2 Weeks Ago
In the middle of the woods in an isolated spot in the hills of rural Arkansas, a lone rundown shack sat. Inside, the three male occupants waited nervously at what was to come.
"Gentlemen, we're here for you." A voice called from outside. A man clad in all black, sporting a thick gray mustache shouted through a megaphone as he stood behind a black automobile. Around him were four other similarly colored vehicles with about a dozen or so men, all dressed in in black tailored suits and armed to the teeth. The group had the small structure surrounded on all sides. "This is W.R. Huggins of the H&S Detective Agency. You know the name and you know my reputation, so why don't you all spare us the trouble and just come on out?"
The butt of a rifle suddenly smashed out a window from inside as the barrel quickly aimed out and fired two shots. The two hastily fired shots whizzed passed Huggins' head, the man not even phased by the assault, standing fast and firm in his spot. Meanwhile, inside the shack, the other two men wrestled with the active gunman for engaging with the men outside.
"Are you crazy? Give me that gun!" One of them said.
"You're gonna get us all killed!" The other cried out.
The scuffle inside didn't last much longer as Huggins held his right hand in the air and gave a small gesture. Every man around him knew what that meant and opened fire on the shack, several with sub-machine guns, filling the wooden structure with holes from all sides. The shooting lasted near a minute before Huggins signaled to cease fire and one by one the gunmen stopped.
The man stood as poised as could be and signaled for two of the men accompanying him to head into the shack. They drew their revolvers and cautiously approached the building. One kicked the door in and the two leaped inside and aimed their weapons before disappearing from view. After a few moments one of them appeared in the doorway and gave thumbs down three times to confirm the men were dead. Huggins removed his black hat and fanned his head, revealing he was bald head with only gray hair around the sides and back. As he did another car with a lone driver approached and another man in black quickly raced to him with papers in his hands.
"Well that's one way to solve a problem." Huggins said as he watched his mean pull the bodies outside. "Tell our employer, I think that's the last time this gang will be hitting his payroll."
"Mr. Huggins, sir. I have some information for you. It's from Hodges. He says he may finally have a lead." The man approached him and handed Huggins the papers.
Huggins put his hat back on and began to read through the material and some old photos. "He thinks he's found her at last, huh?" he continued looking before turning his attention back to the deliverer. "Alright, get six others and have them come with me. We'll head down to New Sol immediately. Don't let the client know until I can confirm it myself. Send a call to Hodges and let him know we'll be joining him soon."
"Yes, sir." The man raced back to the car and drove off as the others had the bodies wrapped and loaded into one of the cars. Huggins pulled his hat off again and rubbed his head.
Present
Nights in New Sol were always exciting. Always something to do and things to see. One of those was the nightly boxing matches that took place in an old warehouse on the docks. Tonight's main event was a middleweight bout between a fighter named Kid Indio and his opponent, Steven Fox. The young man known to his friends and family as Stevie had grown into a strong built, tall teenager. Despite him only being fourteen years old, his build and looks would have you believe he was at least five years older. With that in mind, it was suggested by Clyde McBride that he use his size and strength, not for intimidating store owners or people that owed protection money, but to use it in a more legitimate manner inside the ring.
Or as legitimate as it could get with betting and rigged fights on the regular, not to mention the fact that the Fox boys was actually far too young to compete. Steven moved in on his opponent and began his usual process of wailing away on Kid Indio. The older man opposite him tried his best to keep Fox off of him and it wasn't long before he was forced into a corner. From there, he was an ample target for the younger Steven to pound away at with both hands at full force. It was non-stop punches for the better part of a minute as Kid Indio attempted to throw back only to be caught with a powerful right hook to the jaw that put him down in the corner. He was down and couldn't manage to be the count as the referee waived off the fight. The smokey room of spectators erupted with cheers, while other booed the poor performance of the loser as Steven's hand was raised in victory.
Fox and his team soon made it to the locker rooms as he got showered and was soon getting dressed as Clyde waited by the lockers. "Great show out there. Keep that up and you could be fighting for the state title in no time."
"Hey maybe I could get a world title shot, too." Stevie said excitedly as he grabbed his gear and placed it into his bag.
"Let's take it one step at a time." Clyde patted him on the back as they walked down the hall. "Come on I'll take you home."
As they got outside, Stevie stopped just before getting in the waiting car. "Hey,Clyde?"
