Chapter 4: Outback Stakes Up

*Paris*

Carmelita felt foolish as she sat in her living room. She should have put the pieces together that Bonnie would return home for at some point, it just turns out the one time her daughter did, was during the time that she was back at the office. Her place… well former place of employment. Now officers searched the house for clues and she couldn't even legally help because she was out of the job. She looked for a distraction and flicked on her television, surprised by her daughter's face being plastered all over the news. She followed the story as the news anchor explained the details of the criminal Bonnie Cooper as she sat in her living room chair baffled watching her daughter jump into an unidentified aircraft with a complete stranger.

She found herself leaning closer to the TV as if hoping she could actually see where it went. Hoping her daughter would get off the plane by chance. She felt dark inside, miserable even. There was so much she needed to answer too. So much she needed to apologize for. Now she didn't have the chance. Her heart sank. She went through everything in her head that Bonnie needed to know. Knowing she might never get that chance.

She thought about Sly, the father of her children. How he had had to take her son because it would be suspicious if she returned to Paris with a son all those years back. She had been so sure that Sly and her son Clyde weren't real simply because the world around her drilled it in her head. She didn't know what to do. She had given up her outrageous goose chase just this morning, for her daughter's sake.

Something in her head clicked. She shut off her television as two police officers came down the steps and into her living room. "She took off with most of your valuables Carmelita." She remained un-phased, she knew this already. She called the cops merely to be spiteful to her former boss. Sensing her calmness the other detective needed to add, "But you already knew that, and so our work is about done here. We'll take the evidence we have and bring it back to the precinct and let you know if we find her."

As they turned to leave her brother came in carrying a to-go bag of food. Carmelita stood and walked to the kitchen to meet him there. "Eat up," he said tossing the bag on her kitchen island. She looked up at him clearly annoyed.

"Thanks," she said as she turned toward the foyer, "But no thanks."

He rolled his eyes and followed her as she walked up the stairs to her room. "You don't do anyone any good, namely Bonnie, by losing general care for your own wellbeing!"

Carmelita turned so fast and gave him the coldest look she could muster. "Do not use her as an excuse to bend me to your will." She walked on and opened her closet door as Carmelo sat on her bed. "I want her back more than anyone else, and I just can't be a police officer to do that."

Carmelo rubbed his forehead. "Carmelita I know this is awful, but you can't lose your rational right now. You've got to keep your head."

She froze where she stood in her closet and let her head sink into defeat. Her brother was right, she shouldn't lose her head, as a police woman, well a former police woman, she had to keep her head on straight. However, she wasn't a police woman anymore, she was a mother. She had a little girl out there who could be anywhere, and that possible location wasn't just Paris anymore it was the entire world. All thoughts of being rational were long gone. She had to broaden her horizons once more. She had no choice but to embrace the hunter inside her, the same one who found Sly Cooper six years back.

She knew that she would be crossing lines this time, unlawful ones. However she didn't have a choice any more. She knew that embracing that part meant that she would have to become the hunter, the predator who would begin by searching through the grey areas. Start at the very bottom. The place that had minimal connections to her first target, and she would work her way up from there. She knew exactly what to do.

Carmelita rummaged through an old trunk in her closet and pulled out a slim fit evening gown that hadn't seen the light of day since she danced with Sly Cooper so many years ago while undercover in India. She put on a fake smile and walked out of her closet to meet her brother.

"I'm not losing my rational; I'm just going out tonight to take my mind off of things." She said as she tossed the dress on her bed. Her brother followed her as she walked to the bathroom down the hall. Carmelo again followed and she knew her only hope was to lose him. "Look Carmelo, I'm just going out to dance, maybe meet someone I don't know. I can't handle all this right now."

He shook his head, "Understood, but Carmelita you can't just bury it under drinks with a stranger and dancing? Where could you even go to do that anyway? It's so unlike you."

She smiled as she opened the cabinet under the sink. She pretended to look for something as she pulled one of her guns loose from the roof of cabinet. She shrugged as her brother crossed his arms. She silently prayed he'd forgive her someday, but right now she had no choice, this needed to get done. She needed her little girl. "Could you hand me that towel behind you?" He turned to look for it but nothing was there, when he was in the middle of returning to her gaze the hard end of her gun smacked him in the face. He instantly collapsed and a decent sized bump was forming on his head. "Forgive me brother." She said as she dragged him to the futon outside of the bathroom in the hall. "But I've got a night club to get to. You know the one across town."

