Luxurious Anarchy (Lux/Jinx)

Chapter 24: Ready Set Let's Go

"So this is how you spend your time, really?"

"Mmm-hm."

"Don't you have a criminal empire that needs attending to?"

"Probably."

"Maybe some orphans to force into a factory somewhere?"

"Nope, just a meeting with the other barons tonight."

"How can you sleep at night, knowing-"

"Look, I know we're just waiting for the twins to get back here with lunch, but hurry up. Are you going to call, raise, or fold?"

Caitlyn eyed her cards one last time before throwing them down on the table. "Fold. Go on, take your stupid gears."

"Don't mind if I do," Sevika chuckled before sweeping the small pile of gears and washers to her side of the table. She tapped her cigarillo on a nightmarish ashtray, some sort of off-green stone covered in Jinx's trademark graffiti.

"Say, Vika,"

"Don't call me Vika, pup."

Vi rolled her eyes, and accepted her new hand of cards, "Right, fine, Sevvy, why did you put a hit out on Jinx anyway?"

"You've asked me this, every day, for over a week now. Can't you just be grateful for a roof over your head and stop pestering me?"

"Yes, but actually no. Seriously, why? I'm not even gonna hit you if it's a dumb reason, honest."

Sevika finished dealing out the round of cards to Caitlyn and Lailha, cigarillo rolling from side to side in her teeth. In a cloud of smoke, she looked at her own cards, and sighed. "I thought it would help us, help Zaun."

Caitlyn blinked, and exchanged a look with Vi. "I... I was under the impression that you didn't care for her on a personal level. Oh, and one card, please."

Sevika snorted, and flicked the Sheriff a card. "Of course I don't like her, the brat's a loose cannon, hence the fucking moniker. But personal distaste didn't have me set aside seven hundred hexes, common sense did."

Vi shuffled through her cards, frowning, "So she's a little unstable sometimes-"

"A lot unstable based on the stories, two cards," chirped Lailha, lighting her own hand-rolled cigarette. Sevika snorted, and flicked the ex-assassin two cards.

Vi growled, "Okay, fine, she's had some bad days while loaded down with more heavy ordinance than most Enforcer precincts have. My question was why try and get her axed anyway? Seven hundred hexes for 'common sense' is a bit thin ain't it?"

Sevika glared at Vi, and the pink-haired trencher flushed, "Oh, two cards. Please."

Dealing the requested cards, Sevika smirked, "I'll stay with what I've got. And as for your sister, common sense was that if I could bury her it would reduce tensions all around, win fucking win."

She sighed and tossed five washers back into the pot, "Once she made moves for Wrencher? That option went right out the window. The fact she hasn't sent me a box of chocolate-covered chompers says good things about her stability, so far at least."

Caitlyn nodded as Lailha matched Sevika's bet, "Her soulmate is doing her quite a bit of good. Scuttlebutt is that Glasc has also made peace with our favorite little terrorist climbing the ranks. Raise," she finished, tossing a silver gear into the pile.

Vi tossed in the last of her remaining gears, scowling at her hand, "So now what? Most of the shooting has stopped, no one has crossed the Pilt in a week and change, and Jinx-"