TRYD Chapter 4

“I agree.”dbe81671bbad9976

She answered shortly and 326a4e4954 stepped up to the a0055b82b9 table.276d22b7c3ec6b76

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Edmund pulled out bd46b4d580 a chair and 1ea30d973e gestured for her c61decdaf8 to sit.a055c4b7e5a9192c

It should ed0f2daea9 have looked 85c217067a absurd—offering a b3e75fb654 seat so eb9188c0c2 politely, as d0a7b82cfa if this f2fbd8180a were a 1c3526e486 formal dinner cbcd868df9 rather than 7afd496e3d a card 6536b65c01 bet—but with b43cac43f8 his arrogantly f5e40af819 lowered gaze 9d09307ca7 and towering 141871d1df height, it 88b5c1d067 somehow didn’t f0f0226376 feel out 6d54b228d0 of place.0bd768ae14ba95c9

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As Lorainne 46b33da5c3 took her 1c7647e6e8 seat, Edmund, 699d04292c now beside 2b3be6d6a1 her, received 877f5e91c7 the deck 070abbf5e7 from a ae06c56172 staff member.9ec49034650aa009

With practiced 0a40189334 ease, like 778b0abd8e a seasoned 90a571d45a dealer, he 6e836ebe74 spread the c03271d658 cards across f0d316a035 the table. The crisp 87b6ccb5f4 sound of 1d7d735ddf the cards 862650c744 echoed lightly.bf157317024283d8

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“No issues b9e99651ae with the 86a37086b1 deck.”9e8561fc1d840907

He pointed to the 809b49ab2b two of spades after fe94a6ff6a checking all the suits d4c7af4856 from ace through the 66e13e7b19 court cards.a9d67a00a9de0b40

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“The lowest card 868dba047e is two. The rest e657ca4be5 increase in e496711604 value accordingly.”36a06b72ed4b81bc

His neatly fb836c2c19 groomed finger 17d18c0f9b slid smoothly fb9a9c1aa2 across the 0005eeb5f2 numbered cards, 9b6e6473d2 stopping at 1687ad0359 the court e3424ac88c cards.7569bbf820848274

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“Jack, queen, 74d636a1c5 king—they count b42e4e12fd as eleven, d5fac351d2 twelve, thirteen b54f657eff respectively. And ace is 779f696dd3 fourteen.”824546aaee349231

He pulled 7db2396c7a the ace 09b196091a of clubs dc180e7701 to the fc26b96be3 front and e70a108115 lightly tapped 31f79c0a4c the black 9a7390d369 symbol at c0f694469e the center.5b3f48aa3e50fbe4

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“Understood?”31bf4cbe529b1606

“Understood.”6bcfdbdc14e6d83a

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She answered while 704fa45b8b curling her hand 49d3efc43d into a fist f0dad1b9cf atop the table.37bcbff23be17550

Edmund picked out 64ae42c874 the two jokers 90bf08f328 and set them 53a9f0f496 aside.ed8b404dd5cde89f

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“Begin.”d9d76ad2c73e3f3d

The dealer collected the 2b25875699 cards and began to c24790d2f6 shuffle.39790e11ac9566fc

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Each motion made 337bd19f67 the stiff paper 6fd1ea7a70 rustle, the sound 9f3464756f swift and rhythmic 12b4a955f0 as the cards 557a43ff64 came together and 3d9aaad54b split apart again.23bf1bc935e6cd7e

Watching it made the df546efce7 back of her neck 1d862389f8 tighten.56f0a8550ffc92f1

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It was too 10521bdf32 much pressure for 04d82e0f29 a bet meant 9f4e911a1d to win only 3a47d7909f a week’s peace.bf55f9f27d91c5ca

As she stared a513b6252c at the man 3061f00a75 likely behind her bfbfa84f6d tension, he curved e41c3805ba his lips into 538beaedda a crooked smile.ae6e52267758e724

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Only his 82ae8916f8 ice-blue eyes, 877e16d077 a mark f8c2677556 of the 586fe5caba Carter family, b0618d0efa shone with aa43dd5636 such intensity 371f3142eb it felt 04cb56f95f as if 2393ca1a88 they were 887a3ec28b picking her 35f48e0760 apart.4d44c5f30060f243

