She walks and scans the sea of faces with her electric blue eyes. Neon pink hair bounces with each step she takes, her breath visible in the cold February air. Bits of data begin to pop up amidst the falling rain. Name, age, gender, occupation, address — appearing only for her.

 

She spots a man, well-dressed and well-groomed, with black hair and dark, sharp eyes. Her heart begins to race as his details populate.

 

A smile forms on her pink lips. “This will be fun…”

 

She slides next to the man and locks arms with him. He tenses and begins to reach for something in his coat when the anger on his face gives way to something akin to recognition and drunkenness the longer he stares at her.

 

//CONNECTION ESTABLISHED//

 

“How’ve you been, babe?” she asks, her voice shaky at first, then steady. There is a visible glow in her eyes.

 

“Hey, stranger... I’m good. You?” He replies.

 

“Stranger, huh?” She likes how it sounds coming from him. Her anxiety soon gives way to delight in knowing that the ocular implant is working. “I think I’m good now.”

 

He nods.

 

“Listen, babe; I hate to ask, but… I need a favor.” Her tone is now sweet and timid.

 

“What is it?” he asks.

 

“I need a little cash.”

 

“How much?”

 

“All of it.” There is no pause between her words and the moment her smile emerges.

 

Something catches his eye, he looks away for a brief moment and then he begins to go quiet.

 

//TRANSMIT ERROR//

 

“Everything okay?” She asks, her heart pounding.

 

He feels the alarms going off in his head and tries to cover his eyes with his hands as pain washes over him. “Who are you?” he asks, his voice weak and head spinning.

 

She goes pale. “No, no… Look at me!” She forces his hands from his face and waits for him to open his eyes. There is confusion in them, but as soon as their gazes meet, a glint of blue shows up in his dark eyes.

 

//CONNECTION REESTABLISHED//

 

“For me?” she asks.

 

“Of course.”

 

She smiles tenderly, “Thank you so much, babe.”

 

 

* * *

 

It’s always the same.

 

Vince, wearing a long black coat and helmet, stood in front of a much taller and very handsome blond man; his glare invisible from behind the dark visor.

 

It was early in the morning, foggy, in front of a bank.

 

Male victim. 20’s or 30’s. Robbed by someone they thought was a ‘friend’ or ‘lover’. It was the same MO; I don’t know where she came from. It’s like she was always there.

 

“I don’t know where she came from. It’s like she was always next to me and… I don’t know what happened.”

 

“And that’s when she made you give her the money?” Vince asked.

 

“Yea…” he answered weakly. “I was calling my wife, and then she held my face and — “

 

“— Then you looked in her eyes?” Vince finished.

 

The man nodded at the detective.

 

“I couldn’t say no to her. It was like I’d known her all my life… I didn’t realize what had happened until later.”

 

And now the part that makes this so damn hard.

 

“I… I can’t remember her name. I can’t even remember what she looked like.”

 

Vince nodded. “Okay. One of our officers will take your info. We’ll follow up with you on your case.”

 

“Thank you, detective.”

 

* * *

 

Vince sat in front of an array of monitors, his fingers playing through his dark hair as he reviewed the security footage. There were commonalities between her victims and locations, with her first being an exception. There were also repeat targets, usually when they came from old money.

 

His eyes were fixated on the pink-haired girl wearing a face mask and a transparent raincoat. Of course, she went for Tall and Handsome. He chuckled, watching the girl approaching the tall blond in the rain.

 

She didn’t need to hold eye contact for as long anymore. Upgrade to her implant?

 

The implant had made a normal arrest nearly impossible without risking their officers. Drones and droids were useless without a clear picture of her face for recognition, but there was still a chance.

 

Looking at the details of her latest victim, and the wealthy family he came from, he knew she would get greedy. She likes the risk. She can’t help it.

 

As a thought began to form, he couldn’t help but smile.

 

* * *

 

The pitter-patter of rain on her coat relaxes her. She watches the crowd and spots an old name. A playful smile forms behind her face mask as she strides up to the tall, beautiful man. He seems lost, but that doesn’t matter. She’ll help him find his way.

 

“We haven’t played together in a while, Mr. Blond—” her words are cut off, her gaze broken.

 

//CONNECTION FAILURE//

 

“—Hello again, Stranger.” Vince interrupts, pulling her arm.

 

Her eyes light up and her heart flutters at the sound of Vince’s familiar voice.

 

The blond runs away, but she doesn’t care.

 

“Been a while, babe. Did you miss me?” she teases.

 

The two stand and face each other in the rain. She raises an eyebrow as she looks at the strange helmet he wears.

 

“I’ve been thinking about you, but I don’t know if I’d say I missed you.”

 

She takes off her face mask and moves closer to Vince.

 

//CONNECTION FAILURE//

 

She lets out a sigh and curses under her breath.

 

“So that’s what she looks like,” he says, looking at the petite woman’s pale face, her purposefully halved eyebrows, and her pouting, red lips.

 

“Like what you see?”

 

“The eyes are a little distracting, but maybe if we’d met under different circumstances.”

 

“It wouldn’t have been as fun.” Her eyes glow brighter and brighter.

 

//CONNECTION FAILURE//

 

Vince smiles behind the visor. He reaches into his coat and begins to twirl a pair of handcuffs. “Something wrong, Stranger?”