Cutting her finger, Annie elbows the burly guard in the jaw after her elbow crystallizes beneath her jacket. The guard grunts with blood spilling from his mouth but it takes two more elbows for him to go down. Annie breaks free of his grip before her knuckles crystalize and she punches the guard one last time, putting him out of commission. The second guard opens the bathroom door and grabs Annie before she can react. He drags her out, where she turns her knuckles back to normal and crystalizes her shins and ankles. She kicks the second guard in the legs and falls into the dancing crowd of people. Picking herself up, the guard grabs at her arm before she stomps on him and knocks him out with a single kick to the jaw.

Remembering that there were ten more guards, she quickly leaps into the crowd of dancing people as strobe lights flicker on the dance floor. Annie keeps her distance while keeping her eyes on the incoming bodyguards who search for her like she's Waldo in Where's Waldo.

Bumping into a drunk bastard, Bodyguard 3 grabs Annie's shoulder. She crystallizes her knuckles and uppercuts him. He falls to the ground, the bystanders still dancing the night away as the music grows louder in volume.

"Shit." She covers her ears. "Should've brought earmuffs." She focuses on the task at hand and pushes her way through the crowd. She had to get to the front door if she wanted to get out of there; there were still seven bodyguards and they split up.

That's when she felt two gorillas collide into her from both sides. Her screams drown in the music as she falls to the ground. Eyes growing wide, she sweeps her feet out to try and kick her attacks but the victim of her evil foot was a bystander. Picking herself up, she feels a hand touch her shoulder. Without thinking, she smacks the hand away and kicks the person in the shins. The person screams as they take a tumble.

Another civilian.

Annie feels her world float like an astronaut in outer space as she's suddenly lifted in the air by two big guys. Bodyguard 4 holds her by her shoulders while the other grabs her by the knees. Annie screams and kicks her feet out after crystalizing them. With Bodyguard 5 no longer touching her, she regains her footing and kicks Bodyguard 4 in the shins. She quickly headbutts him before knocking him out with a crystalized punch. Some poor civilian takes the punch when Annie dodges but his unwilling sacrifice allows her to punch Bodyguard 4 twice and disable him with a strike to the neck.

Running through the crowd, someone shoulders into her and knocks over a group of civilians like bowling pins. Annie springs to her feet like a cat and kicks Bodyguard 6 in the nuts. Bodyguard 7 tackles her like a football player. Annie crystallizes her knees and hits him in the groin. She tosses him off of her before grabbing Bodyguard 6 by the hair and punching him with a crystalized knuckle. She turns to Bodyguard 7 and delivers a roundhouse kick to his jaw, putting him out.

Doing a quick scan, she spots Bodyguards 8, 9, and 10 surrounding her, ready to attack all at once. The crowd makes some room as they eventually notice the brawl for the first time in what felt like hours and some of them cheer.

The three bodyguards charge her at once.

Annie charges the second she sees them launch forward. She charges for Bodyguard 8 and knocks him out with a single crystalized punch. With Bodyguard 9 and 10 behind her, she leaps over her recently unconscious opponent's body and does a 180 rotation mid-jump. She leaps back and thrusts her fists out. She clips Bodyguard 9 in the jaw and sends him falling while Bodyguard 10 adopts a boxing stance.

He throws the first attack. Annie ducks and knees him in the stomach using her crystal attack. She gets behind him and puts him in a rear naked chokehold. The bodyguard groans before lifting Annie off the ground by bending forward. Grabbing her hands to make sure she can't get away, he thrusts back, hoping to land into something solid.

They knock over several civilians and take a tumble though Annie's body makes a nice mattress for him to land on, even with her arms still wrapped around her. Annie rolls her eyes and hammers her crystalized fist into his stomach twice. She rolls him over until he lying on his front with her on his back. She hammers his head into the ground until he's unconscious.

Sighing, she picks herself up and makes a run for it.

That's when she took a glass bottle to the face. In the incursion, she fails to see the table before her as she reels in from eh sudden soda bottle attack and trips over it. Recovering, she leaps to her feet and turns to the attacker.

