Susan wanted to get out of here. She hovered at Archie’s elbow, tightening her grip on the paper bag as if she might turn and dash away at any time. But Archie’s attention was on the gun in his hand. He lifted it to his face and inhaled deeply, smelling it. Then he reached into the pocket of his pants and produced a magazine of bullets and loaded the weapon. He did it like he did it all the time, though Susan realized that she’d never seen Archie fire his weapon the entire time she’d known him.

“I heard you had too many pills and passed out, my friend,” Jack said from the desk. “I thought you’d left.”

Susan glanced anxiously at Archie. It was no secret that Archie had struggled with a pill addiction, and Jack was probably full of shit, but she still wanted Archie to deny it. Archie met Susan’s gaze silently, and she looked away, embarrassed.

“Where’s Star?” Archie asked Jack.

Star? Susan practically coughed. That’s why Archie had come? To find the stripper? She adjusted her grip on the bag. “Please,” she said. “Let’s go.”

Archie just stood there, his gun in his hand at his side.

Jack’s grin widened slowly. “You want another crack at her?” he asked.

“Where is she?” Archie repeated.

“She’s working,” Jack said, and he made a humping motion with his hips to illustrate.

Susan waited for Archie to respond. Jack’s comment hadn’t registered on Archie’s face at all, but she knew that it had bothered him. Archie didn’t like men who talked disrespectfully about women. He didn’t even like men who talked disrespectfully about Gretchen Lowell, and she murdered people for sport.

“I’ll be right back,” Archie said to Jack, and then he turned and put his hand on Susan’s back and shepherded her toward the door.

“Wait,” Susan said, pulling away from him. She wanted to go, but she did not want to be herded, and she certainly was not going to leave without Archie. “Tell me what’s going on.”

Archie glared at her. His brown eyes looked bleary. He had that look, that look that said, Don’t ask me questions—just follow my lead. “You’re going home,” he said.

Cooper was still leaning up against the wall. He cleared his throat. Susan looked over at him. He said one word: “Go.” She didn’t even see his lips move. It was hard to know for sure he’d even spoken.

Susan’s skin itched.

She had the feeling then that everyone in the room knew something that she didn’t. She adjusted the bodice of the dress, feeling the tender heat of the rising welts under her armpits. She was tired. She wanted to go home. She looked at Archie and nodded reluctantly.