"Yeah?" The glasses wearing young man responded.
"I wanted to thank you. You know, for introducing me to this and for being in my corner for all my fights. And I need to apologize to you."
"Apologize for what?" Clyde inquired.
Stevie opened the door to the car before looking to Clyde. "I never really liked you before. I always saw you talking to Lynn and I was kind of jealous. You know she's like a big sister to Pam, but I've always had...feelings for her and maybe I thought you did too."
Clyde found himself laughing for a second. "You have nothing to worry about. Lynn comes to me sometimes just to talk, to get things off her chest. Trust me, it's nothing romantic. Just some talk among friends."
"Thanks, Clyde." Stevie said with a smile as he got in the car, Clyde getting into the drivers seat not long after.
"Don't mention it. And don't wait too long to tell Lynn how you feel." Clyde said as he started the engine.
"It'd be easier if she wasn't pretending to be a guy. That Mollie girl is always clinging to her everywhere she goes." Stevie responded.
"Don't I know it. I doubt Lynn realizes it all too much. She's had a lot on her mind lately." The two drove for a while before they arrived in front of the apartment that Stevie shared with his sister and Lynn. The two wished each other a good night and the younger teen walked up the steps and entered the building. As he entered the front room of the apartment, he smelled a faint aroma coming from the kitchen and made his way there. The boy found his sister at the table in the middle of eating a cooked bird, ripping off one of the drumsticks and devouring it with a ravenous hunger.
"Hey, sis." He greeted simply.
"Hey." Pam responded, barely looking up from her meal. "You're home early."
Stevie looked a bit nervous. "Uh...yeah. The boss let us off early." He lied to her nervously, though she didn't seem to care before he changed the subject. "What'cha eating?"
"Chicken." Pam said plainly as she grabbed a plate and at it opposite her. "Want some? It's real expensive. Cost as much as... three people."
Stevie chuckled as he sat down and cut himself a piece of the bird off and onto his plate. "How do you figure that?" He bit into the meat and savored the taste of his sister's cooking.
"Cause that's what our brothers got exchanged for." She said bluntly as her brother stopped in mid chew as he looked up in disbelief, the food falling from his mouth and back onto the plate. He looked across the table to Pam who had stopped eating, tears pouring down her face. "Phillipini was in town with the circus. Me and Lynn went down there to get them but he...he traded them away for this dumb bird! I let them down! If I hadn't been fooling around that night, with that stupid 'ladies first' nonsense we'd all be here together like before. It's all my fault! It's all my fault!" The girl slammed her hands on the table as she began to cry uncontrollably.
Stevie didn't rightly know what he should say. He couldn't tell her that everything would be all right, because he didn't know that. So, not knowing what else to do, he got up and wrapped his arms around his sister and just let her cry.
Across the hall, behind a closed door, Lynn laid in her bed, wide awake, having heard the whole thing. She knew she would not be getting a good night's sleep after what had happened that evening.
Sunday morning came as many people packed into a small church on the lower east side of the city. Everyone took their seats and soon the service began as the reverend gave his sermon for that day. The large assembly was made up mostly of African-Americans with a few exceptions. One of those exceptions happened to be a certain young man with short brunette hair, who stood at the back of the room away from everyone else. While the reverend talked on, the eye's of this young man were trained on a certain young woman in a gray and black dress, a wide brimmed dark hat partially obscuring her pale skinned face.
The service eventually concluded with some staying inside to socialize while others began to file out of the building. As the young woman in black descended the stairwell with a few others she stopped as she heard a familiar voice greeting some others as they walked by.
"Hey, good to see you." One man said as he stepped down onto the street.
"Glad you could make it." Another said.
"I know it's been a while. Good to see everyone all the same. That was definitely some sermon, I'll say that." The young woman turned to see a familiar young man with short brunette hair, wearing a white button up shirt with brown pants and suspenders. He was leaning against the steps with a smile. "Lynn?" She said with surprise.
"Good morning. It's been a while, Maggie." Lynn said with a small smirk as the girl approached him.
"Yes, it's been a few months since I saw you last." Maggie said before a small smile crept on her lips. "It's good to see you. So what do I owe the pleasure?"
Lynn rested his left arm against the step rails. "I just...needed to talk." He said with a small sigh as he looked down to the ground.
