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Talia and April stuck around until the sun started to set. Talia very much enjoyed today's girls' getaway. It was pleasant and in the end, she felt more relaxed— something she hadn't felt in a while. However, she couldn't help but feel bad when asked by April if she had a good time and said yes. She wasn't lying, but what good was any of that time she spent at the mall if she now thought about the one thing she tried to take her mind off when coming here? She couldn't ignore Raph's message; checking out that brownstone was too important.

"We could go to my apartment and have a sleepover," April said when they exited the mall. They sat down on a bench near the exit. "There's ice cream, pizza. . . oh, and go on a horror movie marathon! Or we could watch some sitcoms if you're still too scared. . ."

Talia stared out into space. She was silent for a few moments before saying, "There's something I have to do first."

April frowned in confusion. "Which is what?"

Talia calmly rose from her seat. Her curls flapped violently in the wind. April saw the lower half of her friend's face was neutral, but the upper half— her eyes, to be specific— wore a strange determination she never saw frequently in her best friend.

"Call it enlightenment."

***

Like Talia predicted, April began firing question after question, obviously suspicious of her best friend's behavior. It wasn't easy, but Talia made up an excuse so she and April could go their separate ways. Talia wasn't sure why this time around she didn't tell April about her true plans for tonight (as besties, she told everything to April and vice versa), but something told her that it was best for April to sit this one out. If something went wrong, she didn't want April to be a part of it.

When Talia got to the apartment, she found her father sitting on the couch with a book in his lap. He took off his reading glasses and lifted his head to acknowledge her.

"How was the mall?" Seth asked, setting the book aside. Talia saw it was titled Lord of the Flies— her copy that she borrowed from the library.

"It went well," Talia replied, eyeing the book. "Did you grab that book from my room?"

Seth looked at it. "Oh! Well. . . I figured I would read to pass the time. I was going to return it."

"I'm not mad. I'm just. . . surprised. I don't know when was the last time you picked up a book."

"You know how it is, dewdrop. When you have a job like mine where they demand so many hours from you, it's hard to have any time for yourself."

Talia only nodded. It was the same thing for her mother, but she made time. Her father made time. "So did you like it? Lord of the Flies?"

"I certainly don't understand why it is titled like that, but I do have to say that the way the children slowly lost their innocence as they tried to govern themselves. . . well, I guess that is why I firmly stand by my belief: without parents and some kind of authority, children go astray."

"Yeah, that's the whole point of the story. It challenges control from civilization and urges man to indulge their 'wild' sides."

Talia remembered a memory from sixth grade. She and her class had read Lord of the Flies for the first time. As an activity, her teacher had everyone go outside and spend an hour with no adult supervision to see what would happen; Talia and her peers were the marooned kids and the playground was the Islam. What happened that day was a game of dodgeball gone wrong, rock wars, and wedgie contests between the boys.

That was the last time any teacher tried to elect that activity for their classroom.

Like a candle light going out, the conversation between Talia and her father extinguished. Neither knew what to say next. In the past, Talia could talk to her father without a problem— she was close to him as she was to her mother. But because of their somewhat tense exchange of words in the morning, the space between her and Seth had reduced to awkwardness.

"Abba," Talia said after a long minute of standing, "about this morning. . ."

Seth hunched forward, drumming his fingers against his opposite knuckle. He exhaled deeply and said, "First, let me apologize for my. . . rather cold attitude. I didn't mean to come off that way, but since I did. . . I'm sorry. I know that I probably made you feel hurt— something I swore never to do as your father."

Talia slightly lifted her eyebrows. She thought her father was going to cut her off, but this? Apologizing?

"When it comes to these kind of things, Talia. . ." Seth went on, looking downcast. "I'm not really good at talking about my feelings. I want to mask them from the rest of the world, so no one could see what I was feeling."

Talia's face softened. She made her way next to her father. It was true her father was never the sentimental type, but when he was around her mother. . . "Imma did, though. That's how she won your heart."

Seth scoffed gently. "Yes, well, let's just say that your mother had a knack for winning people over. Even when you didn't want to, she would always try until she found an entrance."

Her father's words told no lies. Genesis was known to be bright and social— traits that allowed her to make friends at the drop of a hat. If Genesis liked someone enough to be their friend— then by pure magic or talent— she knew just what to say to form a bond and, in seconds, a friendship was born. Talia knew that was exactly how her parents met and fell in love— a fateful encounter at the hospital. She had heard their love story many times (per her request), but she never got tired of hearing it. According to her mother, she was the pursuer in the relationship and even asked her father over and over for his hand in marriage. Finally, he said yes.

