Thalia stared at the camera in front of her, focusing solely on the person in the image. Okay, she knew that she was supposed to be looking for the lady that always stole with her daughter, but this was a little more important. Thalia focused on the two different people in the camera's view.
A woman that was an entire foot taller than Thalia stood at the front counter. She had black hair that was brushed smoothly down her back, and Thalia could have sworn the woman didn't have eyes, but instead black holes that could suck in a child's soul. Her pinstripe suit was well tailored and probably cost more than Thalia's whole paycheck.
Thalia had seen this woman in plenty of commercials regarding her run towards a Senate seat. She sounded like a perfect politician, so of course Thalia hated her. For her, most politicians were just pieces of garbage. Slime at the bottom of the gutter. It just really sucked that her crush's mother was one of those pieces of slime garbage.
Thalia's gaze moved to Reyna. One of the woman's hands rested in her pocket, and the other was hanging by her side. The tension was clear in her shoulders. Thalia frowned as she watched, vaguely aware of the two other people by her side.
"Reyna's mom is rich," Percy muttered under his breath.
"She doesn't act stuck up like most rich kids," Annabeth commented. Thalia shushed both of them and continued to watch the camera. It wasn't going to pick up any sound, but she could hope.
Reyna stopped in front of her mother, and the two of them began talking. Thalia couldn't make out what was being said, but she saw Reyna nod her head every few moments, scowl still settled on her face. Bellona had a smile on her face as she talked, but it looked fake. It looked like someone had finely sculpted the smile for the woman to wear, but it lacked any and all sincerity.
Bellona raised her hand and grabbed Reyna's shoulder, causing the younger woman to flinch. Anger coursed through Thalia's veins as she watched. It wasn't the fact that Bellona had placed a hand on Reyna's favored shoulder, especially since Thalia slammed into her earlier in the day. No, the flinch came just before the hand was placed on Reyna.
The flinch came when Bellona first lifted her hand, bringing it near Reyna's face. Why the hell would Reyna flinch when her mother was just grabbing her shoulder? Thalia could ask herself that all day, but she knew the answer. And, it would never change.
Thalia knew that flinch all too well. It was the same way that she reacted whenever her drunk mother would pin her against the wall and scream in her face. The woman would yell and curse two inches from her daughter. Then, she would raise her fist, and Thalia would always flinch just before the punch made contact.
A glance to her side showed that Percy had the same look in his eyes, probably flashing back to the times when he had been hit by his asshole, but thankfully former, step dad. Annabeth seemed to notice their reactions, and a small frown cursed her features.
"And she wants to be a politician," Thalia muttered spitefully. She shook her head and looked away from the cameras, crossing her arms at the display she just witnessed. She knew exactly what kind of asshole hit their kids, and it broke her heart that it happened to Reyna. Even to the point that she was flinching upon a hand coming near her.
"We'll get out of here before Reyna comes back," Percy offered gently. He squeezed Thalia's shoulder. "What do you want for lunch?"
"Reyna's buying," Thalia muttered. She shook her head again and looked back at the camera. Annabeth hugged her from behind, and Thalia squeezed her friend's hand. "I'll see you two later."
"Make sure to get something romantic," Annabeth teased. Thalia grabbed her stapler threateningly. Annabeth laughed as she left the room with Percy. As Thalia was left alone, she let out an angry sigh and grabbed the coffee that Reyna had bought her.
Thalia took a sip and felt her bad mood slowly diminish. It was her favorite. How did Reyna even know that? Thalia smiled and eyed the cameras once more. Her smile wasn't lost, even as she saw suspect number one walk into the store. The woman was now wearing what Thalia assumed was a red wig, and her stupid red purse was by her side. Her daughter had that yellow backpack, and the woman grabbed a cart, placing her daughter in the toddler slot.
"Thalia?" Reyna asked over the radio. Thalia grabbed her own and looked through the feed to find her boss. Reyna was now standing alone, and the woman was walking right by her.
"I see boss," Thalia said quietly into the radio. Reyna lowered hers and turned on her heel. She walked towards the backroom. Thalia looked back at the cameras and focused on the woman. She had moved over to their cafe and was looking over the menu.