The teen looked to him and reached out a hand covered in a long black glove and placed it on Lynn's shoulder. "Well fortunately for you, Margaret Hunley happens to be a great listener. We can go back to my place." Lynn's spirits seemed to pick up a bit as he smiled and gestured to a car down the street.
"Your chariot awaits, m'lady." Lynn jokingly said as the two made their way to the car.
It was a short drive to the Hunley home, the fancy car parked out front sticking out like a sore thumb in the neighborhood. No one dared to put a hand on the expensive vehicle out of respect for who it belonged to. Inside the home Lynn sat on the living room couch as Maggie brought two cups of coffee for them and sat Lynn's down in front of him. "Just the way you like it."
"Thanks." He picked it up and blew on it before taking a sip. The pale skinned girl had her hair tied back as she had changed out of the church clothing. Maggie was now wearing a pair of loose black pants with a similarly colored vest and white shirt underneath. She sat across from Lynn on a chair and took a sip herself.
"So, how are you doing Lynn? What's going on?" She asked.
Lynn looked to her for a moment before turning his gaze to the ground. "Things...aren't going so great. I've had some hard times lately."
Maggie gestured for her to continue. "Tell me."
Lynn sighed before responding. "Everything is just so messed up right now. I've had to bail my brother out half a dozen times in the last year because he wants to run the streets with some girl. I've got all my own work on top of watching his back and just when I thought I could help the twins out, I end up letting them down too!"
"That sounds like a lot of weight on your shoulders." Maggie said.
"You have no idea." Lynn admitted as he put his cup down on the table and leaned back. "And now Ma has got me thinking about my future. I mean, this is all I know. What other future is there?"
"What about your family?" Lynn looked over to the girl as she spoke. "You told me you came from a big one up north, right? You don't think you could leave all this and go back to them?"
"They don't understand me. They never did." Lynn said defensively at the suggestion of going back, after everything that had happened over the past four years. The person that would return was completely different then the one that had left. On top of it, he couldn't imagine just leaving the twins behind or worse taking them back to that ramshackle place to make things even worse for both them and the Loud family. And if Luan had left herself it must have only gotten worse since then.
Maggie sighed before she placed her cup down as well. She slowly made her way around behind the couch Lynn sat on."That's what I thought once too. But then someone convinced me in my darkest hour that my family did care about me, even if it didn't always seem that way. And, against my better judgment, I listened to him and it made my life better."
"Sounds like a smart guy." Lynn said with a smile as he felt a pair of hands rest on his shoulders.
The young woman surprised Lynn as she began to massage his shoulders. "I have an idea. Why don't we go out tonight? You can take me out dancing. We can go to Bongo's club."
"But you hate dancing, and crowds, and people in general." Lynn pointed out.
"Yeah, but I know it'll help lift your spirits to be out and about. Besides, everyone is always asking about you and they'll be excited to see you again."
Lynn surrendered to the idea and looked up to the girl above her. "Ah, alright. We're certain to be a sight going back there."
Maggie chuckled and gave him a surprise kiss on his forehead. "Aren't we always." Lynn wasn't always comfortable with things like that, especially given the secret being carried since the two met. The Loud teen never had the heart to tell her about it and just decided to lean fully into this new persona of herself: Someone that was always there for Maggie when he could be and remind her that she was loved. For obvious reasons, Lynn could never fully return her affection but he wouldn't hurt her after all this time either.
"Okay. I'll pick you up about eight o'clock tonight." Lynn said as he got up. "Thanks, Maggie. You know you've really perked up since I've known you. Not too much but just that right amount."
"Thanks. Just make sure you bring your dancing shoes. And try not to step on my feet this time." She said as Lynn made his exit. Lynn hopped into his car and soon drove off.
Watching from down the street from inside a taxi cab was Mollie, who sat in the back seat and looked none too pleased. "I knew it." She said coldly as she told the driver to proceed on. The girl eventually made her way back to one of Ma's shops. She paid the driver and got out before heading around back. She headed up the stairs and into the back of the pawn shop that sold many of the stolen items the street level members brought in.
It was here she spotted Lynn's brother, Lincoln Loud. Her eyes lit up when she saw the tall slender teen standing with a few others his same age, the group discussing something she didn't much care about and it wasn't long before the others walked off. Despite all of her time chasing the elder sibling, she had to admit that Lincoln had developed into a very handsome young man. She casually walked over to the group as she called his name. "Lincoln Loud. So good to see you." He was further caught off guard as she wrapped her arms around him.
