young men quaked at the look on the face of this man with black hair braided with gray. "You nearly ruined my son's livelihood. Your damaged his violin, an antique that has been passed down in his mother's family for generations. You better pray to whatever God you believe in that it can be fixed and you will pay for the repairs, every single cent. If it can't be you're going to owe Spencer $50,000, as that's how much it's worth."
"No crap instruments is worth that much," the older of the boys said bravely and Dave shot him a look that had him shutting his mouth with a snap.

"That crap instrument, as you put it was made by one of the most famous violin makers of his time several hundred years ago. There are very few still in existence, which makes them very valuable. A violin, a Stradivarius, sold at auction just recently for $50 million. You just didn't just damage a valuable antique, you damaged a family heirloom, that's been in my wife's family for at least the last 400 years. We have the documentation to prove its authentic."

The two boys quaked at the look on the man's face. This David Rossi wasn't just pissed he was bloody furious and not only on the attack on his son, but for the damage of a valuable instrument.

"You better be very glad that that beat cop came along and stopped you, when he did or I'd be hitting you with so many lawsuits you'd never pay them all off considering that you've been living on the streets. I'll be looking at my son's violin next and see if it can't be repaired and you better pray it can be, as fixing it will be far cheaper than trying to find him another comparable instrument. The bill will probably still be hefty but certainly easier to pay off then having to replace the instrument entirely. Thank goodness Spencer protected his hands."

"Why does that matter?" asked the other boy and Dave glared at him, causing the younger boy to look down at the table.

"A musicians hands along with their instrument are their livelihood. In other words, it's how they make their living. Do you imagine that once the bones in the fingers have been broken and heal that they'll be exactly the same as they were before they were broken in the first place? A lot of times dexterity is lost, which you need to be a great musician. Even the best surgeon in the world or multiple surgeries can't always fix somebody's hands or any other body part to where they are as good as new. There is also arthritis to consider, as after a bad injury a musician can't exactly play if there's severe pain in his hands now can they? So not only did you damage a very valuable instrument boys you hurt my son, nearly destroyed his livelihood. You could have just robbed him and run off. I know very well you didn't know how valuable that violin was, not many people do, but that doesn't excuse your actions. I understand hunger very well and desperation, but what you did went way beyond good sense. What made you attack him? Was he rude to you? Run into you and not apologize? Did he try to bully you? Insult you? Don't lie to me because, I'll know if you do. I know my son and he would've done none of these things. He's one of the politest young men I've ever met."

The two boys hung their heads in shame. Not only had they damaged an apparently very valuable instrument, not that they had known that, they had attacked the man and not just out of hunger, though that was part of it certainly. They would never admit they had done so, because they felt he had looked weird in his tuxedo with his bowtie, with his hair all slicked back, as if he was just coming from some fancy event, which was no reason to attack someone and beat them up. The man, this Spencer Rossi, had tried to talk them out of such an action, even though the older one had a switchblade pointed at him, which only made them angrier or at least the older one. He had offered his wallet and other valuables but had kept his arms tightly around his violin case and when the older of the two had demanded he hand it over he had refused. The violin case had been wretched from his arms and the case opened and the the older of the two had started to damage it by cutting the strings, since he had a switchblade. The man had watched horrified and then tried to stop them, which is what I had gone him beaten up in the first place. The violin was more valuable to him then his life. If only they had known how valuable it was they would've run off and sold it for a considerable fee. It never even occurred to the older one it wasn't right to steal from some stranger who had never done anything to him or his brother. He had been alone, walking somewhere, late at night and that had been enough. He and his brother had to eat after all. Now, their excuses were seeming feeble, also Spencer's desperation to stop them from destroying his violin ought to have told them something, but then, the older one was only 16 and his brother was only 14, so really what did they know how valuable something was.

"You should also be very glad that my wife had a meeting at the University or she'd be here and you would regret ever being born. She would take such an attack on one of her children like a piranha looking for it's next meal."

Those boys knew they were in a lot of trouble and became even more scared, so were really glad that David Rossi's wife was busy.

"That doesn't even account for what his fiancée would do," Dave added with a malicious look in his eyes. "They just got engaged fairly recently and wedding plans are still in the works."

