Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

He ran a hand over his face, a lowly attempt at erasing the face of the dead girl from his mind. Once again he’d been too late. No matter how hard he tried he never seemed to be able to jump through the hoops fast enough to save the victims. But at least the family had some form of closure, which was better than to live in uncertain and endless worry and hope.

River trudged along the street, pausing only long enough to smash the button on a vendor to grab some quick grub. Not the most nutritious, and the food was probably closer to styrofoam than actual food, but it did in a pinch.

He glanced at the time. 9:48 PM, his shift was long since over and he probably should go back to his pad and get some rest, or swing by Joss and the kids to check on them briefly. On the other hand though, Joss hadn’t called since their last spat which meant she’d rather he stayed away. So wandering Night City is what he ended up doing.

He walked aimlessly, no particular destination in mind. After some time he found himself at the steps of a Megabuilding. Those things were societies of their own, a small city within the city. Many who lived there didn’t even bother to leave most of the time because everything they needed was right there.

Could be an interesting walk though.

A minute later the ding of the elevator announced his arrival on the random floor he’d picked and he stepped out to the sound of repeated gunshots. The first thing to greet him was a gunshop, which he quickly identified as the source of the shooting. Either practice or demonstration. But nothing illegal. A good start to his nightly venture in the tower.

He kept going, passing vendors of various foods, clothes, and trinkets. The room opened up to a small boxing ring where a wide-shouldered man punched it out with a bot.

“More movement,” another man on the sidelines said. “A still target is an easy target. Now move those damn feet.”

River paused to watch for a moment, feeling the slight temptation to ask if he could have a go at the bot himself. It would be a nice way to beat out his frustrations.

The man side-stepped the bot, now facing River. He blinked, recognizing the fighter right away. Barry’s attention flicked to him for a brief second before the bot swung and clocked him right on the side of the face. Barry stumbled out of the ring and the coach called the end of the fight.

River chuckled and Barry stepped away from the huffing coach while rubbing his face.

“Damn bot,” Barry muttered. “Now your mug is one I haven’t seen in a while,” he said, giving River a shadow of a smile. “How’s things?”

River shrugged. “So and so. And you? Haven’t seen you at the precinct lately.”

“And you won’t. I quit. Want a beer?” Barry nodded his head towards a vendor a few feet away.

He nodded and then they went over to grab themselves a couple of bottles.

“So what brings the esteemed Detective Ward to this humble tower?” Barry asked after a moment of silence.

River tapped the neck of the bottle with his chromed finger. “Nothing in particular. Was getting some fresh air and decided to check it out.”

“Must’ve been one fuckin’ hell of a day for you to search for fresh air in this hellhole,” Barry scoffed.

“Could say that,” River sighed. He took a heavy sip of his beer. “Been investigating the disappearance of a young woman, but by the time I caught on to the trail she was dead. Told her parents today she was never coming home. At least not alive.”

“Shit, sorry,” Barry muttered. “Can’t say I miss that. All the death, not to mention those stuck up rotten corpos.”

River grunted in agreement as he chugged down two greedy gulps. “Couldn’t agree more.”

There was always a corpo to pay someone off. Just like in his most recent case. The girl had been kidnapped by a man that seemingly had no connection to her. But during his investigation he’d soon found out that a small rival corporation had paid the man to kidnap her. The intention had been to hold her for ransom, but the goon had gotten carried away. Just thinking about what that girl went through before she died left a bitter taste in his mouth and sent a shiver down his spine.

He downed the rest of his beer hoping to wash it all away. It didn’t help much.

“Yo, V!” The coach called out from across the open space. “How about a round or two?”

“Yeah sure. Why not,” a woman said and strutted onto the mat.

Her thick black hair was tied up into a bushy ponytail, her face was lean with a sharp chin and piercing brown eyes. Her skin held a sun kissed tan, suggesting she spent more time outside rather than lounging inside. She shrugged off her jacket, dropping it on the floor before she started stretching, preparing for the fight. The grey cropped top inched upward with each movement.

His gaze traveled down, admiring her toned stomach and the slightly less tan skin. Yes, she definitely spent more time in the sun than most. A nomad, maybe, though what a dirtrunner would do in a place like this was beyond him. Those people seemed to cherish their clans and ‘family’ and freedom more than anything and few flew the nest.