"Uh, good to see you too, Mollie." He said in a bit of awkwardness as she took a step back to look at him.
"You know I wasn't sure about it but now I'm certain of it. Yes sir, you are even more handsome than your brother." She placed a hand on his face and caressed his cheek. The boy blushed heavily as he was stunned at what was happening. This had been another ploy by the girl to get Lynn to notice her. Mollie was no fool and it was plan to see that Lynn was seriously protective of his little brother and especially when any girl got too close. In particular, Ronnie Anne Santiago seemed to be the bane of the older Loud's existence when it came to her dating his brother. With that in mind, Mollie figured that by sticking close to Lincoln and getting him to run around with her, it might just draw Lynn's eye and get him to notice her. "You must have all the girls chasing you."
"No, because he already has one right here." Ronnie Anne showed up as Lincoln quickly took a step back, his girlfriend eyeing the two of them up. "They need you downstairs, Lincoln. Something about an error in the numbers." He nodded silently before quickly rushing off.
Ronnie Anne turned her full attention back to Mollie who put up her hands defensively. "I know what you're thinking. The answer is both yes and no." The brunette said as Ronnie Anne continues to glare at her. "Yes, I do think Lincoln is handsome but no I'm not trying to knock boots with him. You could keep him for all I care. And I don't." This was only serving to make the Mexican girl angrier than she already was.
"I only need him to get Lynn's attention, since he always seems upset whenever you're around him. I figured I'd do the same and he'd finally notice me for a change. After that you can have him. He really isn't my type whatsoever. Too much of a goof for my tastes." Mollie said, nonchalantly looking down at her nails.
The other girl was five seconds from punching a hole straight through her before an idea sprung in her head and she immediately had a sinister grin on her face that Mollie failed to notice. "Is that all. Phew. For a second there you had me worried. But if you wanted to get Lynn's attention I could have helped you with that."
"Really?" Ronnie Anne's words caught the girl's attention as she looked up with interest.
"For sure." She said, still sporting a wide grin. "All you have to do is get him something special and I know just the thing. Walk with me, talk with me. I'll tell you all you have to do." Ronnie Anne places an arm around the other girl's shoulder as they take a stroll around the building. If this all worked out, Mollie would stop bothering them once and for all.
That evening Lynn was getting ready, looking into the bathroom mirror and running a comb through his short brown hair. Making yourself presentable for a night on the town with a girl like Maggie was no easy feat. When it's a girl who didn't enjoy going out all too often, you had to do something special for her. So Lynn got out the best suit from the closet and was prepared to make her way out. As Lynn took one final look at himself, Ma's words of advice were called to mind. Morag had long advised Lynn of this cover as situations just like the one between the Loud and Maggie were a possibility and a complication. On top of that Lynn had to contend with the advances of several girls, who almost blew the carefully crafted cover as they couldn't keep their hands to themselves.
Lynn had ignored that advice as she had seen a lot of herself in Maggie and one thing had led to another until she, or rather he at the moment, found himself in this situation. It didn't bother Lynn much as he dispelled the thought and prepared to head out. Just as he reached the door, the phone on the hall stand rang. "Lynn Loud speaking." He said as he continued to listen. "Now? Look I'm right in the middle of...Alright, alright I'm on my way right now! But this had better be quick!" Lynn hung up with a frustrated groan in his voice.
Meanwhile, on the beach near the docks, a small group sat around a bright fire that had been started. The group, consisting of Lincoln, Ronnie Anne, Pam, Stevie and Chandler all sat on old blankets. The group had long made this spot a hang out on nights like this to tell stories of the week and just enjoy themselves. Chandler was the exception, since he usually invited himself after he'd heard about it and Lincoln was too nice to tell him to go. He'd also kept Ronnie Anne from doing anything to hurt McCann when he persisted on showing up. He was already in the midst of telling a story about his father.
"And I'm telling you, we had to dig at least twenty of those tunnels under the farm." Chandler said. "I got pretty good at it; digging those tunnels I mean."
