[2AM is the best time to search Eastside for clues, huh? Royce and Kara stumble onto each other heading in the direction of Chuuya Nakahara's manor. A black, soft-topped old car rolls slowly by them heading in the same direction. It's... the only car out this late, seems like?
As it passes, neither the driver nor the passenger look at them, but they can tell the driver has on a green fedora, and the passenger has a long, low ponytail. There seems to be someone in the back, too--no, they realize. It's not a person. It's something that gleams briefly in the street lamplight.
It makes a suspicious turn up ahead on the next street.]
[ That fedora is a sin, first of all. Get it out of here, I don't care if it's the 1920s.
Royce is confused as to why this guy is also out here at 2 AM, but he doesn't get the chance to ask. He hides the best he can from the car as it passes - and then with only a slight glance at Kara - decides to follow the car. People driving around with suspicious gleaming things in the back of their car this late/early are obviously full of information. Off he goes, following the car from a distance, trying to make sure it doesn't see him. ]
[ as the car approaches, kara presses himself into the shadows, watching carefully - and without even a glance toward royce, he follows. this being the east side, he's not going out of his way to talk to anyone in case they're, you know, The Enemy. he'll stick to the shadows as much as possible without losing eyes on the car to see where it leads. ]
[When Royce and Kara get around the corner, or as close to it as they dare, they'll find the car has parked beside the street in front of a building. It seems to be rocking. Every window is bright with light, and the sound of music and voices comes through to the outside. A few couples and groups are hanging out on the street, but most people seem to be inside.
The passenger of the car climbs out, almost slithering. He hustles up the steps and disappears inside. The driver is still sitting inside the car, waiting on his buddy to get back.
[ Huh. A party, maybe. Not usually suspicious, but it is with Mr. Passenger slithering into the building. Royce doesn't really pay much attention to where Kara might be, but he is going to follow the passenger inside. Carefully. He's trying to blend in with the crowd as he does, make it not obvious that he's tracking. ]
[ a party... neither the place kara wants to be, nor where he should be. the sword he's brought with him would attract too much attention in a crowd like that. maybe he should have left it behind, but what's the point of having it if he doesn't use it?
so he'll let royce go on ahead for now. he's going to find a way to get around to the driver's side to look for any other indications of what they're doing or what the thing in the backseat is. ]
[The passenger squeezes right into the party without attracting even a single turn of the head. Royce finds he's actually got a similar reception. Everyone is too busy having fun, and someone is playing a piano very badly. But it is early in the night, and this is, by the looks of it, a brothel.
So Royce might see some tiddies.
At the back of the first floor is a mini bar, and the passenger sidles up to a man in round glasses already sitting there, and they start talking.
Meanwhile, as Kara comes around on the driver's side of the car, he'll see the window is slightly cracked, and a waft of cigarette smoke is seeping through it outside. The driver seems to be focused toward the building, watchful and waiting for his partner to return.
The backseat has something that takes up the whole middle section, from the edge of the front seat all the way to the edge of the back, and it looks like the backseat has been cut out to make room. There's two teeny tiny seats there on the left and the right, flanking the thing in the center... that seems mounted?
[ Ah. Tiddies. Royce is abruptly hit with a sense of familiarity, which is - weird. He's never been to a brothel in his life. Right? He shifts through the crowd, frowning. Flashback to tiddies was not what he was expecting tonight.
But he will use it to his advantage. He slips one of the girls a few dollars or coins or whatever the currency and asks her if she'll help him out - he doesn't want to take her to bed or anything, he just wants her to help him be invisible. Nobody pays attention to the service and they especially don't pay attention to the girls that are actively working a client, in... his experience? What experience.
