Sorry for the long waits between updates, too much going on, but don't fear, I am here. Lets see some action on this chapter, what do you guys think?... not THAT kind of action, ok ok, even THAT kind of action.

The Look in Her Eyes

Scene 1

The first night of night shift went by smoothly. Both Carmen and Hugo didn't have any problems scouting the area and finishing the sweep for the heist. Sara monitored the video and audio feeds and scanned for unknowns for nearly the entire night. The thiefs where used to this kind of late night workouts, it's just that they started to feel their age when 5am rolled along.

"Sometimes I don't know if to be glad nothing happens or to be sad when it is so boring nothing happens." Hugo snickered and threw a flashlight to Carmen.

"Yeah well, it's not like I like to get freaky all the time," she took the flashlight and stared to the ceiling. They were just below the chamber with the display case of the mask, inside the service space between floors.

"We couldz, you know, take itz now, Carmen." Sarah's voice came in the com. "Nozhing haz been triggerz, and to be jonest, zhis iz too eazy."

"Too easy that I don't like it." Carmen was really pulled in by her thieving instincts to drill through the floor and finish the job. She started to crawl her way to the other side of the structural beam. "There is something we are missing I'm sure of ..." She instinctively flatten herself to the beam, and when Hugo saw her reaction he got out his gun, flatten himself next to the beam and pointed the gun in the direction she was looking. Sarah heard both of their deep breaths and started to assess the situation.

There on the far side of the corner beam someone worked pretty fast and quiet. The figure in black placed small circular devices in a perfect line from the corner pillar to the center pillar. Unnoticed by him, Carmen had her headpiece recording the whole operation. The new player thief finished its job half an hour later and left quietly, leaving Hugo and Carmen free to explore.

"Looks like we aren't alone anymore boss." Hugo said examining one of the devices.

"I love my job." Carmen said smiling and picking up one of the devices, knowing well they were small detonators.

Scene 2

The second day of recon went smoothly; Sarah and Zack finished their sweep of all the electronic security in and outside the building. There were more systems just for the specific room with the mask than there were for the rest of the museum. This really intrigued Sarah, since she had been awake for all night she was more jumpy than usual.

"Everything ok there?" Zack asked.

"Zhis is too strange, Zackary." Sarah was noting on her tablet. "Zhe security iz mostly conzentrated on the mask ezxhibition. Zhey are taking rezourses from ozher security zectors just for zhis area."

"Now that is strange. Guess Carmen was right; someone from the inside knows what is inside the mask."

"And zhey mey know we are afterz it." Sarah yawned as she powered down the tablet.

"We should go, it is almost closing time but I believe you haven't slept in the last 24 hours."

Both jumped in the C-5 they opened outside the building near the cargo area. It must have been Sarah's exhaustion, as she was always alert in these surroundings, but she missed a pair of black figures lurking in the bay area. When the C-5 disappeared, both figures entered the museum's cargo area fallowed by three more.

Scene 3

The night offered an open sky while the white moon oversaw the city. Carmen loved to be under the moonlight, but sometimes it distracted and complicated her plans. Hugo and Carmen knew what they were looking for when they slipped past the group into the night shift. Years of training made their canvas a silent one. Sarah loved being in the recon van or posts, gave her a sense of bossiness that she enjoyed. Carmen knew this was a bit intoxicating for Sarah, but offered her friend that satisfaction from time to time.

"And we are onzline, Carmen." Sarah's voice came over the com.

"Sarah how many monitors do you see?" Carmen asked jokingly.

"Zix 24inch onez, 3 10inch onez and... waitz.. what?" Sarah was confused. Carmen and Hugo suppressed a laugh from their post over the museum's roof.

"You only slept 6 hours before we left those fuckers at ACME." Carmen and Hugo had drunk and smoked what was left of the NY cargo she had distributed days before this operation and was a bit off. "Look if you really want to just 10-7 we'd take it from here. No big shit is going on tonight."

"I'm okz, don't undereztimatez me." Sarah placed the burning tip of the joint she was smoking on the microphone which created a feedback on their ears.

"Ouch, bitch." Hugo cursed. "If I wanted to get my stuff cleaned out I'd had forced your hand down there." Both Sarah and Carmen laughed hard.

"Great, let's explore Hugo."

Scene 4

"What are they doing out there tonight as well?" Ivy asked to no one in particular in a very mad tone.

"They need to scout the night area since we are actually going to steal this during the night. Besides, they are the real thiefs, we'd only see how not to break in, as they see ways to break in." Kevin was in the computers imputing all the data so that Chief could sort it out.

"But we are part of the operation too; we need to be there with them to see what we are going to be doing. Besides we are the cops, how do we know they aren't going to betray us?"

