What a bunch of misfits.

That was the first thought in Liam's head as he contemplated the people gathering on Nemo's patio, filling themselves with appetizers and passing drinks between each other.

Some of them traveled with style: Poseidon had arrived in a rented and sober black car, his suit impeccable and his face unreadable. He first hugged his daughter and was now catching up with Nemo, the two of them commanding all the attention of the patio with their poise.

Milah had arrived dressed in leather pants and a silk shirt, her legs looking long and graceful as she exited her vintage red Porsche. She and Ursula sat together at a table on the side talking, and from the way they were stealing not so subtle looks in his and Killian's direction, Liam was quite sure what the topic was about. Milah winked at him as he glanced over at them for the third time, blowing him a kiss from afar as she did.

Most of the rest of the group had arrived together in a minivan from the airport, all of them sharing laughs and old stories as they caught up. Ariel and Eric remained glued to each other, the passion still strong between them, forcing Liam to make a mental note to remind them about being alert on the job. It wouldn't be the first time they got carried away by the throes of passion during recon. And while it wasn't a big deal on smaller jobs, the one in front of them required absolute and careful attention.

Smee and Henry were talking to Killian, both of them looking at his little brother as if he were the most amazing thing in the world. It wasn't news when it came to Smee, the man truly worshipped his brother, but Henry was a new addition as far as Liam was concerned. He wondered how exactly Killian had come to know about Henry, and what had since passed between them. But it would be a mystery that he'd have to solve later.

For now he had old friends, good food, even better alcohol, and everyone was having a good time.

That was everyone except LJ, who'd arrived alone and on foot, with a scowl on his face and nothing more than a backpack and small rolling suitcase. He was still sporting a frown as he stood in the corner, all by himself, shoulder against the wall, looking at the entire thing as if he didn't belong.

And he didn't. Not just yet. But Liam was going to make sure he did by the end of it all. Family was family and if there was something he'd learned the past two years in jail, it was that you needed to be with the ones who were yours. No matter the cost.

He sighed… it was his time to steal the spotlight and start in the plan in motion. Killian may have assembled the group, had charmed his way into getting all of them to come and join them - Liam still didn't know how he was able to get Poseidon to agree - but now it was his turn. This was his moment.

Showtime.

He cleared his throat, commanding the attention of the room. "Ladies, gentlemen, what a wonderful moment it is to see you all again. Some of you know one another and some we're just welcoming into the family, but I hope you've all have enjoyed the food and drinks that Nemo has laid out for us." Pausing for effect, he took a moment to seek out his brother, holding his focus once Killian's eyes met his. "The mission we're about to embark on is highly dangerous, but if successful it will be highly lucrative, both monetarily and personally for some of us. Now, none of you are locked into this yet. If you feel that you simply don't want to take part, now's the time to walk. Feel free to grab another drink and head on your way. No questions. No hard feelings." He tilted his head and raised his glass as he turned his attention to their host. "Though, not you, Poseidon, you're not allowed to leave," he teased, drawing laughter from those gathered and lifting the mood, all while reeling them in for what would come next.

"Gentlemen," Killian drawled as he stepped forward, his most charming smile in place, "and you lovely ladies, if you'll join us inside."

Everyone grabbed their drinks and followed in his wake. Everyone, that is, but the one person they were desperate to have on board.

LJ remained on the patio, his eyes scanning the place while steadfastly not meeting their eyes. Killian took a step in his direction but quickly stopped as they both watched Nemo make his way towards him instead.

"LJ, is it?" he asked, an affable expression in place and using his most amicable tone of voice.

Liam instantly recognized that expression. It was the same Nemo had used on him and Killian each time he met them while they were lads surviving on the streets. Tears threatened to escape his eyes as he watched LJ shake Nemo's hand.

"I - we - are so glad you were able to join us. I've been following your career for a while now, and I've been impressed with your talent."