If she agrees, he'll lead her to the bar and pretend to be drunkenly hitting on her while listening very carefully to the conversation the passenger and the man in round glasses are having. If she doesn't agree, he lets her keep the money and still goes to the bar to listen anyway, just. Without a convenient distraction. ]
[ haha wow. that sure is a massive gun mounted back there. bad! even kara is a little startled by the sight of it, so he doesn’t make a move immediately. Instead he’s making mental notes on the gun itself before turning back to the driver, trying to place if he’s seen them before. xie lian probably would have told him if he’d sent someone into mori territory, but there’s always a chance that someone isn’t playing straight with the head of the family... he just doesn’t want to move too rashly when he’s already cursed(????) and get them all in trouble, instead of just himself.
he’ll also look for somewhere safe enough to stash the sword, and make sure that his sleeve is rolled down, so he can approach a little less conspicuously if he can’t get anything else from a distance. ]
[Elsewhere at 2AM, 9S and Kano bump into one another near the now-battered bell tower in Westside. It's still as chipped and holed as 9S remembers. Wild times at the bell!
While they're standing there, a nondescript car pulls up and stops. The window cracks, and a man's voice says,]
'Ey, do somethin' for me, will ya? I'll give ya something good.
[ Seeing 9S of all people on the west side of the river is not what Kano would have expected, especially at this time of night. Kano unwisely frequents the streets on both sides late into the night, but the both of them, really, stick out like a sore thumb when the streets are otherwise deserted, and Kano's about to comment on that fact when the car pulls up and he nearly bolts for it. ]
...Friend of yours, Nines? Hope it involves chauffeuring, or maybe that's the reward. I'm doing pretty okay in my lessons, you know?
[ Haven't killed anybody yet, and he doesn't want to start now. Whoever this man is, he could've chosen better people to approach, Kano thinks, and here's the first out to reconsider his choice of helpers. ]
[ What the... Okay, actually, this shouldn't be surprising on 9S's end. Of course Kano is wandering around in Westside at 2 am. Why wouldn't he be. For 9S's part, this isn't the first excursion he's had in the area. He was thinking about revisiting that bell tower, actually, until Kano and then this extremely shady car pulled up.
He shakes his head and shrugs widely, indicating that he has absolutely no clue who this person is. But. Listen, why not hear the guy out. Truly, 9S's curiosity is an affliction. He squints at the crack in the window. ]
You're going to have be a little more specific, sir. What's the job?
[The window rolls down a bit more, and a small briefcase plops out onto the ground.]
Moris are up ta no good, boys. No good. We're gonna cut 'em off at the head, but--
[A slick-haired, clean shaven man leans out of the window. He thumbs over his shoulder, and another man in a white fedora leans over enough to be seen smirking.] --can't get through their little guard in Middleton without an entourage. [If 9S and Kano open the briefcase to take a peek, they'll find
[ "Moris are up to no good" is right, considering who the Moris are, Kano glancing over at 9S as if sizing him up and seeing if he'd make a convincing girl. Kano's worn plenty of dresses in his life to play the part, so it's no trouble for him— it's just a matter of why that he's stuck on. If Chuuya knew about this, he'd have Kano's head on a platter to feed to Marshmallow. ]
Distraction, huh? I dunno... With some tailoring, I bet you two would be able to play the part just as well. It's dark out, after all~
[ The briefcase gets left in 9S's hands, so Kano has two free ones to shove into his pockets. ]
You're not gonna leave us high and dry after you get through are you? Bet Tsukasa's getting tired of his criminals playing dress-up!
[ Dresses, huh... 9S can't imagine he'd make a very convincing girl, but sometimes you just don't know until you try. Of course, there's also the extremely serious issue of these strangers trying to infiltrate Mori territory, but he thinks he gets the cut of Kano's jib.
He snaps the briefcase shut, tucks it underarm, and gives the slick-haired man his best "why yes murdering Moris sounds like a jolly old time" smile. ]
He's right, sir. Let us tag along the whole way! I promise we'll make ourselves useful.
Keep sweet-talkin', kid. I might even do ya a favor later.
[Both men exchange a sort of knowing smirk.] We don't go back on our word. We'll tell ya somethin' juicy. Somethin' we heard about the Mori. Somethin' that happened a while back. [Reaching around, the driver opens the backdoor so the two of them can get inside.]
