32 – Hard News

  Tony tucked his hands into the pockets of his tracksuit jacket and strolled down the street, still fiddling with his new AUI settings as he went. He had a mini-map open in the upper right-hand corner of his vision, and it tracked his location as he moved. “Nora, you heard me mention I was going to the flower shop, right?”

  “Yes, Tony.”

  “So, think about that. What could you have done as a matter of convenience? Consider the applications open on my AUI right now.”

  “I see what you mean,” Nora replied, and then a blinking yellow dot appeared on the mini-map. It was only half a block away and thoroughly unneeded, but Tony was trying to train his new PAI.

  “Nice job. After this, I’m going to meet Maisie at Manuel’s—it’s a local restaurant.” A pulsing white arrow appeared at the edge of his mini-map, indicating the direction of his next stop. “Good! Nora, display my Dust levels.” A little semi-opaque window appeared, and Tony glanced over it:

  Dust Purity: Impure – 1.7 LIR

  Dust Capacity: 63/100

  Gain Rate: 1 unit per 67 seconds

  Current Dust-tech drain: 1 unit per 73 seconds

  Tony’s nanites were eating Dust almost as fast as he could gather it, but now they could continue to function in maintenance mode. If he got injured or sick or exposed to something like heavy radiation, they’d drain his new reactor pretty quickly, but for now, they could at least do their regular routines without having to shut down half the time. He could feel it, too. He should be tired, not having slept at all the previous night, but the nanites were compensating. That night, he’d probably sleep like a dead man, but for the moment, he was good.

  He stepped into the flower shop to find Bert sitting at a little table by the window with a middle-aged woman wearing a green dress. They were sipping tea, and the sight of the little cup handle pinched between Bert’s thick thumb and forefinger almost brought an involuntary snort of laughter out of Tony. “Speak of the devil!” Bert laughed, tossing his tea back in a single gulp.

  The woman turned, and Tony saw she was maybe a little younger than he’d thought. Her skin was smooth, other than a few laugh lines around her eyes. She wore bright red lipstick, and her eyes were shadowed in a pale gray-green shade that complimented her dress. When she saw Tony, her eyebrows shot up, and she smiled, scooting her chair back and starting to stand.

  “Don’t get up!” Tony hurried forward and waved her down. “I’m Tony.”

  “I’ve seen you! Walking up and down the street, usually with Bert’s girl. I wondered why he hadn’t brought you ’round yet!”

  “Well”—Tony shrugged—“I’ve only been in the district a week or so, and it’s been kind of hectic. Don’t blame Bert.”

  “Oh, he’s in trouble, but not for anything regarding you. He promised to bring some customers by my booth on Boxer Day, but I never saw him! Can you believe it?”

  “Gretchen! I told you my gout flared up,” Bert whined. “I barely made it to the food trucks!”

  “I can vouch for that.” Tony grinned, nodding toward Bert. “He was laid up the next day, even broke down and paid for a scrip.”

  “Hey! See?” Bert set his little cup down. “I told Mrs. Lane you might be interested in renting her apartment.”

  “He did, but I’m not sure I want to rent it, Tony.” The florist looked up at him, narrowing her eyes. “My husband said the trouble our last tenant caused wasn’t worth the rent.”

  “Trouble?” There wasn’t a third chair at the table, so Tony leaned against the nearby sales counter, resting his elbow on it. People always said he had a knack for looking casual.

  “Oh, she’d call at all hours to complain about this or that—noisy plumbing, clogged pipes, lights that didn’t work, a drafty window, creaking floors. You see, my husband wasn’t supportive because he sees my business ventures as a hobby and”—she held a hand to the side of her mouth like she was divulging a secret—“I don’t exactly share any of my profits with him.”

  Tony grinned. He liked Gretchen already. “Tell you what, I can promise there won’t be any calls like that from me. In fact, once I move in, you won’t have to deal with me at all. If there’s something that needs fixing, I’ll handle it.”

  Bert slapped his hand on the table. “How about that? If I had a proper apartment, I’d rent it to him myself!”

  Gretchen’s smile widened, and her chin began to bob up and down as she nodded slowly. “Well, so long as we have that understanding, Tony, I’ll take Bert’s endorsement to heart. Let me clean up the space, and then I’ll message you a rental agreement and a video walk-through. If it looks good, you can move in anytime after tomorrow.”

  Tony nodded, then, wanting to prompt Nora without speaking to her directly, said, “My PAI will send you a ping with my contact info.”

  Nora was quick to tell him, “I’ve sent it, Tony.”

