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“Colittery replica of her mother’s in the surveillance picture he’d stared at far too long It changed Katie’s aard features—the proood solid glimpse of the beauty Katie O’Neill would be “A card trick Just one”

He couldn’t say no to that smile, or to a bored kid He re in the car for hours on end while his father “worked” in soa off his hands

“Let’s see what you got,” he said with a s the lines of Go Fish

With a flourish that would have ed, the cards a blur in her hands

“You’ve done this before?” he asked, lifting his eyebrows

“Watch the queen of hearts,” she said, flashing hi into a flimflam routine that would have worked on any corner in the city fifty years ago “You watching?”

“Oh, I’ the nine of clubs, which had been next to the queen

Katie gave hilimpse of the queen then tucked her seamlessly behind the nine “You see her?”

“I know exactly where she is”

Katie scoffed, her eyes bright, and fanned the cards, facing him with a flourish “Pick her”

And he did, right away, tucked behind the nine Katie’s face fell “You’ve got to work harder than that to fool me at cards Don’t hide the mark under the closest card Pick a different card a few spots away” He took out the queen and moved her behind the three of spades, which was halfway across the deck

“You play cards?” Katie asked

“Some”

“Poker?”

He laughed, airl’s capacity to surprise him “I’ve played before”

Her ice-blue eyes narrowed “You a shark?” she asked