Chapter Eight

Shego woke up to Drakken shaking her arm. Sunlight streamed through the main room, but she didn't even remember falling asleep. She'd crashed on the couch after working on her laptop all night. The pieces were finally clicking into place, now she needed a genius plan that tied it all together...

"Shego?"

It slowly registered that Drakken was staring at her with concern. "Oh, uh, 'morning Drakken."

"'Morning. I thought about kissing you awake, but figured you wouldn't appreciate the Sleeping Beauty routine."

"Smart man."

"Besides, your breath probably stinks." Smiling at her glare, Drakken gave her a big kiss. He pretended to cringe at her breath. "So I was right then."

"Oh, move over." But Shego chuckled as she sat upright on the couch. Her eyes still groggy, she didn't see the coffee Drakken handed her until it was in front of her face. "Thanks. You're bright and cheery this morning."

Drakken shrugged. "Not particularly, it just looked like you had a rough night. I know the feeling all too well."

"Right, you used to be the one scheming all night. I miss the days when they were your ideas and I just had to shoot them down."

"Not easy being the evil genius, is it?"

"Doesn't feel like it lately," Shego confessed. She scooted over as Drakken sat next to her with his cup of cocoa moo. "A few of my colleagues broke into the Motorized dealership over the weekend. And it really went great! The spyware they put on Motor Ed's computer found the program that generates the car codes."

"Car codes?"

"Security codes for the individual cars. They lock the platform that lowers the car to the level below. I'm guessing it leads to the street."

Drakken rolled his eyes. "I'm surprised he didn't put each one in a protective bubble."

"Might've been the original plan," Shego replied with a laugh. "We're getting to the finish line, I can feel it. But I'm stuck on like, step one. The garage is under a condominium. There's no way to do this without the residents noticing us."

"Are you sure? People are pretty oblivious, and the garage is underground."

"Both good points, but most of the residents work for Motorized. If they suspect anything they'll run right down. So, short of a fire, how do we get them all out?"

A short pause. "Why not a fire?"

"Drakken..."

"You could make sure no one gets hurt, if that bothers you."

"Yeah, but..." Shego trailed off, considering the suggestion. It was better than nothing at this point. "I'll think on it. Leaving for work?"

Drakken nodded as he brought his empty mug to the sink. "Yes, I'm on my way out for a sales meeting. Hey um, since you said to ask you first, want me to send breakfast to the warehouse? I also have some more Loopy Lemonade..."

"We'll take the breakfast, but no more lemonade. Adrena has a low tolerance for that stuff."

After working at Motorized for the day, Yori stopped by Kim's hotel room to assist with sorting through the evidence. They ordered room service for dinner and began dividing the copies into piles. Kim assured Yori she could do it on her own, but since agreeing to this heist, Yori preferred to keep her days filled. She even used the hotel gym several times to distract herself.

As long as Yori stayed busy, so would her thoughts. Sometimes she could almost convince herself there was nothing immoral about the heist. In the past, she went on plenty of "recovery" missions for Japan's Self-Defense Forces. Yori completed them successfully, but she often doubted her superior's motives.

Yori supposed that was why she bonded with Kim over the past few months. While they worked to save the school, Kim shared her own authority issues with Global Justice.

"This paper also mentions Libra," Yori said, holding up the document in question. While they started with the one drawer, they had time to copy several others thanks to Adrena's cover. Kim's queen-sized bed was coated in piles of copies. Yori took up a small spot by the nightstand closest to the picture window.

Kim sat on the edge of the bed, smiling as she took the page and put it in the right pile. "Great, thanks! I still can't believe we lucked out, I think I can build a case from all this..."

"Kim? Yori?"

"Ah!"

Both Kim and Yori jumped when Ron appeared before them next to the television. It wasn't actually Ron though, he appeared to be some kind of...ghost? But wait, Yori remembered hearing about this in her studies. "Stoppable-san...ah, Ron. You have learned astral projection?" Since she became good friends with both Ron and Kim, she finally began to drop the formalities.

"Booyah! Score one for the Ron-san!" Ron pumped his fist in victory, but his face softened when he noticed his shocked wife. "Miss you, Kim. Awesome to see you in person...sort of."

"M-miss you too, but how...when..."

