This reminds me of an experience I once had. The office where I worked was in a bad part of town. That's why we had a six foot tall, barbed wire topped chain link fence around our parking lot. One day after work, I was in the parking lot transferring some equipment from my company vehicle to my personal car. I noticed this "character" walking down the sidewalk toward our gate. Something told me he had me targeted. Carrying was strictly against company policy and would result in termination. So all I had on me was a .32 auto Davis Deringer because I could drop it in my pocket and it would just disappear. Anyway I took it out of my pocket, pushed off the cross bolt safety, and curled my thumb around the half cocked hammer.
Sure enough the guy came through our gate and walked toward me. I stood facing him with my hands on my hips. What he couldn't see was the deringer concealed in my right hand. As he approached me he said in a gruff voice, "You know what I want?" I answered in just as gruff a voice, "No, what?" I had been looking him right in the eye the whole time.
He stopped approaching me so quickly that he almost stumbled and his demeanor instantly changed. His first manner and tone of voice convinced me his original intention was to mug me if I didn't just give him what he wanted. But my reaction to him convinced him that he had made a mistake in his victim selection process.
He stuttered a little then in a begging tone asked if I could give him 50 cents to get something to eat. I continued to look him in the eye and said no. He then started talking to me and three times he acted like he was leaving, but turned around and came back. After he finally left, I watch him walking down the sidewalk until he was well away from my area.
Those people are predators and like any predator they tend to prey on the weak and vulnurable. I never had to show the deringer but just having it ready for instant use if needed gave me the confidence to stand up to him. If I had shown any weakness or back up I think he would have been on me in a heartbeat. Those times he acted like he was leaving, he was just hoping I would let down my guard and go back to what I was doing.
Sure enough the guy came through our gate and walked toward me. I stood facing him with my hands on my hips. What he couldn't see was the deringer concealed in my right hand. As he approached me he said in a gruff voice, "You know what I want?" I answered in just as gruff a voice, "No, what?" I had been looking him right in the eye the whole time.
He stopped approaching me so quickly that he almost stumbled and his demeanor instantly changed. His first manner and tone of voice convinced me his original intention was to mug me if I didn't just give him what he wanted. But my reaction to him convinced him that he had made a mistake in his victim selection process.
He stuttered a little then in a begging tone asked if I could give him 50 cents to get something to eat. I continued to look him in the eye and said no. He then started talking to me and three times he acted like he was leaving, but turned around and came back. After he finally left, I watch him walking down the sidewalk until he was well away from my area.
Those people are predators and like any predator they tend to prey on the weak and vulnurable. I never had to show the deringer but just having it ready for instant use if needed gave me the confidence to stand up to him. If I had shown any weakness or back up I think he would have been on me in a heartbeat. Those times he acted like he was leaving, he was just hoping I would let down my guard and go back to what I was doing.