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Ashton sat in the back of the Scout changed and tired, her eyes watching the sets roll in on the small beach they were driving by. Her fingers subconsciously outlined the two fish she had tattooed on the inside of her right ankle, humming along to the radio quietly. They'd gone back to Deran's place briefly to change before they'd been sent to look for J, Smurf wanting them all to meet at a restaurant she'd put reservations in for them all.
Craig slowed to a stop by the wharf, blaring the horn as he stood up on his seat; leaning over the windscreen. She peaked between the two seats in front of her, easily spotting J and his girlfriend down by the water. The girl rolled her eyes when she met Deran's gaze in the rear view mirror, listening to him huff in reply.
'J, man, where'd you go? Been looking all over for you,' Craig called; 'Jump in... Yeah, she can come too. Come on! We're gonna bum around awhile, and then go and eat with Smurf.'
The couple walked toward the car, hand in hand, before they paused by J's bike.
'I've got my bike,' The boy informed them.
'Oh, man, leave it. We got you a new one,' Craig waved him off.
He sat down when they finally started for the car once more, before he turned around to look in the tray of the Scout.
'Come on! You couldn't have taken the lock all the way off?' He looked at his brother.
'Should I have gift-wrapped it for him too? Hm?' Deran retorted; 'Or maybe we should get Ash to model it?'
'Fuck off,' She kicked the back of his chair.
Ashton shuffled over to sit behind Deran when J climbed in, his girlfriend behind him. She leaned back into the seat, sending J a tight smile.
'No offence, J. When you said you had a girlfriend, I figured she'd be ugly,' Craig complimented as he reversed the car.
'You called me your girlfriend?' The boy's girlfriend asked before she leant over to kiss him.
A soft groan left Ashton's mouth as she looked away from the couple, huffing in annoyance as J leant onto her a little. She sent Craig a glare as he chuckled to himself, silencing him quickly.
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'Open your mouth, sweetheart,' Craig urged as he looked at J's girlfriend; 'Hundred bucks if you can catch this in your mouth.'
Ashton smirked as the girl, she finally learned was named Nicky, looked over them all slightly shocked. They sat in the middle of the restaurant, nothing but left overs on their plates.
'Two hundred bucks! Come on, you in?' Craig pressed.
'You don't, I will,' The Wright girl placed her feet in Baz's lap as she leant back into her seat.
Nicky nodded, opening her mouth; only to have a shrimp bounce off her face. Some one them chuckled, watching as Craig threw another at her; which bounced off her teeth and onto the floor.
'You really don't have to do this, Nicky,' J leant toward his girlfriend.
'Hey, shut up, man. That's- That's loser talk,' Craig snapped before looking back at Nicky; 'Ready?'
She hummed in reply, opening her mouth once more. Deran tapped the table in a drum roll, watching on in anticipation. Craig flicked the shrimp across the table, landing it in Nicky's mouth. He threw his hands up in the air as he cheered, everyone cheering with him.
'He shoots, he scores! Very nice,' Deran nodded.
'Yes, well done,' Craig agreed as he took a breath from his cigarette as he threw two hundred down on the table; 'Boom!'
'Thank you,' Nicky smiled.
And as Ashton watched Craig look toward Nicky, she knew he'd found something he wanted. When Craig wanted something, he usually got it. It was just his nature. She sighed, pushing her chair backwards and away from the table before she stood, everyone quickly looking toward her.
'Ashton, baby, where're you going?' Smurf asked.
'I just need some air,' She licked her lips; 'I'll see you at home.'
'Don't walk. Come on, we'll take you home.'
'It's alright... I just need to be alone for a little bit. Uh, yeh. I'll see you later.'
She placed a fifty down on the table before she turned and left, her eyes set on the old carpet beneath her feet. She let the cool night air brush over her skin, hardly shivering as she headed for home; her head stuck up in the clouds.
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Everyone sat around the lounge room, besides Pope, who was somewhere in the house, and Baz, who was in the shower. Craig sat shirtless on the floor, leaning over the table as he snorted cocaine; Smurf behind him on the lounge giving him a shoulder massage. Ashton sat comfortably in Deran's lap, breathing in the smoke from his joint as her eyes fell shut; her head on his shoulder. She had her own joint between her lips, sucking on it lazily. Nicky and J were curled up together on their own couch, watching it all unfold.
'Really, man?' Baz called as he entered the room to lean on the back of an arm chair; 'We're all just hanging out, you gotta go choppin' in?'
'Avert your eyes, Father,' Craig drawled before snorting another line.
'Why don't you try sleep for once in your life, it's good for ya?'
'Someone get Baz a drink. Make it a big one.
'And you two. Hey.'
She opened one eye to look at the man, her hand coming up to rake her fingers through Deran's hair.