LJ shrugged off the compliment, backing away slightly as he crossed his arms, clearly uncomfortable with the praise. "It's nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing that lives up to the standards of the Brothers Jones, I'm sure," he said, pronouncing their name with a quiet reverence laced with just enough regret and bitterness that it broke Liam's heart. Perhaps if they had known about him sooner, maybe they would have found a way to bring him here with them, perhaps…

Nemo's booming laugh interrupted his thoughts. The older man was smirking, patting LJ's back.

"Do you really think these two were perfect all the time?" He stole a quick glance in Liam and Killian's direction. "Pleaaaase, the first time Liam tried to roll loaded dice, he almost got beaten up to a pulp. I had to jump in and get them out of that situation really quick."

He motioned for LJ to approach him. "Come here, m'boy. Join us and let me tell you all about it."

LJ smiled, the first real smile he'd given all evening, and let Nemo steer him inside the house.

Liam released the breath he'd been holding.

Everyone was in. All was well.

For now.

/-/

The projector screen flashed an image of their target. From the corner of his eyes, Liam watched as Milah momentarily squirmed in her seat before Ursula laid a comforting hand on hers. He gave Milah a quick smile before he pointed to the screen. "I assume everyone in here is familiar with the Gold, the Baelfire and the Dagger."

Everyone in the room nodded along and Liam continued, "They all have a thing in common."

"They belong to the same scumbag?" Milah interrupted, drawing some laughter from the room.

"That and they all feed into one vault, and one vault only. The vault of the Baelfire is located below the Strip, underneath 200 feet of solid earth." He gave another pause for effect. "And that is our target."

"So a quick in-and-out, huh?" LJ interjected, his dry humor proving once again that he more than belonged to this family.

"Just a tad more complicated than that," Killian replied from where he'd spent most of Liam's introduction perched on a stool.

Liam pushed a button and the screen changed to display an animation of the vault access. "This is courtesy of the casino's new dealer, Tina Smith." He pointed to Ursula, who tipped her head in a small salute.

"Your mother always loved Tina," Poseidon said with affection as he squeezed his daughter's hand.

"And we have Mr. Smee to thank for the simulation he created based on the information Ursula has gotten us," Killian pointed out and Smee gave the room a sheepish smile while Ariel and Eric slow clapped at him.

"As you can see, this place has a very tight security system," Liam continued as if he hadn't been interrupted. "It won't be easy to break. We'll have to get into the cages -"

"Here, here, and here," Killian pointed out, ever so helpfully.

Liam resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Which all of you know takes more than my smile and my brother's combined." The simulation continued, and Liam pointed out the next difficulty. "Next come the doors, each of which require a different six-digit code that is changed every twelve hours. Once we're past those then comes the tricky part: the elevator won't move without a scan of authorized fingerprints -"

"Which we can't forge," Killian explained. He'd ditched the stool and was now standing next to LJ, feigning nonchalance.

"And vocal confirmations from both the security center within the Baelfire and the vault below -"

"Which we won't get."

Liam buried the scowl he wanted to give and instead leveled his most dashingly threatening smile at Killian, but after three decades his idiot brother seemed immune to it. Killian was on a roll today, a burst of sunshine intent on deadpanning all the roadblocks. Sighing, he ran his hand through his hair before continuing.

"Which brings us to the elevator -"

"The shaft of which has motion detectors," Milah offered with a sigh. "If you - we - were to attempt to manually override the lift, it will lock the exits and we'll be trapped."

Everyone turned to focus on her, and she just shrugged nonchalantly. "What? You're not the only ones who can show off, gentlemen."

Liam bent his head to hide his smile. "Good news is, after that, is a walk in the park - two guards, some Uzis, and the most complicated vault door conceived of by men."

"Actually, it was a woman who designed it, but carry on," Milah corrected and circled her fingers for Liam to continue.

"Questions?" Killian asked brightly cutting off Liam again.

"Tunnels?" Henry asked, rolling a keychain back and forth over his knuckles.

Liam's eyes darted between Milah and Killian. "Which one of you two show-offs want to take this one?"

"Ladies first," Killian bowed towards Milah with a salacious smile.