Ron gave her a sheepish grin. "Mystical Monkey Power practice. Alumni are arriving by the dozens to help out, and some have expertise in this area. Gotta warn you though because I have no idea how long this will last."

"Hi!" Also astral-projecting, Rufus popped up over Ron's shoulder and waved.

Kim chuckled. "Hi, Rufus. Miss you too, buddy."

"Wait, wait..." Yori trailed off as she stepped closer, sitting next to Kim. "Alumni are arriving by the dozens? Why? They have already sent in monetary donations."

Ron's smile could not have been bigger. "That's the amazing news! Apparently no one realized how bad the situation was. You knew Master Sensei – he always downplayed the negative. Well, after you left and word got around that you were trying to raise money overseas, alumni just...showed up. We're up to a hundred right now."

Yori's eyes widened. "A hundred?"

"Right, how crazy is that?" Ron exclaimed. "And they're all committing volunteer hours to keep the school going. Between that and the additional donations...we think you can come home. I know you're not happy about this whole thing with Shego. I'm not either, but that's another deal..."

Kim sighed. "It's okay, Ron. Things have been...going. We got some stuff on Motor Ed, at least."

"Enough that you can come back too?"

"Oh...you know, I didn't think about it, but maybe..."

Yori didn't know what to say. She stared blankly at Ron's projection, struggling to process what this meant and what she should do now. "A-are you certain?" she almost whispered. "And...does anyone know what I agreed to do?"

"Don't worry, no one knows about the heist," Ron assured her. "I made sure of that. But the donation totals look really good. Plus alumni are really into the idea of teaching, a bunch want to set up a schedule so someone is always living on campus. Oh, Kim, we're signed on for next summer."

Kim sent him a proud smile. "That sounds amazing! I really wish I could hug you right now."

"Back at 'ya, Kim. Air hug!" Both Ron and Rufus outstretched their arms as wide as they could. Kim laughed as she did the same in response. Then the projection began to flicker. "Uh oh, guess I'm runnin' out of Mystical Monkey juice. Love you, Kim! Bye Yori!"

"Bye Ron! Love you!" Kim sighed wistfully as the projection disappeared. "Well, that was unsettling."

Meanwhile, Yori didn't know what to feel. Gratitude stood out the most. A tear came to her eye at the thought of so many graduates donating their time. Her dear friends Ron and Kim were not even graduates, and they still cared for her school so much. After Ron's glowing report, it did sound like she could cut ties with this group and return to Japan.

And yet...

Noticing her friend's quiet distress, Kim smiled sympathetically. "It's great news, Yori. I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to leave."

"But you all need me," Yori replied, surprising Kim. "I know that our goal is not honorable. And I have wanted to return home since our arrival. Still, I made a promise to see this through. To leave now...it somehow feels worse."

Kim patted Yori's shoulder. "It's okay Yori, you don't need to decide right this second. How about we order up some decadent dessert and rent a bad comedy?"

"I do not know why, but that sounds perfect."

Since management kept assigning Adrena the exterior grounds, she used her lunch break to snoop under the garage. She needed her ID card to swipe into the lot – basically, an expanse of pavement as big as the garage above it. The tall ceiling had inset squares matching the layout of the cars above. She'd guessed there was an exit right onto the main road, but instead, she only saw one way out. And it led to the back of the property.

Adrena started down the long, dark, narrow road on foot. It made her wonder about cars coming in from the other side. What if they didn't see her?

Well, she was a stuntwoman after all. She'd improvise.

A literal light at the end of the tunnel made Adrena sigh with relief. The open overhead door led to...another enormous garage. This one was for work rather than show. A crew of about twenty mechanics opened boxes of car parts, maintained vehicles, and brought in supplies from another doorway. That door slid up, revealing sunlight and the side of a hill.

So it actually was a secret garage. How boring.

Thinking fast, Adrena hid behind a stack of boxes and grabbed her phone. She didn't know what she was seeing, but she'd bet some of it broke state or federal laws. Not that she wanted to help Kim Possible, or anything. Motor Ed deserved to go down. Besides, the pictures would be good references for Shego and the others.

"Alex? Alex? State your location, now."