'You really wanna get mellow right now? Maybe now's not the best time, you know what I mean?' Baz hissed lowly.
'You're showing your age, Baz,' She waved him away.
'You want a taste?' Craig looked at Nicky, who sat up a little at the offer.
'Oh no, she's good, man,' J shook his head.
'Hey, man, don't trample on her freedom. Sweetheart, wanna taste or not?'
'Thanks, I-I'll just stick with weed,' Nicky stammered.
'Deran, give the lady another toke... Hey!'
'Piss off, Craig,' Ashton scowled at the magazine he threw hit her in the forehead.
'I'm going home,' Baz pushed himself away from the couch.
No one said anything as he left, all of them returning to what they had previously been doing.
'You're making me tired,' Deran muttered as he flicked a page.
'Come to bed with me then,' She suggested.
'Yeh, alright. This is dead.'
He placed his magazine down, opening his arms to let her stand. She pushed herself up and out of his lap, holding her hand out for him as he slowly stood. Smurf smiled softly toward them, though they didn't return it; too out of it to do so. Ashton lead him to her room, letting his hand go to pull her shirt and jeans off.
She climbed onto the bed, her eyes shutting the second her head hit the pillow before they opened to look at Deran. He pulled his shirt off, his eyes stuck on the huge map of the world she had plastered on her wall; red dots all over the place. She smiled softly, rolling onto her back; her eyes never leaving the map.
'We could've had it all, man,' She sighed.
'Fucking jobs,' He muttered.
'Amen... Come on, you coming to bed, or not?'
'What about the job?'
'Not for a couple of hours. Come on, Dez. I'll spoon you if I have to.'
He sent her a icy glare that she only chuckled to, patting the bed in front of her. He defied her suggestion and set himself behind her, pressing himself against her back as he laid a hand over her waist; his fingers running over the mermaid tattoo under her boob. She didn't mind, she knew it meant nothing. She knew of Deran's huge secret, she'd been the one to figure it out. But, she knew better then to tell anyone.
'I love you, Dez,' She sighed as she curled into him a little more.
'I love you more, Ash,' He replied; 'Now, go to sleep.'
She didn't protest, letting her eyes fall shut and the warmth around her taking her captive.
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'Rise and shine, kids,' Craig called as he pushed open the door to the room they'd locked the tweakers in.
'Party's over,' She chuckled as she came up behind him.
Ashton walked inside the room, coughing at the horrid stench that came from inside the car as Baz opened a door. The wool over her nose and mouth did little for the smell, her gloved hands pulling one of the tweakers from the car.
'Oh, man, it reeks in here,' Deran spat.
'Hey, you did good, boys,' Baz complimented; 'Thanks for the body fluids.'
'DNA jackpot! This should keep the crime lab busy,' Craig smirked to himself.
Deran left them to the black rover as he headed back out to their getaway car, leaving before they followed after; taking a different route. The Wright girl readjusted her mask over her nose, her all black outfit blending in with the leather seats she sat on. She stayed in the car as it came to a stop, peeling their black motorbike helmets with polarised visors from their bags; one for each of them.
She chucked the helmet beside her and started to get out the rest of the stuff, passing some of it over to Baz so they could start to get ready. She wrapped tape around the edges of the gloves, connecting them to her shirt, before she pulled on a thicker coat and placed her neck brace on. The helmet went on next, before she flicked the visor up and placed her mouth guard in. She placed the large duffel bag in her lap, threading her arm and head through the strap before she put her seat belt back on.
Ashton nodded to the boys in the front as they peered back at her, flicking her visor back down. The jewellery store they were robbing appeared up ahead, the car speeding up a little. Craig drove right through the glass shop front, the glass crumbling into a thousand little pieces. She moved out of the car quickly as the alarm sounded, smashing the closest glass case to her. Nimbly placing the expensive watches into her bag, smashing the next case once they were all in.
She counted down how long they had left in her mind, working quickly and calmly; grabbing as many watches as she could. She smashed different cases and ripped open drawers, Baz and Craig elsewhere in the shop doing the same. Her head snapped up when Baz's watch began to beep, running after him with the now heavy bag clapping against her leg. The trio followed the route they had planned to get to the roof, they feet pounding against the concrete.
The Wright girl was the last down the ladder from the roof, dropping down as her hands reached the end of it; falling not two metres to the ground. Craig pushed her into the car as she climbed over him, hollering at Deran to go as he shut the car door. The car flew up the alley, Ashton ripping her helmet off with a cheer. She dumped her bag on the floor at her feet, placing the helmet beside her as she ripped her mask off. Though, their celebrations were cut short as the car came to an abrupt stop, a police car and two security guards blocking their exit route. The two unsuspecting men looked at them shocked, before they began to walk toward the car as Deran reversed it quickly.
'Deran, God dammit,' Craig yelled; 'You said there'd be no security on the south end 'til six.'
