𝐖𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐃 ▷ 𝐥.𝐜.𝐝.𝐩.

4 | 𝐍𝐎 𝐆𝐎𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐁𝐀𝐂𝐊

  Every now and then Nairobi's shoulder would bump into Belgrade's. It would've been annoying if the action wasn't a constant reminder of how close they were. So close that Belgrade could sense the aroma of Nairobi's shampoo emitted from her jet black hair. Belgrade was aware that her presence evoked distracting thoughts somewhere in the depths of her mind. And the nature of the situation, the adrenaline gathered in the air and her pulse rising were all factors that made her feel lightheaded, prone to doing dumb things. 

Another reminder that she was only human.

She was so deep in her thoughts that she didn't realize when the truck stopped and the woman next to her put a hand on her shoulder in order to wake her up from the daze. "Let's go," she said. Then she was up and gone after the other members of their gang.

There was no more time for daydreaming. The plan has officially begun.

She went after the others.

The moment her eyes accommodated themselves to the midday sunlight, she was impressed by the sight before her. A sea of red jumpsuits and Dali masks with big signs and posters high above them. The barricades were barely holding up at the mercy of the angry mob that were Sergio's loyal fans. She was aware the Resistance was loved by many, but hearing about it was one thing and seeing it in person is another.

She didn't allow herself to enter another trance, but instead turned off any thoughts other than the steps necessary for the plan to be pushed into motion. Holding a heavy metal rifle across her chest, she kept her head up and marched with her back straight. Nairobi's tight braid was barely visible from the helmet she wore on her head. She was right in front of Belgrade, Tokyo on her right and Palermo in front of them.

They walked up to the guards stood on the entrance to the Bank of Spain. She couldn't hear much of what was being said, but after a short holdup they were moving inside. 

When they found themselves in the foyer of the building, she noted that it was just as she remembered. Their plan was heavily based on all the accounts from when they've entered that place. Changes were something that would drastically decrease their chances of getting out alive.

"How many people are in the building?" Palermo questioned the old woman at the front security counter of the bank.

"Three hundred and sixty-seven," the woman answered immediately, in a rush. Professor's endless aikido referencing paid off.

She took mental note of how many guards there were, the way that they moved and the orders they gave out. It was all running as smooth as could be expected. The people around them were terrified, blind with fear and following all the orders that the guards barked at them. All was running smooth.

Until- the explosion. 

She pretended this wasn't supposed to happen. That she didn't know her colleagues were planting plastic explosives to the outer walls of the bank, that this took her off guard. Her head hurt- not from the explosion itself, but from the realization that dawned on her because of it. The realization that brought her exhilaration, a high she only felt when she was in the thick of danger.

There was no going back.

She might not have been a romantic in the past, but the plan was running as smooth as waltz performed by the most talented of dancers. She wished he could be there to see it. It was like a poem, crafted at the hands of Shakespeare, Petrarca and Dante together, or a story retold by Homer, a story worthy of being carried through generations as to not be forgotten.

Perhaps she thought about it way too soon.

Her excitement will soon come to an end. As soon as one stupid, stuck up old man with a coronary heart disease and a death wish dared to defy the orders from the 'above'. She understood his undying need for serving something higher than himself, for trying to be brave and righteous for the citizens of his country. She really did. She understood it and she felt compelled to help him die an honorable man by blowing his brains out right then and there, so they fly out of his skull and stick right to the wall behind him and then-