Liyana's apartment – late night
---
The apartment was warm, lived-in. A candle burned on the windowsill—something soft, like vanilla or honey. The heater clicked and hummed, fighting the cold outside.
Aria sat sideways on the couch, legs tucked up, mug in his hands. Liyana sat next to him, curled under a fleece blanket, her head against the cushion but tilted his way.
Neither of them had said much for a while. They didn't need to.
"You always show up this late when something's gone right," she said, voice soft.
He smiled a little. "I do?"
"You have a rhythm."
"That so?"
She nodded, sipping from her mug. "When you're tense, you don't come over. When you're holding something big, you show up and sit like this."
He thought about that. Took a slow sip.
"Maybe I just like the tea."
"Liar."
That made him chuckle, quiet and short.
She nudged his knee gently with hers. "It went okay?"
"Yeah," he said. "Clean job. Everyone did what they needed to do."
"No surprises?"
"Not the bad kind."
She nodded again, satisfied.
A few seconds passed.
"We're meeting again tomorrow," Aria said, setting his mug down on the table. "Just regrouping. Checking in."
Liyana looked at him, waiting.
"You can come if you want," he added. "Not like… part of it. Just… there."
She blinked, a little surprised. "You sure?"
"Yeah."
"You've never asked that before."
"I know."
He looked down at the floor for a second, then back at her.
"I just want you nearby. That's all."
She watched him. No teasing. No big smile. Just something soft in her eyes.
"Okay," she said. "Then I'll come."
They didn't say anything after that.
A little while later, her head rested on his shoulder, and the blanket covered them both. Outside, the city kept going.
But in here, it could stop for a while.
---
The candle burned low on the windowsill, its light barely flickering now.
Liyana had dozed off against Aria's shoulder. Her breathing had softened, steady and slow, one arm tucked between them under the blanket.
He didn't move.
Outside, a car passed on the street below. Somewhere in the distance, a siren cut through the quiet, then faded again.
He looked down at her—her face relaxed, her lips slightly parted, that little crease between her brows gone. It was rare to see her like that. Not guarded. Not teasing. Just at peace.
He didn't know what tomorrow would bring.
Didn't know how long he could keep this rhythm—living between plans, between jobs, between the weight of what was coming and the small pieces of calm he kept stealing like this one.
But he knew this moment mattered.
Aria let his head rest gently against hers, careful not to wake her.
Just for a little while longer, he could stop moving.
Just for tonight.
---
Laundromat – Back Room
---
The back room smelled like detergent and instant coffee. One of the fluorescent lights in the corner buzzed with a soft stutter. Same as always.
Cassie was the first one in. She kicked off her sneakers and climbed onto the dryer with a box of Pop-Tarts and two folded maps under her arm.
Jay showed up a few minutes later, already talking. "—I'm just saying, technically, I could've climbed out that window if I'd had another half second."
"No one asked," Cassie said without looking up.
Jay threw himself into the beat-up folding chair near the wall. "Rude energy this early in the morning."
Tino and Kwan arrived next, both carrying takeaway drinks. Kwan handed Aria a cup silently as he passed, like it was a ritual they'd done a dozen times before.
Dina slipped in behind them, hoodie up, earbuds out. She gave Aria a nod and took her spot by the whiteboard. Rene came in last, barefoot as usual, cradling a small sketchpad like it was an extension of her arm.
The room filled up with quiet movement. Shuffling papers, opening notebooks, cracking knuckles. No one asked what they were doing there. They already knew.
Then the door opened again—and Liyana stepped in.
Every head turned.
She froze for half a second, then closed the door behind her like she belonged.
Aria looked up from the table. "She's not crew," he said. "She's just here."
No one said anything.
Jay blinked. "Cool. Mysterious guest energy. Love that."
Cassie jumped off the dryer and handed Liyana half of her unopened Pop-Tart. "Sit wherever. We're nicer than we look."
Liyana gave her a smile and took the seat by the window. Quiet, but watching everything.
Aria rolled out a new sheet of paper on the table and pinned it in place with his coffee mug.
"Alright," he said. "Let's talk about the next job."
The noise died instantly.
"Courier hub in Midtown," he continued. "Small building. Looks like it moves medical and business supplies, but it's a shell for chip smuggling—microchips used in smart-targeting weapon systems."