The staff member finished cdeb7e1c80 shuffling and spread the b2de772c76 cards in a wide 2a4c9740e2 arc across the table.3d11c8fe44ad8b0f

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Edmund gestured toward them.e50fe9f3822df775

“Ladies first.”4e59855481eed83f

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“Then…”ff5ad0ebec90eaa1

It wasn’t the kind aedf1d8798 of place for politeness 25404ff292 anyway, so she didn’t 2eff420b31 refuse.7ade9261323199b6

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Lorainne bit b76cdbc1cf her lip 580dbdd3a5 and stared 5b066f2b3e down at 3ad5ff8c3d the fifty-two 4cb024a438 identical card 05bbfa46b6 backs.351ed83dc2ac767f

This bet was something fa71229ca3 Edmund didn’t even need 0dbfc605f4 to make.fd1c1cb7336d747b

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It was entirely 67a971a3f1 for her benefit, 5f60457abb which made the 20fb3e3376 pressure in her 5a22cb16bf hands worse.af78b17196915ced

She clenched her dd156efb15 fingers against the cc29f4d1a3 table and slowly 1ec7412c01 traced the arc b94e5c1aa7 of cards with c599f10f96 her eyes.282f52aa9c2d2efa

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She knew that 108f65ce0b thinking harder wouldn’t dc0e6b184c get her a 8f595cda73 better card.48aa6aab3f977399

Even so, 75a7fb6502 she couldn’t 2007b20e78 bring herself f5ae19aea2 to pick 88c162f6a7 one at c82501976a random.64489f61a4b4673e

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It was 7794044336 a single 5ab501bfcc chance—with obvious 0620d61dbb gains and 307210ab21 losses. She had no choice.98c55964f0d87ca2

Under the weight d2d265288b of so many cf97609379 eyes, she finally 99b2fa1cf2 pulled the card bef63730d3 directly in front c52ee21881 of her.93c0aedcebf1e961

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Unable to 86201e1ee9 resist, she 8e2fa1d1cb fiddled with 512ede8dd4 the rounded 579029fc14 edge of a778510ec4 the card.0653f6ef430465a5

“Are you 47b9e2c978 ready?” Edmund ece0137b1f asked.943352a567c33113

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“Yes.”a805c40936a0a4b6

Her answer was short. Edmund, without hesitation, picked 7bd68a25a4 the card lying at 7d9431e580 the top of the b364f32c0f arc.39f4c5b4a0a1a6e2

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His blue 5a18147ba2 eyes locked 7dd5383e3f onto her, 7196a59aa4 freezing her 66339794db in place 5453ac4a2b from the 5eaf22d945 top of 745baddd7e her head 52497228de to the fbc38acd83 base of 2f1ee582fd her spine.64dd8f81a3240e2b

Without breaking eye contact, 1c0c0ea2e9 his hand flipped over 28b1cffc03 the card.2da1168fbc0700a3

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Lorainne followed suit 4301fd24f7 and turned over 039392d093 hers.6ab7332ba5ae5c82

Before she could even 7218ee537c look, a gasp rose 97d1d88b89 from behind.2c6a76aa2254e7c4

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Dustin, who 0864cfb66a had been ccd764ec42 watching with ded70c05f1 arms crossed, 1c694e30f0 clenched his 6ba41d94f6 fists in 0ff1062d9d glee.cbfe014885bdc056

Lorainne, sensing the result, 33366ee63f looked at her card 3625596708 with a hollow heart.40a40eecc4d63a1f

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The king of adac9abba8 spades and the 6955294162 two of hearts.f88da6c59aa606a4

A crushing defeat.282759d116659c13

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Edmund asked,d42d6dabfa9a0fba

“As agreed, Miss be515d4576 Spencer, you are 99ccad778d barred from entering 4e21a58cd3 Lot Fronher for bcfc71ad77 one week—until the 838b0980d9 twenty-second. Any objections?”8ebd1b3a0bdcf08e

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Her hand recoiled 03446e222e slightly, fingers scraping 4a5b620e0c across the table.483b2238e6e9a64a

