The crashing continued and you cried internally as you thought of all the pieces Killer was ruining. You should've told him to find another way to make noise but it was too late now, the damage was done. There was the scrambling of shoes against waxed floors as the guards ran off to go find the source of the commotion and you had your opening.

You tugged your hood down lower, not caring if the cameras saw you at this point, and darted into the room. There the painting was, hanging among a few others on the wall. It was a simple one of a Victorian church basking in the dying light of a sunset. There were no others like it, this was the one. You pulled a cloth out of your bag to wrap it in and gingerly lifted the painting off the wall. It's frame was ornate, but not all that bulky thankfully.

When you had it neatly wrapped and hidden away in your bag, you trotted off to your exit. Killer probably beat you there but you weren't worried about him. He was a grown ass man and could take care of himself. There were shouts as the guards started to realize there was probably more than one person in the building who shouldn't be. You had to get going.

You broke into a run, speeding past a couple guards coming up from the first floor. They tried to grab you as you went by, but were a little too slow. You jumped as a gun fired and a bullet passed your head. Holy hell they were going to hit something important. Someone should fire these guys.

Another guard must have thought the same thing, you could hear him yelling at the one that shot off while they followed hot on your heels. You darted down one hall after another, passing through rooms and weaving through the different art pieces. You were somehow giddy with excitement from the whole ordeal. The chase was fun. The risk of getting caught spurred you on and brought a wild grin to your face. You couldn't remember the last time you felt this good. Maybe work should go wrong a little more often for you.

The wide open window, framed by the two large paintings came into view and your heart jumped at the sight. Just a little more and you'd be home free. You leapt for the window sill, fingers almost slipping as you grasped at it and tried to pull yourself up. You were worried you were going to fall when Killer popped into view from outside and yanked you out with a smile. The guards were just seconds away from nabbing you when you were pulled out of reach.

"Thanks." You panted as you followed him across the roof and down a level.

"Oh you'll be even more thankful when we get down from here."

You didn't know what that meant but you jumped down to the ground below anyway. Killer hadn't fucked you over yet so you hoped he still didn't plan on doing that. Sirens blared in the distance, quickly approaching the museum. Your time was up, you had to get out of the area fast.

Killer led you to a charcoal grey car sitting off to the side in the parking lot. It's engine was purring away and you didn't doubt there was someone behind the wheel.

"I called in a friend." He said when he noticed your confused stare. "Want shotgun?"

You nodded absentmindedly. In reality, you were debating if this was one big setup and if it would be smarter to hotfoot it off in another direction to leave him and his friend. This was sketchier than the time you caught some guy on the phone trying to sell Delilah insurance and insisting he needed her very personal information to do so.

"Are you coming or not?" Killer asked as he was sliding into the back seat. "We're on a tight schedule right about now."

No going back now. You marched up to the passenger side door and climbed in, holding the bag close to your chest as you closed the door behind you. The driver was bigger than Killer. His face was stoic as he gave you a nod and pulled out of the parking lot. You noted he wore a fishnet shirt with an open black jacket over the top, his hood only cover half of his head of short black hair.

"Wire this is Blue, Blue this is Wire." Killer leaned forward, resting his forearms against the backs of your seats.

"So this is why you've been gone so often?" Wire asked in an almost bored tone. "Seeing a little woman?"

The way he said it suggested there was a lot more between you and Killer than there actually was.

"He keeps inviting himself over." You grumbled as you positioned yourself so you could watch both men.

"You liked the extra help on this job." Killer said before looking back to his friend. "You can drop us off at the Monarch."

"You aren't sticking around after we turn this in." You needed some sleep after this.

"Not even for a couple drinks after a job well done?"

"No, I don't drink."

"That's rather dull." He grunted.

"Why'd you really want to go on this job with me? And don't tell me it's because you had nothing better to do. That's a lie."

Wire chuckled. "She's a smart one."

Killer shot the other man a look and he immediately focused back on the road. Cop cars flew past to get to the museum, not even realizing they just missed their target.

"I was curious how well you work with others and under pressure."

That explained him wanting it done tonight as well.

"I told you, I'm not interested in working with or for other people. Look," you sighed. "I appreciated you coming along tonight but I don't want it to happen again."