"Yeah, Imma was always good at that," Talia agreed, chuckling softly. Her expression then became solemn. "Abba, although I think it would help you to talk to someone about her, I also know that it has to be your choice. I know it's hard to talk about the person you once loved to total strangers."

Seth paused, as if figuring out what to say next. He smacked his lips, saying, "Maybe I will or won't. I don't know. There is so much going on."

It wasn't confirmation, but his answer would have to do for now. But anyhow, she was glad she and her father cleared up the air between them.

Talia then checked the time on her phone, reminding herself that she had somewhere to be. Five minutes before the clock hit eight.

"April invited me to her place for a sleepover tonight," Talia lied, which wasn't technically lying since that was what the redhead said. "I was wondering if I could go? Please?"

Her father frowned. "You're going to go on foot? By yourself?"

"I'll take a cab. I'll be careful."

"Considering some evil spook is after us, why don't I drive you there? It will be more safer that way."

Talia held her pendant between her fingers. "That's really not necessary," she said, trying her best to sound nonchalant. "You had a long day at work. You should rest up. If it makes you feel better, I'll text you when I'm at April's apartment."

"But—"

"I'll be fine," Talia emphasized. "You'll see me in the morning."

Seth wanted to argue, but seeing his daughter's face made him agree. He trusted Talia enough to know she would arrive to her destination and back.

"I still want your location turned on," Seth said. "And no later than ten a.m."

Talia smiled. "Thank you! I'll go pack my bag."

She rushed to her room to change. The clothes she was wearing made her stand out, so she figured she had to find something that would make her less inconspicuous. She shuffled through her clothes to find something black, which already proved to be difficult because ninety-percent of her wardrobe was color-coded in neutral tones. It took her a few minutes to find a black long-sleeve top and matching pants.

After getting her school bag, Raph hit her up with a message:

Raph: You ready yet? I'm in the black sedan across the street. Buick.

Talia shot him a quick reply and closed her bedroom door. She prayed there was a pot of gold waiting inside the brownstone. It was the best lead she had so far.

Once hugging her father and promising him for the third time that she'll be alright, she headed out in search of the vehicle Raph was in. It took no longer than a second to spot it— headlights on. Talia crossed the street and reached the sedan, tapping on the window to alert the driver. The window rolled down and there she came face-to-face with Raph, who looked ready to get down to business.

He gave an upward nod in her direction. "Let's get this show on the road."

***

Brooklyn was about fifty-ish minutes away, so Talia had that amount of time to initiate a conversation with Raph, but she didn't know where to start. Truth be told, she felt pretty awkward the minute the car started going. She felt that same awkwardness when she met Donnie at the library, and now that she felt it again this time around, she knew it had little to do with them and everything about her.

All her life Talia had little to no contact with men (other than her father), so there was this natural discomfort when around boys. This didn't mean she had any negative experiences with men in the past, but it was simply due to her lack of social relationships with men that made her, as a woman, feel intimidated by men. Despite having lots of crushes in elementary and her early years of high school, she could never get herself to tell them.

"First time joyriding?" Talia heard Raph ask. She saw him swiping his finger up the navigation screen.

Was my awkwardness really that noticeable?

Talia started picking out sections of her own hair. If she was lucky, she would find a few split ends. "Ah, well, I wouldn't say the first time. It was during freshman year. April and I. There was this guy who. . . well, let's just say he had no love for pleasantries. How the story goes is that April claimed he bothered her, so later that she day she pulls me aside and reveals she had swiped the keys to his Mustang."

In her peripheral vision, she saw Raph smile a little, like he was amused. "Scott Caldwell? Football player? Popular with the cheerleaders?"

Talia frowned. "How do you know that?" she asked.

"Oh, April told me and my bros the story multiple times. Scott was, and still is, a dickhead. I bet her dad had a field day talking to Scott's attorneys. She said she had a friend with her, but I never imagined that friend was you. When I met you I got the impression that you were. . ." He left it at that.

Talia blushed when she realized what he was trying to say. It wasn't like he was wrong. "April and I took a joyride around the block. But I was just in the backseat."

"That's still a part of the car."

"I know. . . but that was the only time I was part of something 'rebellious'. Whenever April proposed we carry out her much 'wilder' ideas for fun, a part of me could never go through with it. Maybe it's because my parents were traditional and taught me everything they knew. I guess if I did something out of turn, it would be like going against everything they stood for."

Raph listened attentively. He moved into the next lane and didn't say a word for a hot minute. "Like how you had to lie to your dad about your whereabouts for tonight?"

". . ."

"You really think your dad would let you out if he knew you were running around with some boy to do some nightly shenanigans? Hell, even my folks know nothing about this little mission of ours."