It was the bartender.

"Looks like you won't be able to finish that book," Annie hisses as she feels blood dribbling down her cheek just under her right eye.

The bartender holds up his book. "I already finished it bitch."

Annie grabs his hand with the broken glass bottle before knocking it out of his hand. She kicks him in the stomach before slamming him against the counter. She grabs the book out of his hands and hammers him across the face with it. She sets the book up before forcing his nape on the top. When he lifts his head, she punches him to put his head back in place. Jumping onto the counter, she crystallizes the bottom of her feet before leaping up with her feet extended.

With the bartender's head held up with a book under his nape and his head hanging only a few inches over the other side of the counter, it was perfect for Annie to execute her target. All she had to do was stick the landing (literally), and-

SNAP!

Annie kills the bartender via neck snap when she leaps off the counter and brings all her force with her in her crystalized foot to snap his neck over the standing book. The dead bartender slumps over with the book falling on its side. Annie collects herself before looking at the four men she fought earlier, all of who were standing on the other side of the bar, ready to attack and get revenge for what she did earlier.

All four were armed with empty glass bottles but after seeing Annie kill the bartender by snapping his neck over a book they lose their composure and back away.

What's wrong?" She un-crystalizes herself before leaping over the counter and making a run for it. She comes up to the car with Annie and their getaway driver. With Armin in the passenger seat, Annie quickly climbs into the back as the getaway driver takes off.

Armin looks in the backseat at her with a concerned look. "Are you okay?"

"Crystal, Armin; her bodyguards decided to turn in for the night."

"Buncha lazy bastards," the getaway driver - Officer Peters - manages to snark as they arrive at a stop light. "Armin, your plan worked."

Armin pats his knees. "Yeah. It took a long time and a lot of drinks but, we made it. And... Annie, to be honest, I was wondering if you would be too drunk or buzzed to remember the codeword to lead Carly to the bathroom."

Annie looks at the back of his head. "I'm pretty sure I would've forgotten if I was sober." Annie looks to her left and sees a sleepy Caryl curled up like a cat in the seat beside her. Rolling her eyes, she buckles the unconscious girl up. "Always wear your seatbelts."

Armin looks back. "I could say the same thing about you; don't want to get pulled over for not wearing your seatbelt."

"Right, because an officer not wearing his seatbelt would be the end of the world." Annie puts on her seatbelt and leans on the window. She quickly looks at her reflection and internally sighs. The small cut under her right eye had already steamed up and healed.

Good.

Nobody saw my crystal attacks; I made sure that I only crystallized myself under my clothing or out of sight.

Dragging Carly into the interrogation room, Armin cuts off all feeds before stepping in with Annie by his side. Armin checks his watch. "It's been like two hours since the nightclub; you sober enough?"

Carly looks at them with a loose look in her eyes. "Yeah, I think so. So, you guys are coppers, nice."

Annie rolls her eyes. "She's still buzzed."

"I can hold my liquor."

"Do you know what day it is today?"

"It's uh... Saturday I think. No, Sunday. Wait, I think I forgot." She shakes her head. "No, it's Saturday, I remember. Yeah, it's Saturday. Why?"

Armin nods. "Just making sure you're good to answer some questions."

"What questions? Am I under arrest?"

"You may be. Unless you're willing to cooperate."

"Oh, is this about the drug thing? The coderoin again?"

Armin furrows his brows. "I never said anything about coderoin and you assumed it was, right?"

"I get asked that by the police a lot. Can I get a lawyer?"

Armin looks at Annie and nods. She heads out of the interrogation room and turns off the camcorder on the other side of the one-way mirror.

Armin takes a seat. "Carly, do you understand what's happening to you?"

"I'm about to be arrested again and asked about the coderoin business. Right?"

"That's true. There's one thing I have to ask: how does your father feel about your situation?"

"My father?" Carly strokes her chin. "Oh, I think... I love my father. I hate him but I love him and I think he loved me too."

"Really?"

"Yeah, really. I think... he misses me. I miss him."

"Does he approve of what you do about coderoin?"

"No, he doesn't."