She used all her strength to plop him onto the futon. Only after she was quite winded and slightly sore did she recover from the attempt and retrieve a blanket from the linen closet. She placed it over her brother, feeling sorry for having to do this. She knew she wouldn't be back for a while, if her plan actually worked. It had to, it couldn't not. She didn't have room for error. There was so much to get done, she had thought. She strolled back into her room and toward the dress that she'd discarded on the bed. She quickly changed and put her hair in a fancy updo. Lastly, she strapped her favorite red electric plasma gun into her garter the was laced around her right leg. "I've got a date with Dimitri."

She flicked off her bedroom light and headed out.

*A plane over Australia*

Bonnie's eyes opened and for a moment she didn't know where she was. Part of her was expecting to see the same old pale pink bedroom she woke up in the day before. She could have sworn there would be that same old oak dresser that had nothing but a hair brush and dirty T-shirts thrown on top of it, part of her wanted to see that plush purple carpet that coated her floor and as much as she hated it, she also wanted to see that big bright window that had the most extravagant view of her neighbor's house, but only when she looked around the private jet did she realize the gravity of yesterday. She felt it all sink back in.

Get it together, she thought. Nothing was the same and she knew it. She potentially had a brother now, her father was Sly Cooper and she didn't even know if he was alive. Lastly, to top off the list of unfortunate things in her life, her mother had been lying to her the whole time for her whole life about everything. She sat up straight in the bed and pushed her thoughts aside because she could feel her tears forming behind her eyes. She turned to her right and saw that Morgan's bed was empty.

Given that she still was weary about everything she grabbed the famous Cooper Cane and searched the plane. She peered out the window and was able to see the ground for the first time from up above. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, and the earth below looked dry and deserted. She assumed they were close to their target. Bonnie strolled up to the cockpit and heard Morgan speaking through some type of intercom.

"We are a solid 30 minutes out Seth! I can't just stop the plane! Can't you hurry your dad out faster?"

"Listen Morgan, he was supposed to be gone last night for some derby in Greece, but he canceled because your dad called him. Who's to say he won't take me with him when he heads back to Kaine Island." A deep male voice said, she assumed it was this cousin of Morgan.

She was about to walk through the door when she heard the talking continue. "Is it really Sly's daughter? Is she with you?"

"Yeah," Morgan said, "She's really cool Seth almost like she should have always been a part of our family. You'll like her."

"That's not why I'm asking…It wasn't exactly just your father who called in to my dad last night."

Morgan pushed a few buttons on the plane to lower its rate of speed. "What do you mean?"

Seth rolled his eyes through the video intercom. "Listen, Sly is on Kaine Island. He's alive and he rang my dad last night too. My dad's been in the garage working on the old van. He's touching up on the wing expansion your dad built a long time ago. He's flying the old Cooper van to Kaine Island, because both Sly and Bently are there, supposedly looking for this Bonnie girl that you're bringing here!"

Bonnie's eyes widened. Her father was looking for her? Did he even know about her? Who cares Bonnie! Your dad is alive and now you know for sure! You can find him, and find out if this Clyde is your brother! She shook her head to brush off any excitement because she was still a little unsure of the situation as a whole. She needed to get to this Kaine Island.

She couldn't resist anymore, she pushed open the cockpit door and charged into the small room. "My father is alive?"

Seth fell silent as Morgan spoke, "Apparently so, it's something we'll have to factor into our plans but right now we need to get to Seth."

Bonnie sat in the co-piolets chair and studied Morgan's face as she flicked through buttons on the planes dash board. "Morgan I was on the hunt for him, I was going to try and find him if alive. Plus now that I have a potential brother maybe I could find them together. If I get reunited with them it's almost like we could be our own family of thieves!"

Morgan shook her head, "I know what you want to do Bonnie, it makes sense and in time we will. However we just can't do that right now. We have to assume that the Intel our parents have indicates that we were all in cahoots for a long time. No one is just going to believe we came together on our own let alone give us the chance to explain! Plus you've got a lot of progress to make if we're going to get you up to par with the Cooper legacy…"

She was cut off by a little emergency light blinking on the dashboard. "Uh oh."

"What is it?" Bonnie questioned, "Are we out of fuel?"