“Who’s the chick?” He found himself asking without taking her eyes off of her. He noticed her faded blue jeans were stained with dried blood. A fighter, maybe a merc then. Or just ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time. But, no, after a closer inspection he noticed the unmistakable gorilla arms. Definitely someone not to be trifled with.

“That’s V. My upstairs neighbour,” Barry said. “She can be a bit of a hardass, but aside from her shit taste in wheels and the rumours going around, she seems alright.” They both watched as the fight started and V started circling the bot, dodging and weaving. Not really attacking however. “She’s a merc, quickly gaining some good rep actually. Came to the city roughly seven months ago after leaving her nomad clan.”

“Who’d she run with? What clan?” He’d heard word about the Aldecaldos lingering outside the city and quite a few of them ventured into the city lately looking for work.

Barry shrugged. “Dunno, you’d have to ask her.”

V sprung forward, slamming three well placed punches that sent spark flying from the bot. The machine sputtered and whined as it hunched over, dead. All that time she spent dodging she’d actually spent reading its movements, noting its weaknesses until she knew she could knock it to pieces. The coach praised her, though he could tell the man was biting back a wince about the broken bot. The pair stepped aside, sitting down on a bench and started talking quietly.

“You know,” Barry went on. “There’s rumours going around. Some say that the tattoo on her chin has some indigenous meaning. Some say it’s prestigious, like a rite of passage or some shit, others say it means she killed a man at a young age. The way she and her merc partner Jackie Welles tears through scavs, I’m inclined to believe the latter. Like I said, a hardass. Good lookin’ but freakishly scary if you get on her bad side.”

V rose, snatching up her jacket and slinging it over her shoulder. Her gaze snatched his, catching him looking at her. Her black painted lips tilted into a tiny smile and before he knew it she was striding in their direction.

River arched eyebrow. “Really? Rumours have a tendency to run wild though, I don’t think we should give it much merit. Ever asked her about it?”

“Nope, I like being alive,” Barry scoffed. “But go ahead if you’re feeling brave,” he said, then straightened up. “Looks like she’s coming over,” he said quietly, cleared his throat and ordered more beer. He held a bottle out to the striking merc. “Beer, or do you still think the Mizutani Shion is-”

“Definitely for flash posers, yeah,” she smirked, but snatched the beer before he could retract it. “All it’s useful for is going fast. As soon as there’s no tarmac, the car can’t drive for shit. A good Galena though, or a Thorton Mackinaw… Damn good wheels.”

Barry chuckled. “Figured,” he said, shaking his head in mock indignation. “An absolute heathen.”

V winked then started chugging down her beer. River found himself transfixed by the way her throat boobed with each swallow, then as she lowered the bottle and licked away the lingering moisture on her lips. And her voice…like a balm soothing the ache in his soul. Once again her eyes locked on him, catching him staring at her for a second time in as many minutes.

“Who’s your friend, Barry?” She asked without breaking eye-contact.

“River Ward,” he answered before River could speak up for himself. “We used to work in the same precinct.”

“Huh, a badge,” she said slowly. Her hazel gaze scrutinized him so closely he felt like he was practically naked before her eyes and it took all his self control to not squirm. “Is he mute?”

Barry barked a laugh. “Nah, just starstruck,” the bastard smirked. “Well, it’s getting late and I’m gonna head to bed. Nice seein’ ya again, River. See you around, V.” He swiped one of the beer bottles off the counter then sauntered off, giving them both a casual wave before he disappeared around the corner.

River let out an awkward laugh to fill the silence. “I, uh, it wasn’t like that. I was just trying to figure out…your tattoo. Interesting design,” he added. “Is it indigenous?” He felt his face warm with embarrassment as soon as the words were out. What a stupid thing to ask, but it was the only thing that had come to mind in his haste for something to say.

She arched an elegant eyebrow, then chuckled. “Dunno, you tell me. Seeing as you’re the native here and not me.” She stepped closer, leaning an elbow on the counter. Close enough to touch if he leaned in. Her eyes twinkled with mischief. “I just picked it out of an art book. Liked the swirls.”

“I see. What makes you think I’m a native?” He asked, eager to move on to something else.