There was a knock at the door, and Thalia got up to open it without even looking. Reyna stepped into the room and sat down in the chair next to Thalia's. She crossed her arms and still had that frown tattooed on her face. Thalia just knew that her good mood had been shattered.
"Where did Annabeth and Percy go?" Reyna questioned. She kept her gaze on the cameras and rubbed her jaw, looking frustrated.
"They didn't want to keep me distracted for too long," Thalia explained. Her gaze flickered down to the camera that Percy was walking by. He was heading back to the electronics section where he was working for the day. That boy couldn't program anything, so Thalia knew he would be useless back there.
"Annabeth seems nice," Reyna commented. She lowered her hand and laid her head back. An angry sigh escaped her lungs.
"She is. My best friend," Thalia agreed. She glanced at Reyna. "Are you okay?"
"My mother loves to drag me to her charity events and show me off," Reyna muttered. She hung her head and rubbed her brow. "With no warning."
"I'm sorry," Thalia said, ignoring the questions that ran through her head. Reyna shrugged, but Thalia could see the anger that was burning in her eyes. "If you ever need to rant about your terrible mother, I'm here."
"Thanks," Reyna said. She exhaled and looked at Thalia. "Did I get you the right coffee?"
"Yes, and I love it," Thalia promised. She moved her gaze back to the camera. "I still feel bad about slamming into you."
"Thalia, it's cool. Not even the worst thing to happen today," Reyna said with a dismissive wave of her hand. Thalia frowned and resisted the urge to reach out and rub Reyna's shoulder. Instead, she watched the woman on camera buy a pretzel. Her stomach growled. "Did you even eat breakfast?"
"No," Thalia admitted. "I woke up super late."
"Want to split something from the cafe? I kind of skipped breakfast too," Reyna offered. She pulled out ten dollars. "My treat."
"You're buying lunch. I'll get our late breakfast," Thalia corrected. Reyna studied her and then relented. She put the money back in her pocket. "One of those mini pizzas sound good? With a pretzel?"
"Sounds good," Reyna confirmed. She looked at Thalia and gave her a small smile before looking back at the cameras. Thalia smiled back and stepped out of her office. She walked out onto the floor and walked towards the cafe. Dakota was running around like a mad man, and he only had one customer.
Thalia saw the woman sitting at a table with her daughter, but she wasn't fooled. That woman was going to do something, but it better be after Thalia ate. She walked up towards the counter and put a finger to her lips as Dakota opened his mouth, probably to shout her name. She made a motion behind her. Dakota seemed to understand.
"How can I help you, stranger that I have never met before?" Dakota asked sarcastically. Thalia did not spare him an annoyed glare. While everyone else was stuck to the store uniform, Thalia was allowed to wear whatever she wanted. It gave her the ability to blend into the crowd of customers and watch anyone who tried to steal.
"Can I get a pizza? And a pretzel with cheese?" Thalia asked. She flashed her discount card real quick, and Dakota scanned it.
"What kind of pizza? I have a sausage and pepperoni ready. Cheese is gonna be five minutes," Dakota replied.
"What kind does Reyna normally get?" Thalia asked quietly. Dakota winked at her and grabbed a pepperoni pizza. Thalia glared at him again and handed him the ten dollars. Dakota finished checking her out and giving her change. "Can I get an empty box too?"
"Sure," Dakota said. He turned and grabbed the pretzel. "Salt and butter?"
"Always," Thalia confirmed with a smile. Dakota smirked back and dipped a brush in the butter. He ran it over the pretzel, poured salt over it, and then carefully put it in a box. He placed cheese next to it and grabbed another empty box. Dakota handed Thalia her bounty of boxes, and she thanked him.
As Thalia walked to the back, she grabbed a cup of soda for both her and Reyna. Then, she carefully opened the door to the back and walked towards her office. The door opened as Reyna held it, "Thanks."
"Anytime," Reyna said. Thalia placed the boxes down and handed the soda to Reyna. If there was something that killed Thalia's diet worse than Ambrosia and Nectar being across the street, it was the free soda they were allowed to get when they were working. It just had to be out of the soda machine. "And thank you for a late breakfast."