Aw, so "juicy"'s more gossip than, say, a steak dinner, huh? I guess we gotta take what we can get~
[ This whole ordeal screams "HEY, STUPID, THIS IS HOW PEOPLE GET KIDNAPPED IN THE FIRST PLACE," but does it stop Kano from getting into the back of a stranger's car? No. There's a reason why he wanders the street late at night, literally asking to be abducted and thrown into the thick of things. ]
No peeking. Close your eyes. I'm shy.
[ Respect his privacy please, and let him get a good look at whatever's inside the car, both the backseat and what he can see of the men's faces from the rear view mirror. ]
[There's a somewhat long stretch of road down in Middleton--nothing fancy, but enough for it to be real good cruise material. Beppe, Nino, 9S, and Kano all come wheeling around the corner of one end. Beppe slams the breaks to skid the car to a stop, and hopefully the two boys don't go flying. Nino does, in fact, smack his nose open on the dash, though. It's a little bloody.]
Hey, [Beppe croaks.] That looks like...!
[All the way at the other end of the street, Glenn, Sammy, Kara, and Royce come moseying down until the second car zooms down their one way? street? Glenn stops their car, too:]
Are those...?
[At the same time, Beppe and Nino holler,] GET 'EM!! [And Beppe hits the gas. The Glenn Coco car has a ?? moment of exchanged glances, and then hurriedly, Glenn draws his gun, throws the car in reverse, and starts speeding backward out of the street.]
[ What the FUCK is that "I'll give you a hand," 9S?? No you will not????
Kano is absolutely ducking down underneath the seats praying he doesn't die, but you know what, this is the safest place with the seats protecting him and being out of the line of fire from the windows and 9S can step on him all he needs to. The person in most danger is Beppe, whose hands are occupied. Gotta save Beppe.
Kano starts pulling the dress off over his head and undoes the bulletpoof vest so he can sneak an arm around to the front seats and plop it down on Beppe's lap. Stay safe. You got the deets and you still owe them. ]
[ the suggestion that xie lian would allow something that like - it doesn't sit well with kara at all, but he can't just show that in this situation. he's trying not to get himself killed or held hostage by the mori, thank you, so all he does is frown a little deeper and hope it comes across as #offendedpolice. ]
We can't do anything if you don't --
[ "tell us," he means to say, but finishing that sentence isn't happening because SUDDENLY THERE'S A CAR COMING AT THEM? kara has about half a second to wonder if he recognizes the two in the front seat of that car before they're in reverse and he slams face first into the seat in front of him. after a stunned second, he rights himself and reaches for his own gun, just in case. ]
You know them?
[ it's xian le, isn't it. he's going to have to shoot out the tires of his own people, isn't he. fuck this curse. ]
[ There's a second in which 9S slams right into the seat in front of him because that's what happens when you don't buckle up, kids. But luckily, his face is made out of metal, so it doesn't bother him much.
As Kano slaps his vest onto Beppe, 9S flips the safety off his pistol and straight up punches out the window on his side. Better than it getting shot in and having shards all over the place??
Anyway, as the car stabilizes in speed, 9S leans halfway out the window and steadies his aim with a two-handed grip. He knows that if the soft-topped car gets a chance to start shooting, his and Kano's car won't have a chance; he has to take the initiative.
Pow! Pow! He takes two shots, aiming not for the occupants of the car, but its tires. He isn't a Gunner, but his hands are steady and he's a precise shot -- assuming his vehicle can remain steady as well. ]
[ The sudden reverse is absolutely unexpected. Royce nearly impales himself on his own knife as he slams forward into the dashboard. Thankfully he drops the knife before he actually does, but still. He's a little disoriented from braining himself but it's fine, he's fine.
He doesn't have a gun, but the car chasing them does apparently, seeing as there's the sound of gunshots. Royce curses under his breath and ducks low. ]
Looks like Xian Le - if you crash this car, I swear to -- [ Royce hisses at Glenn. Never has he been so unequipped. He knew he shouldn't have gotten into this car. ]
Beppe has a lead foot, honestly. He guns it down the street after the other car as Nino lifts the Thompson up. The window crashes, surprising them a little, but then Nino just.......sort of follows suit by knocking his own window out. Thanks, 9S! The vest getting slapped on Beppe, however, really does make him jump.
