Left a little cockeyed at what she was hearing, the sound of firmer, heavier footsteps emerged directly after. Shuck. Clock. With the unfastening of locks, the door was cracked open.

  Harold stared through, a towel covering half of his messy and wet hair. Verifying his company first hand, he closed the door again. Shunk. With the sound on one last latch being undone, he opened up his home in full.

  "I didn't expect you so soon." He explained, inviting her in. As he did, he scooped up the crate outside and came back in.

  Aside from a freshly ironed pair of slacks and the towel that concealed most of his head, the man was completely bare.

  Entering inside, Kara, spotted a small footstool pushed up against the wall. After a small raised brow, she ignored it.

  "How much do I owe ya?" The woman asked with a troublemaking smirk as her companion proceeded to fasten up every lock on his door.

  Wrapping up, Harold stared at the woman with confusion. "For what?" He asked.

  "For the private show." She teased, giving his form another once over.

  With a roll of his eye, Harold transitioned deeper into his dwelling. Drying his hair with one hand as he walked, he motioned for the other to follow. Entering into the den and primary room of the residency, he started to slip off toward a room on the side, most likely to finish his mourning routine.

  "I have some food left out in the kitchen from earlier." He informed. "Tell me if you see anything you like."

  "Mhm." The blonde hummed with acknowledgment, eyes trained on the older man's back muscles as he left.

  Left alone in the foreign environment, Kara took the time she was allotted to acquaint herself with the new setting. She always pegged her friend as someone who didn't care much for flash, but she had no idea he was such a minimalist. The room was more sterile than any clinic she had ever visited, bathed in dull tones of white and gray. The lounging furniture was posh but served a purpose. In fact, everything did. It was downright spartan. It would seem that unless you supplied a function, you had no right to be displayed in the Mordekai residency. At least, that was the only way she could excuse his distinct lack of any framed photos or touches of personable d√©cor.

  A small toolkit the size of her palm on the kitchen table caught her attention, but was immediately forgotten about when she noticed something else. Nestled within the small nook, were two sets of unfinished plates.

  Her shoulders slacking, Kara found herself leaning up against the other's couch. Following a withered sigh, she couldn't help but develop a small frown.

  Pulling her eyes far away from the table, they slumped over toward where her companion had disappeared to. The door creaked open only slightly, a small set of eyes from a source no higher than her knee stared back cautiously at her. While taking a moment to register, the blonde's eyes sharply widened in full.

  Having been discovered, a small girl looking no older than six or seven timidly stepped out from the man's room. Like a skittish animal, she approached the new arrival slowly. A stuffed animal was clasped soundly in front of her chest like a safety blanket. Her eyes were captured by astonishment, as though she had never seen one of her own kind before.

  "H-Hey, kid." Kara stammered out, still reeling in shock from what stood nervously before her. "What's your name?" She inquired, asking the most default of identifiers as she still tried to wrap her head around the 'pretty girl' Harold had no intention of skipping out on last night.

  "Are you a friend of Papa's?" The child asked, completely ignoring the other's question.

  Papa. The word rattled around inside the blonde's head. Harold Mordekai was a papa. The frown she had been wearing was diffused immediately upon the realization of this new information.

  "Yeah‚ĶYeah." Kara choked out after a pause. "We're besties." She explained, still processing.

  "Nu-uh." The tiny girl rejected with an angry pout. "Papa said I'm his best friend." She reinforced, squeezing her plush toy tighter as she did.

  Kara couldn't stop smiling at the youngster's adorable yet adamant decree. Reaching down, she swooped the girl up and daintily propped her up on her lap.

  "You are precious." The older admitted, both arms holding her steady.

  Head tilting ever so slightly, the child said nothing. Blinking, she examined the adult who was in turn watching her. Studying the woman's behaviors and features, her formulating mind contemplated the visitor.

  "I see you've met my roommate." Harold said, strolling back into the den. Fully dressed and prepared, all that was left for him to do was finish adjusting the cuffs of his dress shirt.

  "I'm keeping her." Kara declared without hesitation, reinforcing her hold.

  "No!" The child whined, kicking and squirming to break loose. After a second or so, she was gently released back onto the floor.

  Running away, the young girl ran toward her father. Hiding behind her guardian's leg, she poked her head out to peer safely from cover.

  Bending down, Harold sweetly caressed the top of her tenderly brushed hair. Urging her out in front, he rested his right hand reassuringly on her shoulder.

  "It's alright. We're well acquainted." Harold informed, trying to comfort the timid brunette. "Have you introduced yourself properly yet?"

  Lowering her head a bit, the child nervously took another step forward. Crisscrossing one leg behind her, she bent her knees. Lifting up the seams of her white frilly skirt, she gave a proper curtsey before standing back up.

  "Um... Hello. My n-name is Jeane." She quietly introduced. Directly after, she rose her stuffed companion back up to her chest, hiding most of her face behind it's head.