"No she replied, it runs on solar power. My father found us, and he's initializing an emergency stop. Seth I don't know how long I have until the com goes out." She typed extremely fast before continuing to speak. "I sent you our coordinates, we are about 40 miles out. I need you to steal your dad's car."

"You need me to what?" he said confused.

"This is no time to argue. We need you to steal the Cooper van right out from under your father. Otherwise we'll get caught and who knows what after that. Come on Seth, join our band of thieves!"

He looked away for a moment. Then back up at the video com and smiled. "I'll see what I can do. When your plane lands don't stray too far. I'll be there as fast as I can." He pushed a button on his com watch and the screen went blank. The plane began to land and the girls braced for impact. The landing was harsh and rather disastrous because it was slightly bumpy. There was nothing around in sight. Just a few simple cacti and tumble weeds not even blowing because there was no wind.

"Now what?" Bonnie said.

Morgan released the controls that she didn't realize she was gripping so tight. "We wait and hope Seth gets to us before Murray, Sly and my father do."

*The previous night.*

Carmelita strolled up to Dimitri's nightclub, her elaborate dress could only get her so far. She needed a persona an alter ego. One that would throw everyone off of her regular intentions. She knew what she had to do to get inside, she also knew how to get in to see Dimitri. Even though she didn't like it all that much.

She walked up to the front door and the guards checked her once over. Play the part Carmelita, it's the only way. She thought as she extended her hand out to one of the guards. "Evening fellas." She said in a seductive voice while ending with a wink. The guard on the left took her paw and kissed it through her black satin gloves. "Any chance you could let in a girl who's trying to get her kicks?" She said glancing at the other guard adjacent to the one who was holding her hand. His eyes fluttered as she blew him a kiss with her free hand. Instinctively, he checked the list. She knew that would be her downfall.

"You won't find me on that list hon." She said to the guard as she retrieved her hands and placed them on her hips. "However," She said walking toward the door. "Dimitri might want to meet me." She turned to face the guards again and turned her back to the door. "Perhaps you might have heard of me lately, my name's Bonnie Cooper, and I'm interested in meeting such a man."

The guards shook their heads in disbelief and called in the visit to Dimitri. The Bonnie Cooper everyone was hearing about on the news. She was definitely someone that he figured Sly Cooper would be on the lookout for. Granted they were merely acquaintances, snagging Bonnie Cooper could potentially get Sly to owe him another favor. She probably needed shelter and plus Dimitri saw endless possibilities with her capture, she must be too simplistic of the mind to realize exactly who he was. It made sense to let her in, he buzzed the guards allowing her entry into the club and up to his office. However he made it clear that they buy her a drink first. He had a call to make.

Carmelita took pride in the fact that she got inside the club under the alias of her own daughter, once again finding herself thanking her lucky stars that they shared the same looks. However she didn't expect the bodyguard entourage but she had to make do. "Boss man said to make sure the lady had some type of drink before heading up to his office." She really didn't want one, but she had to keep it up.

"Don't worry about me boys," she said lifting a hand under each of their snouts and gently caressing it. "I'm in no hurry to make it on up to Dimitri, I'm going to dance a little, drink a little, and have some fun." She winked at the guards when she placed her hands back on her hips and turned to face them. "Just point me in his direction and I'll find you when I'm ready to head on up." She ended on a wink.

The guards were intrigued by her flirtatious voice, "It's that elevator over there," The big burly one who was gawking open snouted at her said. The other guard was somewhat suspicious and she feared it would be her downfall.

"Don't think about sneaking around us either, the elevator up to Dimitri's needs a special key in order to operate. Only we have it."

Carmelita felt defeated but she had an idea. "Relax there big boy." She said waving off his suspicion. "I just want to dance." She said giving a pouty expression at the guard who clearly bought into her act. She strode toward him in a seductive manor, "Wanna join me big fella."

He was drooling down the side of his mouth as he looked at the suspicious one. "Please, she won't be alone this way at least."

Begrudgingly he agreed and watched as Carmelita and the buffoon headed for the dance floor. She didn't hesitate to pull him directly in the middle of it all. The crowds of people jumping to the rhythm around them gave her an easier slip away. She started moving around him to the music looking for possible places the elevator key could be. She enticed him to the point where he started to dance too and she located the key. She slipped behind him and grabbed the key out of his back pocket then resumed dancing. When she reached his front she stepped on his toe intentionally. Giving an apologetic smile. He bent to see the damage and while he was reaching down she kneed him right in the snout and sent him spiraling backward. He bumped into another brawny and beefy man and immediately was suckered into a fight.

