“Hey, Rita!” I smiled as I pulled into Lizzie’s, giving the part-bouncer, part-minx a friendly nod. It was still swelteringly hot, even during the late evening – my least favorite time of year, by far. But it was also a good excuse to wear a crop top and actually show some skin for a change. Johnny kept trying to steal the wind out of my sails, casually referring to me as a prude, among less flattering labels. Admittedly I’ve not exactly been in a flirty mood lately, given my present situation with the whole “You’re dying” thing. But what better way to die than in the arms of a beautiful woman. Even if those arms have spikes jutting out of them.

  “Hey there, gorgeous,” Rita returned my smile with her usual pensive look, “Judy’ll be out in a minute.”

  “Tough night?” I asked her, given her expression being somewhat troubled.

  “Mm, tough week, more like,” she shrugged dismissively, “Evelyn’s death hit a lot of us pretty hard. The crew held a vigil for her at the Columbarium the other night.”

  “Ah, I see,” I returned with a somber tone, “Sorry I couldn’t make it.”

  “I’ll forgive you, if you tell me you were busy puttin’ the cocksuckers who flatlined her into their own early graves.”

  “Heh, as a matter of fact…” I chuckled, recalling the whole Voodoo Boys debacle.

  “Good girl,” she snickered as Judy came out, wearing a plain-jane tank top and jeans. She looked like she honestly couldn’t care less about her appearance anymore, with dirt still visible under her fingernails and sweat beading on her neck. I can certainly relate.

  “Hey Judy!” I said cheerfully, trying my best to pep her up a bit. Thankfully my efforts were rewarded with at least a slight smirk. “How’re you doing?”

  “Shitty,” she shrugged, “Thanks for pickin’ me up on short notice, though.”

  “Of course, it’s no problem,” I replied courteously, “Want to get going?”

  “Pff… Please,” she sighed heavily, drinking the outside air and stretching out, “What about you, what’ve you been up to?”

  “Here, I’ll explain it on the way,” I said, gently motioning to Miyoko parked in my usual spot, “Come on.”

  “Sure thing,” she finally broke a smile before giving Rita a pat on the back. “Hold down the fort for me, ‘kay?”

  “I’ll keep your side of the bed warm, don’t worry, Punchy,” Rita quipped as we headed out together.

  “Punchy…?” I asked Judy with a raised eyebrow.

  “Yeah, peeps call me Punchin’ Judy,” she shrugged, “Just an old nickname I got back in my teens and kinda stuck around.”

  “Heh, I can see why,” I said quietly as I led her to my car, hopping in the driver’s seat and turning the engine over.

  “You always gotta overdo it, don’tcha?” Judy said with a slight chuckle, “The sword, the car, the ‘tude, the look, the vibes.”

  “I mean, uh…” I winced, not really knowing how to take that. I dropped Miyoko into reverse and gently pulled away, mulling it over a bit in my head.

  “Sorry, didn’t mean it to sound that way,” she replied, “Just a bit surprisin’, I guess. You definitely, uh, stand out. But in a good way, heh…” Judy’s awkward laugh brought a smile to my face. “It’s a nice car. Nice sword, too.”

  “Thanks,” I nodded to her, “I try my best with what I have.”

  “Can definitely see that.” I caught Judy running her fingers across the headliner, her fingernails catching on tiny pieces of fabric as they dragged along its surface. “Actually makes me wonder why you’d use any of this stuff. Like aren’t you paranoid that your car or sword would get damaged?”

  “A little, I suppose,” I admitted, “I just always felt like it’d be doing a disservice to them if I never used them as intended, you know what I mean?”

  “Not really,” she shrugged at me, “I feel like it’s more disrespectful to somethin’ like this to put it in that sorta danger, ‘specially if it got fucked up. But tha’s just me… Eh…”

  “Well that’s not a huge problem with the car, at least. It’s got Delamain coverage, so if someone damages it, I can just get a drone out to repair it.”

  “Oh, that sounds useful as hell,” she said with a bit of shock, “Wish I had that for my van.”

  “Yeah, what happened to that, anyway?”

  “”Blown head gasket. Again. Piece of shit’s been a fuckin’ albatross to me. But I just can’t be bothered to get rid of it ‘til I find som’n nicer.”

  “Oh? You like cars?”

  “Mhm,” she said with a smile, “And you?”