Crap, her break ended five minutes ago. Fortunately the garage was so loud that no one even noticed her. She recognized Travis' voice on the two-way and it sounded stricter than usual. It occurred to her that Travis probably checked the key card log, so he knew she'd gone into the lower level garage. Stupid move on her part. Adrena mentally kicked herself for not taking another guard's ID.

"I'm by the rear exit. Meet me there." Adrena bolted to the hillside door, considering herself lucky that it happened to be open. She ran outside onto the dirt path...

And right into Travis. Who obviously chose to ignore her message.

With his arms crossed, Travis looked ready to fire her on the spot. Adrena gave him the weakest smile she'd ever manufactured and crossed her fingers. "I was on my way there. I figured by the time you walked over we'd meet in the middle..."

"What were you doing in there?" Travis' demand left no room for avoidance.

"I...got lost?"

Travis smirked. "I have access to the key card logs. You swiped to get into the lower garage."

"Right, because I was lost." Now that she had her story, Adrena did her best to stick with it. "I, uh, got totally turned around by the upper garage. You know, I've been here for over a week and I still haven't been assigned there. A perk of the job was checking out the sports cars."

"Yeah, right. You heard Motor Ed – women don't care about cars. Unless you're one of those lesbians or something."

The grin she gave him held pure venom. "Or something."

"Whatever, I still don't believe you could get that turned around." Travis stared at her for a long moment. "I heard we might've had a break-in. On a night you were shadowing Chad."

Adrena felt panic in her heart. How did they find out? She had to remind herself to keep calm. "Well, uh, I was just there a few hours at the end to learn. What was stolen? Did they leave any evidence?"

"Well, it's not an official investigation yet," Travis confessed reluctantly. "Stupid blue uniforms didn't trust Chad's judgment because he's not a cop like them. But he swears those cameras were tampered with and I believe him."

Breathing easier, Adrena gave him a patronizing smile. "I'm sure they were, Travis. Um, I'll go continue my rounds."

"Alex, I'm only gonna tell you this once." Travis meant it as a stern warning, making her glance back at him. "That garage you found is off-limits to unauthorized personnel. Everyone with access was hand-picked by Motor Ed himself. I catch you in there again, you're fired. If you're lucky."

Making sure he was well out of earshot, Adrena rolled her eyes and repeated if you're lucky in a mocking tone. She took out her phone and dialed – while making sure there were no other guards or cameras around. "Hey, Camille. I've got another project for you. Any chance you're free to stop by my job tomorrow?"

Later that day, Bonnie picked up Shego in a limo driven by her most trusted chauffeur. She kept their destination a secret mainly for her own amusement. As Shego climbed in next to her, Bonnie checked her makeup in a compact mirror, pretending Shego wasn't about to ask for details. "Hi, Shego. We have to make one stop before we get where we're going."

"Senior, whatever this is, it better be worth my time. We're so close to the end and I have no patience for messing around."

Bonnie glanced out the window as they pulled out of the parking lot. "Have a little faith in your evil trainee. I hired certified geniuses to build the decoy cars for us. Between them and Camille's color expertise, no one will be able to tell the difference. They aren't local though so we're going to pick them up from the airport."

"Okay then, why the secrecy?"

"It's a surprise for our friend 'Kimmie,'" Bonnie replied with a chuckle. "I thought it would be even more hilarious if you saw it the same time she did."

Shego slouched in the seat, her eyebrow raised. "Now I'm interested."

"Well, the thing is, it won't make a difference to you. But Kim will freak and I know you'll want to see that. Let's just say I reconnected with some of our old classmates."

The promise of Kim's embarrassment brought Shego fully onboard. "Oh, I like this, I like this a lot. Please tell me it's an old crush or someone she dated before Stoppable."

"You'll see."

They pulled up to the hotel and waited for Kim to slide into the backseat. "I don't see why I couldn't meet you at the airport. Or why I need to go with you at all. I had nothing to do with hiring these experts." Kim sounded suspicious, and rightfully so.

"Relax, Kimmie," Shego said, as if she'd been in on the plan the whole time. "How often do you get to ride in a limo?"

Kim remained tense. "I mean it, what are you two up to?"

Brushing off Kim's demands, Bonnie widened her eyes for a who, me? expression. "Come on, we've been working together for like what, over a month now? Don't you trust us?"

"Not even a little bit."

Shego smirked at Bonnie. "To be fair, I'd think less of her if she did."

