"Youre gonna have to get the shit out of there." Kurt heard through the earpiece he was wearing. "Now!"

The man looked around the dark room, he could already see the blue and red lights flashing on the walls as the police came closer and closer to the building he was in. Kurt grabbed the conch pearl necklace, put it in a velvet case and shoved it into his bag.

He didnt have time anymore to gently get out by the front door, he could hear the sirens blaring loudly outside. Kurt had to decide quickly how he was going to get out of this situation. He could try the window but not the roof, the plan of the house had indicated there was no access to it from inside.

"Where are they parked?" Kurt whispered, securing his bag around his shoulder and waist.

"North and West aisle." Kurt nodded to himself and quickly left the room, leaving an empty chest and its door wide open. Kurt could hear the police starting to infiltrate the house, he climbed the stairs two by two and directly turned left, he entered a room with blue walls and knew he was going to get out of there easily. Kurt closed the door, opened the window and checked what was outside. He was on the second floor, and there was nothing under the window. Which meant that he would either break a bone or have several hard bruises given how he landed. He could also see that the police still hadnt noticed that some of the exits of the house lead here.

"They are starting to move, you only have two minutes left, top." Kurt heard again, he wished he had a way to turn the earpiece off. He knew what he had to do. Kurt looked down once again, feeling a little dizzy at the height, it was nothing he hadnt jumped before but he still felt slightly scared that something would happen in his fall. Kurt took a deep breath to calm himself down and climbed to the edge of the window before jumping. Kurt didnt have time to think about how he was going to fall and his left shoulder and arm hit the ground first before he rolled away. For a second all he could hear was his heart pounding in his chest and the blood pumping in his ears. Kurt allowed himself a second to regain his abilities before standing up. There was no time to check for injuries though and instead Kurt started running in the opposite direction of the front door, hoping that the police hadnt had the idea of placing several police cars around the house.

He had parked his moto two blocks away and if he could turn right at the end of the alley, Kurt knew he was safe. The man checked the street, it was mostly empty, only a few couples were walking hand in hand in the chilly night. Kurt looked back to see if anyone was coming at the other end of the alley and started running towards where he knew he could find his motorbike.

"Hey, you! Stop!" Kurt heard from afar. Panic flared in Kurts chest, his heart starting to beat faster than before. He knew it had to be a cop, knew he was being chased, he had no other choice than to run faster. In Kurts mind there was only one goal: reach his bike. The man started to run faster, extending his legs as far as he could. The mix between the panic and the adrenaline made him run faster and faster. His lungs were on fire, burning from the cold air he gulped in, his legs kept running even if he was on the verge of collapsing. He felt like he was flying, his feet barely touching the ground. He reached to his bag to make sure that the pearl necklace was secured in his bag and when he felt it under his hand, tried to run even faster. He was scared to fall, to trip and get caught, he had no idea where the policeman was, if he was catching up on him or not so Kurt ran faster, using every little inch of strength he had left.

"I said stop!" The cop yelled again. Kurt jumped on his bike and kicked the starter, only then did he take a second to look back to see where the cop was and to make sure he wouldnt shoot him. The man looked young, didnt have his radio on and held his gun curiously, probably a rookie. Kurt knew that the cop wouldnt fire, they were always so scared of killing people that theyd rather hope the thief would stop and wait to be arrested.

Kurt turned back to the road and took off, disappearing in the night with the only proof he had been here being the sound of his bikes motor. Kurt didnt look back, knowing perfectly well that the cop wouldnt have time to run back to his patrol and alert anyone.

Kurt loved driving fast right after hed conducted a robbery. He loved seeing the lights of the city while driving that fast, he loved the smell of the city at night, when you could scent the effluves of all the restaurant filling the air. Kurt still had adrenaline pumping through his veins, he had the satisfaction of a job well done and in those few minutes of driving around, of zigzagging in between cars and feeling the wind hitting his legs, Kurt felt free. He felt powerful and weightless, all fear vanished. The sensations were addictive and were what Kurt was living for.

"Youre a fucking asshole." Kurt stated as soon as he entered the vault. Sebastian was still sitting in his chair in front of the computers, lines and lines of information being processed by the machine. Sebastian took another gulp of his beer, a piece of pizza in his other hand.