  “I’m… indifferent to them?” I said with a bit of an unsure tone, “My mom’s a classic car collector. She had around a couple dozen cars like this one, most of them around a hundred years old. She would drive different ones every day to work, but just never got around to fixing this one up.”

  “Really?” Judy asked me with shock, “This thing’s gorgeous. And you, what, fixed it up yourself?”

  “Heh… Not just myself,” I shook my head and grinned, “My brother and I. Jackie. I told you about him?”

  “Yeah, first time you came to my place,” she replied quickly, “Said he passed away on the Heist, right?”

  “Mhm,” I nodded, “And now I got Johnny. Not exactly an even trade, but what can you do?”

  “Bah,” Johnny scoffed from the back seat, “Should keep a runnin’ tally of all the shit you’re givin’ me so I can say you’re canonically worse than me one of these days.”

  “And your mom gave you the car, I’m guessin’?”

  “Uhh… not exactly,” I answered hesitantly, “I might’ve absconded with it in the night…”

  “What, seriously?!” she shouted, “You had the balls to steal this thing?!… I mean, part of me wants to say that’s punk as hell, but… fuck… How’d she react?”

  “I’m not sure,” I replied solemnly, “I wasn’t speaking to her at the time.”

  “Mm, I’m sorry,” she muttered, “And the sword?”

  “Yeah, same thing. I took it, threw it in Miyoko’s trunk, and drove off.”

  “Miyoko, that’s the car’s name?”

  “Yeah,” I affirmed, shifting into fifth gear as I got in the middle lane of the highway.

  Judy passively thumbed the seat, “Kinda weird, sittin’ on this side… These seats real leather?”

  “Mhm.”

  “Damn,” she mumbled, “So that’s what it feels like…”

  The ride to Japantown was relatively quick considering it was the crack of dawn. Most people were headed back home from Jig-Jig Street, as opposed to going in. And everyone who was in was fast asleep. 3AM is such a magical time – when the night shifters are working and everyone else is safely in their homes. It’s one of the few times when the city was actually quiet, with only the occasional bus and street sweeper passing by along with a speckle of traffic. A pity all the advertisements remained up 24/7, it’d be interesting to see what this place looks like totally naked… A shame I missed my chance during the power outage I caused.

  “What’s it like, anyway?” Judy asked as we crossed the bridge, “Livin’ with that maniac in your head.”

  “Well…” I spoke hesitantly, giving her question some honest thought, “I think I’ve gotten more used to it now. But we’ve definitely had our moments, that’s for sure… Though I’m hesitant to say if it’s actually Johnny.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “During the Heist, Jackie and I accidentally damaged the biochip’s container and had to slot it in one of our heads. Jackie put it in his head first, but the thing read that its integrity was only at 80 percent. Basically, some of the information was corrupted, leading him to have false memories and confuse a lot of basic facts – names, dates, people, that sort of thing.”

  “Ah, I see,” Judy said while biting her lip in thought, “So it’s like, a Johnny Silverhand with dementia. And you don’t know where the personality ends and the corruption begins.”

  “Exactly.”

  “Man, that must be such a mindfuck…”

  “Eh, like I said, you get used to it,” I repeated.

  “Yeah but still, like, any relationship you have from now on has that little asterisk above it. Like you’re not actually one person anymore, are you?”

  “And becoming less and less by the minute,” I confessed, “The biochip’s slowly consuming my personality, replacing it with Johnny’s. Nothing I can do about it, just the way it works.”

  “Wait, what?” Judy said with a sudden pause, “So, like… this thing’s changin’ you at an anatomical level, basically?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Fuck me,” she said with a heavy breath, “What kinda psychopath designs somethin’ like that, anyway…”

  “Oh, I met him,” I replied light-heartedly, “Swedish guy named Hellman. Tried to poach me to Kang Tao.”

  “Bah,” Judy exclaimed, “Must be nice to be needed, huh.”

  I pulled into the only spot available in front of Megabuilding H8, with the rest apparently taken up by some gonk who thought it’d be a good idea to parallel park a huge-ass pickup truck and demolish some guy’s sports car. Typical Night City. “Here, wanna get something to eat? Still got about a half-hour, you look hungry.”

  “Nah, thanks, though,” she replied with sincere kindness in her voice, “Don’t wanna eat anything ‘fore I gotta see Maiko. Else I’d just vomit it right back up.”

  “That bad, huh?”