  Tony smiled and shoved off the counter, straightening up. “I hate to take off right away, but I have a lunch appointment. Looking forward to hearing from you, Mrs. Lane.” He nodded to Bert. “I’ll be back to work in an hour or so.”

  Bert nodded and waved, and Mrs. Lane stood before Tony could object. “Call me Gretchen, Tony. I’m not as old as I seem.” She walked over to the counter, holding her hand out again. “It was very nice to meet you.”

  Tony shook it, wishing he had a more lifelike appendage than the black plasteel and plastic hand Bert had given him. Still, Gretchen didn’t balk and squeezed it in a surprisingly firm grip. “I’m looking forward to having another person around. I know, I know, you’ll be busy most of the time—Bert told me you’ve got a lot of irons in the fire—but it’ll be good to know you’re here at night, and I’m sure I’ll see you coming and going.”

  Tony followed her lead and maintained his grip on her hand. He had a feeling this was a test; she was letting him know that she intended to be social with him, and if that bothered him, he might want to think twice about renting her space. The good news was that Tony didn’t mind surface-level pleasantries. He winked at her and said, “I’ll have a coffee pot on every morning if you want to come up and have a cup.”

  “It’s true,” Bert interjected, “He likes coffee—even drinks the sludge I brew up.”

  “Oh goodness! Well, I’ll bring you some grounds from home. Fiddy’s an aficionado; we have a freezer full of fancy blends.”

  “Fiddy?” Tony raised an eyebrow. Was she saying “fifty?”

  “Fidelius. My husband.”

  “Ah!” Tony nodded, released Gretchen’s hand, and pulled the door open. “That would be fantastic. Thank you.” With a final wave, he slipped out into the oppressive air of the Blast. He stuffed his hands back in his pockets and started walking, his long legs speeding him past other pedestrians as he followed the blinking yellow arrow. Noticing the color, he said, “Nice job with the color scheme on the mini-map, Nora.”

  “Thank you. Yellow is your current objective, and white will represent your upcoming objectives.”

  “And my dot’s blue. Hey, let’s test something. Call Addie.”

  A call window appeared, beeped twice, and then Addie’s face appeared. He could tell her PAI was using some outdated image details because Addie’s hair was lighter in tone—almost coppery, rather than the darker, brownish auburn he’d gotten used to. “Hey, Tony.”

  “Hey, Ads. You think you could share your location with my PAI? You can turn it off later, but I’m trying to train it a little—map representations and stuff like that.”

  “Oh, sure. JJ, share our location with Nora.” Addie wrinkled her nose, lifting a cup to her lips and taking a sip. “How’d it go with Mrs. Lane?”

  “She seemed sweet. Think I’ll get the place.”

  “That’s good. On your way to lunch?”

  “Yep.” Tony sighed heavily.

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  “Nervous, huh? Just be honest, Tony. It’s not your fault they grabbed you.”

  “Right. It’s just… I’m the one who dialed things up to eleven, you know?”

  “Oh, baloney! They kidnapped you and stuffed you in a freezer with body parts and-and cutting tools!”

  “Well, yeah. I guess details matter. Thanks, Addie.” He watched her sniff her cup and laughed. “Don’t drink any more of that. I’ll bring you something good.”

  Her eyes brightened, and her lips curled up at the corners. “Promise?”

  “Yeah. See you soon.” Tony cut the call before she could respond; he liked how her image froze in the call window—eyes bright, cheeks bunched up as she smiled. She looked happy. “Save that image, Nora.”

  “Done, Tony.”

  “Now, add her to my mini-map. Make her dot green.” A green arrow appeared on the edge of his map, back in the direction of Bert’s store. “Perfect.”

  “Thank you. Shall I keep her on your map?”

  “Sure, until she revokes permission, I guess.”

  Tony looked at his ETA; he was going to be ten minutes early. Seeing that, he stopped by a bodega and did a little shopping. He bought some energy drinks, instant noodles, a box of protein bars, a package of VegBite supplements, and several cans of variously flavored meats: venison, beef, poultry, and pork. They were all lab-grown, and he doubted any of them had much in common with their labels other than some chemical flavorings. Still, they were almost pure protein and convenient.

  He paid another five bits to have the box delivered to Bert’s, and then he started on his way again. Looking at his map, he saw Nora predicted he’d be four minutes late. “Much better.” When he walked up to Manuel’s, he saw a line out the door, just like when Addie had brought him around. Maisie was already there, not far from the door. When he walked up to her, there was some grumbling from the people he passed, but they didn’t call him out when he let his chrome eye’s baleful orange-red glow pass over them.

  “Tony,” Maisie said, blowing out a breath that looked like relief. “You’re not hurt.”