"Well, Ivy, we are basically betraying them at the end. If we know Carmen, she just wants to finish this as fast as possible and without any complications." Zack said looking at his sister. When he saw her mad eyes, he averted his gaze towards Chief, imploring him some divine intermission.

"Calm down Ivy, we have never done such a thing as this, maybe she just wants to get it right the first time and not just waste time explaining every little detail to us." Chief said, understanding Zack's plea.

"Fine then, I'm out of here, if you guys want to trust them fine, I don't" Ivy stormed out of the Purple Room without clearance making the alarms go off.

"Hope she doesn't cause problems." Kevin said looking at Chief.

"She will, Zack, please monitor her GPS cords, if anything happens don't' hesitate to draw my attention."

"On it." Zack said reaching out for the computer. 'If I know my sister she is bound to go to the museum to spy on Carmen. Sigh sis, please be carful.' Zack thought.

Scene 5

"Well that is all of them in place, boss lady." Hugo said.

"I love it when they call me boss lady."

"Well, bozz lady, I got everzhing out of zhis place. We are hotz to go." Sarah said over the com.

"Ok, wrapping out. Lets get out of here, I know those bastards are wondering what we are doing and I don't' want horseshit drama."

Hugo and Carmen started their way back. It was a bit uncomfortable crawling on the ceiling rafters, but not as much as other places they had been. The new addition to the museum sported steel trusses with wood rafters to appear as a continuation of the old in the new. The sprinkler systems didn't made the job any easier, but what really ticked off Carmen is the low progressive visibility that the mechanical equipment provided. She loved working on the main floor space, not afraid of the video or any kind of other surveillance. This time she felt different, she wasn't actually enjoying this job. She had to take extra precautions she didn't take on other jobs since she was inviting the ACME detectives on her venture. She liked the thrill of leaving something exposed as to have a bit of fame for herself.

Years of being exposed to near death situations had tensed her mind and muscle to learn how to react to anything that disturbed her senses. In a second she got her Matchmaster .45 out and shot three rounds to her left side hearing a scream of pain from one of the stalkers. Hugo looked for a safe place to stall himself and take the intruders down. Carmen was carefully surveying her surroundings for any movement to shot at.

She had injured one very badly cause all she could hear was agonizing coughing and pain cries. 'That guy will die tonight,' she though. 'Nothing I shoot down ever comes up.' Her eyes already adjusted to low visibility noticed movement on her far left again. 'Big mistake'

Bam, Bam Carmen's big .45 resonated in the interspace between floors. Carefully aiming so as not to waste any bullets she scored again. Hugo saw the shoots being fired in return towards Carmen and aimed at them. Carmen took cover behind one of the steel trusses mid pillars and looked at Hugo trying to see if he was hurt or not. Hugo finished his round of bullets from his Baretta .38 and looked back at her, making a signal to see if she was ok, she signaled back she was.

"Whatz going on, I havez no vizual of you." Sarah said over the com.

"Access the inside surveillance from the floor above us and the corridors down from us." Carmen whispered.

"Inzide?" Sarah was confused. "Why wouldz zhat provide?"

"Sarah, just do it. These guys didn't come from the outside; these guys were already inside the building. They aren't guards, but they are professionals since they didn't activate any alarms getting here. They came from inside, probably from the basement and made their way up then crawled down to where we are." That was why Carmen was the boss of VILE, she knew things that no one else could dare, probably from her detective training. Even if it took her a minute to assess the situation, she always took control of it.

Bam Bam! the gun fire exchange kept going on for some time, which made Carmen anxious cause all this commotion would indeed attract the guards. Hugo scored himself a true kill on his second stand in. Carmen had put one down already and managed to get another one on the face, but not a definitive kill. She kept aiming to the concrete or to them, fearing the noise would be excessive if she misfired into steel.

Bam Bam, two kills for Carmen and three for Hugo.

"You'z right, seven in totalz came zhrough the basement door numberz zthree."

"Seven, we have 5 down, Carmen." Hugo said.

"No'z wait... nine more are goingz up zhere now." Sarah sounded a bit worried. "Zhey have big gunz."

"Just like I like them, big and nasty." Carmen snickered and Hugo gloated at this.

"It's time to go Carmen, what is the plan." Hugo looked at her.

Carmen had been working on a plan since the first shot she fired. She had ruled three escape plans already but this last one proved right. She had to create a diversion so that Hugo could open the trap door hidden in the gypsum board next to her. Once Hugo got it open they could rappel down, but first they had to kill the assailants before. If they rappelled down with them alive, the assailants would kill them from above.

