Absolutely not

Angel throws his hands out, disappointed by you now. “Well then, at least help me carry this girl’s body out to the shack above. If we don’t move her out, she'll stink this whole place.”

“That much I can do.”

Oldfield and the others have an outcry about their companion's death, but when Angel explains this means they’ll get more money in the end, they quickly come to terms with becoming an all-male pickup team.

Returning to the shelter below, Angel reviews the papers with Oldfield and finalizes some finer details. You hear almost all of it, solidifying your guilt in your stomach. This is a horrible trade, and despite all the shitty things you’ve done with your life, you know if you let this slide, you couldn’t live with yourself, let alone look at Scarlet the same way. The others are underground with you, too. But they’ve been going through the dead girl’s stuff, dishing out ammo, weapons, and even her undergarments as trophies. These people are lowlife scum with no respect.

You remember Alexandra and all you’ve done to Scarlet in terms of blackmail and wonder if you’re that much better, however. You practically raped Scarlet even. How crooked was your life? Did you feel compelled to stop this in an attempt to rectify your actions somehow?

You’re so lost in your mind you don’t hear Angel calling for one of the others. You move aside when he walks over to him, but it’s an effort to tune your ears to the conversation behind you.

“Go to Tiny’s Tavern and see if you can rally anyone for another team,” Angel tells him. “Bring them here and get situated, understand? I’ll add a hefty bonus for you and even put a good word in your report.”

“Alone?” He says, sounding worried.

“Yes, yes. Alone. You better get a move on before you lose any sunlight now. Good luck!” Angel smiles. The man knows better than to say no to him, however. He gathers his things and leaves the shelter, closing the hatch when he reaches the top.

“Well,” Angel begins as he looks at you. “I suppose we should head back then.”

“I was thinking the same thing,” you lie. “But what’s the exact game plan here?”

Angel laughs. “When the replacement team arrives, we’ll exchange the children, send them off, and work on payments. I know you’re here for a favor, but I’ll get you something, too.”

He continued. “I already talked to Oldfield and explained to him not to leave until he gets radioed from the ranch house that it’s safe to return to regular operations. He said they found a blood trail outside, so it’s safe to assume their attackers have to lick their wounds before coming back anyway. It’ll take at least three days for things to return to normal. We’ll hunker down, too, but I’ll go out with you whenever necessary. How’s that sound?”

“Yes,” this time, you don’t have to lie. “That’s all I had to hear.”

…

…

It made sense that Angel had planned to dump the kids in only two places. You suspected Amara didn’t want her two most active contractors out for weeks working for someone else.

Scarlet was awake when you got back. She wasn’t pale anymore, but she wasn’t walking around. Her expression lightened slightly when she saw you, but it was diminished when Angel came to view. Luckily, Angel went to handle other matters instead of talking to Scarlet.

You joined her in a private conversation after she waved away Angelica. Her smile came back. “How are you holding up?”

Her stomach was exposed. It looked like it was rebandaged and probably cleaned again. “Alice did a pretty good job taking care of me. I think you saved me— dragging me back here to this freak’s little business.”

“Let’s not talk about work,” you lower yourself into a chair beside her. “How are you actually feeling?”

“Sore,” she tries to laugh but stops herself. “Hurts to do anything more than talk. I think I’m out of action for a while.”

“You look good. I was apprehensive last night when I brought you back. I couldn’t do this without you, Scarlet. I’m serious.”

Her expression softened as it curled into a subtle smile. “You’re being stupid. You’re more than capable of handling this on your own if it came to it,” Scarlet’s words were more complex than the face she wore.

She continued. “Don’t fall into a mindset of constantly leaning on me for support. Once this is done, we won’t be seeing each other much anyway.”

“Don’t say that.”

“I mean it,” her eyebrows furrow. “I’ve always been independent. It’s dangerous for us even to be together. Friends— that isn’t going to fly. I’d get jealous or do something so braindead it’d fracture us.”

You smile for some reason. “Please. I could fix it.”

Scarlet smiles, too, but she doesn’t dare laugh. “Where’d you go?”

“I found the 2nd and last team with Angel. Sounds like they’re fighting a bounty group. Or at least something to that degree. Benjimens Group?”

“Better them than the Red Ties, I guess.”

“I suppose,” you say. “They lost two guys last night, and Angel sent another one back to Tiny’s Tavern to scrounge up enough people to replace the crew you dispatched last night. This is probably the best chance we have to dismantle all this here.”

Scarlet places a palm on her wound. “It’s going to be up to you.”

“I’m aware,” you glance up at the room, seeing all the kids. “What do we do with all this extra…weight?”

“We’ll bring them back to Highlight. Even if they can’t do anything with them, it’s better than bringing them back to Tiny’s district and into Amara’s hands,” she brings her eyes to yours. “Think you can kill them all? Angel included.”

“Angel seems to be fond of me, so I’d hate to break his heart.”

“You don’t have to break it,” she says. “Just shoot it.”

“I’ll see if I can manage a second visit to that team tomorrow then and see if I get it all done in one attack. Keep the children out of the crossfire,” you really wanted to keep Scarlet safe, but you had a feeling she wouldn’t want to hear that. Scarlet nods in agreement, telling you she likes the idea.

You tried to make it seem like you and Scarlet weren’t that close, so you didn’t talk to her more than you needed to. You dropped by a few times to check but remained a fair distance from your partner. She mainly slept, so she didn’t seem to mind much. When it was dinner, you ate at the same cot, sharing mundane conversations so you didn’t laugh or enjoy each other's presence much.

Before bedtime, you told Angel you wanted to revisit the 2nd team, and when he asked you why, you simply said it was because you were concerned Benjamin’s Group might return to finish the job. He didn’t seem interested in it at first but then reluctantly agreed. Checking up on an unstable situation was better than ignoring it altogether.

Night comes, and you lay in bed. The silence of the world creeps in. Darkness swallows you, and all that you have are your thoughts. Eventually, however, you’re fast asleep.

….

...

When you came to your senses, you were walking down a street. The air was cool, and the environment was welcoming and bright. You didn’t have to guess where you were because you were confident you were where Astrid usually wandered. What did surprise you, however, was that she wasn’t anywhere to be seen.

You stopped and moved out of the way of the people that seemed to drone around pointlessly to fill up the space of this otherwise empty city. You took in the views—the undamaged skyscrapers. The park with its lights. The working cars that drove past you. The stores are all stocked with goods. Candies, treats, and clothes. This wasn’t anything new to you, but seeing it so perfect in an open place was odd.

Nowhere you had been that was the same size was this put together and peaceful. You didn’t see a single cop. You didn’t hear any offensive yelling. You didn’t feel like there was a shred of danger here.

You waited a little longer, looking around expecting Astrid to suddenly appear somewhere, but when she didn’t you thought you should explore the city. There was no telling when you would be brought out again, so there really shouldn’t be a reason to stay in one place too long.