"Oh come on, you love the chasing, you live for the chasing." Sebastian barked back. "Loosen up, would you."

"I almost got caught, Bas." Kurt answered, taking off his cat-like mask. They usually wore a tight black outfit, with gloves and a mask that covered partially or totally their face. They had designed their outfits themselves and then sewed it with the most common fabric ever. But being the exceptional people that they were, they needed something to tell them apart from other thieves, thats how they had came up with ideas for their masks, this accessory being the only liberty they allowed themselves. They had several versions of their masks, all in black. It covered half of their faces, only their eyes and nose, or it covered their whole face. Some of their masks were animal-like in the form of the eyes or with tiny ears.

They had had to come up with this outfit after their first big steal. Sebastian had almost been caught, and someone had recognized him because of his fancy clothes, leading him to bribe the policeman with a certain amount of money and a romance that barely lasted two months.

There were three in this and it worked because besides the fact that they werent interested in one another, there was always someone to settle things between the two others. They complimented each other in a way that a duo couldnt. They had fallen into the business of art and jewel theft by chance and had never looked back.

"But you didnt." The other man argued, handing Kurt a bottle of beer and a wet wipe to clean his face of makeup. Kurt plopped down in one of the big armchairs they had there and took several gulps of his beer.

"I didnt. Next time give me at least a two minutes warning, though, would you?" Sebastian had turned back to the computer, reading the report that was being given about the robbery.

"Im usually more of a three seconds warning kind of guy." Sebastian answered cockily. "Look like you scared a rookie to death, he can barely type anything without making a typo. Poor guy." Kurt rolled his eyes at Sebastian comment and tried to get up. Instantly his muscles reminded him that he had jumped from a second floor and landed on his side. Kurt groaned while waiting for the pain to lessen while massaging his arm a little. He finally walked to the computer and looked over Sebastian shoulder. Now that the adrenaline was leaving his system Kurt could feel all his muscles screaming at him. Luckily he didnt break anything in his jump but he could feel the bruises forming all over his side.

"Roxie, Velma. Get ready ladies, time to work." Santana walked behind the two men, wearing nothing but a white towel around her naked body, still glistening with water.

"Im calling inventory!" Kurt yelled, Sebastian didnt say anything and instead rolled over Kurts toes with his chair.

"Well, looks like you cant walk? Inventory it is for you, then." Sebastian smirked at Kurt who aimed a deadly glare at him.

"And you had to roll over my toes for that?"

"I always dreamt of doing this, thanks for making it come true." Sebastian patted Kurts shoulder and walked to the stairs.

Kurt took the time to apply some cream to his bruises and to check himself, to make sure he wasnt severely injured and couldnt feel it because he was still high on adrenaline or such. He patched himself up with a little help from Santana and they all headed to work.

A real job hadnt been their priorities at first. They thought that they could live off deals with wealthy families and some well-negotiated trades on the jewel black market with what they stole. They quickly realized that doing this would alienate them from the real world and no matter how much they loved their illegal business, they still wanted to be part of society. Thats how they found themselves applying for positions at the cabaret. The place was relatively well known, it offered burlesque shows and treated the dancers with respect. They were performers, not strippers. Santana was one of the dancers, Kurt worked as a bartender and Sebastian was the accountant of the place.

Kurt spent the night hiding in the storage room, trying not to move too much because of his bruised body and how tired he was.

Three days later Kurt was working at the bar, enjoying the little break that came whenever a dancer came on stage for a number.

Santana was up, with five other dancers. They were all wearing a bra covered in glitter and jewels, a river of transparent little rocks falling from their back and knotting over their belly button before going down to their feather tailed shorts. They were all wearing a different colored outfit, Santana was in red and Kurt couldnt help but notice how it made her skin browner while the little rocks made her glimmer under the light.

They all moved in sync, undulating their hips to move the feathers around, turning their heads seductively and smiling broadly at men and women before winking and carrying on with the routine. Usually Santana was up for three to five numbers every night and Sebastian often came down to see one of her dances, and to take a break at the bar. They were supportive of each other no matter what, they cared for each other and showed their affection by bantering with each other and not so gently bullying each other. They were the only people in the world they completely trusted and knew they could count on.

