Something about Elijah's capture didn't sit right. I had led all the cops away from him except for one car, and with his superb driving skills, he should have easily escaped. And during the high-speed chase, when did he have time to call my fellow Ladies in Leather to let them know he was stashing the car somewhere safe so the police couldn't connect me to the vehicle?

If he had enough time to stash the car, how could he have been captured? He had clearly shaken the police for my car to make it home.

Did he do something dumb like walking down the street yelling, "I'm the notorious SuperBoom, an escaped convict! Come and get me!"

The girls and I sat around the table at Wine a Little, Laugh a Lot, but my glass of Zinfandel tasted sour. How could I be here, enjoying myself while Elijah sat in jail? Two days ago, the police apprehended him and his face was plastered all over the news. Every time I turned on the TV, it haunted me.

Jasmine nudged me with her elbow, her eyes twinkling mischievously. A napkin on the table fluttered slightly. "Cheer up! We got the information we needed from Elijah and he's back where he started from. He had a little adventure and our mission was a success. It's a win-win."

I nodded halfheartedly, fighting the urge to float a few inches off my chair. Sure, he gave us all the information he had to help us peel back the superhero's identities and expose their secrets to Obsidian City, but things were not back to how they were a few weeks ago. I had learned more about Elijah and the events that went down almost a year ago, and I realized that all this time, I had misjudged him. He wasn't a completely self-centered asshole. In fact, everything he had done had been out of love for me. Yes, his choices weren't the best, but how long did I want to hold a grudge? My stubbornness was only hurting me. It was time to let go and move on, but I couldn't do that with Elijah behind bars.

Hannah raised her glass of chardonnay, her cheeks flushed from wine. A cool breeze mysteriously ruffled her hair. "Here's to being so close to finishing step one of our plan."

Madison giggled, her fingertips leaving faint scorch marks on her wine glass. "And by so close, she means not close at all."

Hannah's eyes narrowed. "Be positive. I have a program running right now that's cross-checking all the employees of that office building against a spreadsheet of who purchased boxers with heart shapes on them."

"How did you get that?" Jasmine's eyebrow quirked up.

"A little magic," Hannah puffed out her chest. "And by magic, I mean illegally connecting to the only company I could find online that sells such ridiculous boxers and downloading their customer file." She polished her nails on her shirt, a small static shock jumping between her fingers. "We'll have his identity in no time flat… without having to do any more of those stake outs that Emily calls, 'boring-ass'." She winked at me.

I rolled my eyes, suppressing a smirk. When Hannah jokes around, it means she feels sorry for someone. And that someone was me. I was a little lost puppy at the moment, and I didn't know what to do about it. I wasn't breaking back into prison and taking another bullet to my buttocks until this one completely healed.

And it'd be way more difficult now, with them expecting the Ladies in Leather. We had already made our big debut and I'm sure the police had entire files on us already.

And did I even want to break Elijah out? Maybe it was best he finished out his prison sentence, and then we could talk. If I was supposed to break him free, there would be a sign, right? Something compelling that told me it was what I had to do.

The TV in the little sitting area of the corner of the dim wine bar kept drawing my attention. Every now and again, I glimpsed at Elijah's face, haunting me. And then, the story changed to images of him I hadn't seen yet. As the girls chit-chatted and planned the next step of our plan, I rose from my stool and took my glass of wine over to watch TV, my feet barely skimming the floor.

I tilted my head and narrowed my eyes, my heart suddenly racing. The images they were showing of Elijah weren't in prison. They were in the city's jail. Holy shit. I could easily break in and get him out. It was only the jail.

It was the sign I had just been thinking about.

Jasmine joined me next to the TV, a concerned look on her face. "You want to go get him again?"

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"It'd be easy. He's literally only two doors away from freedom. There's not even a perimeter fence, guards, or searchlights. It'd be nothing compared to what we've already done."

Her eyes sparkled mischievously. "Are you contemplating doing it alone?"

I rubbed my sore butt. "I think I'm a changed woman. I'm seeing value in the team. Besides, being out on my own got me shot and captured."

She laughed, smugly. I'd let her gloat a bit because I had been foolish, even considering doing things on my own when I had such wonderful women as friends. There was a reason we were a team.

"Then let's do it," Jasmine said, nonchalantly, like we were talking about something as simple as going out for dinner. "With the entire team. If nothing else, it'll be good practice for what's coming in the future."

