Not even a week after Dom had returned - this time for good - she and Nile found themselves wrapped up in a new adventure. Their target: a scrappy, unkempt mutt she’d seen through the window of the local animal shelter. Dom couldn’t shake the resemblance to the “Tramp” from her favorite childhood movie, Lady and the Tramp. Something about the dog’s rough, scruffy face and hopeful eyes hit her squarely in the heart.

When she’d learned from the shelter clerk that the mutt would be put down if unclaimed, Nile hadn’t needed more than a glance at Dom’s face to know they had to pull a jailbreak, and do some pound puppy rescuing.

That was one of the things Dom loved about him - Nile didn’t hesitate. He just dove in, matching her wild impulses step for step. And so, that night, they formed a plan. Dom would scope out the physical security and any guards on duty. If she found any, she’d run distraction - maybe fake an injury and work some charm to distract the guard long enough for Nile to do his part –maybe play injured and have the “kind” security guard take her to his guard station and assist her with some first aid. Nile was initially skeptical of the plan, but one pointed -and intense- demonstration of Dom’s “helpless damsel” act on Nile convinced him that no guard would stand a chance.

Nile’s job, in the meantime, was to handle the tech, bypassing any surveillance cameras or alarms. Confident in his hacking skills, he assured her he could disable the alarms before anyone was alerted. But, like most things with them, it didn’t go exactly to plan.

For starters, there was more security than they’d anticipated - two guards, not one. It wouldn’t have been a problem, but one of them was a woman, which made the “helpless girl” routine a harder sell. Still, Dom put on her best injured act, hobbling up to the female guard, Gina, who promptly led her to the security station. There, Dom got her first look at the security setup - and nearly lost her balance, which luckily fit right into her “wounded” performance. The station was monitored by four screens, each cycling through a dozen or more feeds. She counted at least sixteen cameras.

They were screwed. What the heck was this place doing with such crazy security?

Her heart sank. This was way more than either of them had bargained for.

Down the street, Nile sat in his van, whistling softly as he tapped into their system. When the surveillance feed lit up his screen, showing a dizzying array of camera angles, he muttered a curse under his breath. No way he could take down the whole system without drawing attention. He had to get creative. Quickly, he isolated the wireless frequency and managed to loop key areas - the entrances and a few hallways - while setting a three-minute delay on the alarm response. It wasn’t much, but it’d have to buy them the time they needed. Hopefully, that would allow them to get in, get the pup, and get out, with no one the wiser.

She hadn’t fully understood the technical wizardry behind his hacking, though he’d given her the basics - just enough to appreciate the intricacy without spoiling the mystery. Nile had a way of explaining things like he was some kind of cyber magician, dropping hints and vague descriptions that made it all sound both thrilling and impossible. He kept certain parts cryptic, guarding his methods like trade secrets, and honestly, she couldn’t blame him. She had her own secrets, too, dark corners she kept hidden even from him.

***

Once everything was set, Nile eased his van into the alley behind the shelter, cutting his lights as he parked. After a few seconds, he activated his program, watching for the signal. As soon as the camera light in the back blinked erratically, he sprang from the van, picked the lock on the back door, and slipped inside.

Not ten seconds later, Nile nearly collided with the male guard, Bruce, who was making his rounds. He cursed Dom under his breath and dove under a desk, holding his breath as Bruce’s footsteps passed by. When the coast was clear, he slipped out and crept toward the animal-holding area.

Once inside, he moved along the rows of cages, noting how eerily quiet the dogs had become, as if they somehow sensed what he was doing. And then it hit him - he couldn’t just save the one dog. How could he leave the others waiting on death row? With a quiet determination, he began unlocking each cage, one by one, until all nine dogs stood around him, tails wagging, silent but ready to follow.

Leading them carefully through the shelter, he retraced his steps, coaxing the dogs to follow him like some kind of Pied Piper. They were almost home free when Bruce’s flashlight beam flashed across the tail of the last dog slipping out the door. Swearing under his breath, Bruce hurried to the door only to find it jammed, the delay Nile had programmed working to perfection. By the time Bruce finally got it open, Nile and his canine crew were halfway down the alley and safely out of sight.

He piled the dogs into the back of the van, marveling at how calmly they obeyed. Weird, he thought. After securing the last one, he ran to the front door, slid into the driver’s seat, and started the engine, easing the van out of the alley just as Bruce’s flashlight lit up the back bumper. But Nile had thought of everything - he’d covered the plates, leaving Bruce with nothing but a dark silhouette disappearing into the night.

Swearing to himself, Bruce called it in to Gina.

While Nile was leading the dogs through the animal shelter like some kind of Pied Piper, Dom was having a nervous fit as she watched his escapades.

Meanwhile, back inside, Dom was holding her breath, watching Nile’s every move on the monitors as he led the dogs through the shelter like a bard with a high charisma and animal handling who rolled a natural 20 on his skill check -she kept trying to distract Gina, somehow managing to time her distractions at just the right moments, thereby saving both of their proverbial bacons. As soon as she saw Nile’s van pull away, she breathed a sigh of relief.

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“Thanks for the help,” she said with a smile, accepting Gina’s offer to escort her to the front entrance. She was halfway down the sidewalk when Bruce’s call crackled over Gina’s comm unit.

Gina’s head snapped back toward the shelter, her face darkening. She muttered a quick “Hold on” and turned to follow Dom. Just then, Nile’s van came rolling up, passenger door swinging open.

“Get in!” he called.

Dom dove in, slamming the door behind her as Nile floored it down the street. They sped off, laughing as the adrenaline rush hit, the thrill of the heist humming between them.

Back at the shelter, Gina stared after the retreating van, cursing into her comm.