There was a knock at the door of the interview room and the uniform opened it. "Mr. Rossi, your lawyer is here.

"Now, since you are both underage according the background check that the cops have run and you have no other close family, here's the deal," Dave said, as his lawyer sat down in the other chair.

~~~Spencer and Emily~~~

"Were you serious about the value of your son's violin," This officer Garfield asked as soon as he and Dave had exited the interview room.

"Yes, I was, as I have no reason to lie to those boys, Officer Garfield," Dave said. "Those brothers could've taken my son's money, his expensive wrist unit and everything else and left him with his violin. They would've had plenty to hock to get food and would've eaten well for sometime if they were clever. Spencer would've turned over all his valuables with no trouble, but not his violin. The violin belonged to his great-grandfather, who was the last musician in the family. His mother didn't inherit the gift and neither did her brother. Diana, Spencer's mother, has the certificate of authenticity, as we had it appraised years ago, by a well known appraiser. It's not even really about the monetary value, it's the fact that it belonged to a member of his family he never had a chance to meet, since he died before Spencer was born. Before it belonged to his great-grandfather, it belonged to several other people in his mother's family that showed strong musical talent and they all took care of it and kept it in excellent condition. Spencer unlike so many young people values his history, especially family history. The fact, that it was made by Amati, one of the most famous violin makers of his time makes it even more valuable."

"I've never heard of this Amati," Garfield said.

"I admit that the family isn't as well-known as Stradivarius is," Dave admitted.

"Now them I've heard of," Garfield said.

"I'm not surprised, as they are even more famous, then Amati. Not many people have heard of Amati, not unless you're a musician, a serious one or an appraiser."

"Those boys are in a whole lot of trouble they'll never pay back that kind of money, not even if they worked their whole lives until they were old and gray. Really, you have to consider they are underage, so you can't really hem them in lawsuits when the oldest one isn't even 18 yet."

"I know it," Dave said simply. "But by keeping the threat hanging over their heads it will get them to obey, at least for the time being. I doubt they know that they can't be legally held responsible, because they aren't old enough. Of course, if I was to push this, I could at least take the older one to court and have him tried as an adult, as 16 year olds have been tried in the past, though I know that's usually for much more serious charges, then a mugging and destruction of property. That's one of the reasons I'm willing to help them out, though I won't have them in my home, as I have two children still not of age. I have some friends that will at least see that they're fed and give them house room, as no one so young should be on the street. I can understand stealing to put food in the belly, when you don't have any other choice in the matter, but beating up my son was going to far. If they had broken his fingers then he might never have been able to play again. It really would have depended on how bad the damage was. I'm rather surprised that Johnny didn't try to use his switchblade on my son, which is a good thing or the charges would've been much more serious."

"That's pretty devious," Garfield said admiringly. "You figured they didn't know anything about the law, and since they were underage they are therefore, not really responsible. There are no adults in their lives, since their parents are dead and so is their uncle who was named primary guardian to pay off their debts.

"I'm surprised the parents didn't name someone else just in case. That's what Diana and I did just in case something happens to either one of us. They would go to their brother first of all, but if something happened to Spencer, we named a secondary guardian and even a third choice just in case. That's likely not going to be necessary for Colton is 16 and Emilia is 14, so it really won't be long before they're of age. Spencer would never allow them to struggle along on their own though and they will always have rooms in his home if anything should happen to either Diana or I. Also, they have two more of age siblings, but they're not in a position to take them in as they are still in college. He's also been named executer of our will. It's not money that is an issue, as we've made sure there is plenty to look after any child of ours that is underage and made sure it's available to anybody who is guardian."

"That's a lot of responsibility," Garfield suggested.

"Spencer is more than up too it and could have handled it, even if he had only been 18 when we passed. I don't expect we'll die for at least another decade or two, but it's better to be prepared just in case, since bad things happen all the time."

Garfield nodded at this for it was the responsible thing to do. People didn't always die by natural causes. They could be killed in an accident, they could be murdered, they could be in the wrong place at the wrong time or they could die in a car crash. There were hundreds of ways to die other than natural causes.

"They would've gone into a foster home if they've been picked up by a CPS," Garfield mentioned and Dave nodded.

