Disclaimer: If you recognize it, I don't own it.

"Hey Nikki," Leo greeted as he came in through the backdoor. "What's that you're listening to?"

I stopped humming along to the radio long enough to respond. "How to be a Heartbreaker. Cool song, right?"

"Sure, sure," said the big man as he took a seat at the bar and I placed a glass of homemade lemonade in front of him. "Any customers while we were gone?"

"Not a one," I sighed. "I don't think this bar could be more spotless and I'm seriously bored out of mind. Please tell me there's someone you guys need me to beat up or something." I'm ashamed to say that the last part was begging.

He laughed and smiled at me. Still chuckling, he took a sip of his lemonade and stared at me from over the glass. It wasn't long before I started to fidget. I glared at him, struggling to regain my composure in front of my boss.

"Why are you so eager to join us on jobs so often? You already have a real job that actually pays. Why take the risks?" He sounded more curious than anything, but I hesitated before answering.

"That's my brother out there," I said nodding toward the backyard where Walter had set up his latest contraption. I pulled out a nice clean, white wash towel and started wiping down the bar for the umpteenth time today. "If I can do anything to make his work any safer for him, I will. I don't care if he can defend himself perfectly fine. I've had just as much training as he has and, in some areas, more extensively. I will protect my brother and if not, I might as well pack up and go back to D.C.." I was staring down at the bar where my hand had paused in its slow circles somewhere along my tirade. "Besides, working here hardly counts as a real job if I'm not helping with the real work we do." It was a poor attempt at normalcy and it didn't fool the man at all.

"It sounds like you're trying to make up for something, like this is your penance," He said calmly, watching me slow my breathing back to normal and unclench my hands from the towel. "What is it you feel so guilty about?"

The tears welled up behind my eyes, but I wouldn't let them fall. "Nothing." I blinked, taking a deep breath, and looking up from the bar. "Since no one has come in today, I'm putting out the honor jar and helping Walter in the back. That okay with you, chief?"

Leo gave a small smile. "Yeah. Can't have you wearing down the wood in your boredom, now can we?"

I let out a small laugh and nodded before reaching under the bar, grabbing the jar Willa just loved to hate, and placing it carefully on the counter. "Done and I'm outta here." I'm not ashamed to say that in my hurry to get out from behind the bar, I nicked my left hip on the counter, and fell on the person coming around the corner. It was all in an honorable escape attempt, despite the imminent failure. "Oh, god. I'm so sorry," I said as I stood and held my hand to whoever it was I ran into.

"It's fine, Nikki," I heard my big brother say as he put his hand in mine.

"Oh," I commented dryly. "It's just you. Not so sorry anymore." By his laugh, I knew he knew I was kidding. He gripped my hand and I pulled him up off the floor.

"Pretty strong aren't you?" A voice spoke from behind Walter.

"Maybe. You a client?" I asked, not even looking at the stranger. I was more focussed on the newly formed dent in the wood of the bar from my side ramming into it. The very side that held my very much steel .45 Smith & Wissen. Not only was there a decent sized indent in the wood, but also in my side. I smoothed my hand over the wood and apologized to Leo in my head before rolling up the bottom of my shirt to check for any visible damage. Seeing nothing but the beginnings of a nasty looking bruise, I let my shirt fall to it's normal length. Adjusting it to cover the holster at my hip, I looked up to see everyone in the room staring at me. "What?"

Leo coughed lightly and the client went from gawking at me to staring at Leo as Walter grinned impishly. "What is it that you need found, Mr.?" He trailed off at the end, unsure of the client's name.

"What? Oh," the client smiled sheepishly. "I need you to find my grandmother's watch. It was stolen twenty years ago and never recovered. I need it to pay for my son's medical treatment." He fished around in his pocket before pulling out a photo and handing it to Leo. "It's worth fifty-thousand dollars."

I let out a short whistle at the price, but I knew Walter would need more to go on. Like, for instance, "And your name is…?"

"Oh, I thought this business was supposed to be anonymous," the client muttered, looking rather unsured.

Walter chuckled, falling lazily onto one of the bar stools behind him. "It's only anonymous for people breaking the law. You wouldn't happen to be breaking the law would you?"

The man swallowed thickly. "Me? No, of course not. I'm just going to go." He swiped the picture out of Leo's hand and quickly walked to the door without a backward glance.

"Well," Leo began. "That was interesting."
Walter laughed. "Interesting, maybe. Nikki, you call the cops yet?" I nodded. "Good. Nice flash of the gun, by the way. Scared the poor man senseless."

I shrugged. "It wasn't on purpose. Sorry about the bar Leo." I grinned at him sheepishly. He waved me off. Turning back to Walter I asked, "So, what's the plan?"

"We didn't get the job, so no plan." He reached behind the bar and pulled out a beer, taking a swig of the foul liquid as he glanced at the whiteboard across the room.. "Monkey samurai or squirrel assassins?"

I laughed as I headed over to the board to write up the newest philosophical debate topic. "Squirrel assassins, definitely."

Walter didn't hesitate. "Defend."