“Spent some time with the Navajo in Utah a couple years ago,” she shrugged. “And some other tribes over the years. What’s yours? No, wait, let me guess.” She bit her lower lip as she studied him closely. His heart started beating faster, and he felt his cheeks warm under her gaze. Her strange allure was both exciting and frightening. Or maybe that was just Barry’s sentiment burrowing into him. She angled her head to the side. “Either Pomo or Mojave, though the latter would be cheesy I guess considering your name and them being known as the people of the river,” she said, her tantalizing lips turning up into a breathtaking smirk.

He took a sip of his beer, a poor attempt to soak his dry mouth. “Pomo is correct,” he said. He’d lie if he claimed his stomach hadn’t fluttered a bit when she said Pomo. And the purr of her voice… It was stirring something in him. “Your turn. You’re not from here obviously, so where are you from?”

“Nowhere in particular. Used to run with a nomad clan,” she said, confirming his former speculations and Barry’s claim. “Bakker, left them when they joined Snake Nation.” Her distaste for the growing nomad nation was apparent in her voice.

“From what I hear Snake Nation is absorbing a lot of clans,” he said carefully. “Supposed to make life easier for the smaller ones.”

“Under corp contract,” she huffed disgustedly. “The clan ceased to be the moment they sold out to Snake Nation and corps. The heart and soul of the family, vanquished, gone forever. That and some other things gave me no reason to stay. So here I am,” she added with a shrug and for a second he thought a shadow passed over her eyes, but it was gone as fast as it appeared.

“But of all the places to go, why this crime ridden hellhole?” He asked, genuinely baffled. Had his own circumstances been different he might never have stayed. But his mission was here, it was here he could make a difference.

“Isn’t this the City of Dreams and endless opportunity?” She said jokingly. “But yeah, I actually found out my mom lived here before me and my brother were born. Turns out my biological father might still be around. But,” she said, standing up straight. “That’s a story for another time, got a big job tomorrow and should get some rest. See you around?” There was a silent question in her eyes, if he wasn’t completely imagining it however.

“Of course,” he said. “Hey, uhm, would you like to grab some drinks some time?” There, it was out. Moment of truth.

Her smile widened. “Are we throwing lunch in as well?”

“We can, yes,” he said, barely able to contain his own grin from growing too big.

[TRANSFERRING CONTACT] The message appeared in his optic, then his contact list opened and ‘V’ was added to the list.

“Until next time, River,” she said, her purring voice sent his blood roaring through his veins.

He watched her go, spellbound by the sway in her hips and the sassy sashay to her steps. Then she was gone and River let out a long shuddering breath. How the hell did he get here, to this point? One moment he’d been brooding, the next he’d practically asked a woman out he’d just met on a date. A woman that took his breath away, a woman that made his heart race by merely looking at him…

It was just lunch, he told himself.

Chapter Text

“Not gonna tell me how it went?”

River raised his arms, blocking Barry’s blow with his forearms. “How what went?” He asked, returning a few blows that Barry dodged and blocked. They’d been at it for a while, after some reps with the weights they’d decided to go a few rounds in the ring.

Barry chuckled. “Come on, Ward. Even a blind cat could see all those sparks that were flying last night. Spill it.”

“V? Oh yeah, we talked for a bit,” he said, trying to sound nonchalant about it. In truth though, he’d had butterflies the entire day, and had hovered over her contact more than once. But he’d opted to wait so he didn’t seem too eager. Besides, she had a big job today. Maybe he should flick her a quick text,  ask her how it went, surely it’d be over by now. 

His head snapped to the side, then the pain flashed through his skull and his vision flickered as his cyber-eye took the brunt of the blow.

“Oh shit, thought you would block that,” Barry said. “You ok?”

River blinked, brought up the settings to reboot his eye. “Think so,” he said slowly, waiting for his eye to reboot. “Got a mean right hook there, man,” he added with a slight smile.

“And where were you? I made that move painfully obvious.” Barry raised an eyebrow and had a knowing smile on his face. Yup, he’d discerned exactly what had been on River’s mind. Or rather, who.

The eye was back online but the glitchy flickers remained. River cleared his throat. “Think I might need the eye tuned. You knocked something loose,” he added with a chuckle. “And I actually asked her out. For lunch. And she gave me her number.”

“Damn,” Barry laughed. “No wonder there were so many sparks, it came from both of you! There’s a ripper a few minutes away, he’ll get you sorted.”

