After the execution of the pirates—which, although done at their request, also served as an effective show of force—everything went smoothly in the town of Sta. Cruz.
I still had to personally visit some members of the principalia who couldn't attend the meeting or witness the execution due to age, distance from town, or in some cases, both. But when I showed up with twenty men and an authoritative, sometimes angry façade, most of them bent their knees. Pedro's maternal grandfather remained stubborn, but thankfully, his son—now effectively in control of the estate—was far more reasonable.
I decided to keep the copra storehouses as the barracks for Pedro's men. I liked their location—out of the way from the town's daily activity—and the fact that the two structures were spacious.