"Hugo, remember the Marionette job?" Carmen looked at him then at herself.

"Yes, but I don't like the idea of it." Shots where fired in their direction.

"You have the strength to pull it off, I'll take them both. On three?" Carmen said with some tears on her eyes. 'This will hurt in the morning.'

She exposed her right wrist and just in queue BAM! The shot went below her wrist she screamed in pain but got up having fooled the assailant into showing himself she shot him on the head and shot the other on the neck. Meanwhile, while Carmen was getting shot Hugo rolled over to her side and opened the trap door. By the time he threw and secured the rope she had finished the job. Carmen 4, Hugo 3 and curiously enough Sarah 5. The nine extra assailants weren't alone. They pulled next to the van and tried to get in. Sarah hadn't slept very well and took her rage on the poor guys... one by one.

"You ok to climb down." Hugo said looking at her wrist.

"Yes, just a flesh wound." The shot had gone through the lower part of the wrist. It didn't damage any nerves or muscle, but it did leave a nasty cut that gushed blood. She wrapped it tightly so that none of the blood fell on the roof gypsum tiles. Hugo went looking for the bullet and picked it up; cleaning with a solvent used for such occasions the bullet hole on the concrete next to her.

They both rappelled down as fast as they could and Hugo disengaged the rope. As they were running out of the floor shots were fired at them from the ceiling. Two of the other assailants that were backing up the original group caught up with them. Carmen and Hugo returned fire while running out of the floor.

They carefully made their escape as fast as possible, even with their good aim they were clearly outnumbered. Running out to the plaza to meet the van where Sarah was, they discovered Sarah with her Baretta XX-treme she had wanted to use for a long time. A pile of bodies all around her, she was silently cleaning her gun.

"Looks like we all had fun tonight." Hugo said looking at the mess.

"You know how to imprez a womanz on her firzt date." Sarah said joking then looking at Carmen's wrist. "You gotz hurtz again. What am I goingz to do withz you? Hugo drive I'll tendz to the bozz."

"It's a flesh wound, Sarah, lets just roll and get out of here fast. Those guys will fallow us."

They got inside and Sarah started to monitor cop frequencies for a sign of the robbery, but none were dispatched. It seemed odd at first but then she noticed the assailants weren't fallowing neither.

"Carmenz" Sara said looking at Carmen's eyes. She didn't need to say anything the master thief could sense it.

"I know Sarah, it was an expel attack, just to get us out of there. Whatever they are planning will be in place tonight."

"So, we need to do more recon?" Hugo said looking back through the visor.

"Not entirely," Carmen stretched herself on the side bench, it might have been a small wound but the towel was already damped with blood. "They have the same intel as us, they didn't change nothing on the floor nor the systems. We got out of there without provoking any and so did they when they came in. That means we are both playing with the same console, its just they are installing their game and we ours. Lets just hope we get to play ours first. But one thing is for sure, it will take them time. Since they are moving bit by bit, plus if they need this much people they will take their time to set up."

Hugo looked forward and Sarah resumed her monitoring. Carmen just reflected on the ceiling and tried not to whimper with the pain on her wrist.

Scene 6

The van pulled on the purple docking bay ACME higher-ups had specifically called for them. The thiefs pulled inside and got their surveillance equipment out. They headed straight to the elevator, purple elevator (i hate purple now) to take them to where the others were.

It was past 4am this time when the elevator doors opened and they walked in. To their surprise everyone was awake, even Ronaldo. He was mad as no other and was scolding Ivy for her little unexpected outside trip. Apparently she had gone to the museum to investigate and was spotted by the nine assailants that were waiting on orders from their inside team. When the assailants spotted that Ivy was going to break in they called her out. Out of the blue the C-5 corridor opened and out of it came Ronaldo and dragged her into it.

Ronaldo looked past them and stormed out.

"I keep a tighter leash here after you left, bitch." Ronaldo said passing her.

"I'm glad to be of use, even after I left asshole." Carmen murmured grabbing her arm.

Ronaldo left the room and Chief came to them, to explain what had happened. Carmen sighted and left to the kitchen, she understood now why had their plan gone south so fast. 'Damn detectives.'

"I said I was sorry already, besides, nothing happened, its not like I got anywhere but the back door." Ivy said as she took a seat next to Zack.

"That was stupid sis, what if someone saw you or if the security system was activated? All of our recon would be ruined."

Hugo went and sat next to Kevin and exhaled. Sarah was really exhausted and Carmen urged her to go to sleep, and so she did. Carmen gave Chief a tired look and handed over the last of the recon so he could input it on the programs. He was actually enjoying himself, rarely did they asked him to get overly involved in program, and they only used him for research.