The car swerves a bit as 9S makes the shots--but one hits the front tire of the car Royce and Kara are inside! It pops, but not necessarily with a loud and big show, and begins its deflation as they continue to back up.]
Sammy, I'm throwing 'er off! [Glenn reaches forward to pull a lever near the front dash. The soft-top sort of snaps, and then the whole thing gets carried away with the wind as they're moving. (Hey! 9S and Kano can see Kara and Royce now!) Glenn slams the breaks while turning to throw the car sideways, giving them direction to head down another street.
Sammy, though, has already swung around to stand up just behind the end of the gatling gun. Surprise, binches. He grabs both handles on each side, steering it into position.] Be careful of the shells! [he yells at Kara. (They'll be real hot.) Glenn gives the car the gas, and it stutters on the bad tire before taking off.
[ Things continue to be absolutely terrible and Kano's on the ground with no idea what the hell's going on besides the fact that there's gunshots and a car chase and he really shouldn't get up. He shouldn't. He should stay down here where it's safe until the car crashes or a bullet slips through and he dies.
Instead, he takes the time to get dressed, because he is not having his corpse show up in the morning papers in just his boxers. He stuffs the dress back into the suitcase, and sort of stupidly holds the full suitcase up as a shield and peers around it to see what's happening. If he gets shot, he'll only lose his left eye. Not bad. ]
Yikes... This is kinda bad, isn't it Beppe? You'll get us all killed if you go straight at 'em— pull hard left and cut 'em off on the other side of the building, maybe?
[ A flat tire will make the other car pull one way more than the other, so they can get a sense of where they're headed that way. And if trying to intercept the other car gives them the chance to escape, that's honestly fine with Kano too. ]
[ kara barely gets a chance to react before the car is changing direction again, throwing him against the door as glenn hits the brakes a second time. by the time he recovers, sammy is already up and shouting a warning at him and - no. absolutely fucking not.
he also stands in the backseat, one hand on glenn's headrest to keep himself steady. he doesn't have time to worry about whether the angle means the tail end of his tattoo will show, or if they'll even recognize it if it does. his eyes are locked on sammy as he turns off his gun's safety and aims right at the man's head. ]
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fracturamods) wrote2020-01-25 11:39 am
ROYCE & KARA - EASTSIDE, MORI TERRITORY
As it passes, neither the driver nor the passenger look at them, but they can tell the driver has on a green fedora, and the passenger has a long, low ponytail. There seems to be someone in the back, too--no, they realize. It's not a person. It's something that gleams briefly in the street lamplight.
It makes a suspicious turn up ahead on the next street.]
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Royce is confused as to why this guy is also out here at 2 AM, but he doesn't get the chance to ask. He hides the best he can from the car as it passes - and then with only a slight glance at Kara - decides to follow the car. People driving around with suspicious gleaming things in the back of their car this late/early are obviously full of information. Off he goes, following the car from a distance, trying to make sure it doesn't see him. ]
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The passenger of the car climbs out, almost slithering. He hustles up the steps and disappears inside. The driver is still sitting inside the car, waiting on his buddy to get back.
What would the boys like to do!]
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so he'll let royce go on ahead for now. he's going to find a way to get around to the driver's side to look for any other indications of what they're doing or what the thing in the backseat is. ]
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So Royce might see some tiddies.
At the back of the first floor is a mini bar, and the passenger sidles up to a man in round glasses already sitting there, and they start talking.
Meanwhile, as Kara comes around on the driver's side of the car, he'll see the window is slightly cracked, and a waft of cigarette smoke is seeping through it outside. The driver seems to be focused toward the building, watchful and waiting for his partner to return.
