Page 8 of Look at Her and Die

I winced, forgetting where I was for a second as I thought about how life had turned out.

“Just the plain grilled cheese. But add mayo and tomato. Fries with jalapeño sauce.” I handed him the menu that was useless.

He nodded, not bothering to take a thing down, and left without another word.

My gaze once again went to the blonde bombshell.

Which was also why I saw her come in.

“Fuck,” I grumbled, my eyes closing and my head dropping.

“What…oh,” Cutter said. “Fuck’s right.”

Three

I’d grill your cheese.

—Searcy’s secret thoughts

SEARCY

“What kind of name is Searcy for a girl?”

I looked at the old lady that came in like clockwork every Wednesday afternoon.

I liked her.

She said what she wanted, and was unapologetic about it.

She didn’t complain, either, when I got her food order wrong.

I wasn’t like my brother.

I couldn’t remember everyone’s order without writing it down.

Sometimes, I had to write it down, then double check to make sure that I’d read what I’d written down correctly.

Most of the time I got it right.

Sometimes, I could barely read my own handwriting.

“The kind of name I had no part in choosing,” I returned as I placed the food down in front of her. “You want a refill on coffee?”

“Nah,” she said. “I drink too much of it, and it makes me have to shit.”

I didn’t bat an eye at her words.

I’d heard them often enough.

“Okay,” I said. “I’ll bring over a water.”

“Dr Pepper,” she said. “That’s the only reason I’m living right now. I don’t pollute this temple with water.”

I snorted and walked away, getting her a Dr Pepper and taking it back to her table.

When I got back to the kitchen, the food for Koda’s three-top came up, so I grabbed it up and started to take it over.

When I got there, there was a woman standing up at the edge of the four-person table, and three men in leather sitting down, staring at her expectantly.

---