"Why not? You did good."

"I never said I wasn't good at it, I just prefer working alone."

"Why?" Killer asked, a little aggressively. It was getting on your nerves.

"Because I don't trust other people." You snapped back, glaring at him. "The only person I can trust with getting things done right is myself."

Wire pulled to a stop at the club and you jerked the door open, ready to have the night over with. When Killer stepped out but didn't follow you to the entrance, you turned and frowned at him.

"I'm not interested in the reward." He explained. "It's all yours. Buy yourself something nice for once. I'll be around again later." He took your spot in the passenger seat and the car took off.

He really spent the night testing and trying to recruit you again. The jacket wasn't a gift, it was a goddamn incentive. And for a moment there, you were fooled into thinking he was an okay guy.

----

"So that's the one?" Wire glanced at Killer.

He was scowling out the window, lost in thought. The hood of his jacket was pushed back but he still had his hair up in the ponytail you did for him.

"Yeah." He answered after a few minutes. And here Wire thought he wasn't even paying attention.

"What makes you so sure?"

"Her eyes, they match the dragon's. And her personality..... I know it's her."

Wire watched his friend stew in his annoyance. He'd mentioned he was getting closer to the woman called Blue, he had to be frustrated he lost some of the ground he'd gained. The crew had been gathering information on her in hopes of finding something useful but hadn't found much. She was someone who did a good job of keeping to herself.

"So trust is her issue from the sounds of it." Wire said.

"Watch yourself...." Killer warned with a growl. She was his job, he'd get to her one way or another.

"I'm just going to make a suggestion." Wire shrugged, ignoring a red light and speeding through it.

"What?"

"Kid mentioned something and I think I agree with it. If you want to get her to trust you and build some sort of relationship with the crew, get in bed with her. Women get soft spots for men that fuck them and stick around."

"Kid suggested I do that?"

"Well, it was more he was thinking about doing it himself but I think if anyone should, it oughta be you. She knows you after all, there's some sort of relationship already there."

"I wasn't planning on fucking her." Killer grumbled. He usually wasn't one to fall victim to his moods and this one was slowly fading. There were always options to get on her good side.

"You seem to like her though."

"She's....bold."

"And you like it." Wire said with a slight upward tug of the lips.

"I do." Killers mood suddenly improved and his eyes lit up. "If she gets so excited about a cheap coat, I should get her a real gift. That should speed things along."

----

You were glad Killer didn't want a cut. Now you had enough cash to buy a few new clothes. It wasn't because he suggested you get yourself something, you just really needed a few things. The hoodie he got you was nice but you wanted something that wasn't from him. It was funny how fast it could go from an almost touching gift to something you wanted to forget about.

You'd buy some new dark clothes for work and then get a few things secondhand to wear while helping out Delilah and if there was anything left after that, maybe you'd treat yourself to a good meal or a movie. You hadn't gone to a movie in ages and that sounded exciting. Buy one of those rediculously large sodas and slip in some inexpensive alcohol to spike it with. That would make for one hell of a good night.

You lied when you told Killer you didn't drink. It was more you didn't buy alcohol because it wasn't a necessity and it was a good excuse to keep him from wanting to stick around longer at the same time. Needless to say, it worked like a charm. That and you suggesting to him that you never trusted him for one second during the job. In a way, that was true. You were second guessing him often.

But there was the short few seconds when he lifted you out of the window to escape that you felt he wouldn't leave you. You felt that even if one of the guards did manage to grab you, he wouldn't have let you go to take the blame for the robbery. Maybe for those few seconds, you did trust him. That bothered you.

You frowned, pausing in the middle of the road on your walk home. You couldn't decide to trust someone because of such a short interaction. He probably did it because he still felt you could be useful to his gang. That had to be it.

That thought assured you and you continued on. Killer wasn't going to be allowed to join you on any more jobs. You didn't want him to and you made that clear with Ivankov. The help was nice enough for this one occasion but you wouldn't push your luck. It'd only be a matter of time before he decided to stab you in the back if you kept letting him come along.

With your apartment in view, you made plans to hide away your cash, take a long, hot shower, and turn in for the night. Delilah would need help in the morning.