Natalie joined us in the TV nook, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. I hadn't known she had been listening. "Oh great. Breaking Elijah out of jail was exactly what I had in mind for my Thursday night."

Madison giggled, nearly spilling her wine. A wisp of steam rose from her glass.

I felt back on my game, a familiar rush of excitement coursing through me. "I mean, we already have enough wanted posters of our faces plastered around the city. Why not add 'jailbreak' to the list of our crimes?"

"Because nothing says 'I'm really the good guys' like busting someone out of jail." Natalie's lips curved into a sly smile.

Jasmine's voice softened. "Well, at least this time we have a legitimate reason for breaking the law. I mean, Elijah may have done some questionable things in the past, but he doesn't deserve to be locked up for something he didn't do. He is serving a murder sentence, but he never killed anyone."

A sense of determination settled in my stomach. "True. And he did already serve nearly a year in the penitentiary. I think we should consider that his sentence is served, and he's a rehabilitated member of society. He deserves to be free."

Madison giggled again, I’d swear she had more wine than she said.

Hannah joined us in the corner, her perfect eyebrows raised in curiosity. A faint rumble of thunder echoed in the distance. "What are you gals scheming about over here?"

"We're going to break Elijah out of jail." Jasmine's voice was matter-of-fact.

Hannah looked at me, and when I nodded, she asked. "Are we doing this before or after we expose the superheroes?"

"As soon as possible.” I said, firmly. “Before they move him out of jail and back into maximum security."

Hannah blew out a breath, clearly calculating our next move. "Okay. Tomorrow night?"

"Not tomorrow.” I shook my head. “It has to be tonight. They might move him in the morning."

"But I've had an entire glass of Merlot," Madison giggled.

Jasmine grinned. "And I've had three. But I think the alcohol makes my superpower even better." A fork on the table wiggled slightly.

Hannah's eyes sparkled with excitement. "Looks like we'll be pulling off the ultimate 'drunk and disorderly' jailbreak. This is going to be an adventure."

I laughed, feeling more alive than I had in days. "But we can do it!"

Hannah pointed her index finger at each of us in a fake scolding. A static charge made her hair stand on end. "And as soon as we're done, we go back to our master plan. No more diversions, okay?"

"Aww, come on!” Jasmine playfully whined. “I was hoping we could take over Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory next and convert that place to our new evil lair. I mean, who wouldn't want an endless supply of chocolate while planning to take over the world?"

"We're not taking over the world," Hannah said, rolling her eyes. "Just making the heroes pay for what they did to our loved ones."

And with the mention of our real purpose, we all focused again. The room was silent for a moment while we all watched some medication commercial on TV.

Finally, I spoke up. "I mean, it's not like breaking out of prison is a hard task for a group of highly trained and skilled crime-fighters like us. It's practically child's play. Piece of cake. Elijah will be free in no time."

Madison finished her wine with a flourish, steam rising from the empty glass. "Well, we better get moving if we want to make it home in time to see our faces on the news again."

Hannah's voice held a hint of excitement. "Well, I guess we have our plan for the evening. Time to add 'jailbreak' to our resume." Her phone buzzed, and she pulled it out of her pocket. Her eyes widened in surprise. "Oh ladies, tonight is getting better and better! I have good news. My program just identified employees of Sure Thing Insurance with everyone who ever purchased boxers with heart shapes from Amazon." Her face was stuck in astonishment. "I really didn't think that'd work, but I know exactly who Captain Celestial is. I think that deserves ice cream for dessert."

The room filled with chirps of glee.

Jasmine playfully rubbed her hands together and flashed us an evil grin. A nearby chair scooted an inch to the left. "Step one of our master plan is now completed."

I shook my head and emptied my glass of Zinfandel. "Nope. It's not completed yet until we have our entire team here. We'll celebrate in the morning, assuming Madison doesn't get lost by doing donuts in the parking lot, or that we end up in the drunk tank, right besides Elijah."

"Hey! I'm driving again?" Madison's lip jutted out in a pout.

"You are the one who said she only had ONE glass of wine tonight,” I smirked. “The rest of us wouldn't want to get drunk driving added to our growing rap sheets."

Jasmine's eyes twinkled. "Ah come on! I'm treating my rap sheet like a resume. I can't wait to whip that puppy out when I look for my next nursing job."

I sat back, admiring my team, willing to risk everything to support my crazy detour to our plan, and I couldn't be prouder. The warmth of camaraderie filled my chest, pushing away the doubts and fears that had been plaguing me.

Hopefully, we didn't regret this in the morning.