Kurt handed Sebastian his drink when the man finally came down the stairs to see one of Santanas numbers.

"Anyone interesting tonight?" Sebastian asked, knowing that sometimes famous people stopped by the cabaret.

"I think that we have a Chinese diplomat but other than that just people like you and me." Kurt answered, making drinks to take backstage for the dancers.

"Lets hope they are nothing like us." Sebastian turned back to the stage, his drink in hand. He scanned the room, the place was full, like every night. The cabaret was a select place and people usually came in dressed to impress. Sometimes Sebastian liked to pick up men in here. He had to be discreet so his manager wouldnt notice but it made the whole thing much more interesting.

After the show, Sebastian walked back to his office, leaving Kurt to his customers. The man spent the rest of the evening serving slightly intoxicated people, who flirted with him unashamedly. He liked being courted, even if sometimes it got a little heavy. He had applied as a dancer first, Kurt was more of a performer than a bartender, he liked being on stage, under the spotlight but the director had told him that they werent hiring male dancers and that instead they had a bartender position available. Thats how Kurt found himself mixing drinks.

At the end of the night Kurt climbed the stairs to Sebastians office, carrying several drinks on a tray. He knew that soon enough they would be joined by Santana and the woman was more than thirsty after an evening of dancing.

Kurt found Sebastian typing furiously on his computer, papers scattered all around the desk.

"Troubles?" Kurt asked while putting the tray in a corner of the room and walking to one of the chairs.

"I spent all night talking with someone and now Im behind. I needed this to be finished tonight." Sebastian answered. Kurt didnt say anything else and let the man finish whatever it was that he needed to do. Kurt knew better than to disturbed Sebastian while he was like that, his hair poking everywhere and looking on the verge of punching the screen of his computer.

As predicted Santana walked in several minutes later, Kurt was still silent but Sebastian looked slightly less pissed than before. The woman took her drink, kissed Kurts cheek and plopped down on a chair, putting her feet on Kurts knees.

"I have news." Sebastian said once he closed his computer. Kurt didnt stop the foot massage he was giving Santana but looked up to the man.

"What is it?"

"I talked with someone –"

"Adam." The latina sing-song, knowing perfectly that it would annoy the accountant.

"Yes, Adam." Sebastian started again.

"Going anywhere with this one? Not like youve been chasing him for months now but –"

"Shut up." Sebastian said over the womans rant. Kurt crooked an eyebrow at Sebastian who sigh desperately. Sebastian had been trying to sleep with Adam for months now, but the other man just kept on brushing off his offers. They had met one night, when Sebastian and Adam were both trying to rob the same house, for different reasons and different things. While Sebastian was aiming for the jewels Adam had been there for contracts and papers. They had worked quickly and perfectly together, Adam had helped picking a lock better and faster than any of them had been capable of. He had been quick and had done his job so effortlessly that Sebastian had developed a real admiration for the man and had developed a crush on his intruding skills and stunning stature.

"So, what did Adam tell you?" Kurt asked, purring the name.

"Theres a new Captain at the Manhattan Police Department. Apparently they fired good old Martinez because too many of his cases stayed unsolved." Sebastian smirked knowingly, the only cases that the station couldnt solve was the ones where they were involved and even if Martinez had been a good cop, he just couldnt keep up with them.

"I guess this calls for background check, the usual? High school, college, where he lived, who he slept with, what brand of ice cream he eats?" Kurt enumerated.

"Well, excuse you? He? Why cant the new Captain be a woman?" Santana bite, kicking Kurts belly with her foot.

"Actually, San, the new Captain is a man." Sebastian cut, looking at his cellphone.

"Of fucking course."

"Right. Well, I dont know a lot." Sebastian continued, scrolling through all the texts he had exchanged with Adam. "He is quite young, apparently hes around our age, good looking but a little short."

"Would you mind giving us something we can actually work with. Like a phone number, his Facebook, his social security number or you know, his name? " Kurt asked tiredly. Santana was still enjoying her foot massage and curling a strand of her hair around a finger, waiting for Sebastian to tell them what else he knew.

"His name is Blaine Anderson."