  “Know what we can do, is stop by and get some new threads though,” she said, opening the door. Miyoko squeaked and whined in protest as the door hinged out, prompting a bit of a chuckle from Judy. “Heh, sounds like my van…”

  “Yeah, sure thing, there’s gotta be a few places inside. It’s on me,” I offered.

  “Don’t worry ‘bout it, I got the money,” she said with an insistent smile, “Apartment’s fully paid off, all I do’s pay the bills every month, so I’m not that strapped.” I collected my personal effects from the trunk, laying down my jacket - no idea why I was still wearing that thing, I'm sweating bullets out here.

  “Fair enough, just an offer,” I conceited as we headed up the stairs. Huh… some guy was selling clothes right on the main square. Convenient, I guess…

  “So what’s the story with you and Johnny?” Judy asked me, “You two, what, like friends now, or…?”

  “I… I’m not sure, to be honest,” I tentatively admitted, “It’s complicated. We’ve had our good times, but he’s also, well…”

  “An asshole?”

  “Yeah, that’s underselling it a bit,” I said with a smirk as Johnny appeared behind her, “He’s conceited, narcissistic, manipulative, and clever. And he likes to run his mouth a lot.”

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  “Oh, that’s rich, comin’ from you,” Johnny glared at me.

  “Whatever, Johnny,” I groaned.

  “Sheesh, sounds like a piece o’ work,” Judy shuddered, “Wonder what he says about me…”

  “Tell her I think she looks like she’d be the top,” Johnny grinned.

  “He… uh… says that you look nice,” I lied through my teeth as she donned a fresh jacket on top of a new tank top. I noticed that she slipped on her techie glove, not quite sure what model hers is, looks custom – guess we’re gonna need that at some point, too.

  “Pff, doubt he worded it like that,” Judy laughed.

  That actually brings up a fair point, though… if I did have sex with someone, does that mean Johnny also has sex, too…? Wait… when I masturbate… No, no… fucking hell, that’s gross.

  Judy paid the clerk his dues and we headed up top, though I noted a distinct air of anxiety surrounding her like a dense fog. “Hey,” I muttered, “You okay?”

  “What? Uh, yeah,” she said like she was snapping out of a funk, “I just, uh, haven’t seen Maiko in a while, tha’s all.”

  “Everything alright…?” I asked her with a raised eyebrow.

  No, V, very little’s alright,” she replied with a deep sigh, “But that’s okay. Just wanna get this over with.” We exited the elevator and headed down to Clouds, climbing up to the top of a nearby maintenance scaffolding and appearing on the balcony of the establishment’s office quarters. “Bum another cig?” she said to me. After a brief pause, I slowly took out Evelyn’s case from my back pocket, figuring she might need it. “Thanks.”

  “Sure,” I nodded as she lit up, “So what’re we asking Maiko, anyway?”

  “We’re gonna try and get Clouds independent, like Lizzie’s,” she started.

  “Hang on,” I stopped her, “I know roughly what you mean, but how do you plan on actually getting them to back down? Does Maiko really hold that kind of sway in her pocket?”

  “Well, given that she’s the manager, I’m hopin’ she won’t have to,” Judy explained, “If there’s one thing she likes to be, it’s in charge.”

  “Alright,” I nodded, “So what can I expect from Maiko?”

  “I’mma be real,” she said through cigarette smoke, “Talkin’ with Maiko’s like a game of 3D chess. Don’t let her derail you. Expect everything. Miss a beat, she’ll wrap you round her finger. Ask me how I know.”

  “So she’s manipulative?”

  “As hell,” she said as she took another drag.

  “Think I know the type, then,” I said partially to myself, thinking of Johnny who was apparently not in the mood to appear right now. A welcome break.

  “And that’s what’s got you so nervous?”

  “Mm, partially,” she admitted, “Maiko’s runnin’ with the Claws. I’ve a mind to kill those bastards with my bare hands for what they did to Ev.”

  “Anything else I should know?” I asked her, “Just so I have an idea of where to take the conversation.”

  “Nuh-uh, I’ll handle this,” she stopped me, “I just… can’t do this alone, I guess.”

  “Yeah, I get that,” I nodded slightly, “So you ready?”

  “Ready as I’ll ever be. And V?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Thanks for comin’,” she let out a warm smile.

  “No problem,” I replied earnestly as Judy tossed the half-smoked cigarette to the ground.

  “Alright, I’ll get the door,” she said as we headed over to a service box in the corner, with Judy easily bypassing most of the software within a matter of seconds.