She grinned. "With you, Jones, always," she said, causing a communal chuckle before she looked at Henry with a big, genuine smile. "Gold has scales monitoring any movement in the ground for at least a hundred yards in every direction of the vault. Anything more than simple drilling on the street and he'll be on to us and at our throats."

Henry nodded and stared gloomily at the screen. His expression was pretty much echoed by the rest of the group.

It was Ariel, though, who finally broke the mood in the room. "Please tell me there is a good reason you flew us here, Liam. Not that I don't enjoy the chance to get married again by Elvis followed by a night in a Vegas suite as much as the next girl, but there's gotta be some good news here somewhere."

Liam smirked, taking a few steps from the wall with the screen and into the middle of the room. "The Gaming Commission rules are clear - the casino has to be able to cover, in cash, every single chip they have on the floor. So in this case, that means that this vault needs to cover all three casinos. On any given night, that is 60 to 70 million. Weekends? 80 to 90. But on a special night, as in a boxing match like the one in two weeks or a concert? There would be at least 150 million dollars in there."

He stopped and let that number sink in.

Killian stepped in, owning the moment much better than Liam ever could. "Now, there are 11 of us in this room, and we will all have an equal share. I'll let each of you do the math."

Their faces transformed as the sheer amount of money sank into each one of their brains. Eight figures each, it would be the heist of a lifetime. Liam chanced a glance towards LJ and found his brother looking at him with awe.

We promised, baby brother.

It was Poseidon who was the one to break the awed silence, giving both Liam and Killian a skeptical look. "Ok, hot shots, let's run this one more time. Say we get into the cage, past the doors we don't have codes for, into the elevator we cannot move unless one of us has untraceable magic, past the overeager guards with nuclear guns and into the female designed vault we cannot open unless we sell our souls to the devil. Then what? We will simply walk away with 150 million dollars in cash? Just like that?"

Killian smirked. "Just like that. With all the poise you're known for, Poseidon."

"Thank you, Killian," Poseidon said with narrowed eyes. "I wasn't sure how we were going to pull off that minor detail. The rest of the operation seems easy enough though."

Liam knew the sarcastic barb was just that. If Poseidon had wanted to walk away, he would have done it by now. But like everyone else, he knew what they had here was the opportunity of a lifetime.

"Alright, let's get this show on the road." Killian clasped his hands together, taking over from Liam and falling into the role he was so bloody good at. "Reconnaissance. We need to know these places like the back of our hands: from rotations to dealers and personnel to escape routes. They build these bloody things like mazes to keep people from leaving. We need to know how to quickly get out. At all times. Ursula, you keep working those ears as you work the rooms. Ariel, Eric, get into those costumes you love so much and get on with it, mates."

"Sure, sure!" Ariel clapped excitedly while Eric gave him a salute with two fingers on his forehead.

"Surveillance. We need to know what they know, if not before they know it, at least as they know it." He turned around and faced his friend. "Start digging, Smee. We need to tap those systems."

"I'm on it, Killian, but it won't be easy. I need a few more days for me and Milah to look into the systems and how to break them. Also, if this night is as big as you claim, he'll likely get additional highly trained security for the night."

"Then we need to know who that person is and how to break them."

/-/

Emma Swan stood in the massive library, her eyes scanning the nearly overwhelming number of wooden shelves and leather-bound books. She'd never seen such a treat in a casino before in her life, though that might also be due to the fact that she wasn't a frequent flyer of high-end casinos. The usual perps she'd chase preferred seedier establishments with illegal poker games played on worn tables. Not the gold-covered details of places like the Baelfire.

"Amazing, isn't it?" asked the petite brunette who stood next to her, her high heels putting her almost at Emma's height. She wore a pleated black leather skirt and a cream crêpe shirt. Her hair fell in artfully crafted waves to her shoulders and a pair of gold earrings graced her earlobes. She looked exquisite, the picture of simple elegance that Emma, in her skinny jeans, low-heeled boots, and red leather jacket, would never be. Emma wanted to dislike her, but she had nothing but a warm smile and a friendly disposition as she spoke reverently about the books that surrounded them. In any other situation, she might actually like her. "That is how Robert and I met. He'd asked me to come help catalogue and expand his book collection."