They stepped off the ring and River grabbed a towel to wipe off the sweat. He tried blinking the glitches away, but they persisted. A visit to the ripper was probably a good idea. He stuffed the towel into his bag and slung it over his shoulder.

“And there was nothing special about her tattoo, by the way,” he said as they set off to the elevator and started going down. “She liked the design, as simple as that.”

“Huh, a bit anticlimactic that,” Bary huffed. “To hell with the rumours then,” he added with a chuckle.

River laughed. “Yeah, they’ve got no grounds whatsoever.”

The advertisement on the four screens ended abruptly.

“This is N54 with breaking news. Saburo Arasaka has passed away-”

“Holy shit,” Barry said, turning towards the screens.

“Witnesses place two individuals fleeing the penthouse of Konpeki Plaza in which the Emperor was found deceased by his son Yorinobu Arasaka. A bounty of a lofty 6 million eurodollars for each of the suspects will be paid out in the event of their capture.”

“Damn,” River said slowly. “Perhaps we should go out bounty hunting later,” he joked. Not that he could do that with his employment to the NCPD, but nothing said he couldn’t aid a freelancer on his quest.

“Heh, dunno if I wanna tussle with someone ballsy enough to kill the head of Arasaka,” Barry said. “Call me a pussy but I think I’ll pass on this one. 6mill or not.”

“Fair point, not our kind of gig.”

***

“Elevator, now!” She grabbed a fistful of Jackie's suit and practically tossed him inside before more soldiers could descend on them. “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” she muttered under her breath, slamming the buttons to close the elevator doors faster.

“I’m…leaking a…little,” Jackie wheezed, every breath coming with a wet rasp.

She smashed the garage floor and the elevator finally started moving. She spun around and closed the distance between.

“Any exit wound?” She asked, noting the amount of blood staining his shirt and hand.

“Dunno,” he grunted.

“Let me take a look,” she said, but didn’t give him the option to accept or decline. They didn’t have the time. She knelt down, pushing the suit jacket aside to check his back. No wound there. “Shit, bullet’s still inside. This is gonna hurt,” she warned and unsheathed her knife.

“What are you gonna-” His words drowned into a strangled scream and she cut into his skin enough to open his wound a little. She didn’t explain, there was no time to, and no time to disinfect. Vik would have to fix him up later. V stuffed two fingers into his wound, causing him to scream more, but she ignored him as she dug around until she found the piece of lead embedded in his guts.

Her mom would have beaten her senseless for the reckless extraction and would probably have expelled her from the medical tent for life if she knew, but in the very least she got the bullet out.

“Got a lighter?” She asked calmly.

“Fuckin’ hell,” Jackie groaned. “No, don’t got one.”

“Well, then we gotta stem the bleeding some other way. What floor are we on?” She shrugged off her suit jacket and began unbuttoning her shirt.

“E-eighty…somethin’,” Jackie grunted. “What’re you doin’?”

“Saving your sorry ass,” she shot back. “Don’t tell Misty I stripped or I’d have to undo the saving. Hopefully,” she added with a reassuring grin. She glanced at the label and sighed. Synth cotton of course, but it would have to do. She cut off a strip of the shirt and hung it over her shoulder, ready for the second step. “Breathe in,” she said, then started stuffing the wound.

“Aaargh, fuuuuck!”

“Focus on breathing,” she said, keeping her voice calm. Blood squirted out, and Jackie already looked deathly pale. “Think about Misty, or your mom. Just keep fucking breathing.” Hopefully it would be enough, though synth cotton wasn’t as good as real cotton, but it was all she had. Once the wound was properly stuffed she used the cut off piece to tie it into place.

“Saburo Arasaka,” Jackie groaned. “Today of all fucking days.”

“Just our fucking luck, huh?” She chimed in. She put on her suit jacket again, buttoning up the front  since she no longer had her shirt. She dug into her pocket and pulled out a MaxDoc. “Here, hold on to this, use it when you feel yourself slipping, ok?”

“Ok, yeah,” he groaned and grabbed the huffer. “D’you think Tbug… Think she’s dead?”

“Sounded like she got burned,” she said. Her screams… She’d known getting burnt was a painful death but hearing it first hand was something else. “How’s your vision? Blurry? Darkening?” She glanced at the panel. Almost there. There was bound to be trouble but hopefully Delamine was in place.

