Eliot took his time under the hot water of Parker's downstairs shower. He couldn't imagine before that day Parker living in a nice house but she did. He supposed Sophie's shock at Parker's old place had motivated it but he didn't really care why she did it; just that Parker was finally taken care of. Though he worried about her since they had seen the warehouse he never thought to do what Sophie did, giving her a place that was better and helping her make it a home.
He supposed that was the problem, everyone including him got so wrapped up in their own issues that the problems of others seemed minute in comparison. Parker's plight had occupied his mind for a day or two but then the next job, or Nate pissed him off again and he forgot before he figured out what to do about it. The most recent argument between them had been over his position on jobs; they had been taking far too many one after another. It was like Nate's desire to atone for his sins imagined or not had reached a fever pitch and running them into the ground was his way of dealing. They had completed three jobs in a row without more than a day off between them and Nate after the debrief from the last one had gone into a new mission briefing barely a pause in-between words.
Seeing the faces of the rest of the team and feeling the fatigue in his own muscles Eliot had flat out refused to participate and made his way up to the roof where Parker found him a few moments later. Eliot finished showering and took a towel from the rack wrapping it around his waist using the other to dry his hair. Once he emerged from underneath the towel he found a set of his clothes sitting on the sink. He allowed a moment of frustration that he had not heard her come in but as soon as it entered it passed. Had she been less good at her job they would have likely been caught or killed years before he could not fault her for a skill that kept her alive. He pulled on his clothes with a slight wince realizing the run had hit his already sore muscles while he was in the shower.
He found Parker pulling paintings from the stove and sticking them in the sink one at a time muttering to herself as she worked. "Can you help me carry them to the basement?" she asked pulling the last one from the stove and grouping it with what he could see on closer inspection were piles, he assumed by painter.
"Sure." He held out his arms and she began piling paintings into them only taking three herself as she led him deeper into her home. She came to a wall under the stairs and slid up a small panel in the wood he never would have noticed had he not witnessed her opening it. She punched a code into the keypad and a door opened to his left with swoosh almost hitting him in the arm. He hopped to the right with a scowl in her direction which she ignored flipping the light switch on the wall and leading him down a set of stairs. When they reached the bottom he almost couldn't hold back the gasp of shock at the sight of the room. He imagined everything she had stored beyond the reach of the lights in her warehouse had been moved here. The room spanned the length of her home with three rows of what appeared to be safe deposit boxes with no keys or labels of any kind. She moved down the third row and stopped halfway down opening one of the boxes which had a few other canvases inside. The three in her arms and one from his stack went there and he continued to follow her around obediently as she slowly lightened the load in his arms.
What surprised him the most about her secret storage area was not that she had one, nor the sheer volume of things inside; it was the organization of the area. It was clear by the path she led him on that though her system may not make sense to anyone else it was perfectly organized in her own way.
"Thanks" she told him once she had closed the last door to the last painting. "That would have taken forever by myself." She told him as they headed back upstairs Parker punching in another code to release them from the room.
"I'll consider cooking me a good dinner thanks enough." He replied following her into another side door that led to a garage. She tossed him the keys to her black Camaro the one he had gone with her to purchase. She had confessed that she knew almost everything there was to know about stealing a car or how an engine worked but how to buy one was something she did not grasp as well. The subject only came up after the third vehicle was reported stolen from near their offices and found in the warehouse district on nights Parker had been too tired to walk home. The team had made it clear that she had to either purchase her own vehicle or take a cab on such days any thefts in the area put the team at risk.
Eliot pulled out of the garage allowing a grin of appreciation at the feel of the motor and the car's responsiveness. While he loved his truck the vehicle acted up more often than not and he had recently been considering purchasing a second vehicle and keeping the truck for recreational use only. He quickly found himself in an area he recognized and pulled in at a supermarket happy to find it was so close to Parker's home.
They made their way in perfectly in sync as usual and Eliot told her what each ingredient was for and stocking her plates, pots, pans, and silverware upon finding she used paper products. He got enough to make three or four full meals and extra things to assist her in the time he might not be there. There was a slight disagreement as Parker was all set to leave the store paying for nothing. Eliot refused and made his way to the check stand with her bicep gripped tight enough that she was unable to slip from his grasp but not hard enough to do any kind of damage. He quickly paid for the groceries and she spent the drive home doing the math aloud on how much money he might have 'wasted' over the years purchasing groceries instead of simply taking them when he had the skills to do so.
She kept up this tirade until he began seasoning the chicken then quieted down with a lollypop he had not realized she pocketed from the candy isle. He explained what he was doing and handed her a piece herself to coat with seasoning he had made while she was putting the groceries away. They fell into a comfortable silence as they finished dinner their ability to communicate with minimal conversation on jobs translating easily into a more domestic setting. In no time dinner was finished and Eliot had set the table with the new dishes they had purchased.
"What if I don't like it?" she asked as they set the food filled plates down on the counter.
"You think you won't like it?" he asked, "Doesn't it smell good." He lifted a plate to her nose jerking it up just enough to smear her face with potatoes. She stared at him indignantly as he tried his best to hold back a laugh at crossed eyes glaring at the bit of potato she could see on the tip of her nose. It was one of a series of reminders that day of how skilled she was as he did not even see her hand flash up to toss her own handful of potatoes in his hair.
It was his turn to stare in shock as she laughed out loud the smile lighting up her face something he had never seen before. Unlike when he watched her steal something this smile was not tinged with the knowledge of what they were doing on a job, or what risks they were taking it was pure happiness. He was up in a flash on a run to the sink where they had left the pots and pans to dry, he grabbed the kitchen sprayer and turned just in time to grip her around the waist pull her up against him dousing them both with water. She laughed and turned fighting her way out of his grasp and disappearing into the house. He instantly followed fully aware that if he lost her he would lose the battle; the thief was at her best when unseen. He followed her down the hall that led to the bathroom he had showered in but she darted off in another direction. He found a set of stairs that he followed her up but once he reached the top all he found was a hallway with four doors and no sign of Parker.
Cursing quietly he opened the first door and found a bedroom, a light sheen of dust told him that Parker being hidden here was unlikely but he did a cursory search of the room anyway keeping his ears open just in case he was missing something. Satisfied he closed the door and moved across the hall to the next door again propping it open to listen for noises of Parker sneaking past him. This room was a bathroom and the glass door to the shower exposed anywhere she could have been hiding so he moved on quickly. The next door led to a set of stairs that led to an attic, he kept the door open but moved on wanting to finish the floor he was on before moving on to the next.
After a quick search of the other guest bedroom, this one just as dusty led him again to the stairs. He moved up slowly surprised to find Parker's bedroom was the attic. It was hardwood floors and completely open with two skylights and a balcony that overlooked her backyard pool. The white bed he remembered from her warehouse took up the majority of the room. He moved to the closet and found harnesses, as well as what appeared to be every dress Sophie had bought Parker most with the tags still on.
He chuckled lightly and closed the door moving to the other bathroom. He took a moment longer in there noting cosmetics most of which like the dresses were still labeled. He stepped out of the room and nearly had a heart attack when Parker flipped down in front of him hanging from a beam by her legs. "Boo!" she shouted giggling as he stepped back clearly startled. She grabbed another beam and used it to land gracefully in front of him. "That took forever!" she told him once she had righted herself.
"You're a sneaky one I had to make sure you weren't anywhere else." He replied choosing not to mention the fact that she had frightened him in the hope that she would not remember.
"I'm hungry now." She shared; Eliot turned and nearly toppled over as Parker hopped on his back. "Piggyback ride scaredy-cat!"