"It's an impressive one, for sure," Emma agreed.

"Belle, don't distract Miss Swan. She has a job she's required to do," Robert Gold interrupted, his tone clipped as he stepped forward, his floor manager by his side. "She needs to focus on securing the place, not in admiring the dusty books that are in it. We wouldn't want any distractions."

His words managed to chastise both women and Belle excused herself with a smile and left the room, leaving Emma with the weight of Gold's assessing look focused on her. She knew the distraction barb wasn't gratuitous. She'd been in this business long enough to know there was more to Gold than the casino owner and legitimate business owner facades he showed the world. She'd heard the rumors, the ones whispered into the night by lowlifes on the run, people who didn't want to be found. People Emma used to succeed in finding, her absolute perfect record an untarnished proof that she was the best in the business, the one who could always deliver. She cleared her throat and focused on the task at hand.

"You'll want this room to be secured and monitored as well the night of the match?"

"My security is tight, but I don't want to leave anything to chance. After the vault, this place is the most important to secure in this casino."

Not for the first time, Emma wondered what this room hosted besides the collection of dusty old books that only Belle French - Gold's friend - seemed to care about.

Gold tilted his head as if he'd been reading her thoughts. He took a few steps towards her, lowering his voice. "I can count on you, right Miss Swan? I know that your exit from your last agency wasn't as 'mutual agreed upon' as you and your employer both like to suggest." He made a tsking sound as he waved a hand in the air in a dramatic gesture, his smile turning into somewhat sardonic and deeply unreadable. "I'm no fool. If you want my help with the information you seek, then you'll be sure to ensure no one gets near anything that I hold dear in any of my casinos that night."

Emma cleared her throat. "You will not be disappointed, Mr. Gold."

"Good," was all he said before he turned around and left her without a further glance, moving onto the next item in his busy day.

Emma's shoulders slumped as she leaned into one of the shelves for support. This job was too important. She had this one chance to rebuild her name after the Italian fiasco she had a few years ago. She was not letting anything get between her and a job now… not after paying for the consequences that time.

She'd blame it on that little Tuscan town and its sleepy early afternoons where she met him. She'd finally taken some time for herself, choosing the Italian scenery for some peace and sun, eager to simply vanish from the world for a few days until the details of her new assignment came through. All she knew was the mark was somewhere in Europe and that they were trying to track his latest alias - Hook - back to his name and get a proper description.

In the meantime, Emma was happy to simply wait under the sun on a Tuscan hillside, letting herself go completely. When she first saw him - black hair, intense blue eyes, faded jeans and blue t-shirt - he seemed to be a vision conjured from her most hidden fantasies. All the way up to and including his lilting accent.

But he wasn't. He was flesh and muscles. A heated mouth that warmed her skin with searing kisses the first night she met him. Strong arms that held her as he thrust deep into her, sending her body and mind into earth-shattering orgasms. Lips that trailed kisses against her neck as they spent the day touring the vineyards and the nights tearing each other's clothes and making love time and again. It was then, under the moonlight that her walls came down and she'd shared her daily life and deepest secrets with him.

It was there where he broke her heart. And her trust.

When the information came in confirming a name and photograph to id her mark, she'd been out getting a pizza for them to share back in bed. Coming back all she found was a half empty hotel room, his stuff all gone, the seal on the manila envelope that had been delivered broken. She reached for it with shaking fingers, only to find his eyes staring back at her from the photograph within.

The bastard hadn't even bothered to hide his name, and it would be forever branded in her mind as a symbol of shame.

Killian Jones.

Sighing, she took one more look around the room, fighting against the chills that slipped down her spine, reminding her that this was not a good idea. Working for Gold was the worst idea. She was making a deal with the devil, and she knew it. But she knew she had no other choice, she needed this. Losing that last position with the PI agency was bad, but losing the connections that job would have given her was even worse. Her only alternative, if she wanted any chance of finding the information she'd spent years looking for, was to make this deal with Gold. That and hope the man delivered on his end of the bargain.