Armin internally smirks. She just admitted to producing coderoin. He tugs on his jacket and makes sure the phone placed in his inner jacket pocket can capture the conversation. "Can you tell me more about your father?"

"My father was a self-made man. He... wait, what does my father have to do with anything?"

"Just... making small-talk until your lawyer gets here. I'm sure you don't want to be locked up in a room all alone for God knows how long, right?"

She nods. "Right."

Armin smiles. "So, tell me about your father, what's he like. You said he was a self-made man?"

"He is. He started his own business. He started small, climbed the ladder, and reached the top. He was a respected man, my father, and I... I liked that about him. But... honestly, he... he wasn't exactly a good father. Like I said, I love him but also hate him."

On the other side of the mirror, Annie clenches her knuckles and bites her tongue gently.

Armin nods. "So, it's... tough love, right?"

"Yeah. Dad always... pushed me to become an excellent person. An excellent person in the business industry. I devoured my heart and everything to make him proud. Even though I felt like he mostly used me as some kind of employee rather than a daughter, I still loved him." She leans back in her chair. "I missed our dinner conversations."

"Your father said the same thing," Armin assures her. "He said he missed his conversations with you too."

"Did he?"

"Yeah, that's why he put a missing person's report on you."

Carly's eyes widen. "He did? He put a missing person's report on me?"

Armin reaches into his pocket to pull out a folded missing person's report of her. "Yeah, you've been gone a week and he said he missed his dinner conversations with him. Care to explain where you've been?"

"Hanging out with my friends. Really, I've been hanging out with my friends."

"So, those were your friends at the nightclub?"

"Yeah, friends."

Armin smiles. "Friends."

"Friends."

"Yeah, friends." He smacks his forehead. "What am I doing." He shakes his head, clearing his thoughts. "Anyway, as I was saying."

"I want to go home," Carly admits suddenly, looking down. "I want to go home and... I just... want to have one last dinner conversation with my father."

"One last conversation? I'm sure we can make some arrangements. As long as your friends are cool with it."

"No," she shakes her head almost lazily, "they said... I can't go back until... the Attack Titan and Red Scarf are dead or gone."

He chuckles. "Dead or gone? I'm pretty sure it's 'dead and gone'." He stops himself from singing 'Dead & Gone' at the last second. "So, your friends, they won't let you go until the Attack Titan and Red Scarf are gone. Well, they don't seem like good friends." He leans forward. "You know, if you want, if you cooperate with us, I'm sure we can come to an arrangement." She loves her father and her father loves her; I can use that to my advantage. "Carly, you said you love and hate your father at the same time. What if I told you, you can continue to love and hate him at the same time like the good old days?"

"What do you mean?"

"You love your conversations with him so... why not you help me out here? Why don't you tell me what your friends are all about and maybe, just maybe... I can get you into the Witness Protection Program for the coderoin production."

"Why?"

"Well, you're valuable, right? Aren't you?"

"Uhh, yeah, in a way I guess."

Man, getting her buzzed enough to answer my questions was perfect. They say a loose tongue rarely lies because they have less inhibitions. If this is true, she must not be afraid of cooperating with eh police because she thinks we're less threatening than Richter's Crime Family.

"Carly, I know that you don't want to talk without a lawyer but I have to warn you: if your lawyer tells you when and when not to talk, then it'll be a hassle you're all too familiar with. You'll be taken to court again for the same coderoin incident and chances are, if you get picked up, it'll be the guys who went with you to the nightclub. Your father may come to the trial but I don't think his power will have any sway over the judges or the people you work with."

Carly nods. "Yeah, I figured as much."

"That's why, I need you to cooperate with me."

"What's in it for me?"

Armin smiles and leans forward. "I'm a nice guy but I have to play dirty to win. If you tell me all of your criminal activity right here and right now, then you have my word that you won't go to court. If you agree to this, then by the time your lawyers get here, I will ask questions that make this whole thing seem like a misunderstanding and release. And because it was my arrest, I'll make sure to drive you home so you can have a dinner conversation with your father." He drums his finger on the table. "But, this only works if you agree to help me." He gestures to the mirror. "On the other side, my partner disabled the camcorder so there is no evidence of this interrogation." He pulls his phone out of his inner jacket pocket. "However, I have this recorded and since this is my phone, no one would dare to look at it unless they either hacked it or I gave them the password."