  He moved a little closer, standing beside her as he scanned the sidewalk, up and down the street. He didn’t see anyone with Black Jade colors. “You alone?”

  Maisie arched her dark brows, and Tony remembered he liked the way they contrasted her bright pink irises. “Why wouldn’t I be alone?”

  He shrugged. “Think about it.”

  She was wearing a tank top under a loose, too-small, blue-and-gray flannel shirt, and she grabbed the fabric near her neck, tugging it together a little more, maybe self-consciously taking comfort in the warm material. Tony watched her face, noting the green and purple bruising around the outside of her right eye and upper cheek. Was it from the gym or when her uncle had made her lie to him? “I’m alone.” She sounded defeated, her voice small.

  The line shifted, and they stepped through the doorway—three other parties ahead of them. “Good,” Tony grunted.

  “Tell me what happened! When my uncle’s guy left this morning, he acted like something was on fire.”

  “I’ll tell you everything, but let’s sit down first.” Tony was starting to have second thoughts about talking to her in public. Yeah, he was safer from an ambush, but she was probably going to make a scene. Maisie nodded, though, and a few minutes later, they’d ordered and were squeezing into a two-top by the window. Tony put his back to the wall so he had a partial view of the sidewalk and the door.

  They’d each taken a ceramic mug and gotten coffee from the drink counter. “So?” Maisie asked, sipping her coffee—black.

  “Well, let me just say the only good news I’m about to give you is that I’m not dead. Maybe you won’t think that’s so good after you hear the rest. It’s hard news, Maisie.”

  Maisie put her cup down and seemed to shrink in on herself, her shoulders curving in as she twisted a napkin between her hands. “I’m listening.”

  “Right.” Tony took a drink, sighing with pleasure as the hot, smooth blend rolled down his throat. At that moment, he resolved not to drink any more of Bert’s coffee. “Well, after I went to that place you told me about, your uncle and his goons nabbed me. They tied me up, threw a hood over my head, and took me to their warehouse.”

  “I’m so sorry, Tony, I—”

  “Let me get through this.” Tony took another sip. “They hung me up in a walk-in freezer—kind of like a side of beef like you see in old horror vids. You know what I mean?” Maisie nodded, blinking back tears. “Well, either they underestimated me, or they just weren’t too smart, but they left me alone long enough to get free. They didn’t like that. We had a big fight, and I killed a few of them.” He paused and locked eyes with Maisie. “Your uncle included.”

  To his surprise, her eyes got harder, and she blinked away the tears that had been pooling there. “You’re sure he’s dead?”

  “Yeah.” Tony had checked when he looted the bit-lockers off him.

  “What—what about the others?”

  “The Helldogs came about that time and killed the rest of them—something like eleven or twelve dead Jades.” The lady at the counter called their number, and Tony got up to get their food, leaving Maisie sitting there looking shell-shocked. He put her paper-wrapped burrito in front of her and then sat down with his plate—he’d gotten migas again. He took a bite, chewed, and swallowed before Maisie’s expression changed, and she inhaled deeply through her nose. Without another word, she began unwrapping her burrito.

  “You okay?”

  “Not really. I didn’t love my uncle. He could be almost like a mean older brother sometimes, but most of the time, he was bossing me around and reminding me how much I owed him. I’m worried about my auntie and the little ones, though.” She shook her head, again blinking away tears, then looked up at Tony. “I don’t blame you, though. They started it, and none of us—not me, not my aunt, and not any of my cousins—expected a different ending for him or the other Jades. That’s the life they chose.”

  “You know much about that life? You know what they were doing in that warehouse?”

  She shrugged, opening the top of a spicy red salsa. “Crimes, I guess. Selling stolen goods? Chopping up cars? Making drugs? I was never allowed to go there.”

  “I’m sure they did some of that stuff, but do you have any idea what they wanted with me?”

  “I thought my uncle wanted to scare you. Maybe threaten you or me, so you’d have to do some work for him.” She poured the salsa on the end of her burrito and took a big bite.

  Tony had been about to spill the details. He’d planned to tell her he’d seen child-sized organs in some of those containers and that there’d been evidence of dozens of victims in just those boxes; who knew how many shipments they’d sent off over the years? She was already numb, though; he could see that. She might not have loved her uncle, but that didn’t make it easier to come to grips with the hole a family member left behind. “I’ll just say he planned worse than scaring me. I don’t feel guilty about what I did.”

  Maisie swallowed, set her burrito down, and looked him in the eye. “I guess you wouldn’t. Like I said, I don’t blame you. They started it.”

  Tony nodded. “Don’t the Jades take care of their members’ families?”