The backseat has something that takes up the whole middle section, from the edge of the front seat all the way to the edge of the back, and it looks like the backseat has been cut out to make room. There's two teeny tiny seats there on the left and the right, flanking the thing in the center... that seems mounted?
It gleams again.]
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But he will use it to his advantage. He slips one of the girls a few dollars or coins or whatever the currency and asks her if she'll help him out - he doesn't want to take her to bed or anything, he just wants her to help him be invisible. Nobody pays attention to the service and they especially don't pay attention to the girls that are actively working a client, in... his experience? What experience.
If she agrees, he'll lead her to the bar and pretend to be drunkenly hitting on her while listening very carefully to the conversation the passenger and the man in round glasses are having. If she doesn't agree, he lets her keep the money and still goes to the bar to listen anyway, just. Without a convenient distraction. ]
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he’ll also look for somewhere safe enough to stash the sword, and make sure that his sleeve is rolled down, so he can approach a little less conspicuously if he can’t get anything else from a distance. ]
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KANO & 9S - WESTSIDE, XIAN LE TERRITORY
While they're standing there, a nondescript car pulls up and stops. The window cracks, and a man's voice says,]
'Ey, do somethin' for me, will ya? I'll give ya something good.
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...Friend of yours, Nines? Hope it involves chauffeuring, or maybe that's the reward. I'm doing pretty okay in my lessons, you know?
[ Haven't killed anybody yet, and he doesn't want to start now. Whoever this man is, he could've chosen better people to approach, Kano thinks, and here's the first out to reconsider his choice of helpers. ]
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He shakes his head and shrugs widely, indicating that he has absolutely no clue who this person is. But. Listen, why not hear the guy out. Truly, 9S's curiosity is an affliction. He squints at the crack in the window. ]
You're going to have be a little more specific, sir. What's the job?
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Moris are up ta no good, boys. No good. We're gonna cut 'em off at the head, but--
[A slick-haired, clean shaven man leans out of the window. He thumbs over his shoulder, and another man in a white fedora leans over enough to be seen smirking.] --can't get through their little guard in Middleton without an entourage. [If 9S and Kano open the briefcase to take a peek, they'll find
two flapper dresses, two matching cloche hats, and some pearl necklaces.]
Whataya say? Yer skinny enough to play the part until we get in and see what they're packin'.
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Distraction, huh? I dunno... With some tailoring, I bet you two would be able to play the part just as well. It's dark out, after all~
[ The briefcase gets left in 9S's hands, so Kano has two free ones to shove into his pockets. ]
You're not gonna leave us high and dry after you get through are you? Bet Tsukasa's getting tired of his criminals playing dress-up!
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He snaps the briefcase shut, tucks it underarm, and gives the slick-haired man his best "why yes murdering Moris sounds like a jolly old time" smile. ]
He's right, sir. Let us tag along the whole way! I promise we'll make ourselves useful.
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[Both men exchange a sort of knowing smirk.] We don't go back on our word. We'll tell ya somethin' juicy. Somethin' we heard about the Mori. Somethin' that happened a while back. [Reaching around, the driver opens the backdoor so the two of them can get inside.]
Hop in and get changed.
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[ This whole ordeal screams "HEY, STUPID, THIS IS HOW PEOPLE GET KIDNAPPED IN THE FIRST PLACE," but does it stop Kano from getting into the back of a stranger's car? No. There's a reason why he wanders the street late at night, literally asking to be abducted and thrown into the thick of things. ]
No peeking. Close your eyes. I'm shy.
[ Respect his privacy please, and let him get a good look at whatever's inside the car, both the backseat and what he can see of the men's faces from the rear view mirror. ]
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MIDDLETON - A THING
Hey, [Beppe croaks.] That looks like...!
[All the way at the other end of the street, Glenn, Sammy, Kara, and Royce come moseying down until the second car zooms down their one way? street? Glenn stops their car, too:]
Are those...?
[At the same time, Beppe and Nino holler,] GET 'EM!! [And Beppe hits the gas. The Glenn Coco car has a ?? moment of exchanged glances, and then hurriedly, Glenn draws his gun, throws the car in reverse, and starts speeding backward out of the street.]