"I know it, but those foster homes are not always good ones, even if they pass all the checks and balances in place to prevent potential abuse. I lost my parents when I was just a wee lad of five and I ended up in a foster home. Some of them weren't to bad, while others were. I would never wish that experience on any child, even if I know it happens. Not having roots, as you're shuffled from home to home every couple of years. I was lucky that the last one I was in, the couple actually cared about me. They were an older couple who couldn't have children. They finally signed up for the fostering program. They're the first ones that noticed my talent on the piano that they had in the living room and hired me a tutor. I got a scholarship to Juilliard when I was 18 and the rest they say is history."

Officer Garfield understood better exactly why David Rossi was willing to help the two brothers reach their potential. They were orphans and at one time Rossi had been an orphan himself, which led to a certain empathy, for the brothers situation. Most people would have immediately labeled them as bad seeds and just ignored the situation, they wouldn't have dug underneath to find out the boys actual situation. Mugging was often an act of desperation, to have money for food and other basic needs. Of course, this was not always true as some did it just because they could.

"Now, it's time to check out my son's violin, see what the damage is. I don't want Spencer to see it, until I know if it can be repaired or not. I'm not sure he'll ever get over the loss of his great-grandfather's violin if it is too damaged to be fixed," Dave said.

"Let's hope that's not the case then," Garfield said and Dave nodded soberly

"I hope it's not," Dave said. "Musicians can become attached to the instruments they play, as it's like a lover or an old friend. This is particularly true for those who spend their lives making music."

Garfield was nodding at this as he understood. People could get attached to a whole lot of things, and they got upset when they were damaged or lost. Garfield took Dave to where the violin was, which was the evidence room.

Garfield came back with the case and Dave opened it on one the desks that the cops used.

Garfield saw Dave subtly wince at the damage. The strings were broken, as if cut, Garfield noticed, the handle or whatever that was called, was partly broken as well, though it was still hanging on by a piece of wood, a couple of the pegs were also missing entirely.

"I think it can be repaired," Dave said at last. "It might not sound exactly the same once it is, but it should be playable, though whether Spencer will be able to use it professionally again is the question. I know some good luthiers, that can repair the damage. The neck is the worse as the pegs and the strings can be replaced and have been in the past. I'm going to insist that Spencer put steel strings on it instead of using synthetic ones like he was. Steel strings won't break, like synthetic will, nor can they be cut with something like a pocket knife. That's the way most musicians string their instruments with nowadays. It looks like that beat cop came along just in time to prevent more serious damage. Spencer will be pleased."

Garfield suspected that that Rossi's son would be ecstatic that his violin could be repaired and it also meant the two brothers got off more lightly than they deserved when it came to payment.

Of course, being underage meant the brothers couldn't really be held responsible for any bills until they reached 18. Garfield had watched as the Rossi lawyer had worked out a deal with the two brothers, with the child representative present since neither was 18. The child representative had arrived shortly after the lawyer had. Really, the entire incident hadn't taken more than a few hours. The child representative had agreed to place the two boys in the care of Dave's friends once a background check was performed to make sure they were suitable guardians and Dave's friend had agreed to take them in and provide them with new clothes, food and so forth. In exchange though, the boys would work at whatever jobs they could get after school in order, to pay for the repairs on the violin. They were told they would be very lucky if the violin could be repaired as that was far less expensive than having to replace it. It might still be several thousand dollars but that was better than 50,000.

Both boys agreed, all their arrogance gone when presented with the consequences of their actions, thankful that they were not going to have to pay 50,000 as there was no way they would make that in all their lives. It was only because they were so young that they were getting off more lightly, particularly the younger brother, who was only 14 and following his older brother's lead. At the very least the older of the two could've ended up in Juvie Hall while his brother was put into foster care. Johnny, who was the older of the two, was grateful for his brother at least, grateful that neither he or Clint would have an official sheet though a report would be filed if only because the man they had a beat up had agreed to drop the charges. It was only because of their age they were getting off so lightly and they knew it

He was only glad that this particular incident had ended so happily, as so many of them didn't.

~~~Spencer and Emily~~~