She saw her vantage point and slipped through the crowds of dancing and fighting idiots and snaked over to the elevator. When she made it safely into the elevator she slid the key in the slot and rode it on up. Dimitri heard the ding and wasn't entirely ready for Bonnie's arrival yet. He didn't have time to call up extra guards in case the take down was hard. He strode over to the elevator and was prepared to greet this Bonnie nicely at first. However when the doors open, he wasn't exactly pleased to see Miss Carmelita Fox standing before him. He was staring point blank down the barrel of her gun.

"Where is Sly Cooper, and how do I get to him."

Dimitri backed up slowly raising his hands above his head. "Easy there doll face I see what you're trying to do. Just got off the phone with the old 'Cooper Gang' they think I'm hauling in Bonnie Cooper. Sucha shame that I get her mother instead."

Carmelita thought for a moment. "Dimitri, I need to talk to him." She noticed his computer glowing on his desk. "I didn't come to take you in," she said as she placed her gun back in her garter. "I came to find Sly Cooper, Dimitri I know you have connections and I need them." She walked passed him and around to his computer desk. She found a web chat happening on a website called thiefnet. She trolled through the conversation and realized that it was Bently, Sly Cooper's old gang member.

She looked up with a sense of pain and sorrow in her eyes, she had genuinely needed Dimitri's help. He wasn't expecting this. "I must say Carmelita, this is so unlike you. I figured you'd have me pummeled to the ground with all your police friends."

She shook her head. "I left the force, all I want now is to find my daughter and I need Sly's help. Please."

Dimitri looked astounded, but he knew off the bat that he wasn't about to give her something for nothing. "I can help you out darling, but that means you'll owe me one. Whenever and wherever I feel like it."

Carmelita tossed the idea around in her head. She was one step closer to her daughter, she didn't have a choice. "You have my word Dimitri."

Clearly satisfied he strolled over to his computer. "Luckily for you I was explaining that I potentially had Bonnie Cooper in my personal custody, however I think we both know how legitimate that is." He strolled over to meet her at his computer and made a few clicks and up popped a webcam video that was dialing Bently's thiefnet user. "I suppose you'll have to explain as to why that is no longer an option?"

Carmelita dropped her gaze to the screen and waited. She wasn't expecting what she saw, years of looking, wanting him back in her grasp. She was staring at Sly Cooper, her bane of existence and yet the love of her life. However what startled her most was seeing her son so grown, sitting on his lap. "Clyde." She said through some tears.

Sly's expression was no different. It had been a while. "Carmelita?" he questioned.

She shook her head, "I've um got some explaining to do Sly."

"So I'm a bouncing baby daddy of two huh?"

In spite of the situation, Carmelita let a small grin escape as she relayed to him the story of Bonnie Cooper.

*Outback of Australia present time.*

Seth sat at the kitchen table. He was completely unaware with how he was going to steal the Cooper Van. He had to formulate an Idea fast because his father was finishing up the wings. He needed an excuse something to help aid his thieving of the van, when he was struck with an idea. He ran around the corner from the kitchen and all but dove into the garage where his father was finishing up the car.

"Papa, you'll never believe this! Bently and Sly found the plane that Morgan and the girl Bonnie were flying in! They've landed here!"

Murray walked out from around the other side of the car and wiped grease off of his hands. His gaze lifted up to his son. Dear God I hope this works. "What do you mean Seth? How do you know?"

"Morgan was on the phone just before, she told me Bently emergency landed her plane. I don't know why she told me I mean obviously I would tell you!" Murray was easy to fool, especially without Bently or Sly there to make him question everything. He did however feel kind of bad, his father was a good guy, but Seth had always felt second to him. Ever since his mom died and his dad traveled the world for his racing Seth never felt like he was a priority, let alone a son. This was his chance to be something more than just a burden to his father.

Murray put down the towel on the work bench. "This is great news Seth, I've got to call them, and do you know their exact location?" Seth felt smug inside, this was gonna work.