"Oh would you shut up already?!" Ronnie Anne interrupted. "Seriously? I don't know why we even let you come here. All you ever do is insult everyone and talk about how great you are but all you've ever shown me is how big your mouth is, and I'm sick of it. The Fox kids just got the news that their brothers got sold for a chicken! And what do you do? You talk about digging tunnels like a over-sized prairie dog with your bum of a father!"
Chandler immediately jumped to his feet as Ronnie Anne did the same before the others could react. The two stood opposite each other as Chandler pointed a finger at her. "You...better watch that mouth, girl. Nobody talks about my old man like that."
Ronnie Anne scowled at him. "Really? You think that highly of him? Because from what I heard, he was a crazy old drunk who beat you and your mother till the day he died in a pool of his own sick."
Chandler balled his fist and raised his right arm before a hand seized his. He looked over to see Lincoln with a stern face, staring into his eyes. "That's enough now."
Chandler knew better than to fight Lynn's brother. That was something he didn't need. He quickly pulled his hand back. "Well she started it!" He said angrily. "I should be the one complaining. I have to hear Lynn's mouth all day complaining about you." He pointed a finger at Ronnie Anne. "He never shuts up. 'That little twerp, always hovering around my brother.', 'Why can't she get it? The two of them don't go together.', 'She's ruining everything.'." That got him a swift punch in the face from the Loud boy, causing him to stumble backwards into the sand.
The twins laughed as Pam leaned over to the still downed Chandler. "Not gonna lie, you deserved that."
Chandler got halfway up, spitting out the sand that had gotten into his mouth and wiping out his hair. "Yeah, okay. I deserved a punch in the face for telling the truth? That makes a whole lot of sense. Lynn said it, not me. But I guess you're all too starstruck with him to do anything about that."
This did not go over well with Ronnie Anne, who looked at her boyfriend indignantly. "What was it you said? 'She's starting to warm up to you'" She whispered to him angrily before she began to walk off. Lincoln reached out to grab her hand as she pulled away and ran off. The boy chased after her as Chandler tended to his busted lip, the Fox duo looking to him with angry glares. The red haired teen wiped the blood from his lip as he stared back at them. "What are you looking at?" He asked aggressively as he staggered off.
Lynn rode in the back of the Ma Morag's red luxury car with Clyde McBride driving and the woman herself seated next to the brunette teen. The ride was quiet the whole time, outside of Lynn initially questioning what was going on, only to be told that it was a rather urgent matter. The car eventually arrived outside of a large factory building as Lynn got out first to help Ma out by the entrance as the car was parked by Clyde, who joined them afterwards. The trio headed up a flight of stairs and knocked on the door as a slit opened near the top, a pair of eyes peering out before the door opened to a lone man in a navy blue suit.
"Come in. I'm gonna have to pat you down." He said as he checked the teens first before, slowly and respectfully checking Morag. He then led them down a hall that opened into a large room where about a dozen or so other rough looking men stood. The doorman stopped in the room as he turned to the three. "Your associates will have to wait here with the others."
Morag nodded in compliance. "Very well." She turned to McBride and Lynn. "Wait here and stay out of trouble, please."
"Come on. When have I ever caused trouble?" Lynn said as Ma looked to him with a raised eyebrow. Lynn's smile faded as he sweated nervously before looking down. "Okay, Ma." He whispered as Morag smiled and placed a gentle hand to his face, patting it lightly before proceeding with the doorman. The two soon vanished down another hall off the room and passed some red double doors. This left Lynn and Clyde in the room with the others who smoked cigarettes with most keeping to themselves.
Lynn kept on looking at his watch. The meeting seemed like it would go on forever. He needed to get going if he was going to make it to meet Maggie. She'd be waiting and, as the time clicked by, over two hours had passed. Lynn just wanted to leave and apologize for being a bit late, but Ma needed her here. He just hoped it wouldn't be for that much longer.
Meanwhile at Maggie's, she sat on the porch, in the finest dancing attire she had and waited, constantly looking at her small pocket watch. Lynn was over an hour late by now. The young woman sighed as she placed her chin in the palm of her right hand. "Where is he?"
The meeting went on for hours as Lynn knew he was going to be in big trouble as he checked his watch repeatedly. It was close to midnight when the bosses of the various criminal enterprises emerged from the meeting. Lynn and Clyde made sure to head over and escort Ma Morag outside. Clyde opened the rear door to the car as she got in before getting into the front passenger side himself. "I have to apologize for the lateness of the meeting." Morag said. "This was a matter of great concern and I know you had made plans, Lynn."