Kwan leaned in. "Same kind Stark Systems phased out back in '04?"
"Exactly those."
Dina crossed her arms. "Security?"
"Light but organized. Civilian guards, low-tech monitoring, no auto-response. The problem's not force—it's timing."
Jay raised a brow. "Meaning?"
"They move high-value packages on Mondays. We have a fifteen-minute window between the last outbound shipment and the guard rotation."
Cassie nodded. "You already mapped it?"
"I've been watching them for two weeks."
Tino leaned against the wall. "Buyer?"
"Two lined up. One local, one out of state. Both clean enough. Price is steady at forty-five thousand for the full grab."
That shifted the room.
Rene finally spoke, eyes still on her sketchpad. "And how much of that gets us closer to your quiet little plan?"
Aria didn't answer.
Not directly.
"Enough," he said. "If we hit it clean."
He looked around the room, making eye contact one by one.
"No mistakes," he said. "This one's sharp."
Everyone nodded.
Even Liyana.
---
Cassie stepped outside first, pulling her hoodie up against the wind. She popped open a bottle of off-brand soda and leaned back against the brick wall like she had all the time in the world.
A minute later, the door opened again.
Liyana walked out.
She looked around once, then joined her. Close enough to talk. Not too close to assume anything.
Cassie gave her a quick glance. "Didn't think you'd stick around after."
Liyana shrugged. "Didn't think I'd be unwelcome either."
Cassie smirked. "You're not. Just rare someone shows up and doesn't flinch."
"I'm not new to people hiding things," Liyana said.
"That's good," Cassie replied, taking a sip. "You'll fit in—assuming you're not here to play therapist."
"I'm not here to fix him," Liyana said. "Just… trying to stay close."
Cassie nodded slowly. "That sounds real. That's good."
They stood in silence for a few seconds. Cars passed. A kid on a bike rolled by with headphones too big for his head.
Cassie spoke again, quieter now. "You like him?"
Liyana didn't look at her. "Yeah. I do."
Cassie didn't press further. She just nodded like she'd been expecting that answer.
"I like you," she said after a beat. "You don't talk like someone trying to impress anybody."
"I'm not."
"Then you're already better than half the people who've come through here."
---
Upstairs – Second Floor Window
Rene sat behind the window, legs crossed on the floor, sketchbook open, phone in her lap.
She hadn't drawn much. Just outlines. Loose shapes. The way Liyana stood, how Cassie shifted her weight when she got serious. Nothing finished.
Rene wasn't part of the core. Not yet. She'd been hanging around for a few weeks—quiet, helpful, under the radar. Nobody asked where she came from. Tino had vouched. That was enough.
She slid open her burner, typed quick with her thumbs:
"She's close to him. Real close. Talks like she knows where his head's at."
A pause.
Then she added:
"If you're still thinking pressure—this girl's it. Soft spot, no doubt."
She hit send.
The phone screen flashed once. That was it. Message gone.
No reply.
There never was.
Rene closed the phone, slipped it back inside her coat. Then she flipped to a clean page in her sketchbook and started over.
She already knew what she'd draw next.
It wasn't the street.
It wasn't the crew.
It was Liyana, standing too close to the edge.
February 23, 2008
Locations: Laundromat HQ, Midtown courier hub, surrounding blocks
---
Laundromat – 1:14 PM
The back room smelled like black coffee, permanent marker, and focus.
Maps were taped to the wall in overlapping layers. Marker lines traced escape routes, shift rotations, package flow. Aria stood with one hand resting on the table, the other tapping the corner of a printed courier manifest.
"One week of recon. We've confirmed all three guard shifts. Movement's predictable. No cameras in the rear alley. The only variable's the trash run."
Maddox leaned forward, one hand resting on his knee. "Window?"
"Thirteen minutes, eighteen seconds," Aria replied. "From last outbound scan to system lock. That's our gap."
Cassie sat cross-legged on top of the washer, flipping a coin between her fingers. "No trucks parked nearby. No watchers. Nothing twitchy."
"Nothing yet," Maddox said.
Aria looked around. "We move on Monday. Clean hit. Full grab."
