Heists and Vengeance

Four

Lana

"Uh...what?"

Lana was sure she'd heard incorrectly. She couldn't be fired! She had built her life around this job - she couldn't lose it! And besides-

"But – I'm one of the reasons why the paper gets so many reads! My section is the most widely read!"

Grant nodded. "Exactly. Your section is really popular – and that's why Carmichael doesn't like it."

Lana froze. No. Grant nodded again, as if he knew what she was thinking. "He has threatened to have the newspaper shut down if we don't let you go. And while you may be an important part of the company...well, you're too much of a liability to keep around." 

"But-but- "

"I'm sorry, Lana." And his expression...he did seem to really mean it. She pressed her lips tightly together and willed herself not to cry. She wouldn't. Not for this. She sat quietly for a moment, trying to compose herself before speaking. "When?". Her voice was barely a whisper.

Grants eyes did seem sorrowful as he replied. "Today. You have to be gone by noon. Pack your desk." He looked down at the papers on his desk once again, and she got the feeling that she was dismissed. She stood up quietly, willing her legs to support her, and walked out of the door.

Maia took one look at Lana's expression. "What's wrong? What happened?" Lana stayed silent as her realization dawned on her friend's face. "No. No. You have got to be kidding me. He did not fire you." But Lana just nodded her head.

Maia walked over to her and gave her a tight hug. "It's going to be okay. It's going to be o- Oh my God. What am I going to do without you? You're my best friend – and the only person stopping me from murdering Barry." Lana managed a weak laugh, and slowly pulled away. The tears were threatening to flow, but she couldn't let that happen. No one could see her cry.

She walked over to her desk and started packing things away in her bag. There wasn't much – she only brought her laptop, lunch and water bottle to the office. No personal photos. No relics.

"Wait – you're leaving today?" Maia looked devastated. Lana only nodded as she suppressed tears. No crying.

"I have to be out by noon." Her voice sounded weird and breathy, and she took in a shuddering breath. She zipped up her bag and turned to face her friend. "I'm going to miss you," she said quietly. Her friend nodded, and shrugged slightly.

"Who wouldn't? I'm awesome." Lana laughed a little at that. "But seriously. I'll miss you too. Stay in touch?"

"Of course."

And that was that.

In her car, Lana was in a daze, still hardly believing what had happened in the last ten minutes. She'd hurried to the door, avoiding the stares and whispers from her coworkers with her head down and her hands in her pockets. They'd been right. She would have been the downfall of the company.

It felt unreal – at this time on a weekday, she was supposed to be at the workplace, not on the road waiting for a traffic light to turn green. She was supposed to be at her job...the job that she would never go back to again.

The tears that she had suppressed in the workplace, finally spilled, and it was like a dam breaking inside her. The tears flowed freely with no end, and she cried and cried, slamming her hand against the steering wheel.

Finally, Lana regained control over herself. She swiped at her eyes, looking to make sure the light hadn't turned green. As she did so, she saw the guy in the car next to her, staring at her as if she'd gone through a psychotic episode (which, to be fair, was a reasonable conclusion). She waved him off and turned back to the road. She would not cry. She would not cry. She would not cry.

Twenty minutes later, Lana was crying again. She was on her sofa, in her favorite PJ's (the blue ones, with stars) with a bucket of strawberry ice cream – her favorite flavor. She was bawling as she reached for her laptop – the only thing that could comfort her now was an episode of her favorite show – Red Handed.

The laptop was still on the Controversy message that she'd been reading earlier – she hadn't had a chance to close it. As she reread the message, her sadness gave way to anger. Her job was gone because of Carmichael, and along with it, her future. It was because of him that all this had happened.

Earlier, she'd turned down the invitation, because she had her job on the line.

But now? She had nothing to lose.

Hello,

I realize I said no earlier, but I've changed my mind. If the invitation is still open, I want in.

Let me know. 

A/N: Hiiii...you're still here! Hope you're enjoying it! 

I'm suffering from a bit of writers block at the moment (NO!), and I've got a bunch of exams to study for so it might be a while b4 Ch5 is posted.

Feedback is greatly appreciated!

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