He drew a deep, rasping breath. “Blurry.”

She nodded curtly. “Leave the shooting to me then. Stay behind me.”

The elevator dinged and the doors opened to pure chaos.

***

“That guy is an absolute nutjob,” Barry said as they stepped into the shop.

“Just one of the many with a screw loose,” River said in agreement. He looked around, noting the trinkets and incense sticks. “Doesn't look like a ripper,” he pointed out.

Barry chuckled. “Nah, this is the front shop. The ripper is renting from the shop owner, Misty. We check in with her.”

As if his word summoned her, a blonde woman stood up from behind the counter, placing a heavy looking box down on the polished wood. She blinked.

“Oh hi, didn’t hear ya come in,” she said with a big smile. “What can I help you with today? Another tarot reading, Barry?”

River arched an eyebrow and glanced over at his friend, noting the pink hues blossoming on his face. Barry cleared his throat.

“Hey, Misty. We were hoping that the Ripperdoc had an opening actually,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. Then he jabbed a thumb towards River. “My friend had an accident.”

“An accident with your fist,” River scoffed, then chuckled. “My eye is glitching, think you can fit me into the schedule?”

“Hmm,” Misty said as she started typing on the keyboard. “He’s got a patient right now, and another one right after. But I could write you up after that. Don’t mind waiting? Should take about two to three hours.”

“Sounds good,” River said.

“Place your hand here to register any insurance you might have or other deductibles,” Misty said, gesturing towards the panel on the back of her computer. “Or you can use your personal link if that is preferred.”

“Either is fine, really,” he said. Having an SID chip in addition to the personal link was mandatory as a detective so that he could be easily identified in any situation. He placed his palm on the panel and waited for the little light to turn green.

“Wonderful,” Misty said. “You’ll receive a notification when Doctor Vektor is ready to take you in. Don’t wander too far.”

***

“Fuck,” she hissed as she pressed hand against the wound on her shoulder. Damn fucking drones, she thought.

“How…how bad?” Jackie croaked.

“Just a graze, hurts like a bitch though.” She sat up straight and placed two fingers on his throat, counting his pulse and watching his pupils. He seemed to have stabilized a bit, but still in need of proper medical care. “I take the chip to Dex and you go straight to Vik, you hear me?”

“Not…leaving you behind,” he muttered.

“And I’m not letting you die, you gonk.” She turned to face Delamaine. “Del, you take him to Rippderdoc Viktor Vektor after you drop me off at the safehouse. No hesitation.”

“As you wish, Miss V,” the AI taxi driver said.

Jackie coughed. “The Relic,” he said, shakingly reaching up to remove the chip from his slot. “Gonna need it.”

She took the chip and slotted it in. Nothing special seemed to happen. Her systems registered that it was there but it didn’t seem to change anything. She let out a shaky breath as the car came to a stop outside the No Tell Motel.

“Not…leaving you…V.” Jackie sat slumped in the seat, sweat beading on his forehead.

“Jack-”

“No, don’t ‘Jack’ me, chica…I’ll wait.”

She bit the inside of her cheek. Stubborn ass. But she sighed in defeat. “Del. Five minutes, not a second more. If I’m not back by then you take Jackie to our ripper. Got it?”

“Certainly, Miss V.”

“V…”

“No, that’s as much as I’ll compromise. Five minutes.” She grabbed him by the shoulder and squeezed. “Take the huffer, and stay alert.”

She exited the vehicle and jogged into the building, up the flight of stairs and down to the end of the hallway until she found the door marked as instructed. She knocked, but no one answered.

“Lemme in, Dex,” she called out, knocking more viciously this time. The door slid open and the gruff bodyguard grabbed her by the arm and pulled her inside. “Hands off, dickwipe,” she hissed. The asshole's expression didn’t change, but he let go.

Dex stood leaning over the TV screen, hand braced on the wall. “WNS, N54… Even the pirate networks!” The lump of fat practically growled the words. “You blowin’ up everywhere! And the Jackster? He out in the car?”

V frowned. The fuck was he mad about? It’s not like it was her fucking fault the gig went to shit, he’s the one who should have done proper prep work. Something about his whole demeanor was setting off alarm bells in her mind. But that might just be because she’d never really liked the guy and she only agreed to the gig for Jackie.