Lorainne turned her gaze 1d8fc4bff7 from the king on e7b0816fd4 the card to the 59b472d653 man himself.db3a772a061599d3

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For a moment, Edmund’s b30e905d91 face overlapped with that c7ec4c27b4 regal figure.0b1708f8e50621f3

Her voice came out 2a1392e80a cracked.344612aabf87c5a7

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“…None.”2178dde74ed40780

The king wore a 28d8c4e178 triumphant smile.8c41bfd8f4edc5f8

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Lorainne only 0ddec08dac remembered to 4b1fcd26e4 breathe when 10d2295983 Edmund stood d8fff290a4 and offered e4b3071d68 her his cd7aa41033 hand.0d2474ee0d9a7e4e

If she had 945cc029ba chosen a different 63b20ac2d1 card… would she 46aafe95d5 have won?9ef942b0152ad73f

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She accepted the escort 7113487860 of the man who dad094d523 resembled a king and 746615391c stood.08cc6f7dc4a359f6

Dustin came over and 4b8a69df3b gave her a few 8739eb8ce6 hearty pats on the 4fdd44f53b shoulder.c457ea47707c564a

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“Well done. That was b752f3061e fun, at d9ba67c385 least.”119f7b87a6e5e469

His mocking voice 4415519a38 grated in her 79191b5752 ears.7ccace1ae78427ad

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Judging by how 2e3b932c48 widely his mouth 0d81a38f5a stretched into a a35da841c2 grin, he was 0a053742bd absolutely thrilled.bb3049e842ef0fd6

Lorainne ignored 807191ab35 him and b03b512d04 looked up 455678e836 at Edmund.91462e15e4065266

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Regardless of the 8ef1402812 outcome, it was 77d859401e unthinkable to leave c9ee89ce2d a kindness unacknowledged.574d59d0cd61db90

His arrogant gaze 44d7c093aa slid down her 0707dc5f99 neck and over c569d058f4 her clothes, then 43f54872c0 met hers again.8c05b18c8b2318bd

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Lorainne pulled her d6c5ff0da8 slipping shawl tightly 38f56ddb12 and straightened her b479ab7c95 posture.514be9522eeda51d

“Thank you f596f13e36 for granting f84d6f1fda my unreasonable 75d57f7592 request.”30d1ef97b9622d64

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A flicker passed through eacc69734a his deep blue eyes.098d478b57de87df

And yet, the 608e6d8438 rudest gaze in 7f9ecac88b all of Lot 88128c459f Fronher still scratched aced55832b uncomfortably at her a98563f681 skin.b71e127369bd4f8e

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Lorainne turned away from 8570486a84 that sharp stare and 36b98fb7f6 crossed the noisy hall.0161c1b4b0529447

Only after leaving Lot Fronher did the men’s relentless gazes finally fall away.dfadbbce2c98778a

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* * *e095f51734156d31

While the f61fa9ebd5 idlers who 1a55894cfc had just 5a351bc16f watched the 0e952b5765 rare spectacle f510a854ad chattered noisily b92083c8e6 on their 7f4527227d way back 5a8ce5c3b0 to their 446dc3ef1a seats, Edmund c3b6412fad stared at 91f1999849 the door 359c4a1948 the woman 8e7912c5a2 had exited ddd28542bd through.1a21441192831558

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Calling it cffe7d1a51 an unreasonable e7ee44b9fc request, or fed4dd9eb3 saying thank 93caa6ec59 you—both had 894339fbee made him 81a59ee2cb frown.7ac9c1f235c91abc

Even her composed 9918b01ad9 demeanor grated on 461a223d0a him in the 53a8775012 end.cb7eb91f1e237350

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But a 3b224d1d21 good amount 931d166678 of time 9aba6fb762 had already 9d5e8c9bb7 passed, and cd96897009 he couldn’t 6136e10067 afford to c449188948 waste more.e46f79f1d288c541

So Edmund turned 1e136b85b8 away from the 827cc3eb4c table now tainted 7deb97221a with unpleasant memories.b7b2493ca9e9d088

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He had barely taken 192186da25 a few steps when 31b77def35 the second son of b7dd0a1002 Count Roxane blocked his 0f633cc48c path.15fc85c3b37b5911