'Go, go, go,' She called as the cops began to run after them.
'Drive, man, drive!'
One of the cops just managed to grab onto the door handle beside Ashton, pulling the door open slightly as he tugged on the handle.
'Deran, get rid of him,' She shouted as she kicked the cop's hand away from her.
'Bump up against the dumpster,' Baz yelled.
'Baz, what're you doing? Baz!' Deran yelled as the man told a hold of the steering wheel.
'Punch it!'
She flung her door open, causing the man to be flung into the dumpster as they flew past it; Craig cheering. She high fived him as she sat back, pulling her door shut. Just as they though they were in the clear, gunshots rang out from behind them; the back window shattering.
'Whoa! What was that?' Deran called.
Ashton watched Craig closely as he shakily unzipped his jacket, revealing the gunshot wound she quickly pounced on.
'Shit!' Baz yelled.
She met Deran's eye as he looked over his shoulder, before she watched them move around quickly as he silently began to freak out.
'Ash, you're bleeding,' Craig brought his hand up to her neck.
'I'm good,' She shook her head.
'No, you're not.'
'Worry about yourself, Craig. You have a bullet in your chest, I don't.'
He hissed as she pressed down harder on his wound, cocking a brow at him as she proved her point. She kept her hands there the whole trip home, the blood staining her skin but she didn't care in the slightest.
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They got home just as the sun began to peak over the horizon, Baz and Deran quickly getting Craig out of the car as Ashton followed after with all the bags, Pope and Smurf rushing out to see what was going on with all the yelling going on.
'What happened?' Smurf asked.
'The security guards,' Deran croaked; 'They weren't meant to be there.'
The woman shushed him quietly as Pope took his position beside Craig, leading him out of the room.
'Where do you want these, Smurf?' She called.
'Put them in my room,' Smurf replied.
She jogged into through the house, dumping the bags in Smurf's closet and out of sight from J. She stripped her gloves off, passing them to Pope as he searched the kitchen for some. He took them, checked the inside for sweat, before he pulled them on. She rolled her eyes, grabbing their homemade first aid kit as she listened to Deran cry in the next room.
Baz propped Craig up onto the pool table, snatching the bag from her and quickly began to pull different things out. She took the gauze and wiped at his wound, letting the man take a hit from the whiskey bottle before she pried the tweezers in; looking for anything. She ignored his yells, Pope and Baz holding him down.
'He's good,' She nodded.
'You gonna clean yourself up?' Pope asked.
She shrugged her shoulders and turned to Baz, 'Burn it, I guess.'
Pope left Craig to sit by himself on the pool table, the man taking another long drink. He moved the hair from her neck, pulling the blood from the strands that had stuck to the wound. Ashton gripped Craig's leg as Pope pulled her head to the side and held it there, Baz getting the electrocauter ready. She nodded when he glanced at her, her hand squeezing Craig's leg as she let out a yell; Pope holding her head still.
The man held her up for a second once it was done, her eyes shut as she tried to rid of the dizziness. Ashton snatched the bottle of whiskey from Craig, downing a fair amount before she placed it down. She waved Pope off after a second, pushing herself up to stand properly. She heard something about her going to sit down before she was pushed lightly toward the living room, her feet carrying her. But, the second she heard Deran's cries become louder, she forgot all about taking care of herself.
He laid on the couch with his head in Smurf's lap, his body shaking as he cried. Smurf ran her hand over his hair, talking to him quietly. She knelt down in front of them, Deran's blood shot eyes landing on her before they moved to her burnt skin; his sobs growing louder as he began to apologise. She shushed him, moving closer to rest her forehead on his cheek.
'It's alright, Dez,' She whispered; 'We're all ok. Hey. We're all ok.'
She placed a kiss to his cheek, before she placed another to his temple, then another to the eyelid she could reach. Ashton took his hand as he curled further into a ball, holding it close to her chest as she rested her forehead again; talking to him quietly.
'It's okay, baby,' Smurf spoke softly as she placed her other hand on top of her adopted daughter's head; 'It's okay. Everybody makes mistakes.'
'We're all ok,' She whispered; 'We're all right here.'
'Oh, no... Oh, God,' He sobbed.
She shushed him, rubbing her thumb over his knuckles. She closed her eyes as Smurf's hands moved through her hair, in an attempt to keep her calm as she calmed her brother.
'Security guards weren't supposed to be there,' Deran cried.
'I know,' She shushed him; 'I know.'
Smurf sung quietly to them, though she was hardly listening.
'Why take over for me and I'll go check on Crag?' Smurf asked after a few minutes.
She raised her head to look at the woman, nodding as she stood. She took her mother's seat, Deran quickly readjusting himself to her. Ashton ran her fingers through his hair, still holding onto his hand as he continued to cry.