"Anytime. And you know you should eat breakfast," Thalia teased. Reyna rolled her eyes, but her lips twitched upwards. Thalia smirked and grabbed the empty box. She opened it and gently split the already cut pizza in half. The pizza wasn't that big, and when Thalia complained about the size, she was told that it was a personal size pizza. She liked to call it a ripoff.
Right now, it looked delicious. Thalia placed her half in the box and carefully tore the pretzel in half. She placed her half in the box next to the pizza and sat down. Reyna leaned back in her seat and took a sip of her soda.
"What do you think she's going to try and steal first?" Reyna asked. She grabbed her half of the pretzel and dipped it in the cheese.
"Something from the beauty section," Thalia wagered. "You?"
Reyna titled her head and seemed to think about it. She nodded to herself, "Something from electronics."
"She doesn't look like someone who knows a lot about technology," Thalia commented.
"It's the most valuable," Reyna stated with a half shrug. Thalia glanced at her, and she couldn't help that her eyes drifted to the shoulder Reyna didn't seem to use much. Reyna either didn't notice or didn't comment.
"Beauty is less expensive but easy to steal," Thalia pointed out after a few moments. She looked back at the computer screen. "Easier to stuff in that big purse of hers."
Reyna nodded slightly and seemed to think it over as she finished her pretzel. Thalia sipped on her soda and bit into her pizza, "We need to name her."
"What?" Reyna asked. She raised one of her eyebrows. "Name her?"
"Yeah, like a nickname," Thalia said. Reyna rolled her eyes and laid her head back. She closed her eyes for a few moments. "Who has a big red bag in cartoons?"
"I never watched cartoons," Reyna commented.
"What?" Thalia asked, nearly falling out of her seat. "What?! You never watched cartoons!?"
"Nope," Reyna replied. She looked at Thalia. "In Puerto Rico, the only television was in my father's study, and we weren't allowed in there. My sister and I spent most of the day outside. We came home in time for dinner and just tried to stay out of his way."
"Your mom never bought a television?" Thalia questioned. "My mother was terrible, but she let me watch cartoons."
"My mother wasn't around," Reyna said awkwardly. "Not until after my father died. She took us in, but with her being military, we didn't see her much."
"Parents suck," Thalia decided. She looked at Reyna, but Reyna just stared ahead blankly. "I'm sorry to hear that, though."
Reyna shrugged after a few moments and looked down. She seemed to be lost in thought, or maybe bad memories. Thalia tried to think of what to say to make Reyna feel better. In the end, the woman they were watching helped her out by getting up, throwing away her trash, and walking directly towards the clothing section.
"I should have known," Thalia groaned. A small chuckle left Reyna. The two of them watched as the woman and her daughter took their sweet time picking out outfits.
"What's the plan?" Thalia asked. "Do you want me to follow her?"
"No. I want her to fill her cart. See if she tries to leave without paying and stop her," Reyna countered.
"I'm all for catching a thief," Thalia began. She looked at Reyna. "But right in front of her kid?"
"I know," Reyna muttered. She rubbed her forehead. "Not my call, though. Orders from the top."
Thalia nodded in understanding. Orders from the top was Reyna's kind way of saying she didn't have a choice in the matter. The order came directly from the district manager, and that was not a man any of them wanted to cross. Thalia slowly looked at Reyna, "Well, traumatizing a kid was not what I expected to do today."
"Tell me about it," Reyna muttered. She closed her eyes. "Once this is done, I'll have to let Lupa know. We'll still get lunch later. Off company property. I could use a drink."
"You're going to drink and then go back to work?" Thalia asked in a teasing tone.
"No," Reyna grumbled. "Sounds nice, though."
Thalia reached out and barely resisted the urge to rub Reyna's shoulder. Instead, she gently bumped her, "If traumatizing a kid is going to drive you to drink, I can handle it alone."
"I doubt we'll actually traumatize the munchkin. Unless you were planning on tackling her mother," Reyna said.
"It crossed my mind," Thalia joked. Reyna shook her head, but there was the hint of a smile on her lips. Thalia smiled as well. After they handled this situation, Thalia would go out of her way to make sure Reyna's day got better, and she had the perfect idea on how to do it.