Chapter 3 - THE WARNING
He returned exactly one week after his first visit.
It was 3:00 A.M. The diner was completely empty except for Rita in the back. The bell chimed, and he walked in. The baby—still wrapped in the blue blanket—was fast asleep against his chest. The man looked even worse. His cheekbone bore a fresh, purple bruise, and he moved with a slight limp.
He sat at the corner stool. "Coffee. Black."
Hannah didn't pour the coffee right away. Instead, she reached beneath the counter, pulled out the ziplock bag containing the thumb-printed receipt and the business card, and slid it across the laminate counter.
The man looked at it. The air in the diner instantly dropped ten degrees. The exhaustion vanished, replaced by a terrifying, coiled violence.
"When?" he asked. His voice was a razor.
"Four nights ago," Hannah said quietly, finally pouring his coffee. "Two men. Suits that cost more than my car. They asked when you'd be back. I told them I didn't remember you."
He stared at her, his dark eyes analyzing her face for deception. "Why would you do that? You don't know me. You don't know what I am."
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"I know you know how to hold a baby," Hannah said simply. "And I know the men who came in here didn't care about collateral damage. I saved the receipt in case you needed a print."
The man looked down at the sleeping child, then back at Hannah. "My name is Julian. This is Leo. And if those men come back, you tell them exactly where I went. You do not lie for me again, Hannah. They will kill you just for pouring my coffee."