The limo dropped the women off at the flight's arrival gate, circling around until they located the experts. Bonnie, Shego and Kim went to wait by the assigned baggage claim. While Kim wasn't looking, Bonnie took out her phone for pictures.

Bonnie spotted the two experts riding down an escalator. Waving her free arm, with her phone in the other, she rushed over to meet them. "Jim, Tim! Over here!"

It was a herculean test of willpower, but Kim made it out of the airport without causing a scene. She still refused to take the limo, instead forcing her younger brothers to ride with her in a cab. Now at twenty-years-old, the twins towered over their older sister, but they never gave up their love of pushing her buttons.

That said, it hurt Kim to think they'd stooped this low just to annoy her. She hoped Bonnie lied and they actually had no idea what they'd agreed to do. "How much did Bonnie tell you?" Kim demanded.

Jim shrugged. "She tried to lie to us with some story..."

"...about wanting to makeover old cars for Junior," Tim continued for Jim. "But then she said it would be a surprise for you, since you were here helping her..."

"...which we didn't buy at all, but we hacked your cell phone GPS and saw you were here..."

"...when you told Mom and Dad you were in Japan, so we know something's up."

Following the tweeb speak, Kim glared at both of them. "You hacked my phone?"

"Because we were worried about you!" Jim insisted.

Tim nodded. "Remind us to upgrade the security on your phone, by the way..."

"...you'd think Global Justice would be on top of things..."

Kim sighed. While she felt better that they didn't intentionally sign on for criminal activity, their arrival made her life much more difficult. Over the years she became secretive about her "hero work" due to GJ's strict confidentiality rules. She'd agreed with those particular rules – her old villains paled in comparison to the evil she faced as an agent. And things weren't much safer now that she'd quit.

"Jim, Tim, you need to go home," Kim said quietly. The twins exchanged curious glances at her somber tone. "I mean it," she insisted. "Look...I quit Global Justice a few months ago. Ron and I were in Japan helping a friend. Now...it's true, I'm working with Bonnie. But not for her."

Seeing that she struggled with her words, Tim frowned. "What's up with you, Kim?"

"Yeah, are you okay?"

Kim cursed Bonnie for putting her in this position. "Let's go check in for now. I'll tell you there."

Meanwhile, in the limo going to the warehouse, Bonnie let out a long sigh. "That was anticlimactic. Kim didn't freak at all. She just...glared at us and left." Bonnie paused when Shego didn't say a word in response. Glancing over, she noticed for the first time that Shego seemed annoyed. "So what, are you tweaked that I wasted your time?"

"No, I'm not 'tweaked.' I'm just sitting here, wondering if I can trust you with anything. Ever again."

Wondering if she heard right, Bonnie shifted in her seat to face Shego. "What was that?"

"This whole time you've been like 'Why doesn't anyone think I'm evil? I'm a total villain!'" Shego finished with a high-pitched mockery of Bonnie's voice. "Newsflash, Princess – you're not. Any villainess in the business for more than a day would know not to do what you did. So that's why no one takes you seriously."

It seemed harsher than a physical slap. Feeling sick to her stomach, Bonnie's mind raced to figure out what sin she'd committed. "I-I don't understand..." She trailed off, determined not to cry in front of Shego. "Is it because I betrayed someone who's working with us?"

Shego's expression hardened even more. "In this business, especially for a case like this, you do not mess with family. If you pulled this crap with my brothers..."

"Y-you...you have brothers?"

"Yes. And if you contacted them behind my back, you would not be living right now."

"Oh," Bonnie whispered. Family was not a subject on her radar. Bonnie liked to think she never had a family before Junior and Señor Senior. She only called her mother on birthdays and holidays, while Connie and Lonnie only called their little sister if they needed money.

"Yeah, oh," Shego snapped. "Most villains don't have a relationship with their biological families, for one reason or another. Those who do, and care about their family's well-being, often lie about what they do to protect their loved ones. Do you not understand that this is a risk? That we will go jail, or worse, if things go south? That Kim's younger brothers could get caught in the crossfire? Has any of this entered your immature, pampered brain?"