Seth shook his head yes. Murray pushed passed him and headed for the small kitchen to call up his gang members. Seth shook his head in disbelief that it had worked. He walked over to the work bench and snagged the keys off of their hook then shut the garage door that leads into the kitchen and moved the rack of heavy tools in front of it so his father would have difficulty getting into the garage when he noticed.

Seth snuck over to the driver's seat and geared himself up. He was sixteen it was plausible that he learned how to drive. Right means go left means break. He started the car and heard pounding on the other end of the garage door. "Seth! Seth what are you doing?" His father must have heard the car roar to life. Quickly he plugged in the coordinates Morgan had relayed to him and the car lifted off the ground while its wings sprouted outward crashing and knocking things over. He saw the autopilot button and smacked it in just as his father broke through the barrier he'd set up. "Seth!" He'd called out but nothing was stopping him now. The truck crashed through the garage door and took off in a westward direction. Seth let out a sigh of relief as his small house faded in the distance.

He thought he was home free but felt his muscles tense when the van spoke to him "Warning: Autopilot failure." The truck began to slow down in the air. Far enough away from the house, but his father could catch him with any of their other cars if he didn't figure out how to drive this thing soon. He thought back to watching his dad all those years and let his instincts take over. He began to become one with a van and understand it more than he had ever before. He figured out how to drive it and switch from flight to drive. Suddenly he was off, roaring through the desert and he watched as the sand flew up into dust behind him. It was the first time he'd ever felt so alive.

*The desert*

Bonnie paced back and forth in the lounge area of the plane clearly lost in thought. Morgan had replaced the beds with lounge chairs again and was prodding through the kitchen of the jet just at the back of the little room. She packed food and water into cardboard boxes at relatively fast speed. She gathered things from around the plane as well, some pillows and blankets. As well as a computer that she had been debunking for about twenty minutes now.

"Morgan we can't just stay here we're sitting ducks!"

"It's what we have to do right now Bonnie, Seth will come through he's just like us. He will be here we can't leave him behind."

"What do you mean just like us?"

Morgan looked up from the laptop and closed it softly, she placed it in the box with pillows and blankets that sat beside her on the couch. "Why do you think I was so eager to find you?"

"You told me already, you think I didn't have a fair chance to be a Cooper." Bonnie retorted.

"Exactly," Bonnie scratched her head. Morgan rolled her eyes and continued. "Seth and I have spent our whole lives living in our parents shadows. His dad traveled the world to compete in races just for fun, whereas I lived on Kaine Island all of my life wondering when I'd get my shot to be who I was meant to. A thief, or a computer analyst, or anything I wanted to be. I didn't even think I'd get a friend out of it."

Bonnie sat in the lounge chair and allowed herself to relax for the moment as Morgan went on. "When I first saw you on the news, I instantly saw myself. A girl who wanted more than the life she had been dealt. Except you wanted to follow the path your father laid out for you. I partly wanted to aid you because I wanted my father to see that I am capable of great things just like he is, you basically were learning and embracing who you are last night, it gave me the strength to believe that I could be what I was meant to. And Seth, poor Seth, ever since his mother died he's done everything he could to get his father to even notice him. We're all desperate to be more than what our parents programmed us to be in our heads. We can relate to each other that way I guess. You were the spark Bonnie, you've united us."

"I have?" She asked.

"It's like we're a team on the run, except from our parents. We need to be who we are, they can't stop us and they need to see that. And sure I just met you in person yesterday Bonnie, but the way you completely threw caution to the wind has shown me that I can rely on you to help give me the courage I need to throw caution to it too, and hopefully Seth will feel that way as well. Now don't panic. I have an idea as to where to go after he gets here."

It was almost as if on que that the girls heard an engine roar to life from somewhere in the desert. They ran to the plane windows and saw the Cooper van heading straight for them. Bonnie gripped her cane tight and decided to hide while Morgan looked puzzled.

"I know you think its Seth, but a little skepticism couldn't hurt and could keep our heist going here, think about it. There is a 50/50 chance it could be Murray. I'd rather him think we weren't here while he searches the ship. You and I hide in the closet alongside the cockpit doors and when he checks up there we lock him in, we'd have at least three minutes to escape to the van and take it to find Seth."

Morgan was amazed at Bonnie's thinking. As much as she believed it was Seth she had to be a little skeptical in case it was Murray. The two girls flocked to the closet and waited as they heard the van pull to a stop.

