broken thieves

three

"So, you girls know what you're doing, right?" Crystal asks. Lilith, Aspen, Claudia and I all nod, stood around the table with styled hair and dressed in sexy clothes while Crystal goes over the plan. I try to look just as confident as the Winter girls do, but worry that I don't quite manage it. I haven't been on a raid since we relocated here, and considering so much has gone wrong since the last one I went on, I can't say I'm looking forward to it. At least I look good, I guess.

We don't really need to get dressed up for this raid, but we did so purely for fun. The plan is to go to some rich blokes house a few miles away who we learned has been keeping and selling disgusting videos on his computers, and we're going over there to teach him a lesson. With any luck, no one will be dying tonight, but we said that last time and look how that turned out.

"Just please remember to turn off the alarm system before you go in," Crystal says. "Aspen, what's the code?"

"2-3-0-4," Aspen says without a doubt. "His ex-wife's birthday."

Crystal turns to me. "And Aurora, where's the box to turn it off?"

"Round the side of the house, right by the shed."

"It's okay, Cris," Lilith says, throwing her dark dreadlocks over her shoulder. She gives me a small wink. "We got this."

Crystal nods once. "Okay then. Good luck."

The four of us leave the cottage, making our way to the cars parked outside of the entrance. We don't have as grand of a collection as we did back in our initial home, but there is a variety to chose from, all of them hidden under black car covers. Blake and Maeve are preoccupied trying to get the cover off of one of them when they notice us approaching, and I feel Blake's eyes all over me. He steps over  to me while the girls work on getting the vehicle ready.

"Hey," he smirks, his hands in his pockets. He's not even going on a raid but still looks incredible, wearing a black, button-up shirt with an expensive silver watch around his wrist. "You look good."

I raise my eyebrows, a smile teasing at my lips. "Only good?"

"Beautiful," he says, stepping closer. "You look beautiful. Are you ready?"

"I'll be fine," I tell him. I know he's worried about me going on a raid so soon, just like I was when he went on his first last week. "I'll be back before you know it."

He moves even closer, his hands finding my arms. I smooth my own over his powerful chest, for a moment wishing that there wasn't a shirt covering the view. I catch myself before my thoughts can go... anywhere else.

"Stay with me again tonight?" he asks lowly.

My eyes widen a fraction. Were his thoughts heading the same way?

"Sure," I say calmly, as if my heart isn't knocking wildly against my chest. He smirks and gives me a small kiss on the cheek, before pulling himself away and pulling something out of the waistband of his trousers. I see that it's a small dagger, the blade covered by a leather sheath.

"How romantic," I chuckle, taking it from him.

He shrugs. "I thought that now you're killing people, you might as well do it in style."

"I'm kind of hoping I won't have to use it today."

"Me too," he says. "But at least you have it, just in case."

I smile up at him, seeing in the corner of my eye that the other girls are getting into the car.

"I'll see you later," I say, backing off.