  “Ffff… Impressive,” I complimented with a surprised blow of air from my mouth, “Looks like you know your way around hacking too, huh?”

  “What can I say? I’m an all-access kinda gal,” Judy chuckled, “Nah, with some of the shit that happens round here, you gotta be someone who wears many hats to get anywhere. Maiko’s office included.”

  “Oh? So you do this sort of thing often?”

  “What, hacking?” she asked as she rewired a few connections, “Bit of a hobby of mine. Used to run with a group of hacktivists ‘fore I hooked up with Clouds, they taught me the ropes. Learned how to do deep dives myself in my spare time. Got pretty damn good at it if I say so myself. Learned how to build soft, code sites, hack implants, cars, whatevs.”

  “Pff, all-access indeed,” I said with genuine shock. Wish she would’ve been with us instead of T-Bug on that evening. We would’ve been long-gone by now.

  “Got it,” she grinned as the door behind us opened, “Easy as paella.”

  I definitely feel underdressed for the occasion, though considering Judy specifically asked me to play it safe, at least I’ll just seem like the hired muscle. I’ve never dealt with ex-girlfriend fiascos of this magnitude, so this’ll certainly be a new test of either my conversational skills or my patience, depending on how it all plays out. I silently activated my Agent’s “record” function as we entered Maiko’s chambers, a traditional Japanese suite in the usual neo shoin-zukuri style.

  Maiko was impeccably dressed and well-kept, with a tailored business suit, sleek haircut, and faux fur accents on her sleeves. Fitting with her name, she was clearly of Japanese heritage, but spoke with an unmistakably Night City native accent.

  “Judy álvarez,” she said in a condescending tone, “I’d say it’s great to see you. But I’ve never been one to lie… Also I never liked surprise parties, which you know.”

  “Yup,” Judy sneered, “Bet I know why.”

  “Thought you’d hit rock bottom when you joined the Mox,” Maiko fired right back, “Guess you managed to stoop even lower now. You somehow never fail to lower my expectations. First you settle for the Mox, now murderers. I shudder to think what’s next.” I take it Maiko recognized me from the camera footage. Not terribly surprising. I didn’t exactly hide my identity, considering the circumstances. And no one had the balls to try and attack me, which means things are still in my favor. “Yes, V, I mean you,” she addressed me directly in that fucking tone… It reminded me of how Abernathy used to talk to me.

  “Glad I left a lasting impression on this place,” I replied bluntly.

  “If by ‘lasting impression,’ you mean buckets of blood? Yeah, I’d say so,” she countered sardonically.

  “Mm,” I smiled, “But that’s not why I’m here.”

  “Ah, so then why are you here?” she asked, “You already got what you wanted, clearly.”

  “I did, but Judy didn’t. She’s the one you’re to speak to, Maiko. I’m just in the background. Insurance policy in case anyone had any bright ideas.”

  “And what’ll you do, fight off a group of heavily-armed Claws with your sword?” she said with a chuckle as Judy began pacing up and down the room like a panther stalking its victim, “But all jokes aside, you don’t have to worry. I’m not planning on trying anything. Actually I’m glad she came. As for you – well, if you were here to help her out, then you probably would’ve been better off just waiting outside.”

  It took every ounce of my energy not to rip her a new asshole right then and there. “Judy has a… proposal for you,” I said through half-clenched teeth as I side-eyed Judy, her expression painted with a deep, angered scowl.

  “Wanna come back to Clouds? Done,” Maiko replied earnestly, getting up out of her chair and walking over to her mirror to do her lipstick, the pompous ass, “You know I always valued your skillset. Just don’t know why you had to bring this… loose end in here.”

  “Stop treatin’ dolls like meat and I’ll consider it,” Judy breathed harshly as she leaned on Maiko’s desk, “But first thing’s first, Clouds needs to be taken from Tyger Claws.”

  “Hm,” she stopped for a second, putting down her lipstick and walking over to us. Judy quickly retreated, impulsively trying to get away from the conniving woman. “Okay, look,” Maiko said, “It’s clear that what happened to Ev was… traumatic.”

  Maiko reached out her hand, lightly brushing Judy’s cheek. The both of us visibly recoiled from what felt like some sort of strange, nonconsensual advance. It felt so… icky. And gross. I visibly shuddered in place as I remembered more than a fair share of similar instances back in the day.

  “Don’t touch me,” Judy quickly snapped, firing her head backwards, “Wait… Ev? I was convinced you didn’t know.”