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Kano is absolutely ducking down underneath the seats praying he doesn't die, but you know what, this is the safest place with the seats protecting him and being out of the line of fire from the windows and 9S can step on him all he needs to. The person in most danger is Beppe, whose hands are occupied. Gotta save Beppe.
Kano starts pulling the dress off over his head and undoes the bulletpoof vest so he can sneak an arm around to the front seats and plop it down on Beppe's lap. Stay safe. You got the deets and you still owe them. ]
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We can't do anything if you don't --
[ "tell us," he means to say, but finishing that sentence isn't happening because SUDDENLY THERE'S A CAR COMING AT THEM? kara has about half a second to wonder if he recognizes the two in the front seat of that car before they're in reverse and he slams face first into the seat in front of him. after a stunned second, he rights himself and reaches for his own gun, just in case. ]
You know them?
[ it's xian le, isn't it. he's going to have to shoot out the tires of his own people, isn't he. fuck this curse. ]
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As Kano slaps his vest onto Beppe, 9S flips the safety off his pistol and straight up punches out the window on his side. Better than it getting shot in and having shards all over the place??
Anyway, as the car stabilizes in speed, 9S leans halfway out the window and steadies his aim with a two-handed grip. He knows that if the soft-topped car gets a chance to start shooting, his and Kano's car won't have a chance; he has to take the initiative.
Pow! Pow! He takes two shots, aiming not for the occupants of the car, but its tires. He isn't a Gunner, but his hands are steady and he's a precise shot -- assuming his vehicle can remain steady as well. ]
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He doesn't have a gun, but the car chasing them does apparently, seeing as there's the sound of gunshots. Royce curses under his breath and ducks low. ]
Looks like Xian Le - if you crash this car, I swear to -- [ Royce hisses at Glenn. Never has he been so unequipped. He knew he shouldn't have gotten into this car. ]
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Beppe has a lead foot, honestly. He guns it down the street after the other car as Nino lifts the Thompson up. The window crashes, surprising them a little, but then Nino just.......sort of follows suit by knocking his own window out. Thanks, 9S! The vest getting slapped on Beppe, however, really does make him jump.
The car swerves a bit as 9S makes the shots--but one hits the front tire of the car Royce and Kara are inside! It pops, but not necessarily with a loud and big show, and begins its deflation as they continue to back up.]
Sammy, I'm throwing 'er off! [Glenn reaches forward to pull a lever near the front dash. The soft-top sort of snaps, and then the whole thing gets carried away with the wind as they're moving. (Hey! 9S and Kano can see Kara and Royce now!) Glenn slams the breaks while turning to throw the car sideways, giving them direction to head down another street.
Sammy, though, has already swung around to stand up just behind the end of the gatling gun. Surprise, binches. He grabs both handles on each side, steering it into position.] Be careful of the shells! [he yells at Kara. (They'll be real hot.) Glenn gives the car the gas, and it stutters on the bad tire before taking off.
matrix car chase scene incoming]
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Instead, he takes the time to get dressed, because he is not having his corpse show up in the morning papers in just his boxers. He stuffs the dress back into the suitcase, and sort of stupidly holds the full suitcase up as a shield and peers around it to see what's happening. If he gets shot, he'll only lose his left eye. Not bad. ]
Yikes... This is kinda bad, isn't it Beppe? You'll get us all killed if you go straight at 'em— pull hard left and cut 'em off on the other side of the building, maybe?
[ A flat tire will make the other car pull one way more than the other, so they can get a sense of where they're headed that way. And if trying to intercept the other car gives them the chance to escape, that's honestly fine with Kano too. ]
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he also stands in the backseat, one hand on glenn's headrest to keep himself steady. he doesn't have time to worry about whether the angle means the tail end of his tattoo will show, or if they'll even recognize it if it does. his eyes are locked on sammy as he turns off his gun's safety and aims right at the man's head. ]
Hands off.
[ so much for the police cover story. ]
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