Bonnie couldn't help the tear that spilled down her cheek. Usually if someone tried to call her out, she ignored it because she couldn't care less about their opinion. But she considered Shego her mentor. Fighting off the inevitable stench of failure, Bonnie offered one last defense. "W-we needed car experts. Jim and Tim Possible were the two best experts I know..."

"Bull shit. Do you call Jim and Tim Possible every time one of your precious sports cars breaks down? You had plenty of other avenues to pursue, but you chose the one that might jeopardize our goal. All because you wanted to act like you're still in high school."

They sat in silence after that. Bonnie couldn't look at Shego, though the one time she checked, Shego had a distant expression while tapping her nails on her knee. Was that it? Had Shego just written her off? Bonnie was never one to beg forgiveness, so she steeled her bruised confidence and held back threatening tears. "So what now?"

Shego shrugged. "I don't know. If Kim bails..."

"She won't bail, if only out of spite. Kim never could let me win."

It was the wrong thing to say. "Again, this isn't high school!" Shego yelled. "Now that her little brothers are on the line, she might feel differently!"

"Okay, okay..." Bonnie scooted to the other side of the limo, fearing that Shego might plasma blast her. "Look, obviously I didn't realize this would be such a big deal. If Kim really has a problem with her brothers helping, we can just send them back home. No harm done."

When the three Possibles arrived at the hotel, Jim and Tim found out Bonnie booked them a two-bedroom suite. It was much better than Kim's room a few floors below. A basket of snacks waited for them on the table, only distracting the twins for a moment before refocusing on Kim's story. She gave them a basic summary of her time in California, glossing over the unnecessary details. Truth be told, Kim hoped the twins would be so horrified by her actions that they'd quit on principle.

Of course it couldn't be so easy. "We wanna help you go after Motor Ed!" Tim insisted.

Jim nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, he's a major jerk, and his stupid 'Motorhead' fans are even worse."

"Okay, can't disagree," Kim admitted. "But by doing this, you'd help the seven of us break the law. I might even quit now. There's enough evidence to build a case at GJ, and on the personal front, Bonnie clearly doesn't want me here."

Tim sighed. "You can't quit now, Kim. You've done all this work, and the group is counting on you."

"A group that includes Shego and Bonnie!" Kim reminded them.

"Doesn't matter," Jim retorted. "You promised, and Possibles don't break promises. The whole plan might fall apart without you."

Kim groaned. "The plan is to steal cars. That wouldn't be the worst thing."

The twins exchanged disappointed glances. "Look, Kim," Tim began. "Bonnie's paying us a lot of money to do this. And we flew all the way here."

"We're not kids anymore, you know. We're counting on this money to fund other inventions..."

"...so while you can do what you want, it's our decision."

Their discussion was interrupted when Kim's Kimmunicator watch beeped. Shego texted for the entire group to meet in the warehouse, and for Kim to bring the twins. Kim had wanted a night to think about this, but well, it was better not to drag things out. "Group meeting. You two are invited. Don't say a word until we see how it plays out."

Shego loathed what she had to do. It went against everything she believed in, and Drakken would have a fit when she told him. But she couldn't ignore what had been done. There needed to be consequences, or she wouldn't feel good about things when the dust settled. Not to mention, if word got around about what she allowed, she might have trouble recruiting in the future.

Ignoring the brunette's defensive ramblings, Shego gave Bonnie the silent treatment while group members filed in. Yori and Zita trickled in first, with Camille and Adrena following soon after. All four gave the duo confused glances as they sat around the couch area.

"Sorry for the late night," Shego began, standing before the group. "But I had to call an emergency meeting. Trust me, I'm not happy about it either."

Zita glanced around the warehouse. "Where's Kim?"

"She'll be here," Shego answered.

Camille frowned, noticing Bonnie's distress. "Like, what's up? Did something happen?"

"Okay, how about a poll?" Bonnie blurted as she stood next to Shego. "I think Shego's totally overreacting to all this, so don't be shy. Let's say I reached out to someone in your family to help with this heist. And...forgot to run it by you first. Would you be upset about it?"

Everyone went silent. Finally, Camille spoke up. "Bonnie, you're my best shopping friend. But like, if you contacted my family behind my back, I'd never speak to you again."

"Same," Adrena added. "But I'd do a lot worse." Zita and Yori both nodded in agreement.