  Kneeling down on one knee, Kara lowered herself to be closer to the child's eye level. She returned the other's debut with a warm expression.

  "Hey Jeanne. I'm Kara." The blonde returned.

  "Thank you for the drop off." Harold gratefully acknowledged. Extending a hand, he held out an open palm.

  Pulling the car keys out, Kara stood back up. Tossing them out, they were caught right away.

  Striding passed her, Harold started heading for the door. "Come with me." He instructed right away. "I'll drive you back." He informed, grabbing a coat off the rack.

  "Huh?" Kara muttered briefly before following behind. As she did, her head whipped back and forth between parent and child. "Uh, sure. I guess."

  "Jeanne." The man address, slipping the extra layer on. "I have to go out for a little while. I want you to take a look at those worksheets I drew up for you in the meantime. Can you do that for me?"

  "Okay." The small white clad angel agreed, eyes following her father on his way out.

  "Be a good girl, Jeanne." Kara smiled, waving goodbye.

  The girl remained silent. Standing vigil by the entrance way, she watched the pair's departure in full.

  Leading the way out, Harold held the door open for his coworker. The two out in the hall, he began to lock the apartment up again.

  "We... haven't worked on farewells yet." The parent mentioned, trying to excuse his daughter's behavior.

  Heading down the hall back toward the elevator, Kara could barely contain her excitement, and it was showing.

  "Kane! I gotta million questions for ya." She exclaimed, practically bouncing on her feet.

  "I imagine you would." The other remarked, keeping his head forward.

  "How long have ya had a kid? Why didn't ya tell me you had a kid? That's kinda somethin' that gets brought up, don't ya think? Also, why is this place so ritzy?" She asked one after the other in rapid fire, stopping only to breathe.

  "Ritzy's a strong descriptor." The gunman commented in a calm contrast. "I've used stately in the past, even that seems a bit much."

  "It's ritzy." Kara confirmed, smacking the other on his chest as they walked.

  As they reached the elevator, the doors opened up in front of them. Another resident stepping out, he shot the other male a courtesy glance.

  "Good morning, Morrison." The man greeted with a groggy inhale.

  "Carson." Harold recognized, returning the gesture.

  The two exchanging places as they stepped into the elevator, Kara stared at her partner in confusion.

  Noticing her stare, he glanced back. "I'll explain later." He promised, hitting the button for the ground floor.

  "Yeah. I'll add it to the list." Kara joked, still abuzz with enthusiasm. "Why didn't you tell me‚Äî"

  Reaching over, Harold grabbed the other by the arm, signaling for her to stop. After, he turned his head toward her, wearing an even more stern expression than normal.

  "Kara," the man began, imposingly. "While I appreciate the service you've done for me, as well as the rapport we share, I feel the need to insist that it is very important to me that my work and private life are kept separate. Do you understand?"

  Left recoiling from how resolute the other had gotten all of a sudden, Kara gave a slow yet steady nod.

  "Yeah, Kane. Sure." She agreed, unable to hide how discouraged the promise left her.

  "Good." Harold confirmed, staring forward as the elevator doors shut in front of them.

  ... ... ...

  Seated in the front seats of the gunman's car, both he and Kara cruised slowly down the sparse mid-morning roads.

  "No work calls yet, huh?" Kara brought up, lounging on the side of her seat closest to the driver.

  "Unsurprising." The hitman remarked. Eye forward, he kept his hands steady at ten and two. "We are in the middle of an administration transition or sorts."

  "You ever work at, like, a business firm or something, Kane?" The blonde teased limply.

  "Not to my knowledge." Replied the professional.

  Turning the corner, the duo pulled off onto the main road. Ahead of them were a series of cars queued up and waiting to be seen through a checkpoint to the neighboring district. Pulling up to the back of the line in the closest available lane, they waited their turn.

  "What's goin' on?" Kara asked with a furrowed brow. The sight of uniforms making her grow more than a little anxious.

  Looking over, Harold stared at the woman beside him, her confusion, baffling. A moment after, his features drained.

  "Very funny." He expressed in monotone. "Let me guess, you avoided the gate toll by using the sewers?" The man proposed with the driest of sarcasm.

  "Naw, I came right through. But nobody was 'ere." Kara recounted, staring genuine and directly at her friend.

  "No one? What do you mean 'no one'?" Realizing she was serious, he stared at her like an anomaly. "Did you accidentally stumble across a lapse in guard change?" The gunman asked, thrown for a loop by the woman's unheard of stroke of luck.

  At the question, Kara shrugged her shoulders.

  "We'll worry about that another time." Harold settled on, shaking his head. Moving up accordingly, he returned to the diminishing line. "So long as you have the appropriate paperwork there shouldn't be any problems."

  "Uh‚Ķ" The blonde stuttered, her mouth left hanging. "What papers was that again?" She painfully asked.