Carly looks at him with steel eyes. "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why are you so concerned about me?"

Armin laughs. "Well, the answer is quite simple: you and I have a common enemy. I know you work with the Richter Crime Family and I know you wish to go home but that won't happen until the Attack Titan and Red Scarf are dead. Those two are legends and impossible to kill so if you're waiting for them to die, you're going to have to wait for them to either die of old age or kill each other, neither of which seem likely. So, the only way you're going home is if there is no organization tying you down. The Attack Titan and Red Scarf are going to kill Wald Richter and once that happens, you'll be free. Sure, there may be ten, twenty, or thirty gangsters still alive but they're left without power. They can't hold you, they can't coerce you, and they certainly can't operate with or without you. Which is why... if you help give me information, any crucial information regarding Wald Richter and his organization, then we can use that against him."

His smile widens. "If it gives you more motivation, then here's something to think about: you produce the coderoin drug so without you around, the Richter Crime Family will suffer a huge loss and Richter is one step closer to being taken down. But... if you decline, if you go back now, and you wind up in the hands of Richter's guys, they're going to increase security around you, and the chances of us grabbing you are going to be slim to none. Unless we get the Attack Titan and Red Scarf to go after you. Right now, this is the best chance you got to leave the organization and not face the wrath of those two-person armies."

He leans forward. "And... I can take you to your father, tonight. The choice is yours."

Carly stares at Armin with a blank look in her eyes for a few seconds before blinking. Leaning back in her chair, she drums her finger against her knee before looking at the blonde man. "They pulled their money into one big pot."

Armin cocks his head. "Excuse me?"

"Wald Richter and everyone in his gang; they pulled their money into one big pot. I saw it on The Dark Knight; if all the mob guys pulled their money, then you could charge them all as a conspiracy."

"Really, can you confirm it?"

"Will my word be enough?"

"Well, we're going to need physical evidence if we're going The RICO case route. Did you handle their investments? Did your father?"

"No. But the other night, a week ago, Wald Richter called a meeting in a toy store."

Armin rolls his eyes. "Of course."

"And he said... he said that the lifeblood of the organization is in his eye or something."

"What does that mean?"

"It means uh... I think his false eye has all the data of their investments."

"Huh?"

"His right eye is a false eye. On the night he called a meeting, he... he removed his fake eye and replaced it with one with a red iris. He also inserted a thumb drive into the eye. He said that all the investments, everything to prove they pulled their money together, is on that chip."

"Really?" Armin smiles. "Thank you very much. You know, with your help, I can guarantee your escape. If the worst happens, I'll say that you were coerced into making drugs for Wald Richter via blackmail. Whatever criminal charges you would've gotten had you been arrested by someone other than me would be gone."

"Can you promise it?"

Armin laughs. "I'm a good guy... but I am not clean, and that's why you can trust me. Nice guys finish last in this dog-eat-dog world but the nice guys who eat other dogs, well, they get ahead of other dogs."

"Oh, I don't know what that means but... okay." She stares at him. "You promise to protect me and my father?"

"Cross my heart, hope to die."

Armin sits in the passenger seat as Annie drives Carly home. Once they pull up to her driveway, Annie escorts Carly to her house. As they knock on the door, Annie grabs Carly's shoulder. "Remember the plan?"

Carly nods. "Yeah. Tell Dad to hunker down and don't be seen in public."

"Right. If Richter's guys can't find you, they can't separate you from your father."

Carly nods again. "I will. I'll tell him."

The door opens and Elliot stands before them. His eyes widen. "Carly, is that you?"

Carly holds her hands up. "The one and only, father." She embraces her father without thinking and revels in the feeling.

Annie's lip quivers as she thinks of her father. "Elliot, I told you I'd find Carly for you."

Elliot looks at her, still holding his daughter in an embrace. "And I thought you were lying."

