The girl stopped in front of him.
Her hands were cupped together, holding crumpled bills and coins so tightly her knuckles had gone pale. She looked up at Ethan’s vest, then at his face.
“I need to hire you.”
Ethan blinked.
For a second, the parking lot disappeared and he saw Lily standing in their old kitchen, holding a broken toy in both hands and asking him if he could fix it before bedtime.
He swallowed.
“Hire me?” he repeated quietly.
The girl nodded once.
Her hands trembled, but her voice held steady.
“I have money.”
Ethan looked down.
In her palm were crumpled singles, quarters, pennies, two nickels, and one dime stuck to the corner of a dollar by sweat.
Seven dollars, maybe.
Maybe less.
He slowly lowered himself into a crouch so he was not towering over her.
Behind him, the Iron Saints stayed silent.
“What’s your name?” Ethan asked.
“Ava.”
“Okay, Ava.” He kept his voice soft. “What do you need help with?”
She pressed her lips together.
The little cut near the corner whitened.
“My mom.”
Those two words landed harder than anything else she could have said.
Ethan felt the men behind him change. Big Joe stopped pretending not to listen. Mason’s restless expression vanished. Luis dropped his cigarette and crushed it without lighting it.
Ethan stayed crouched.
“Where is your mom?”
Ava looked toward the road, then toward the diner windows, then back at him.
“At home.”
“Is she hurt?”
Ava’s eyes filled fast, but no tears fell.
Kids in safe houses cry easily. Kids in dangerous houses learn to hold tears like contraband.
“She told me not to tell,” Ava whispered.
Ethan’s chest tightened.
“Did someone hurt you too?”
She looked down.
That was answer enough.
Ethan held out one hand, palm up, but did not touch her.
“Ava, I need you to listen real careful. You are not in trouble. Nobody here is mad at you. But if your mom is hurt, we need to get help.”
“I tried,” she said quickly.
“Tried how?”
“I called 911 last night from Mrs. Darlene’s phone, but I hung up because he came outside.” Her voice got smaller. “He said if police came, they’d take me away from Mom because she can’t protect me.”
Ethan closed his eyes for half a second.
When he opened them, the world looked sharper.
“What’s his name?”
“Ray.”
“Is Ray your dad?”
She shook her head.
“My mom says he’s her boyfriend. But he lives there now.”
“Where is your dad?”