"I'll check the window," Morgan said, considering she'd be the only one on board who could differentiate between Murray and Seth because Bonnie had never met either. Relief overtook her when Seth rushed out of the car and banged on the landing pad. "We're clear Bonnie!" She said slightly more ecstatic then she should have been, "It is Seth!"

She opened the landing pad and greeted Seth with the biggest hug. "Good to see you Morgan, Hurry we don't have a lot of time!" He said heading for the van.

Morgan quickly replied, "Open the back doors I've jacked all the planes food supply and some blankets and pillows for warmth. I know the van is somewhat luxury, but I doubt it's got enough accommodations to get us where we are going."

Seth raced up into the plane and saw Bonnie standing there for the first time, he didn't exactly know what to make of her and he certainly wasn't sure if he particularly liked her or not. Let's be real here, she is the reason they're all now fugitive children, of pretty much fugitive parents. She alone essentially doubled the wanted factor and potential bounty over all their heads. He didn't have time for an introduction let alone care to give one, he grabbed the first box of supplies he saw on the couch and began to walk to the van. When he placed it in the back he saw Bonnie carrying the last of them.

Morgan was already in the front seat fiddling with the tech. She used her laptop to calculate the van's GPS tracking devices and fry them. Considering it was a particularly old van, her father's new fancy tech couldn't have been programmed into it yet, so finding them would be nearly impossible once she hacked the tracking chip and blasted it to smithereens with viruses to the point where it just shut down. Bonnie climbed in the back of the van while Seth shut her in and paced to the driver's seat. "Where to?" He asked.

"Set a course for Utah, America. I've been checking old databases and there's an old mob boss named Mugshot who used to own some casinos there. The place has been abandoned for years upon years since he was arrested back then, courtesy of both your mom and dad kind of." She gestured toward Bonnie. "It would be the perfect place to lay low and brush up on our skills. Bonnie there's ample grounds for practicing skills that you read about in the Thievius Raccoonus, also Seth there's a racing track that you can practice well racing I guess. We can lay low there for a while but we've got to move fast we've been idle for too long who knows how close our parents are."

Seth let himself grin ear to ear. "Say no more Morgan my dear," He flicked a switch and the car began to hover as it sprouted wings. "To Utah it is." The car took off into the skies as they left the jet behind. Bonnie peered out the front window and couldn't help but smile. Even though she had a feeling Seth didn't take to her well, she felt like this was becoming a family, she was a part of a group that would do so much, even if they knew so little of her. It was truly an honor, among thieves that is, to be able to work together even with differences. She herself allowed a smile to grow from ear to ear as they soared into the sunny sky above.

*A plane above Australia*

Carmelita sat across from her Sly Cooper. They stared each other down and didn't say a word. She wondered what he'd been thinking. They were strapped in to safety harnesses so they couldn't move. She had recounted the conversation last night. She had seen a sorrow in Sly's eyes that she'd never encountered before. She couldn't imagine what it felt like to have someone withhold information like being a parent from them. Her heart sank on his behalf for what she'd done. She had wanted to tell him six years ago but words didn't mean anything, he had to know her, to know Bonnie. She shifted her gaze uneasily to her sleeping son Clyde who was strapped in right next to Sly. He wasn't the same little baby boy she had seen all those years ago. Not a day went by that she didn't miss him, but she just couldn't say anything outwardly during that time without raising suspicion by everyone in her life.

All of her wished she could take those years back, to watch Clyde grow up like a good mother. Or even to watch her Bonnie grow up, to focus on her more than she ever did. She felt Sly's gaze harden as Carmelita looked at her son. "He's adorable isn't he?"

She wasn't expecting him to speak to her, not after all she'd told him last night. The fourteen hour plane ride thus far was mostly in utter silence and her falling in and out of sleep. She all but had to beg for him to get her and fly her to wherever they believed Bonnie was. She couldn't meet his gaze, she was scared too. "Perfect." She replied.

Bently came over the intercom, "We'll be arriving shortly, and brace yourselves there could potentially be a fight. Who knows? Murray called in and said Seth went missing with the van, it's safe to assume that they're all there together, either that or they all escaped together. However there is still a chance we can head them off." His voice cut out. He was up in the cockpit with Penelope working together on the flight; Sly just assumed they were giving Carmelita and him some privacy.