"Rough night?" Kevin said giving the beer he had just taken out of the fridge moments before they came to Hugo. Hugo downed it as if it were water.

"Yup, nasty encounters of the close kind." The adrenaline was leaving him just as fast. "You should check on her." He said pointing at Carmen. She was standing on the kitchen faucet with her right hand limply on her side.

"Why should we? Didn't you say you guys were professionals and didn't need our help?" Ivy retorted.

"If you haven't noticed she is bleeding heavily." Hugo got up to the bath room; he had to take a bath after crawling on that space.

Kevin got up faster than ever when he saw that the floor beneath Carmen had blood drops all over. He rushed fast towards her taking the first aid kit from the cabinet near the kitchen. She wasn't expecting him and startled in both pain and surprise when he grabbed her arm.

"Fuck!" She said with watery eyes. She had to admit for a flesh wound it hurt more than usual. She had examined the bulled on the way home and she understood why it hurt so badly. The bulled was specialty made, with shredding teeth that serrated flesh and bone when it passed through. If it would have been a simple bullet, she wouldn't feel that much pain, but this grinded through and through. "Leave me it's just a flesh wound." She tried to pull her arm away from him.

"You got shot." Kevin said a bit loudly which made Ivy, Zack and Chief come to them. Carmen had been shot before, twice where mostly deadly, but she had survived. She had a tattoo on every single one of her shots; six in total, now her thought were what to design for this one.

"What?" Chief was very worried. "Omg, where, how, why? Does it hurt? Will you die? Do you need medical attention?" Chief was all over her which made her uncomfortable.

"It is nothing...shit, watch it Kevin." Carmen said as Kevin started to pull up her jacket sleeve and revealed her wound. It was a clean shot through on the lower part and it would surely leave a nasty scar.

"How did that happen?" Zack asked worried. He knew people like Carmen would take a bullet sooner than later, but having it seen live and for the first time was something else.

"We were finishing the sweep when we got surprised by 7 assailants on the roof rafters. We could have taken our time to run out the same way we came, but apparently the backup crew they had on the back side of the museum got tipped off." She said looking stirringly at Ivy.

"I'm sorry; it's just that I... I'm sorry!" Ivy said almost sobbing. She was through with this untrusting business; she didn't want anyone hurt, not even the thiefs.

"It's ok, not the first time I get shot, believe me." Carmen said as if this was something normal, then she remembered where she was. "Did I say that out loud?"

"Well it is a flesh wound but the inner wound is serrated, must be hell of pain your feeling." Kevin said looking at her eyes. She moved her head in a no, but her eyes betrayed her pain.

"Look, next time you don't trust me just say so. I'm not someone that trusts easily and I don't' expect to be trusted either." She said tiredly at Ivy. "I'm used to being betrayed, conned, shot, insulted... you name it. If there is something bothering you, fucking say it. I can take any bullshit you throw at me." She said that last part smiling a bit. "Shit! Watch it."

Kevin was starting to apply some antiseptic to the wound. "Hey, no more of your dirty mouth." He said jokingly looking at her. "Unless you're in a horizontal position."

"Ha! That is a good one." Carmen said ruffling his hair. "Go sleep Ivy, it's alright and Zack, go take care of her. Tomorrow you guys might like to work a bit on the last recon info, we'll be too tired for this. Motherfucker!" Kevin dabbed the interior of the wound with medicine. She hit him on the back and he grabbed her arm so she wouldn't take it away from him. "You asshole, you have any idea what your fucking doing. I can fucking take care of it, shit." She placed her head on his shoulder to muffle the cry, still trying to free her arm from Kevin's grip.

Zack and Ivy left them together alone. Chief sort of took the hint and prepared to leave.

"You can use the fifth door to the left to get some fresh night air." Chief said with a smile, he wanted to look at her and see if she was fine. Carmen looked up at him with tearful eyes and managed to smile back and him and mimic a 'thank you' with her lips.

Carmen and Kevin were left alone, really alone for the first time since they had seen each other again. He was taking care of her so gently that her pain of the wound was almost gone. She started to caress his hair and back, seeing him liking that. Kevin kept his cool cleaning and dressing her wound when he started to feel hotter under the constant kissing Carmen was giving his ear and neck. Without noticing, he started to finish her wound faster than he would have liked. The night was still a few hours away from finishing, but he was done with her wound. As he looked to his right, his eyes fell on hers and he dared to look at them for a bit longer.

End of chapter 9

Action of every type! Oh, this was a good chapter! What are your thoughts? Leave comments and review, please :D

Is it going on for too long? This was a long chapter, longest I have ever written on the fly and I don't know if the story is already taking too long. Don't want to make it a drag to read.