  “That girl was askin’ for an unhappy ending,” Maiko casually explained, “I was just surprised it took so long.”

  “No, hang on,” I interrupted her, “I get unhappy endings. But Evelyn was raped, then sold, then tortured, raped, sold again, and raped and tortured again before she took her own life from the pain. That’s not an unhappy ending, give her some respect.”

  “Pff, fine,” she scoffed as she lit up a cigarette, “She always liked to smoke. This one’s for her. There, happy?”

  “For fuck’s sake!” Judy shouted to Maiko, “We gotta do something! Who knows how much shit’s been hidin’ under you this whole time. Woodman raped her, then sold her like she was so much scrap!” I can see why they call her ‘Punchin’ Judy.’

  “Yeesh, you’ve always been unstable,” Maiko criticized her before taking a drag and eyeballig me, “Okaaay, since you seem more reasonable, care to explain what this is about?” She asked me.

  “Odd since I’m pretty sure you called me a murderer not thirty seconds ago,” I told her point-blank, “And it’s true. For a guy like Woodman, what he did to that poor woman, I can’t wait to go to Hell just so I can find him and kill him again.”

  “Good to know,” she replied uncaringly as she puffed on her smoke, “Know how much I mean to the Tyger Claw bosses who run this place?”

  “At a guess, I’d say they wouldn’t know you from street trash.” Because that’s exactly what you are.

  “Observant, I see,” Maiko nodded, “Exactly the same as how I see you two.”

  “So then why would you even work here?” I asked her with a confused shrug, “You’re just part of the problem at that point.”

  Maiko took a long pause as she stared down her ex. “Gonna pretend as if you two were never here, For old times’ sake, Judy. Way I see it, you got two choices, go out the way you came in, or I’ll have security throw you out. Oh, and V… welcome to Judy’s little fan club.”

  “Don’t do it, V,” Johnny interrupted me as I prepared to give Maiko an earful, “Remember, Hell hath no fury like a woman who won’t put out cause you got into a dick-measuring contest with her ex.” Fuck off, Johnny…

  “And that’s not a threat or a figure of speech,” Maiko continued, looking right at me, “Just a heads-up.” Hah, I’d like to see the Claws try.

  “Had enough…” Judy mumbled under her breath, “Don’t do it, V. She’s not worth your time… Let’s leave.”

  “Fine,” I agreed, shooting Maiko a stare as we walked out.

  “Smart move,” I heard her say to me as we exited the premises, Judy clearly fuming at even having to deal with this woman. I can’t say I blame her. She sure knows how to pick ‘em, that’s for certain…

  Judy and I walked out on the balcony, once again assaulted by that stale, megatower smell. But it was better than the perfume Maiko was wearing. As fake as her whole persona was. I knew an act when I saw it. One of the hardest things in the world for me was to let other people have their way like that, but it’s up to Judy, not me.

  “Well,” Judy sighed as she hopped up on an air conditioning unit, “That couldn’t have gone less smoothly.”

  “Don’t worry,” I told her reassuringly, sitting down next to her, “I used to work with people like that a lot. It’s a persona thing, not who she actually is, not what her values are. Watch – give her a week or two, she’ll think you forgot about it, then she’ll come running back to you with the same idea and pretend like she came up with it.”

  “Hah, that happen a lot with you in the past?”

  “Part of working behind a desk,” I shrugged, “The person at the bigger desk takes the credit.”

  “Hm, you might be onto something…” she muttered before climbing back down, “Come on, let’s get outta here.” I helped her up onto the construction scaffolding, admittedly way easier to get on when you came in from the ladder side. “Thanks, V,” she said courteously as she accepted my hand.

  “Sounds like things were quite serious between you and Maiko, huh?” I asked her as we walked to the elevator.

  “Yeah, I just… I dunno,” she pondered out-loud, “Guess I was lonely…”

  “As we all are in Night City,” I replied with a slight nod as she carried on in front of me.

  “She was different then. And so was I,” she reminisced, “Back ‘fore all this.”

  “And now she just sees everything as a numbers game,” I mulled with her, “Can’t trust someone like that. Any relationship becomes transactional.”

