“I don’t doubt it. Now then—what is our decision? Are you going to kill me, or will you give me back my gun?”

“My gun.” Such a little phrase, and yet it sliced through me as neatly as a paper cut. I was searching for a response when the door at the far end of the station slammed open and nearly fell from its hinges. The gatekeeper woke but could not get to his feet before Eddie Thorne stormed in, leapt onto the platform, and marched our way.

“You!” he howled. “You brat!”

“Quiet, Edward,” said Barbarossa. “The adults are talking.”

“She has a gun.”

“Obviously.”

“She hit me. She knocked me out. She snuck in here t-t-to—”

“Be quiet this instant, or I’ll let every man in the outfit know you were knocked unconscious by a five-foot-tall woman.”

“I trusted you,” he moaned.

“I’m sorry,” I said, and nearly meant it.

“I’ve known you since you were born. I thought we were, well, I thought we were friends.”

“Oh for god’s sake,” said Barbarossa, “you pathetic scrap heap of a human being. Grab a rag and act useful. Still fourteen needs scrubbing. There’s a bottle of raw whiskey in it for you if you make her shine.”

Thorne broke, lowered his head, and reached for a rag. While Barbarossa sneered at him, I dropped the pistol back into my bag. I’d come for the sake of my mother’s honor, but the way Barbie bullied Eddie Thorne reminded me that my mother had no taste for revenge, even against a woman who stole her husband’s heart.

She grinned when she saw my hands were empty. She swept toward her private subway car, and I followed her across the bridge. In the tunnel, the shadows stirred again. I admit, I flinched at the sight. Barbie waved, and they settled, and I realized for the first time that there were at least twenty boys there, waiting in the dark.

The door to the car was heavy blue wood. Across its top, in tall proud letters, was written “Fourth Precinct.”

“Did you steal this off the precinct house hinges?” I asked.

“I didn’t have to. I asked for it, and they gave it to me. I keep it here to remind those rats who they work for.”

She said it just loud enough for Thorne to hear. A tiny mystery solved.