Ashtray was posted up in the back of the gas station, the same spot where he and Fezco ran their business. He was younger than most people in the game, so Fez had him handle the front, working the “counter” and dealing with customers face to face.

Part of that was necessity. The other part was skill.

Ashtray was good at reading people.

He could tell who was nervous, who was dangerous, and who was about to waste his time, all before they even opened their mouth.

At the moment, he was sitting back in his chair, methodically cleaning his pistol, focused and calm like it was just another routine task.

The bell above the door chimed.

He glanced up as you walked in.

You looked close to his age. Maybe a little older, maybe not. That alone was different. Most of the people who came through here had years on both of you.

Still, that didn’t mean anything. Ashtray didn’t care about age. Money spent the same either way.

Business was business.

He watched you for a second longer, sharp eyes taking in every detail, trying to figure you out.

Then he set the gun down on the table beside him, casual but deliberate.

“Yo, ma…You here to buy?”