  “Heh, yeah, where were you when I really needed you,” Judy chuckled, “But all jokes aside, I… I dunno. I guess I just thought that she’d never do that to me. To us. I used to have a big crush on her… guess it took me a while to realize who she really was…”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Nah, don’t be,” Judy quickly replied, “Truth is, though, we need her. Yeah, you can kill every damn Claw in there, I seen you in action. But they’ll just keep comin’ back. With Maiko on our side, that’s a big bonus for us. She’s in a position of power there. People respect her.” I doubt that, but what do I know, I’ve only visited Clouds once. “Man, just think, could’ve gone divin’ this mornin’…”

  “Weren’t you?” I asked her, “That’s what you do for work, right?”

  “No, not like divin’ into the Net, I mean actual divin’. In the water.”

  “Oh, uh, shit,” I stammered, slightly taken aback by that, “I didn’t realize that was a hobby of yours.”

  “Mhm, and I got an idea buzzin’ in my head. Can’t say if anything would come from that, though,” she mulled as we headed down the pathway leading to the elevator, a few businessmen joining us on their ways to work, most likely. “Ugh, let’s get the fuck outta here. Gotta get some sleep…”

  “I heard that,” I said as I punched the button for the ground floor, Johnny appearing beside me and having a rest alongside me. “Nice to see you too, Johnny,” I told him out-loud

  “Oh, Johnny’s here?” Judy raised an eyebrow.

  “Yeah, he appears and disappears. Can teleport around the place as well, he’s sorta like a holo but in real life, I guess,” I said with a shrug.

  “Oh, huh. Well, ‘sup, Johnny,” Judy casually greeted him. Honestly I’m genuinely surprised she’s taken everything so lightly. Maybe it’s because she had time to process everything. “Anyway… Man, fuck that place… Never understood what tits have to do with sellin’ that garbage.”

  “Gimme tits any day, rest can go fuck itself,” Johnny chimed in.

  “Johnny says the tits sell, draws the crowds in,” I repeated for her, though not word-for-word, “And yeah, I can see his point. People are looking for relaxation, sometimes that takes the form of sex.”

  “I got no problem with sex,” Judy replied, “It’s this fuckin’ junk food that people buy. All it does is exploit. But people just get what they can cause they’re poor, can’t blame them, either…”

  We walked off and headed outside, the sun finally rising but not breaking through the morning fog without a fight. “Need a lift?” I offered her as we walked down the megabuilding’s front stairs.

  “Need another smoke, ‘s about it right now…” Judy replied pensively. I reluctantly complied, handing her another cigarette and joining her at the tourism information stand in front of the building. “Fuck… Gotta give Maiko somethin’ big…”

  “Isn’t there any other way we can make this happen?” I stopped her train of thought.

  “No… no, at least, none that I can think of,” Judy said with despair as she took a drag, “She’s like a bank. Won’t loan you anythin’ unless you got rock-solid assets.”

  “I get it,” I nodded with a frown, “Are you okay, though?”

  “Yeah… least I think so,” she thought with a contemplative pause, “I tune virtus for days at a time, some shifts… Know what the chances of gettin’ my head blown off at work are?”

  “Miniscule?”

  “Unlike you, I don’t put myself out there,” she continued, “So… this ain’t my comfort zone.”

  “I understand,” I replied meekly, “Sorry for asking.”

  “Nah, it’s okay. ‘Preciate you thinkin’ of me.” Judy took her sweet time with her cigarette, giving the smoke a long hangtime in her lungs before she exhaled. “We need more bodies, that’s for sure… Gonna talk to the dolls.”

  “Bodies?” I asked her as I started unbuckling my Agent, “What for?”

  “Not like you’ll always be around to help us out, right? Gonna need someone to hold the fort once the Claws are out… And who knows what other shit’s gonna come our way with this,” she thought out-loud, “I dunno, I gotta give it some more thought.”

  “Alright, just give me a call when you got something, alright?” I requested.

  “Mhm, course,” Judy told me as she stamped out the cigarette, giving me a pat on the shoulder as she walked past, “I’m gonna go for a walk, try and see if that gets my brain churnin’. Thanks, V.”

  “Be safe, Judy,” I smiled as she walked off.

  Yeah, safe to say I have a crush on her… Guess I could’ve picked worse in Night City, though. She may be brash, but her heart’s in the right place. And sometimes that’s exactly what’s needed in a place this harsh.

  My father didn’t exactly have wisdom flowing out of his asshole. But there was one phrase which stuck with me… He said that life is a brutal, gray, unforgiving place. But as long as you have even one friend, you’d be shocked at what you can overcome with that person behind you.