Sly looked her once over, she was still wearing that black dress that they'd picked her up in last night at Dimitri's Nightclub. He'd recognize that dress anywhere, it was the same one she'd worn at Rajan's palace so many years ago, he'd deceived her that night and they'd shared a dance. She was uneasy since they're arrival and she hadn't relaxed since getting on the plane. Sly wondered what she was thinking. He also wondered how she could keep his daughter away from him, especially when she wanted so much to be like him apparently. He didn't know what he wanted more anymore; a chance to actually have a protégé child who enjoyed his lifestyle path, or capture her and have her imprisoned. Ever since he saw that birth certificate at Bently's on Kaine Island, he had been tossing it around.

Once Carmelita found a way to get in touch with him, he was even more disturbed with the options. He'd never met this girl and yet she'd managed to clear his entire file hidden in Carmelita's safe, get hold of the Thievius Raccoonus, and basically become a master thief on her debut performance. Kid had guts. There was one thing that puzzled him though, "How'd she get the cane?"

Carmelita looked up from her son who fluttered his eyes awake, "It was in the safe that she berated, along with your hat and her birth certificate." Sly Cooper's expression remained unchanged, when he'd told her to keep it safe sixteen years ago he didn't literally mean keep it in a safe. Leaving his hat was by accident though, he assumed she just brought out the more clumsy side of him, he didn't think she'd have kept it, but apparently she did. He was currently wearing a different blue hat, which Carmelita couldn't figure out how he got. Maybe Bently just had spares for him on Kaine Island. "Listen Sly, I don't know what your intentions are when we get there, but she is my little girl, and I will be taking her home."

Sly smiled slyly, "Is that what you think Carmelita?" Her eyes widened and she immediately was put on alert. "As beautiful and persuasive as you look in that dress, I do say it's not your choice, where our daughter goes anymore, hasn't worked well in the past has it cause here we are."

Carmelita flinched in her chair. "Listen to me Sly Cooper, she has never met you she knows nothing about you and you can rest assured that she will come back home with me. Just like my son will too. The cats out of the bag in Paris everyone knows so I'm taking my children somewhere else. I've missed so much of Bonnie's life; I won't allow myself to do the same with Clyde."

Sly grinned again. "You know Carmelita, you basically asked out children to be thieves. Bonnie and Clyde? Really? I think considering your lack of parenting our daughter became like me. I bet it burns you because you've probably done everything you could have to stop her from being this way."

Sly had already been dancing on her nerves, but now he hit the red button that labels and signs always warn you not to push. She lunged her hand out to hit him but the safety harness held her back. "You listen to me Cooper. I'm no longer who I was six years ago, let alone six hours ago. Do not threaten me by using my children because I will break any law I have to, I will become a thief myself if it means saving them. Don't get mad at me because finding you and being with you or arresting you is no longer a concern of mine. So when we land and my daughter is before me, stay out of my way."

"Hold tight," Bently's voice was saying once more. "We are landing." The plane came to a halt and floated gently to the ground. The safety harnesses unlocked and Carmelita shot up so fast that she didn't realize Sly did the same thing and considering they were so close they crashed into each other and fell to the ground. He hit the floor first and she landed right on top of him. They met each other's gaze. Each one of them had to fight their feelings of hate, pain, betrayal, lies, but most of all love, because they needed to find their daughter.

She looked into his brown eyes for a few short moments, and then she pushed herself back up. He is not my priority. She thought to herself.

He regained his balance and stood and helped Clyde out of his chair. She is not my priority. He thought to himself.

They all exited the plane and were baffled to find Murray sitting on the landing pad of the jet Morgan had stolen, face in palms and wallowing in pity. Bently, Penelope, Sly and Carmelita let out a defeated sigh. It could only mean one thing. Morgan, Bonnie, and now Seth got away, again. They were back to square one.

*Authors note*

Thank you for all of your support for my OC story! I would like to add an FYI, I plan to write about the things that you don't get in this storyline as separate stories, for example, Where Clyde and Sly have been for six years. When Sly came to Carmelita sixteen years passed and Bonnie came about. I even plan to write some new legacy adventures if requested! Don't be afraid to offer suggestions I know I'm not the world's greatest writer but whatever you'd like to see let me know and I'll see where I can fit it in! Thank you for reading and I hope you like what I've accomplished so far!