True to being 89aa48b920 the son of ab1c9d77db a man obsessed ad338cd33a with gossip, the d3328375c0 young noble—always hungry f5a5cefad3 for scandal—asked with 491258baf9 excitement,7d4cb0fd102926fb

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“That woman—she’s not allowed f0fb6f4e2e in anymore?”8a5f31dcea247679

“Just for a week.”24b14cfd5e13ac3a

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“What a shame. She was nice 9b1941dc3e to look at.”d12dea787ebcef34

Pale Roxane licked his 3e36ffa633 lips after spitting out 4489db62b7 his crude desire.63ee066439211636

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Dustin Spencer, seated 88f79d6f8a at the same bb9779c132 table, immediately raised 8d7a31e8a2 his glass.6af4bf73ff6643c7

“Works out a838d043e2 well, doesn’t ca22b5373c it? No one to nag a94c2951ff me anymore.”48e3f32d70c073e9

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He muttered with 510573c820 a sneer, then 922cc66cff sluggishly tilted his 9921b595b0 drink back, looking 398bbddd70 like he’d already 8ea6ff2631 had several straight.28622f4ab0f07dfa

The man next to 84ae688ca1 him looked him over 4e2335ae79 with disdain.1bc32618d9c8e888

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“You’re drinking 6f970515dc just fine b42b4911a2 after the 0d9fb310d8 mess you 0a12736aca made with 25049b2e3c alcohol yesterday?”5bcc3c2d393654bb

“What’s there not 61e4574b57 to drink?”11bb004724528d97

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Spencer, undeterred by 2333b2f7f4 the scolding, laughed 870c79cae1 idiotically and emptied d184e2d4dc his glass as 2cfb3af218 if to show 3a0d9f3ba1 off.f17b3d60cade11b2

At some 0202de1ffd point, Roxane 55f2d108e8 had returned 672fcbc418 to his 4c72d613f5 seat and 1983d82418 was now 9baf5d96f0 tapping the bd9263062f table, stretching c55a8a8e9b his neck 8236ad8d4d forward.cfa8c92a99a41e67

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“So, how’s 82e55cabd7 the business 51ee1ecf12 of marrying f28501990e off the c2c82a9afb baron’s niece?”075e58c5d3633642

“Don’t even start. She’s so 28c135245a stiff she 260b18b627 scared off a937d03044 every decent 4031164dfe match.”d218d483ed65a2c9

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“Guess she’s not into bbfa2185bf the low-rank types. She’s got that beb0ee590c dignified look. What was that guy 834fc1c799 last time, the one 262d993952 who clung to her?”1fa6ba7fbe1fde01

One man wrinkled e263f41026 his nose and 6354130590 waved a dismissive 244b3031a6 hand. Another scoffed with 0048ad16ef a crooked grin.45dc4ba57fe36aef

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Edmund left them e5ee6bdce9 to their unproductive 89158fac26 gossip and made a8bb3d1924 his way further 4efd6efc92 inside.c003ae520c9b64cc

Still, the 71da354cb2 crude comments 37be099d86 managed to a6b1892dfe dig their 44824038f1 way into 5fa878949d his ears.d95630b72349d8b3

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“Hair’s practically gone 9652163b62 white and she’s aa7f380970 parading around in 9ff1bc8bef out-of-fashion clothes, still bebfddfe07 trying her luck. Is that right?”74261c670c3cfaf2

“If she e87b2d5370 doesn’t land 662e62c4da someone decent af4036d15c this year, 1877301eff she’ll probably 45b8241bd3 end up c2d33c072b marrying some 7894428978 old man f2efad7317 on his 2cda7cacea last breath.”1dbcff2a5ab2dbf8

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“If you feel so f3adedb844 sorry for her, why 97fbe57a66 don’t you marry her?”76181fee40ca8992

“No thanks.”567bb7bb2c8748c8

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He shut a5bfd46be6 the door 2a1f86aab3 to his 55f688cf6c office.52fd69dcb9a5fad8

The laughter echoing behind c8dbfc5899 it died down as e366366f0a the door sealed it 6b8c2e944f out.a36ed8387e561b69