"Hopefully I can smooth things over, but I get it boss lady." Lynn said. Deep down the Loud teen knew it would take work to apologize to Maggie after that heartfelt meeting. "You had some important business. Speaking of. Anything we should know?"
The woman in the back seat was quiet for a time before clearing her throat. "Are you familiar with one W.R. Huggins?"
"Huggins? The agent?" Clyde asked as he turned to see a confirming nod from the woman. "That's bad."
"Who?" Lynn inquired as he drove.
"W.R. Huggins is an agent of the government. He solves problems and he is not a subtle man to say the least. We've got news that he is headed to New Sol. For what, we can't say, but most of us agree it's to clean up the city." Morag explained.
"I guess the good times are over." Clyde said.
"Not exactly." Morag spoke up. "I believe if we keep our operations on the down low, we can outlast him. We are small fish in a big pond in comparison to our competitors. We avoid bringing too much attention to ourselves and it will all be okay. Understood?"
"That might mean shutting down some of our operations." Clyde warned.
"Then so be it. I will not put any of my employees...my family in danger." The group kept on driving before reaching the factory where she was set up and made their way inside. Lynn had taken the car to park in its usual spot and got out.
The next morning, Lynn was out of his apartment early with a bouquet of flowers in hand and made his way over to Maggie's home. He walked up and knocked on the door. Lynn saw an eye peer out of the curtains before closing it back. "Go away, Lynn." He heard and knew it was Maggie.
"Mags, I'm sorry I missed last night. Ma needed my help and I would have called, but something big happened and..." Lynn said as he knocked again.
The door creaked open slightly, the chain lock still engaged as an eye peered out. "I understand that, but I was waiting for hours for you, I got my best on for you and you couldn't be bothered to call. To let me know you weren't even coming?" She sighed. "I get that your job takes priority, but you don't seem to have time for anything unrelated to it. Just...don't come around for a while."
Lynn put a hand to his head and put the bouquet on the steps before turning to walk off. "Take those with you." Maggie called through the door. Lynn angrily grabbed the flowers and carried them off as he walked back to the car, handing the bouquet to a random passerby before driving off. He cursed his luck at the moment, letting down Pam and now Maggie. Two times in a row. Lynn needed a break and needed it now as he pulled up to the hideout.
"Hey, Lynn." Unfortunately, a break didn't seem to be on the table as Mollie approached him, yet again. "I'm glad I caught you."
Lynn groaned. He did not want to talk to anyone right now. "Mollie, I am really not in the mood to talk."
Mollie watched him walk off but didn't intend to let this opportunity get away. She had put work into this plan. It took a ton of effort to get all of this ready in just a day. Quickly rushing over, Mollie wrapped an arm around him. "Come on. You'll like this. I have a surprise just for you. I know things are a little hectic with you and that Santiago girl."
"Who told you.."
"It doesn't matter. I just wanted to do something nice for you. Come on. It'll take your mind off of things."
Lynn thought for a moment and decided to accept. Mollie gave a gleeful cheer as she led Lynn to where she had the surprise ready for the boy. It was long before she had taken Lynn to a garage and had him cover his eyes. "Keep those eyes shut. And...okay, open them!" She said excitedly as she removed Lynn's hands from his face. The young man is shocked to find a motorcycle in front of him, sporting an olive drab paint job.
"Oh my gosh! This is amazing! You didn't..." Lynn was almost speechless.
"I did. I called in a few favors but they made it happen." Mollie said as Lynn surprised her with a hug as she blushed. He released her and immediately jumped onto the bike, getting a feel for the vehicle.
"This is incredible. I can't believe you did this!" Lynn felt the machine before looking back to Mollie and offering her a ride. The girl agreed and leaped onto the back, wrapping her arms around his waist as they sped off. Lynn quickly got the feel for the bike as he darted around cars before racing to the city limits and racing as fast as he wanted. Out here, he could cut loose and raised back to the city and ended up around the park. "This baby handles like a dream." He got off of the bike and helped Mollie down.
