By Hook or by Wolf

I slip silently through the doorway and shut the heavy door behind me. Just as it clicks into place, I hear the guard’s quiet footsteps padding back into position. Apparently, Daisy has finished entertaining the guard. She was going to try to distract him for a little while so I could get inside. Considering the fact that she’s not anywhere close to the Mountain, I have no idea how she did it.

I didn’t ask.

Daisy is a determined woman, but she has her secrets, just as I do. We work together, but we play our cards close to our chest. It’s safer for everyone that way, and in my world, safety is the most important thing we have.

Now that I’m in, I’m on the clock. I have a limited amount of time before the vampires are done patrolling. I press a button on the side of my glasses and my normal shades change to night vision. Perfect. I can see clearly in the room now and, better yet, I can see where any alarm systems or traps might be.

Carefully, I glance over the boxes and stored items in this room. Dust has settled on everything, and not just a thin layer, either. No, the dust in this room lets me know it hasn’t been used in a very, very long time. Years, maybe. Decades. It’s not the type of place Derek expected anyone to break into. Seriously, his side door is used as a place for him to store his holiday decorations? Stupid.

I step over three tripwires and dodge two laser alarms before I reach the next doorway. This one has a data sensor. I slide my gloved thumb over the sensor and, as I hoped, it lets me in. Perfect. I’ll have to remember to thank Daisy later. Her work tonight has been un-fucking-believable. I move to the hallway and this time, I cringe as the lights hit my eyes. They’re brighter than anticipated. Quickly, I shut off the night-vision on my glasses as I keep moving. That’s the key here: never stop moving.

When I was younger, I did. I didn’t know just how important it was to be swift and cautious.

I didn’t realize how vital it was to stay hidden at all costs.

That cost me more than I care to think about.

Things are different now.

Now I know better.

“Forty seconds,” Daisy whispers in my head and I nod, but don’t respond verbally. I’m pretty sure she can see me. There are cameras sprinkled throughout the hallway and I don’t bother trying to hide from them. That’s Daisy’s department. I’m the thief; she’s the brains. She gets me in and gets me out and then we split the profits from whatever it is I’m supposed to take.

Today it’s some sort of knife. It’s old as hell, and if we succeed, the payday is going to be exactly what we’ve been waiting for. Daisy has a family to feed, after all.

And me?

Well, it’s just me now.

I hurry to the end of the hall and then turn. Three more turns and finally, I find myself standing in front of a treasure trove. That’s really the only way to describe what I’m looking at. It’s fucking gorgeous: an entire room full of every imaginable item. There are piles of jewelry and display cases with vases and statutes and gold bars. I feel like Aladdin in the Cave of Wonders.

It’s vast.

It’s incredible.

And it’s all right here.

“Songbird, stay focused,” I hear Daisy’s voice in my head, and I know that she’s right. I’m not out of the woods yet. The Vampire King is not exactly known for his patience. If he found out someone was trying to rip him off, he’d be on my neck in an instant. That’s why I’m the only one who would take this job. That’s why I got to charge whatever the hell I wanted for this job.

And charging hell is exactly what I’m doing.

After this, I’ll be able to retire: free and clear.

There will be no more robbing.

No more thieving.

No more dodging vampires.

Nope.

After tonight, Daisy and I are packing up. She’s taking her family somewhere else: maybe someplace warm, like the beach. And me?

I’ve got a cabin in the woods just calling my name.

I’m ready to escape from people, from reality.

I’ll be happy if I never see another fucking vampire again.