First of all, the one who receives me at the ranch is none other than Newt.

"John!"

"Newt?!" I ask him with a hint of urgency. This is the last place I want him to be in right now. "What are you even doing here?"

"Mr. Sunderland sent the ranch people to pick me up very early in the morning, but they didn't tell me why yet."

"You need to get out of here as fast as you can," I tell him, before someone else can hear us. "There's shit going on here, and you don't want to be involved."

"What are you talking about? You were the one who introduced me to all these people."

"I know, and I'm sorry, but please listen to me, there's something fishy here."

"Charlie, we're ready... oh, John!" Ralph cuts us out, followed by Ajax. "Shouldn't you be in class?"

"Shit happened," I tell him faking enthusiasm. "What are you ready for?"

"Oh, you're going to love this," Ajax says, cracking his knuckles.

"Let's all go to the factory," Ralph says with a simple smile on his face.

"What are you guys going to do at the factory?" I ask, suspicious.

"Well," Ralph replies. "You know how you wanted Eugene to be more... assertive when it comes to punishing people who misbehave?"

"What of it?"

"We have all four of them at the factory right now."

All four of them? I thought that the guy who shot Dad would at least be in jail by now.

Ajax chips in, "We're going to have some fun, baby!"

And the three of them walk toward the van that is already running and ready to go. I follow them on instinct, momentarily forgetting about the whole plantation thing. Punishing people who misbehave? Eugene? I wouldn't miss that for the world.

"You people never cease to amaze," I tell Ralph, with a bit of sarcasm, sure, why not? "There's not a single time you're not up to something, is there?"

"I'd say we lead a very peaceful life down here," he replies. "Right now we're building the house for Winston and his two kids, as we did for everyone else who didn't have anywhere to go."

He goes quiet for a few seconds as he climbs on the back of the truck. Ajax escorts Newt to the backseats of the truck and they go in, so out of options, I climb on the back of the truck.

"The pot got stirred a lot that time you fought Rude," Ralph explains. "We were too busy with the ranch to keep track of what was happening outside. That's why we never noticed about Charlie and his mother being attacked the way they were, for example."

"I suppose that makes sense..." I say, as we drive across the potato fields. I notice not a soul is working the fields today. They must be all at the old factory waiting for us. Which reminds me of what Scar showed me today, the real reason why I'm here to begin with. And since it's only the two of us in the back of the truck, I just talk to Ralph about it. "So, Ralph. I found a marijuana plantation on the backyard."

He narrows his eyes at me. "You found that? All by yourself?"

"That's what I do when I skip school. I randomly find things," I say, now with full-on sarcasm. "What's that about anyway?"

"You'll have to talk to Eugene about that," he replies with finality. "He's the one with the answers you seek. And whatever way he explains it to you, remember I don't want us to be doing that kind of dung."

He ruminates on the matter for a second while the truck leaves the ranch. Then he adds: "It goes without saying that you shouldn't talk about this with anyone other than Eugene."

"Duh."

Even though Abigail also knows about this, but she made me promise I'd keep her out of it. So far I'm doing pretty good.

We don't talk anymore until we get to the factory. There's another truck parked out there, and a police car, of all things.

We all get off the vehicle and walk past the big cop that was at home the other day and Dave from the ranch to enter the building. Charlie hides behind me when he sees the three guys that attacked him in this very factory on their knees, hands on their backs, surrounded by ranch people. One of them catches sight of me and says: "God damn you, Foster, I knew you had something to do with this!"

One of the guys from the ranch wastes no time in placing a strip of duct tape over his mouth, but it's enough to catch Eugene's attention, whom I didn't see until he says my name.

"John! What are you doing here?" Someone else is helping him put on bandages around his hands, like he's ready to get in a brawl. "Aren't you supposed to be in class right now?"

"I asked him the same thing..." Ralph replies for me.

"I am also supposed to be attending Maple Heights High School," I say, because pushover John is somewhere doing pull-ups at Abigail's. "Doesn't matter. What's going on here?"

"Well, as you can see, we're having a gathering," says the officer by the door. "The people from Utopia Ranch have agreed to keep the streets of Maple Heights safe in exchange for us overlooking their past... endeavors."

"And we will live up to that promise," Eugene finishes, and the other guy doing his bandages also helps him take of his shirt, revealing the bundle of muscle hiding underneath his clothes. He's built like a boar, and every muscle looks like a slab of concrete. He puts on some boxing gloves, and makes a sign so the scrawny officer brings Allen, the guy who shot dad, and takes off his cuffs. It looks like it's going to be settled in a fist fight.

And by the looks of terror of the kids from school, they're in the front row for the spectacle.

"Allen!" booms the mighty thunder of Lord Zeus himself. "First, we warned you that the Newton family was under our personal protection, and yet you got your minions to bring harm to the Newton kid."

"That has nothing to do with me, Sunderland."

"Second!" Zeus' roar shakes the foundations of the entire building as he speaks. "You broke the code of honor of The Fist, to keep our business out of Maple Heights. Yet you not only assaulted that kid's father in broad daylight, you also shot them both."

Allen spits on the ground in front of him. "That's what I think of your so-called 'code of honor' you came up with all by yourself. Lazarus would have your head on a pike if he knew of this."

"Lazarus is no more. My law is the only law for us. And you will abide to it or pay with blood." Eugene says to finish his speech, and gets his stance ready, launching himself forward.