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A heavy pall of defeat lay over the place The vigilantes were gone, but the point had been h Moiven her life for this strike, it would be broken If not today, then to, desperate people could only fight for so long
She passed a feo in lines—for the showers, for the bathrooms, for the laundry—and nizewith new folks, ready to pick for any wage to put food on the table
The cahts on inside, ready to trap more unwary newcomers into debt
Loreda opened the door cautiously, peered in
 
; No customers
She breathed a sigh of relief
She let the door bang shut behind her and did her best to swagger forward in her boy’s disguise She kept her eyes cast doard
There was a new ister, one she had never seen before
A lucky break
Loreda raised the shotgun and aimed it at him
The man’s eyes widened “What’re you doin’, son?”
“I’ister”
“We’re a credit business”
“Don’t insult un “You ready to die for Welty’s money?”