  “I’m pretty sure they’ll give my auntie something. Troy was a shot-caller. I doubt the other widows are gonna see much, ’specially with so many dead at the same time. Tony, they’ll wanna know who did this.”

  “I don’t think the Helldogs are hiding what they did. Only Troy and his boys knew I was there. Even the guy watching you—for all he knows, Troy let me go before the Helldogs hit.” He took another bite, watching Maisie as she processed everything he said. She swallowed, and he added, “Unless you tell ’em what I just told you—maybe play them a recording.”

  Maisie’s eyes shot wide. “I wouldn’t!”

  “Yeah, I don’t think so, either.”

  “You trust me?”

  “I wouldn’t go that far, but—” Tony frowned, not sure how to say what he was feeling. “I guess I’m willing to risk it, hoping you’re not my enemy.”

  Maisie reached across the table, maybe meaning to take his wrist, but Tony was leaning back in his chair, and it was awkward, so she haltingly pulled her hand back. “I don’t want anything to do with the Jades. My uncle made me help him with little jobs—you were supposed to be one. You know, when he talked you into helping him win his bet? That was why I came up to you; I was supposed to help him find a mark.”

  “I figured.”

  “But you were so good and, I mean—Tony, I really did want to hang out. I was looking forward to it. I wish I never told him you were looking for Addie. I thought maybe he could help. I’m such an idiot!”

  Tony sighed again, watching her. He wanted to reach out; she looked genuinely upset, but something made him want to keep her at arm’s length. Maybe it was just that he figured she should be grieving, and he wasn’t the right person to comfort her. He offered her a small smile and picked up his coffee.

  After another sip, he shook his head and said, “Listen, Maisie, things are going to be rough and maybe a little awkward for a while. You’ve got cousins involved in that gang; they knew I was there. Like I said, they don’t know I killed anyone, but they’re still not going to like me. I don’t want to cause more trouble for you, so maybe—”

  “Screw my cousins, Tony! Benny and Lolo are a couple of creeps, and, yeah, they’re going to act all mad and tough about ‘getting’ whoever killed Troy, but they’re probably going to wind up dead. The Helldogs had more bangers before my uncle’s crew got wiped. Just forget them, all right? I work at the gym, and my auntie will get some money from the Jades. Honestly, things will probably be better at the apartment without him. Unless she hooks up with someone just as bad…” She trailed off, picking up her burrito and taking an enormous bite.

  Tony started eating, too, and in just a few minutes, they finished their food and threw their garbage in the recycler. There was no sitting around at Manuel’s once your food was gone, so they hurried outside and started walking back toward the neighborhood together. Maisie was quiet for a while, but after half a block, she said, “I like your new eye.”

  Tony snorted and reached up to touch his chromed-out eye socket. “It’s nothing special, but it beats a hole in the head.”

  They stopped at a corner, waiting for a crossing signal, and Maisie looked up at him. “Do you have to go back right now?”

  “I promised Bert I’d move some stock around for him.”

  “Probably for the best. I have a personal training session at the gym soon. I should show up like normal; I’m not supposed to know anything yet, I guess. A shot-caller will probably come by the apartment tonight.”

  Tony nodded, frowning as a thought occurred to him. “Hey, do me a favor?”

  “What?”

  “Can you delete this from your PAI’s memory? I mean our lunch and everything I said.”

  “Oh,” Maisie folded her arms and took on a wounded expression for a moment, but then her eyes widened, and she repeated, “Oh!”

  “Yeah, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Jades didn’t make you download everything so they can see what you know.”

  Maisie nodded. “Consider it done. Can I see you tomorrow?”

  “Maybe. Got a few things on my plate, but you’ve got my contact info.” Tony reached down and tilted her chin toward him so their eyes were locked again. “I’m sorry things went the way they did. I know you’re acting like you don’t hold a grudge, and maybe you don’t, but if some anger creeps into your mind tonight while you’re trying to sleep, don’t feel bad if you don’t want to talk to me.”

  She pressed her lips together and sniffed. He thought she’d object, but after a few seconds, she nodded quickly and pointed down the street where they’d been walking. “I’ll go this way. It’s quicker back toward Golden’s. Thanks for meeting me, Tony.”

  He nodded. “Thanks for hearing me out.”

  She clenched her hands into fists, like she didn’t know what to do with them, but then she just nodded again and started walking away. Tony watched her for a minute until the crossing signal started beeping, then he turned and hurried back toward Bert’s. He hadn’t looked forward to meeting her, but he was glad he did. He felt lighter, and, he supposed, it was the right thing to do—something he didn’t think he’d have considered in his old life.