"I can't believe it, we ACTUALLY got away with it!" Hercules_7 exclaimed, his voice echoing through the SUV like a firecracker. He was half-shocked, half-dazed, staring out the tinted window as if waiting for reality to slap him awake.
"Yeah…" Bold_Eagle murmured, equally stunned. "This... this doesn't feel real." He blinked at the world flying past us, a strange mix of sunlit ocean and heat haze.
I couldn't believe it either.
After everything—the mission, the chaos, the guards, the gates—we were still alive. We were still breathing. For the first time since I'd joined this crew, I saw them genuinely smile. Even Leader cracked a grin. His was barely a twitch, but I saw it. I felt it.
"I don't think you guys are getting it," Hercules_7 laughed, this time louder and brighter. "We just robbed the literal devil and got away with it!"
Leader chuckled under his breath and turned toward me. "By the way, where did you get this car? It's definitely not ours."
I felt my stomach flip slightly but kept my eyes steady on the road ahead. "Our car broke down," I replied quickly. "So I had to think fast. Luckily, I found this one just sitting there on the side of the road. Lucky, right?"
His silence was heavy.
"Wait," Leader said after a beat. "That means you abandoned the other one? All our stuff was in there—fake IDs with our photos, documents—"
I cut in with a laugh. "Relax, I'm not that dumb. I took everything that could link us to it. Even wiped the seats down with sanitizer, just in case."
Leader exhaled, placing a hand on his chest. "Good," he said, voice calmer now.
"So… am I driving us back to the hotel?" I asked, genuinely unsure of what came next.
"No," Leader replied, tone shifting again to command-mode. "We're leaving the country immediately. Head to the docks. There's a boat waiting for us."
I nodded and followed his directions. The drive took less than fifteen minutes—maybe because of the car's horsepower or maybe I was just that hyped with adrenaline. Either way, we pulled up at the dock's small parking area. Sleek yachts bobbed on the waves like floating palaces, but we weren't heading for those.
Our contact stood by a much smaller boat, surrounded by men in full black suits and shades that seemed ridiculous in this sun. They looked like gangsters playing dress-up in a sauna.
"Stay here," Leader ordered, slipping out of the car with the others.
I watched them go, their jackets stuffed with Crimsyn—tiny vials of swirling red and black liquid. Only Hercules_7 carried a folder. I'd bet everything in my duffel that those were the documents.
They crossed the dock ramp and boarded the boat. I squinted at the man greeting them—he stood out like a clown at a funeral. Tropical shorts, a matching shirt, sandals, a visible beer belly, and a shiny bald spot. The boss, clearly.
I couldn't hear a word they exchanged, but I could read their body language. Surprise, relief, satisfaction. The boss looked shocked as he inspected the goods—like he'd bet money we'd never make it out alive.
Minutes later, two muscled men appeared from below deck, carrying four full duffel bags. They handed them over to our crew, who returned to the car like victors from an ancient war.
"Successful drop," Leader said, sliding into the passenger seat.
"Drive to the other side of the dock," he added. "Our boat's waiting there."
I nodded and started the engine.
"YESSSSS, WE ARE RICH!" Hercules_7 bellowed from the back, pumping both fists into the air like a man who'd just hit the lottery and survived a tornado at the same time.
I almost smiled—almost—when a sharp, high-pitched cry sliced through the moment like a blade.
Wahhhhhhh! Wahhhhhh!
We all froze.
The cry was unmistakable. Loud. Piercing. Heart-tugging.
A baby.
From the very backseat.
We turned our heads in unison, like a bunch of horror movie characters hearing a ghost for the first time.
Hercules_7 slowly peeked over the seat and locked eyes with the little creature.
"Oh… oh, shit," he whispered. Then louder: "WHY IS THERE A BABY IN THE CAR?!"
The baby cried louder.
"WHY IS THERE A GODDAMN BABY IN THE CAR?!"
His eyes widened with disbelief, panic bubbling over as his arms flailed.
"I—I don't…" I started.
"What are we gonna do?" Bold_Eagle asked, breaking the stunned silence.
Leader snapped to life. "WHERE did you get this car?" he yelled at me, eyes blazing.
"I told you! It was on the side of the road!"
"AND YOU DIDN'T THINK TO CHECK IT PROPERLY?!"
"HEY!" I shouted back, defensive. "Don't yell at me! If the car you gave me wasn't literal trash, I wouldn't have had to grab a new one!"
The baby wailed louder.
Bold_Eagle swung his door open, climbed into the back, and gently pulled the baby from the car seat. He began rocking the child softly. "Shhhh… it's okay, little guy," he murmured.
It was a boy, maybe ten months old, in a blue onesie decorated with tiny ships. His big round eyes, puffy red cheeks, and trembling lip nearly melted my heart.
"He's… he's adorable," I whispered.
And then Leader dropped the nuclear truth bomb.
"That child… is his child."
We all froze again.
"You mean—him?" Man-Bun asked, horror crawling across his face like a spider.
Leader nodded grimly. "It all makes sense now. Why the gates opened. Why no one stopped us. Why everything went too smoothly. This car… it belongs to him."
Everyone's stomach dropped. Man-Bun looked like he was about to cry.
"Guys…" he whimpered. "We're dead. We kidnapped his baby."
"I don't get it," I said, heart racing. "Why are you all acting like this guy is Satan himself?"
"Because he is," Bold_Eagle said flatly, still rocking the baby. "You couldn't have seriously thought we'd actually get away with this. We had, what? Two weeks max before he found us and killed us. This just… speeds things up."
"Exactly," Leader agreed, sighing. "We were never going to escape him. Might as well enjoy our week."
"Let's go," he said firmly. "We have a boat to catch, and they're probably already on our tail. Eagle—you take the kid. Keep him till this dies down."
"Nope. Not happening," Bold_Eagle said without hesitation. "My life's already a dumpster fire. I'm not adding a baby to the mix."
Leader's gaze shifted to me. "Fine. Lillies, you're taking him."
"WHAT? Why me?!"
"Because this is your fault. You picked the damn car."
Before I could argue more, Leader jumped out of the SUV.
Bold_Eagle gently placed the baby in my arms, then handed me a soft diaper bag filled with baby supplies from the third row of the SUV.
Gosh. Why didn't I check the third row?!
I cursed myself silently as I clutched the baby to my chest.
Relax, Walter, I told myself. It's a week. Max. Then we return him. Or I die. No big deal.
As I followed the others toward the boat, the baby's cries finally calmed.
He blinked up at me with sleepy eyes, nestled against my chest.
And all I could think was:
How the hell am I going to explain this to Serena?
I left with a duffel bag of guilt, a 10-month-old mystery, and two hundred million dollars.
What could possibly go wrong?