As he helped her off the bike, Mollie quickly moved forward and pressed her lips against Lynn's. This caught the Loud boy in complete and utter shock as Mollie was on him for several seconds before pushing the girl off and away, not paying attention to a ripping sound. Mollie looked incredulous and confused. "What? What did I do wrong?! I got you this great gift. I thought..." She stopped as her eyes shifted downward as Lynn looked down herself and realized that boy Lynn's cover had been blown with her shirt being ripped open and her chest binding was exposed. She quickly covered up as Mollie looked so embarrassed, shaking her head before running off.
"Mollie, wait!" Lynn shouted as the girl ran off. She had to get out of here before anyone else saw and so hopped on the motorcycle and raced back to the hideout. The cover was blown after all this time. She thought she was being careful with it but it only took one moment to ruin everything. Or perhaps it would all be ruined if Mollie talked. Lynn hoped she could talk when the girl inevitably returned.
Mollie ran as far as her legs would take her as she at first went full speed, but gradually, she began to slow down, tears running down her face. She finally stopped near a shop as she caught her breath. She had been so stupid. Things began to make sense why Lynn never picked up on her advances. It just didn't add up why she was always with that Maggie girl in her disguise. Mollie didn't want to think about that right now.
What she wanted to think about was that stupid Santiago girl. She had set her up. Ronalda had to have known about Lynn. The Mexican had smiled in her face when she brought the idea to impress Lynn to her. Mollie was determined to make her pay. While she thought of this, she spotted a rather wealthy looking couple out on a stroll and decided to make a quick score. A swift shift and tuck and she had emptied the man's pockets. She checked what she had and took the cash out of his wallet before throwing it away. The other thing in her hand caught her attention and genuine interest.
It was a small RSVP card, an invitation. "A coming out party for...Ms. Jordan Masters." She smiled as she saw the name. "Jordan Masters." With the card she'd only need a brief forger to make a copy with her name on it and it was a golden opportunity to get inside. It could be a good way to get her mind off things and it was happening tonight. Just enough time to get herself fixed up for the event.
As Mollie walked along a bridge in town, she swore she could hear sobbing. The teen froze and took a few steps back and looked beneath the foot bridge to find the source: Ronnie Anne Santiago chucking stones into the small canal. Mollie glared down at her, she wanted to say jump down there and strangle the life out of her for humiliating her like that with Lynn. Ronnie Anne had to know. At the same time, though, she noticed just how pitiful the Santiago girl looked. Her eyes her puffy and red, indicating she had been crying and her knees her brought up to her chest as if she had been trying to comfort herself.
"Hey." Ronnie Anne looked up as she saw a blank faced Mollie approach her. "Is this a private pity party or can anyone sit in?" She said as Ronnie Anne merely nodded her head as Mollie sat down next to her. "Nice joke by the way. Didn't see that one coming at all."
"Sorry." Ronnie Anne said simply. "I just...thought you were after Lincoln and maybe I wanted to get back at Lynn by exposing her. I know she gets uncomfortable when someone shows affection for her guy persona."
Mollie still felt a bit embarrassed by that moment and the effort she put in to impress a boy who turned out not to be a boy. "Don't worry, Lincoln is not my type. I was trying to get Lynn to notice me and now I know why my advances were met with indifference. Though, why did you put Lynn through that?"
Ronnie Anne's brow furrowed at hearing that question. "Because she is so infuriating sometimes! She can't accept that Lincoln and me like each other. She's worked for Ma for years and yet she still barely acknowledges that I exist most days or that her brother and I are more than friends. Some days I wish I could just shut her up!" The girl clammed up again.
Mollie looked over to her and sat in silence for a while before getting up. "You wanna pull a job with me?" Mollie said abruptly.
"What?" Ronnie Anne looked up to the other girl.
"Look. You apologized and it seems like you need a breather and so do I. There's a coming out party tonight with plenty of rich marks to fleece, I acquired an invite to forge and I could use the extra hand."
"Does Lynn know about it? We're supposed to run stuff by her first." Ronnie Anne noted.
"Forget Lynn. Let's do things on our own and for ourselves for once. Plus it could tick 'him' off big time." Mollie smirked as Ronnie Anne smiled and took an offered hand from Mollie.
"Good. Now we need to get ourselves looking prim and proper."
Hello all. It's been a while. I needed to recharge my batteries and collect myself from some things. I had to get back into my mindset to get back writing this story. I wrote other stuff and with the help of a co-author on another project I am working with on AO3, I am back and ready to try again.