Please read the author notes at the bottom regarding the Stolen Arc, Nutshell Madness, and progress of this fanfic.

Stolen: Part III

There wasn't anything she could do.

Not when there were distant sirens and sounds of a helicopter flying by. Not with Jessica screaming from the car, revving the engine and counting down.

And certainly not with Taeyeon refusing to move from the back seat.

Her nerves were pulsating with energy, guiding her body towards the car, leaving her heart with the broken woman. She could only hear the faint cries as they drove away, and Taeyeon's whisper.

"Wake me up when it's over, Tiffany."

...

"Damn it, Tiff, God ing damn it!" Jessica screamed, slamming her pale hands onto the table. "What the has gotten into you!? I risked everyone's because you decided to play ing hero with some girl you barely even know!!"

The woman stayed silent of course, rubbing her bruised knuckles in the corner. For once, she couldn't think of a snarky comment to reply. 

"Listen, I've got your back since the day we both left the orphanage. And you know that -- but god damn it, you're really pissing me off. Don't lose this friendship over this ." She continued, throwing papers around and breathing deeply. "You hear me? This is the last, ing straw." Jessica's voice begins to calm down, but there's still that subtle harsh, threatening undertone beneath the clear, crisp voice. "And don't you dare tell me that I don't care about you."

Tiffany shook her head, finding her voice. "I know you do, Jess. And I do appreciate it all. You're right. I don't know why I'm so caught up with this girl.." She sighed, preparing herself for another angry outburst. "But maybe, for once, I'd like to be the hero. Not the criminal who's always stealing stuff. Maybe..once..I want to know how it feels to do the right thing."

"The moment we both robbed our first house, that feeling is irrelevant." The leader replied, crossing her arms. "I get it. But there are other ways to feel good. You don't have to risk your life for a stranger to be a hero."

"...Yeah..I suppose you're right."

"Good." The blonde-haired woman nodded. "Now, remember the Branwen Mansions I mentioned previously?"

"That snobby family who lives in that gigantic mansion on top of Dawnhill? Pft, yeah I know them. Only because I have the stupidest, clearest view of their house outside my window." 

She snickered. "Well, I've decided they'd be our next hit. I sent Sunny and Hyoyeon to observe their day-to-day schedules. Turns out the family leaves the house empty overnight on Saturdays 'cause they visit their relatives every Sunday down south. Other than a higher-security level burglary system, it's just an empty house waiting to be broken into."

"What do you think they have?"

There's an eerie, grin spread across Jessica's face. "Well, it turns out Richard Branwen is the Head of Security at Dawnhill Prison. er gets paid to keep his mouth shut about the illegal going on behind-the-scenes. Especially the rumored underground fighting arena they host at their private prison."

"Underground fighting arena..?" mumbled Tiffany. She thought about Taeyeon.

"Apparently, they round up prisoners and force them to fight. To "keep them entertained". They'll bid on prisoners. All illegal stuff, mostly garnering views and . All the workers there get paid to shut up about it too. It's disgusting."

"So this Richard guy is bound to be rich?"

"Just look at his ing house dude."

"...Alright, I'm in."

X X X

Was it ironic that they were breaking in the Head of Security's home?

Yes. Yes it was.

It was more difficult than they thought it'd be, but thanks to their own connections with security companies, they were able to disable it. However, their time was cut short, and the group found themselves running around, grabbing anything valuable to their eye.

"We've only got ten more minutes left!" Sooyoung hissed, shoving a tray of pearl necklaces into her bag. "This house is ing huge!"

"Shoot, we haven't even covered the third floor yet." mumbled Yuri. She quickly turns, nudging the person next to her. "Hey Tiff, let's go search third floor really fast."

"Got it." The woman said, waltzing up the stairs with quick agility. She didn't grab much yet, only a few diamond necklaces and rings. They were going to divide their stolen goods up in the end anyway. The third floor of the Branwen Mansion turned out to be three main rooms -- a library, a study room, and an old storage room.

Yuri barely shot a glance inside the library, heading straight for the study room instead. Tiffany decided to try her chances and slipped into the dimly lit storage room. She quickly scanned the area, looking for anything to catch her eye. There was a small, rectangular safe in the corner. Taking a closer look, she realized it was already open.

There were mostly old cabinets, and broken antique tables with calligraphy paper scattered all around. But inside the safe were long, rolled-up pieces of blue paper. For a brief moment, she wanted to turn around and burn the place down for wasting her time. But another quiet, gentle voice in her head told her to grab it. Her knapsack wasn't full, so she slipped the papers into her bag and made her way downstairs.

The rest of the night was fairly uneventful. They did the usual routine back at their hideout, celebrating their newly found wealth. But when it came to Tiffany's turn, the group groaned, and even laughed at her stolen items.

"Really?" Yoona lifted up a couple of necklaces, a gold mug, and three small diamond rings. "That's it?"

" off. You guys gave me the leftovers!" She rolled her eyes, dropping her bag onto the floor when the blue paper lifts up. "Oh, and whatever this is."

"What is it?" Su