  Harold' lead finger tapped restlessly at the other's inquiry. While showing little concern on his face, his normally silent breathing had escalated ever so slightly to the point of becoming audible.

  "Your paperwork, Kara." The gunman began in clarification. "The ones that designate your identity, residency as well as your district license and clearances. The same documentation you would bring to the district dispensary." Though he did not raise his voice, the hard edge to his tone more than made up for it. "That paperwork, Kara." He emphasized.

  "Kane, I don't got any of that stuff on me. Plus, I'm pretty sure my stuff don't got district clearance or whateva' on it anyway." She admitted outright. "I just came out here to run a delivery job." The woman taxingly explained.

  "I have an illegal citizen in my car." The shooter all of a sudden announced, following it with a delayed sigh.

  Looking around, the older to the two grimaced. The lane over was full. Glancing at the rearview mirror, new and awaiting vehicles boxed him in. Only one car remained ahead of them.

  "Kane, is this gonna be a problem?" Kara asked, starting to grow worried.

  "I'll take care of it." Was all the other had to say.

  The traffic gate rising up, the rear lights of the car ahead of them flickered off. Driving cautiously out, the vehicle soon faded from immediate sight. Behind it, the gate returned to its standby position. Standing out in front, an enforcer waved the two of them over with clear and intentional eye contact.

  Slowly pulling up, Harold parked his car in the appropriate field. Lowering his side window, he showed the man in uniform a respectful amount of attention.

  "Identification." The guard requested, shifting his gaze back and forth between the pair. "District license and clearance, please."

  "Of course." The driver acknowledged. "I have it in my glove compartment." He explained, reaching over. With deliberate motions, he opened the slot up and pulled out a small pile of neatly folded city papers that were clipped together. Passing it over, they were handed off.

  The enforcer's eyes darted through the sea of information with precision. He was more than familiar with what he was looking for and where to verify it. In less than ten seconds, he handed it back.

  "You're good." The guard confirmed. "Now her." He specified, shifting his focus back on the other.

  Folding his papers back up, Harold went to return them to their proper location. As he did, he shot his passenger a calm look, signaling her to be still. Taking something from the compartment, he leaned back into his seat. As he did, Kara spied a small fold of high marked bills stuffed into his hand and hidden under the bottommost layer.

  "My apologies, but I believe you're mistaken." Harold spoke up, handing his documentation back over. "I handed her identification over along with my own. Check again, near the back." He specified with a knowing glance.

  Carefully accepting the papers and the gift tucked away underneath, the guard carefully stared at the bribe. Counting them out of sight with one hand, he made sure to hide it from view of those behind them in the queue.

  Without a word, the uniformed man pocked the order and handed the documentation back to their owner. As they were readying to take off, he stuck his hand on the door and leaned his head in. The sudden action could not help but cause the woman to jump.

  "Don't forget to pay the toll." The guard reminded before pulling himself away.

  "Right." Harold easily responded, pulling out his wallet.

  Extending his arm and secondary payment out, the gunman fed it into a machine beside the enforcer. Proceeding a few ticking noises from the interior, a loud buzz hummed out. At the less than elegant signifier, the traffic gate rose to allow passage.

  Tapping the hood of their car, the guard shifted his attention to those behind. Waving them in, Harold and Kara at last began their departure.

  It was only after clearing two blocks and successfully pulling off into a side road did Kara finally release the breath she had not realized she was holding in. Slumping into her seat, her tense body relaxed. Sighing, she leaned back on the headrest.

  Absolutely quiet, Harold lacked his partner's leisurely release. His body retained its robotic response the whole way through.

  The car slowing down, Kara looked to see Harold pulling over.

  Finding an empty spot on the side of the road, the hitman came to a complete stop. Lowering his hand, a swift turn of the keys turned off the car. Despite shifting his car into a parked position, his hands retook their place on the steering wheel. He wouldn't look at her, instead his eye was kept trained outward.

  "Kane, I‚Ķ" The blonde began but stopped soon after. Rubbing the back of her neck, her own eyes were cast somewhat downward. "I didn't mean to cause ya any trouble. I just‚Ķ I wasn't thinking th‚Äî"

  "You weren't thinking." The gunman spoke up, breaking his vow of silence as he threw her words right back at her.

  "Look, I'm sorry." The woman apologized, trying to appeal to the man who refused to face her. "I'll find a way to pay ya back. Just give me‚Äî"

  "That's not the problem here, Kara. This is a recurring issue." Harold spoke out, shifting toward her.

  The blatant ire written on his face and steady exasperation in his voice made the blonde long for the time when he was giving her the cold shoulder.

  "What would have happened if you were stopped at that gate when you were supposed to this morning?" The man asked, demanding full attention.

  "I dunno." The woman replied in frustration, shrugging her hands.

 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36