𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐒𝐤𝐲𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐜𝐨𝐥

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐞𝐧

-
Skye's POV
-

I jolt awake as I hear a soft knocking on the window of the SUV I'd convinced Maria to hang out in last night.

We'd both fallen asleep, no surprises there.

I roll down the nearest window, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes and met with Coulson. "What's up, Phil?" I ask, blinking a few times to get used to the light.

"I'd prefer you not call me 'Phil.'" He tells me and I shrug.

"Okay, you're the boss... A.C." I reply, the nickname slipping out easily. "Maria and I just needed a little private time." I cringe at how that sounds.

"I want your help with something." He doesn't seem to notice my comment, his tone turning from playful to serious in an instant.

I inhale sharply, reminding myself that this wasn't going to be like one of the Red Room's missions. "Hit me with it." I say.

"You ever rob a bank?" He asks. I raise my eyebrows at him, not entirely sure I understand where he's going with this.

"No." I lie, accommodating Maria's head as she lays it in my lap and begin running my fingers gently through her hair.

"An armored car?"

"Nope." Again, another lie, but instead of it being a Red Room mission - like the last - it was a SHIELD mission with Mama. It was actually pretty fun.

"How about a casino?"

"Should I be offended?" I ask, ignoring the groan of annoyance from Maria as I sit up a little straighter.

"Somebody's stealing millions of dollars in diamonds. They've found a way to crack the security systems. I want you to figure out their exploit." Coulson explains.

"Hmmm." I hum, intrigued. It wasn't everyday someone stole a shit ton of diamonds as well as cracked the security cameras. They usually forgot about that part...

"Skyeeee." Maria groans, interrupting my thoughts. She buries her head in my stomach and it takes everything in me not to start laughing.

"Were you asleep?" Coulson asks, raising an eyebrow at me. The look reminds me of that time I told my moms I was going out with a few friends when really Sharon and I were breaking into the Pirates office and gluing everything to the ceiling.

"No..." I say, glancing down at my soulmate.

"Skye get back down here and cuddle me." She whined. I oblige, but not before seeing Coulson roll his eyes and walk away.

-

"Yesterday, 55 men, all military, were hired by one of the largest gem brokers in the world. They dressed the men in identical outfits, gave each one a randomly assigned briefcase, and sent them along 25 different routes here in Stockholm. No one knew which briefcase contained the diamonds, but they were still stolen." Coulson explains as we enter the subway station, signing something along the way.

"Why the Kabuki theater?" Mom asks. We enter the subway car and inspect the sene.

"They were afraid because somebody's targeting diamonds... an armored car in Milan, a safe in Monte Carlo, and now this – over $30 million total. Each theft occurred despite heavy security." Mama informs us as Coulson ducks down and examines the blood splatters on the floor.

"They sound like inside jobs." Mom says, subtly looking at me to see if I agree. I nod my head, barely unnoticeable if you weren't looking.

"A lot of people share that opinion." Coulson nodded, standing back up again.