---
Midtown – 3:07 PM
Tino and Kwan in a parked sedan, two blocks from the target
The air inside the car was warm, stale with the smell of fast food. Kwan's camera lens clicked softly every few seconds. He had already filled two memory cards.
"Third day in a row—same green jacket," Kwan muttered. "That's shift two. Guy walks like he's half-asleep."
Tino nodded, eyes on the building entrance. "That's the dropoff truck."
"Unmarked Ford, no signage, clean tags. Same one. Two-man crew. They unload in under five minutes."
"Route predictable?"
"Four stops. Always lands here at 3:10 PM."
Kwan jotted something in his spiral-bound notebook. "This place moves tech like it's toner cartridges. Sloppy, but fast."
---
Laundromat – 1:42 PM
Aria pointed at a printed still photo taped to the whiteboard. It showed the courier hub's rear alley, timestamped and slightly tilted.
"This is our entry."
Jay leaned over the table. "You sure that door still sticks?"
"Stuck open for eleven seconds Tuesday. Same worker three days in a row."
Jay sat back. "Alright. Seven seconds in. No hesitation."
Aria nodded. "You pop the latch. Don't break stride. Don't look up."
---
Courier Hub Rear Alley – 3:11 PM
Jay, dressed like a bike courier, pretending to fix his chain
He crouched next to a beat-up bike, hands smeared with real grease. One earbud in. Hoodie down. A half-crushed Gatorade bottle next to him.
The alley door creaked open. A worker rolled out a gray bin full of cardboard and broken-down crates. Jay didn't move.
He counted under his breath.
One… two… three…
The worker left the door swinging open behind him.
Seven seconds.
Click.
It locked.
Jay smiled. "Still got it."
---
Laundromat – 2:05 PM
"Dina, Rene," Aria said. "You're on extraction. Side door, south stairwell. No alarms, just a silent pressure latch. Once the grab's done, you pull the bags and vanish into foot traffic."
Dina nodded once. "Gloves, radio, light bag."
Rene looked up from her notebook. "How many packages?"
"Four at most. Small, dense. You'll each take two."
"Got it," she said.
---
Midtown – 4:13 PM
Dina and Rene across the street, posing as survey workers
Dina wore a high-vis vest and held a clipboard. Rene had a small measuring wheel and a walkie that wasn't on.
"I've got eyes on the alley path," Dina said, low into the mic.
Rene didn't respond right away. She was sketching casually in a pocket notepad, her eyes bouncing between rooftops, vents, and windows.
"Fire escape's still blocked by debris," she said softly. "Nobody's cleared it all week."
Dina smirked. "We're gonna ghost this one."
---
Laundromat – 2:17 PM
Cassie tilted her head, eyeing the red marker route. "Any backup plans?"
Aria circled a side street with his pen. "We've got an alternate path here. If anything goes loud, we split two ways and regroup in Flatiron."
Cassie chewed her gum and nodded. "Alright. Let's make it boring."
Aria smiled faintly. "That's the goal."
---
Midtown – 4:45 PM
Liyana sitting on a bench across the street, book in her lap
She flipped pages slowly, eyes moving more than her fingers.
She wasn't reading.
She was watching.
Aria hadn't asked her to do anything official. But she'd come anyway. She wanted to see the space. The people. The rhythm.
Just in case.
She looked up toward the alley door.
And for a second—just a second—she thought she saw movement on the roof.
---
February 25, 2008 – 3:17 PM
Midtown – Courier Hub Heist
---
Rear Alley – 3:17 PM
The door slammed behind them. The last of the crew hit the street, blending into sidewalk traffic. Bags tucked under jackets. Faces down.
Maddox's voice crackled in their earpieces:
"Red light confirmed. Silent alarm tripped. You've got maybe one minute before they swarm the perimeter."
Aria's voice followed:
"Regroup point's three blocks east, behind the scaffolding. Move."
Jay didn't wait.
He was already breaking off from the others, heading toward a narrow side alley with chain-link fencing at the far end.
Cassie hissed, "Jay—stick to the route!"
He glanced back. "Too slow. I can cut time here!"
Dina shouted after him, but he was already gone.
---
Side Alley – 3:19 PM
Jay sprinted down the alley, courier bag bouncing on his shoulder.
The fence ahead was seven feet tall. Half-rusted, but climbable.