"A lot of people do." She smells the familiar smell of bleach on him and realizes he's been smoking. "Elliot, your daughter is going to tell you something important and I hope for your sake, you listen. Oh, and by the way, stop smoking those coderoin cigarettes."

Elliot looks at her. "What are you-"

"Carly being home is not without strings attached; there are conditions. I've gone over the conditions with Carly and I hope for your sake, for your dinner conversations with your daughter you will listen." She reaches into his pocket and pulls out a pack of coderoin cigarettes. "And for the love of God, quit smoking these goddamn cigarettes around me." She pulls out a lighter and lights the pack on fire.

"What makes you think you can tell me what to do in my own house?"

Carly looks at her father. "No Dad, you gotta listen to her. From now on, no more coderoin cigarettes."

Annie drops the burning pack and stomps them out. "I'm tired, I had a long day, and for once, I just want things to go my way. I will return tomorrow morning at ten o'clock. If you don't answer the door, then I'll be the happiest girl alive. But if you do, then we're going to have a serious problem."

Carly turns to Annie. "It's okay, I'll explain everything to him, don't worry." She turns to her father. "Come on, Dad, let's go inside."

Elliot glares at Annie one last time before closing the door.

Annie stomps the cigarette pack to total ashes before heading back to the car. Getting in the driver's seat, she sighs heavily and looks at Armin. "They didn't put up much of a fight."

"Figured. But you told them what to do?"

"Carly said she'll do it. She'll tell her Dad that they need to leave come daytime unless they want Richter's guys to come after her. Tomorrow, we'll knock on the door and if they don't open, we'll kick in. If the furniture is arranged in the way we told them to, then we'll know they left and weren't abducted. As per your plan."

Armin laughs. "Yeah, my plan." He laughs again. "Annie, I may not have reached the top ten in the cadet force and I may not be a fighter like you, Eren, and Mikasa, but... damn, I love when a plan falls into place."

"I think you're enjoying the feeling of winning a little too much."

"I'm built like a daffodil; I think I've earned the right to be extra excited."

"Whatever you say, baby face." She drives off.

The Next Day

"Ahh, Sunday," Armin sighs heavily as he leans against the wall with Officer Hugh by his side. "Don't you love working Sundays, buddy?"

Officer Hugh lights a coderoin cigarette. "It's double pay."

"Yeah. Double pay."

"Can't go wrong with double pay." Officer Hugh looks at him warily. "Any sign of the Attack Titan and Red Scarf?"

"Has there been collateral damage recently? If not, then... no. I think they skipped town." Armin laughs. "You know, as much as I hate to admit it, I considered offing them when I last met them. And... there's a hint of regret. I mean, Sunday is double pay for us coppers but... still, two hundred thousand gold coins, that's a lot of money."

"It is."

Officer Hugh doesn't know I know he's a rat. If he thinks I'm turning on Eren and Mikasa, he might drop his guard. Oh hell yeah; I'm going to have so much fun pulling this puppet's strings.

Annie steps through the door with a pack of a dozen donuts. She stops by Armin. "Did someone order a jelly donut?" She bats her eyes three times at Armin.

Jelly donut, three blinks, that's the signal. Armin internally smiles. Carly and Elliot skipped town. "I did."

Hugh reaches out to grab a donut before Annie smacks his hand away. "Armin first."

Armin grabs a jelly donut and sinks his teeth into it. Hugh settles for a glazed donut before walking away.

Annie watches Hugh's retreating form. I have fantasies of fattening up Hugh with junk food and then punching him in the stomach with a crystallized fist to make him vomit.

The front door of the station opens and a familiar pair of faces step through. Armin's eyes widen. "Mr. and Mrs. Braus?"

What are Sasha's parents doing here?

Armin steps forward with Annie beside him. "Mr. Braus, Mrs. Braus, what are you doing here?"

Lisa looks at Armin with tears in her eyes. "Armin, please, you have to help us."

Arthur's face remains stoic but Armin could tell by the slight twitch in his eyes that he was having an emotional moment inside. "It's our daughter. Kaya. She's... she's been kidnapped."