[for damian]

Even though D'Amico had been dealt with, it didn't stop the rest of the shit from rising to the top. Moving through the alley, she hopped up onto the top of the garbage disposal, using that height to grab onto the bottom rung of the fire escape. Yanking with all of her weight, she rode it down until she could pull herself up onto the rungs, climbing up it, making it shake with her quickness.

From that first landing, she just kept moving up higher; seeking out the rooftop, a better vantage point, and less of that garbage smell from the alley. All she could think about was whatever these people were eating, was seriously smelling like rotted meat. Rotted meat and melted plastic.

When she hit the rooftop, her boots slid a bit into the loose gravel as she turned around to give herself a good sense of her position in the city. She could see the main bank building, the tall, silver frame encased in thick, reflective glass. If she counted three buildings over that was one of D'Amico's dirty lawyer's office. Two blocks over and five down; the corner doughnut shop that Marcus liked to take her when she got an 'A' on a quiz.

Knowing the city had taken her almost a year of practice, but she knew that if she got taken on any of these corners she could figure out where they got out, even if she was blindfolded. Maybe it was a matter of pride, but she knew her dad would've found her even quicker.

Crouching low, she gazed toward the edge of the rooftop, brushing the strands of fluorescent purple out of her eyes, leaving herself to cling to the shadow of the air-conditioning exhaust fan. She could hear the odd crunch of gravel beneath someone's boots, but other than Kick-Ass, and maybe Marcus, she really wasn't sure who else would be stupid enough to try and track her down.