“If anything is missing, or vandalized, we’re in some deep shit,” she growled.

Bruce gave the affirmative and went to check out the facilities. He hurried to the holding area, and when he saw the empty cages, he felt like he’d been kicked in the gut.

“Gina, we’re screwed. They’re gone…” he whispered.

He walked through the entire cage area and shined his light into each unit, not a single animal was left.

“What do you mean Bruce?! Who’s gone?” she demanded, as she ran to the animal holding area. When she came into the room, Bruce wiped some sweat from his brow and simply pointed his light.

“All of them,” he said, sweeping his flashlight across the rows of empty cages. Gina’s face contorted as she switched on the overhead lights, the realization settling in. And for the next several minutes, the air filled with a string of curses that would have made Betty White proud.

***

A few miles from the animal shelter, with the night still stretching before them, Nile and Dom were basking in the thrill of their successful heist. It was a rush - pure, exhilarating, and better than any cliff dive or bungee jump. No sore muscles, no whiplash, just the high of pulling off the impossible.

“Nile, I could just kiss you!” Dom practically bounced in her seat, the thrill bubbling over. Before he knew it, her arms were around his neck, squeezing him in a victory hug.

“Whoa, whoa!” Nile laughed, eyes flicking between her and the road. “Let’s not turn this into a Titanic moment - I’m still driving here. I don’t think ‘death by enthusiastic sidekick’ looks good on my record.”

Dom giggled and loosened her grip, though Nile could still feel the warmth of her arms lingering. It was a dangerous comfort, almost painful -one he could get used to if he wasn’t careful.

Turning around, Dom was breathless as she eyed their prize in the back. “Nile… did you slip them some tranquilizers or something? They’re so... calm.”

Nile glanced over at her, then peered into the rearview mirror at the silent group of dogs sprawled across the van. His van, of course, was a decked-out mobile man cave - a bed on the side, a mini-fridge covered in skater stickers, and a desk kitted out with two computers and an entertainment system.

Everything was able to be rearranged and hidden away, like those new mini-vans where the back seats folded into the floor, only much more sophisticated. Every gadget, every corner was his work - designed, installed, and customized with help from his buddies, Declan and James. Even his gear wall was packed with techie trinkets - VR headsets, haptic gloves, and sensors galore.

He always did that kind of thing. Just like when he’d seen her motorcycle for the first time, he seemed more excited to see Poppy than her. It was a new toy he could play with. And while she might have felt a momentary flash of jealousy and apprehension over his attentions, within a week he had it tricked and modded in ways that made her smile with pleasure every time she took it out for a ride.

Nile’s gaze fell to the dogs that filled the converted space.

The dogs, meanwhile, lay perfectly still, almost like soldiers in formation, led by none other than the scrappy, Tramp-like mutt. Not a single bark, just rows of calm, almost... unnaturally quiet dogs. Weird.

“Me? Drug them?” Nile scoffed, shaking his head with a smirk as he focused on the road. “Nah, I’m saving any tranquilizers for when they inevitably put out an APB on us. ‘Wanted: Mastermind Hacktivist and Rebel with a Cause. Be on high alert, suspects may possess magical charm and criminally good looks.’ Yeah, that’ll go over well.” He gave the dogs another glance. “Though maybe the shelter gave them a little ‘calm juice’ as part of their ‘exit strategy.’”

Dom rolled her eyes. “Shelter? Please. That place was a death camp. I swear the Tramp looked at me like he knew it, too. Poor guy probably saw me as his last shot at freedom.”

“Guess that makes me the Bonnie to your Clyde,” Nile said, giving her a mock salute as he focused on the road. “Or are you Bonnie? Should we flip a coin?”

Dom raised an eyebrow, the challenge flashing in her eyes. “Please, I’m Thelma. You’re Louise. Besides, I’m the one who got us past security with my award-winning damsel routine, so I think I’ve earned it.”

“Fair enough. You even had me thinking about first aid,” Nile muttered, pretending to be distracted. He threw another glance over his shoulder, eyeing the canine brigade in the back. “But seriously, it is weird. It’s like they’re all channeling Buddha or something.”

Dom shrugged, though her eyes lingered on the Tramp, whose tail twitched in response. “Well, if they are Zen monks in disguise, we’ll see if they can keep their cool once we get them some food. They’ll probably go nuts over some grub.” She paused, then turned to him with a smirk. “So, hotshot getaway driver, where to now with our new four-legged friends?” she asked, her voice still brimming with excitement but softer, almost reverent. “I’m just glad we got them out of there,” she added, her tone taking on a rare, quiet warmth.

“Me too,” Nile murmured, glancing at her, a grin tugging at his lips. Then he smirked, eyes back on the road. “Oh, so now I’m the ‘mastermind’ with the plan? I thought my job was just to look cool and hack stuff.”

“Yeah, you know, the usual slacker genius routine,” Dom teased. “But I mean it - what’s the move?”

He shrugged, a half-smile spreading across his face. “I guess we should have thought about what to do after we made it out.” He focused intently on the road for a moment, before continuing. “Was hoping you’d have an answer. Right now, my plan is to keep driving until I spot a sign that says ‘Instant Dog Adoption.’”

Dom looked out the window at the empty streets slipping by, the soft glow of streetlights casting passing shadows across her face. “Well, we could always take them to my place. I’ve got a big yard, and my dad knows I’ve wanted a dog... though I might be pushing it with nine.”

The passing lights reflected off her face as she turned back, her eyes catching his in the window. There was that mischievous glint again, like she was already a hundred moves ahead in the game.

“To your house it is, Lady Thelma,” Nile declared, grinning. “Onward, ho!”

He hit the gas, steering them into the night.