He hit it at a run, sneakers slamming against the mesh, hands gripping the cold metal.
The top was bent—jagged with a snapped-off pole—but he didn't slow down.
He vaulted—
—And his leg caught on the broken top rail.
Ripped cloth. Then skin.
He twisted midair—hit the concrete hard.
His scream echoed off the walls.
---
Behind the fence – Seconds later
Jay writhed on the pavement, clutching his leg.
Blood spread fast. A gash ran from knee to ankle, torn open and dirty. Worse, his foot was angled wrong—his ankle clearly broken on impact.
He tried to move.
Couldn't.
Footsteps.
At first, he thought it was security.
Then he saw her.
Rene.
She came through the alley opening, eyes wide, scanning fast.
"Jay!"
He tried to sit up. "Don't—Don't let the bag drop—"
"I got it."
She grabbed the courier bag, tossed it over her back, and dropped to her knees beside him.
His leg was leaking through his pants. Bones out of alignment. Her breath caught, but her hands didn't shake.
"Hold on," she said.
"I can't walk—"
"I know."
She pulled his arm over her shoulders. Grunted. Lifted.
Jay screamed through gritted teeth but got vertical.
She didn't ask again.
They moved.
She half-dragged, half-carried him around the building, ducked behind a dumpster, and slipped through a busted fire exit.
By the time security reached the fence—
They were gone.
---
Regroup Point – 3:31 PM
Vacant construction lot, under scaffolding
Jay lay on his back, leg elevated on a crate, blood soaking through a towel.
His breathing was ragged. Cassie hovered nearby, applying pressure with torn strips of her shirt.
"Deep tear. Bone's definitely out," she said, voice tight.
Aria stood nearby, jaw clenched. "Can he move?"
"Not without serious help. We'll need a back route."
Jay croaked, "She got me out, man… Rene. I was gone, and she didn't even hesitate."
He looked up at her, eyes glassy. "Thanks. For real."
Rene stood off to the side, hoodie up, hands still streaked with blood.
She didn't say anything.
Maddox stepped into view behind Aria. Quiet. Watching.
His eyes weren't on Jay.
They were on her.
---
Jay lay on his back, propped up on a stack of broken crates, his leg wrapped in layers of torn fabric and gauze. The bleeding had slowed, but not by much. His face was pale and sweating, jaw tight from the pain.
Cassie knelt beside him, applying pressure to the wound with both hands. "Deep tear. Bone might be cracked clean through. He's not walking anytime soon."
Kwan passed her a bottle of water and a painkiller wrapped in foil. "Gonna knock him out for a bit. Not clean stuff, but it'll hold him."
Jay gave a weak grunt as Cassie tilted his head and made him swallow it. "I hate this job," he muttered.
Cassie gave a dry laugh. "Still got your leg. You'll get over it."
Aria stood off to the side, watching them with arms folded, his voice steady when he spoke.
"We got what we came for. Buyer's clean. I'll finish the deal with Kwan tonight."
He turned to the rest of the crew. "Jay's out for a few weeks. No heavy jobs. We go quiet. In and out work only. Two-man setups, max. Low risk."
Nobody argued.
Tino cracked his neck. "What about the girl scout cookies run?"
Aria looked at him flatly. "Steal your own cookies."
A few chuckles passed around. Even Jay managed a grin.
"We lay low until we're back at full strength," Aria said. "Forty-eight hours quiet. Kwan will handle comms."
Cassie nodded. "Copy that."
Dina folded her arms and glanced over at Rene, but didn't say anything.
Jay reached out from the pallet, grabbing the edge of Rene's sleeve. His voice was weak, but sincere.
"Seriously… thanks. You pulled me out. I owe you."
Rene gave a small shrug, eyes down. "Did what anyone else would've done."
Cassie scoffed. "No, you didn't. You ran straight into a lockdown zone for him. That's not nothing."
Rene stayed silent.
Aria gave her a small nod. "Good work. You earned your stripes today."
Rene said nothing. Just tucked her hands into her jacket and stepped back.
Aria didn't notice the way Maddox watched her.
Didn't catch the way Dina frowned just slightly when she turned away.
His eyes were on the next task, not the cracks under the surface.
They had time.
He thought.
---
End of Chapter 17