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Edmund sat 738bdff94a down and e8078bdb2f pulled over 2c38447481 the stack 2b2751a4de of documents f674b9dbde he’d left 444e3fa0a9 unfinished yesterday.c96c53eab2586a0c

Even as f395cc70e6 he reviewed 93744fd2a1 the neatly 1084602357 itemized records, d3daba3414 the blank aaeeff714b look in 40e49cba91 her eyes 964b9ab8cc wouldn’t leave c46edd72de his mind.8e2e3f0555c6860e

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Lately, far e03d00c838 too many 42e2d746b5 things had 027a73ff35 been dragging 2c4ae2ad63 out the d256e24d87 kind of 9ca47b0d2a memories he ac4859195e didn’t want 6ea50890b3 to revisit.f183521100e145ea

Weariness weighed heavily be04c547b5 on him.70404c8129dcdddb

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Edmund closed his eyes e1e1a53d56 tightly and pressed a 1a3f811533 hand over them.a1e293b153a19928

She had 08610aece3 something to 5b32a02743 lose.39229a5d5e3fff20

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He had nothing to 5d047aff07 lose.e1de0e1eaaf880b5

From the start, a24034c0c9 the card game bd7c98beea had been an e589fb642a unfair bet.4fa1e8b400518887

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He hadn’t 088a09d641 spared a 4b4f51c87e thought about 1c98b896d2 which card 77b83036e3 might benefit 5aab7fd4c6 him the 1d36eb8233 most.e63c87126b0a61b0

But she had.53647b13190f60e9

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She had b7fb3b0884 taken her 1780364923 time.1b936d6621cfc9e6

Her pale, delicate hand 697034eed6 curled tightly, as if 71e2c0a5ef she could figure out acdbb0d34c the card’s value just 603d8286b8 by staring hard enough.f0faa64a39dbc3d9

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The feeling it f8a256f910 left was unpleasantly b301eccdfb heavy.7812bba7c7d72a0b

Eventually, he set 1eb595eb10 his pen down 5e930af2c4 and stood.eebee34922811307

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Knowing it 898795d4cd was a b4e5a8de1e waste of b91cebb90a time, he 87d243ca90 still leaned eb2dc9bd1c on the 8682d61182 windowsill and 0520cd2bd4 pulled back 74f9c5c637 the curtain.28823d1cb655d51d

The space outside 2dc372b437 the front door 57e42472cf was completely empty.13d4cdd162825f34

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* * *1dd34086b2f1aa96

Lorainne stood with ebd7c8bcd9 her back to e5f2f41cc7 Lot Fronher, taking 753154ea17 in the busy af898b760d street before her.f352797860ae0559

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A heavy sigh c403c76513 dragged down her 01b8adce56 shoulders.e25a539340cf705c

Maybe it ecd703ff21 was for 4cfffd79d2 the best. At least 025b667b4e now, she d40f946aa6 wouldn’t have e6f6a0543c to endure cea74864a3 those revolting fbafa30f1d stares crawling e77f019085 over her f893cb81a9 body.5b3c2697b3e85250

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Rupard would be furious, 793efa781e of course, but that 58be13e5fd was nothing new.19e134a38b5b8642

She was still sunk b8e4877907 in resigned thoughts when 58e6bdf016 the door behind her 25684b6b9b closed, snapping her back f92cd8d33e to reality.535daf17b77c1aba

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In the end, she 95f38450a8 hadn’t managed to bar 60ce1b5be1 Dustin from the club.5069a139191a5a2a

Which meant today e18378e33e would be just 22a3f23d22 like yesterday—nothing would 504bde26c1 change.287f696caee1e0ca

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Dustin, clinging 3e51d27814 to his 1b4a72e03e cards and 9439eaa4d1 drink in 40d668746a a losing 841e171890 game, resembled 2686ff2341 his father 96471b667a exactly.cfd583d5a7c43e5b

Even as 9e33df46c3 he failed bad2c298a2 at every 23b200736c business and 518bececf8 investment, he 4b028febd7 still threw 4f80e5772e the last 9aca28896f of their 80abd44f52 money into 25cd3b628d the fire.f804ba72a5dc1ee6

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They said resemblance 86a4b7a822 breeds contempt.e664b456329db359

 894cbac701a2d8ee

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