"Then where do they think you are?"

"At a long-lost friend's house. Heh. The only difficult part was getting my dad and Leo to believe me."

Talia wasn't sure if she was comfortable with Raph getting in trouble because of her. She still felt bad about profiling him and using that in her favor. She felt like she had manipulated him— which she did. "I'm sorry if I made you feel like you had to disclose what you knew. I probably know that your dad forbid you and your siblings for my own good. And when I brought up your mother—"

"You don't have to say sorry." Raph's hand slid up and down the steering wheel, as if he were debating whether or not to say more. "I probably would've done the same thing you did. It's normal that you want to search for answers. This is your way of getting closure."

Talia turned to her gaze to the window. They were now on the Brooklyn Bridge. A sense of deja vu brushed over her, and she knew her lost memory was the missing link. Even if she were to get the answers she wanted, it wouldn't be enough. There was something else she wanted— no, needed.

"Even so, I shouldn't have done that." Talia lowered her head. "Please don't think of me that way. I'm not like that, I swear."

"Yeah, with the tactics you used on me, you're on your way to sweet-talking classified information out of government officials."

"I promise, that time will be the only time," Talia said, although she felt like she was actually assuring herself.

"Promises are meant to be broken. Anyway, remind me to never get on your bad side. You might go off and deduce that I like apples better than oranges."

"Stop." Talia covered her eyes, embarrassed. Raph chuckled. She then saw him frown when he side-eyed the rearview mirror. "What is it?" she said.

". . .Nothing," he decided. His eyes were narrowed. "We'll take a shortcut."

***

At the end of those fifty minutes, the GPS brought Talia and Raph to a row of brownstones in Remsen Street, Brooklyn Heights. On their way towards the neighborhood, Talia captured the view of the tree-lined promenade along the East River, with unrivaled views of Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty. Raph had parked rather far from their destination, near an alleyway.

"Why are we parked all the way here?" Talia asked.

"To look less suspicious," Raph answered. He took off his hoodie, revealing the upper half of his ninja suit underneath. He made his way to the back to remove his jeans and sneakers. "Hand me my mask in the glovebox."

Talia opened the glovebox to retrieve it, but that wasn't the only thing she saw. Nestled among the stack of papers and envelopes was a photo strip— goofy selfies of Raph with an unknown boy. In one of the selfies, Raph's friend downed a bottle of liquor while sticking out the middle finger. Certainly not the most uncommon thing you'd find in a car.

"Who's he?" Talia held up the photo strip for Raph to see.

Upon seeing it, Raph groaned and snatched it faster than Talia could blink. "Shit, I thought I told him to take it out!"

"Is he a friend of yours?"

"His name's Casey. He and I went to this karaoke bar and then got shit-faced here with the alcohol he raided from his dad's liquor cabinet. He put that photo strip in there and I told him to take it out so Donnie wouldn't know—"

"Wait, Donnie? Why you would be worried about him knowing?"

Raph pushed his curtain bangs out from his face. "Maybe because this is Donnie's car and I don't want him to know that Casey and I use it for our getaways?"

Talia looked back and forth— from the LED cupholders to the car trash can to the miniature Rubik's cube with sunglasses dangling from the rearview window. "I thought this was your car."

"Like I'd be caught dead driving a Buick," Raph scoffed. "Donnie is a smart-ass in everything that is science, but not when it comes to his car. I mean, what do you do when you see the keys in the cup holder?"

"What's Donnie going to say?"

Raph cleared his throat and in a poor imitation of Donnie, grumbled, "I don't know what's going on 'cause he snuck out with my car while I was asleep!"

Talia couldn't help but giggle, but then almost after straightened up. "Something tells me he's not going to be happy when he finds out."

"He should be glad it's in one piece, or I don't let Casey drive it. You know how many times he wanted to take the wheel while drunk saying that the car would turn into the magic school bus?"

Talia didn't answer.

"Exactly." Raph put on his mask and grabbed his sais from under the car seat. The pointy tips were sharp enough to shred trees into paper. "We have to go."

Talia pulled her hair into a ponytail using the black ribbon she had on her. "So what's the plan?"

"The rooftop has a roof deck, so we'll use that to sneak in. Then we help ourselves to whatever's inside. And then we'll get the hell out in one piece."

Talia nodded. The plan sounded simple enough, but this was a drug laboratory they were going to be raiding, which meant there was a chance of high security. "And we won't get caught, right?"

"Not unless you make a shit ton of noise. If we're lucky, we— well, I won't have to bash any heads tonight."

Okay. This was it. She didn't know what they were going to find, but she knew she had to do this for the welfare of her loved ones.

And maybe a little for her, too.