Bonnie let out a groan of frustration right as the warehouse door opened. When Kim walked in with the two newcomers, the others gasped, realizing what was going on. Zita stood from her seat and glared at Bonnie. "They're the 'old classmates' you contacted? That was low, Bonnie. Kim, I swear, I had no idea she meant your brothers."

"It's okay, Zita," Kim assured her, walking towards the group. "Everyone, these are my younger brothers Jim and Tim."

Shego stepped forward before Kim could say anything else. "Look Kimmie, working on this thing together doesn't make us friends, or even allies, by any stretch of the imagination. But I promise I had nothing to do with Bonnie's high school antics. I know better than to do what she did...hell, everyone else here knows better. And I cannot tolerate this behavior from my recruits. Bonnie...either you apologize to Kim, or we're moving forward without you."

"Excuse me?" Bonnie's eyes widened with horror. Meanwhile, Kim gasped, her own eyes conveying total shock. Everyone else gave the unfolding drama their undivided attention.

"You heard me," Shego snapped at Bonnie. "I figure the only way you'll learn is through public humiliation. Either the lesson will actually sink in, or you'll be so embarrassed, you'll do everything to avoid a repeat experience."

Bonnie gave Shego a hostile glare. "This is cruel and unusual punishment."

"Not compared to the alternatives in my head."

"Shego...I..." Kim trailed off, struggling with her words.

"Don't get too full of yourself there, Kimmie," Shego retorted. "This is not about you. It's about basic villainy. You do not reach out to a colleague's family and-or loved ones."

Bonnie groaned. "Okay! I learned my lesson. Are we done?"

"Not until you apologize," Shego snapped.

"Fine." Bonnie turned to Kim, refusing to make eye contact. It took a minute for her to find her voice again. "Kim...I'm sorry if..."

Shego ruthlessly interrupted. "No qualifiers."

Caught in the act, Bonnie crossed her arms, shifting as she felt the weight of everyone's stares. "Kim, I...I'm sorry, okay? By now it's obvious I shouldn't have reached out to your brothers."

"You're not actually sorry," Kim began. "But I'll accept your apology anyway, not that it matters to you. The truth is I was thinking of leaving even before all this. We found the evidence I wanted, and most of you have made it painfully clear that you don't want me here."

Yori stood up next to Zita. "If Kim is leaving, then so am I." The others nearly got whiplash from the unexpected news. "My school has raised the needed funds. I can go home."

While upset by the turn of events, Shego felt some satisfaction when Bonnie looked genuinely panicked. This was more effective than any consequences Shego could manufacture. "Well, if that's what you've decided," Shego began. "We'll have to move on. Though I will admit, it's always better to have more people on a crew. I also want to remind you both that neither of you will receive any compensation for previous work."

Zita wasn't afraid to be direct. "Come on, Kim, Yori, don't ditch us now! We are so close. If you leave, it'll be so much harder to pull this off. If we still can! And I know everyone else here acts like it's not about the money, but screw that. I quit my job, you guys! If this doesn't happen I'm sunk!"

"Hey, wait a minute..." Tim suddenly blurted, staring at Adrena. "Aren't you Adrena Lynn?"

Adrena gave him a confused glance. "Do we know each other?"

"We were huge fans of your show!" Jim exclaimed. "Kim, how could you not tell us you're working with the Adrena Lynn?"

Raising an eyebrow, Adrena turned towards the twins. "Didn't you watch your sister and me fight on national television?"

"We were rooting for you the whole time!"

"Tim, not helping!" Kim snapped.

Camille laughed as she leaned forward on the couch. "Kim, if you're like, worried about your brothers, I'm guessing they can take care of themselves."

Meanwhile, Yori looked over at Zita, guilt clear in her expression. "Well...I did promise to assist with the heist. I would feel terrible if it fell apart because of my departure. Kim, if you do return to Japan, please send my apologies..."

"It's okay, Yori." Kim sighed and put her hands on her hips. "I guess I should finish this out too. But Jim, Tim, you are here to do one job. As soon as that's finished, you're going home."

The twins complained in unison. "But Kim..."

"One. Job!"

Shego felt the tension leave her body as everything worked itself out. Now it felt like she could relax. "Okay, that ends the dramatic portion of tonight's entertainment. Everyone go on home and get some sleep. Tomorrow is a new day."