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I shrugged and handed the photo back to her "Yeah, she comes in here-her and half the cops on the force The food happens to be excellent At least she’s a better tipper than most of those other crooked, black-hearted sons of bitches So what?"

"Has she been in here today?" Gentry asked, her pale blue eyes locked onto my face "Will she be in toave her an a barbecue on a daily basis to keep up with one person’s schedule But no, I don’t think that she’s been in here today, and she probably won’t be because we’re going to close a little early because of the weather What’s your interest in her, anyway?"

Gentry tucked the picture back into her coat pocket "No reason"

I gave her a bored look, as though I couldn’t have cared less about whatever she was up to, and went back behind the counter For the next thirtyto iving change But I kept one eye on Gentry and Sydney

The bounty hunter looked over everyone in the restaurant in between bites, her eyesfrom one face, one body, to the next in a slow, deliberate way Sydney was irl wolfed down her cheeseburger and fries in threeher another plate of food Sydney ry, but I didn’t think that Gentry was the one who had starved her The girl gave the bounty hunter an adoring, grateful look for ordering her the second burger and made a visible effort to eat it a little slower than she had the first one A sad, weary smile creased Gentry’s face at Sydney’s obvious efforts to please her

The two of them reminded me of Fletcher and the relationship I’d had with the old rateful to Fletcher for rescuingfor hiratitude toward Gentry I wondered hat bad thing had happened to the girl that Gentry had rescued her from Maybe Finn could find out for me, since I’d asked him to look into the bounty hunter

Curiosity It as stayingGentry into the alley and stabbing her to death Ah, curiosity It always got the best of me, even when I should have known better

I should just have gutted Ruth Gentry where she sat The bounty hunter had already proven that she was s stupid and pointless like staking out the police station or Bria’s house, Gentry had thought to come to the Pork Pit instead-a place whereout That showed me the bounty hunter was definitely someone to be wary of

I let Gentry and Sydney finish their meal in peace Eventually, they ca the way, Gentry had found a toothpick in one of her pockets that she’d stuck in one corner of herher a hillbilly air

"That was a fineup with some small, crumpled bills

The motion pushed back her jacket, and I spied the pearl revolver sitting in a holster on her black leather belt

"Thanks," I un "But I can’t take all the credit Most of it goes to my cook over there"

Gentry’s eyes flicked to Sophia, lingering on the spiked, black leather collar around her neck She tipped her head to the dwarf "My thanks then"

Sophia just grunted and turned back to the stove

While I totaled the order and e, lass cake stands full of sinfully sweet sugar cookies that sat on the counter Hunger and longing filled her hazel eyes, but she bit her lip and looked away froaze hurt worse than a knife ripping intothat way once upon a ti on the Ashland streets I’d spent hours staring in through restaurant s and longing for all the food I saw inside-food that was hot, clean, and free of the wor out of the Dumpsters Oh yes, I’d stood outside those restaurants, and I’d stared in, hunger twisting ht they would never straighten out again

Some sort of wild, crazy ee down on the counter Before I knew quite what I was doing, I’d lifted the glass lid on the stand of cookies, gathered the, which I shoved into the girl’s thin chest Sydney stared down at the pig logo printed on the side of the bag, the longing in her eyes so bright and hard that it took my breath away

"Take ’e ready to close, and they won’t be eaten tonight"

Surprise filled the girl’s thin face, followed by a htened around the bag,it had been since she’d had so it had been since so nice for her I wondered-I wondered too fucking much Saw tooirl asked in a faint, whispered voice, looking over at her mentor "Please?"

Another sad s her look old, small, and tired "Of course, Sydney Just remember your manners to the nice lady"

Nice lady? If Gentry only knew that I was the one that she was looking for-that I was the Spider The wanted assassin who could net her upward of five million dollars Gentry would snatch those cookies out of Sydney’s hands and draw her revolver faster than I could palm one of my silverstone knives

Sydney beamed at her, then me "Thank you, ma’am"

"It’s Gin," I quipped "Like the liquor Not ma’am I hate it when people call y around the cookie that she’d already stuffed into her e from the counter and passed it over to her The bounty hunter took it and stared atthat only she knew or could even see

For a ured it out If she realized exactly who I was

But then, when she didn’t draw her revolver, I knew that she hadn’t and that she wouldn’t Because how could an assassin like the Spider, a cold-hearted killer, ever do soirl?

"Thank you, Gin," Gentry said in a soft voice "For everything"

"No proble the part of the simple restaurant owner once ave me a small smile "We will"

Then she put her arm around Sydney, as on her third cookie, and the bounty hunter and her apprentice left the Pork Pit