She crossed her arms. “Don’t care to know how Jackie is?” She snarled back at him.

He turned to her, his beady eyes dark with warning. “Your tone, best watch it, girl,” he said quietly.

V narrowed her eyes. That was not the response she expected from a fixer. She glanced over her shoulder at the bodyguard, noting how his hand was resting on the handle of the gun. The fuck?

“He bled out in the backseat. Dead,” she barked at the fixer, doing her best to make it sound believable.

Dex stared at her flatline, then pushed off from the wall and plopped heavily down on the couch. “Well, I’m sorry to hear that,” he said, more calmly than before. “And the Relic?”

Her skin crawled under his gaze. Off, off, off. Something about this fucking man was off. Hand it over and get it over with, a small voice in the back of her mind whispered. But… Dammit, she should’ve taken Evelyn’s offer, cut out the shady fixer who didn’t even bother to do his end of the deal from the very start.

She breathed in deeply then hung her head in shame. “No such luck,” she muttered. “The case got fried on our way out. Some ‘Saka soldiers shot it to pieces. The chip with it.”

Dex hummed thoughtfully, taking a deep drag of his cig. “That’s one piece of good news,” he said calmly.

“Good news?” She blurted out. What the fuck had he been smoking?

Dex stood up and started pacing the room. “Saburo Arasaka… Dead. You got any notion of the shit you’ve pulled me into?” His voice started rising again, getting more agitated. Jackie and the Relic were already forgotten. “You offed the fucking emperor. HIS MAJESTY!! Anyone as much as a pinky toe dipped in this shit is as good as dead!”

“I know,” she said, keeping her voice down as if not to disturb a rabid animal. “And that’s why we need to skip town. Get outta Night City sooner rather than later.”

“We?” Dex asked slowly, his tone sending another chill down her spine.

“You’re the fixer!” She said, giving him a pointed glare.

A shiver ran down her spine. She didn’t like this one tiny bit. Something about the way he was acting. Sure they were in deep shit, but putting it all on her? He was the fixer. Fixing shit was his fucking job.

He narrowed his eyes for a second, then schooled his face. But it was too late, she’d already seen it. He sat down and huffed. “Aight, settle down. Gotta be tactical about this. New place, new identity. But first,” he said, slowly sizing her up. “Your face. Got blood all over it.” He motioned off towards her left. “Bathroom’s there, go get yourself cleaned up.”

She took a deep breath, for a second wondering if she could run passed the bodyguard before the fucker pulled his gun on her. But then decided against it. She nodded then headed towards the bathroom, closing the door and locking it securely behind her.

She took in her surroundings. No window to crawl through, and no vents large enough to fit her. So if she was gonna make a run for it, she would have to get through Dex and Stoneface.

With a wave of her hand she turned on the faucet and began to slowly wash herself off. The blood had gotten everywhere. Her hair, her face, under her nails… That shit needed a proper scrubbing to get off. But for now a rinse would have to do. Meanwhile she pulled up Jackie's contact in the integrated interface and quickly typed out a message using thought command. 

V - 10:03 PM
Got a bad feeling. Gonna make a break for it. Don’t linger. Meet you at Vik’s

She ran her wet fingers through her hair, smearing her newly washed hands with blood again. Whatever. It was time to go anyway. And it was only two guys, Dex she could get easily, but it was the bodyguard with his hulking size that she worried about the most. She would have to shoot that asshole first.

Fuck it all. Open the door, start blasting, run. A solid plan. What could possibly go wrong?

She pulled out Dying Night, the handle going sticky with the blood on her hands. And more would coat it soon.

Now.

The door swished open and she stepped out, swinging the gun in the direction the bodyguard was. Had been. Before her mind could process it, something hard slammed into the side of her head and the world went black for the second it took for her face to dig into the dirty carpet.

She blinked, barely having the time to attempt to get up before a steel tipped boot dug into her rib once, twice, three times. A metallic taste entered her mouth and dark spots danced in her vision as she rolled over on her back. Her gun, had to shoot… She turned her head looking for her trusty weapon only to find it had been kicked out of reach.

From somewhere above her she heard Dex chuckle.

“Nice try, little girl,” he said and she could hear the smug smirk in his voice. “I like you, got more balls than most men I’ve worked with. But can’t risk it, V. ‘Member our first convo?”

Her lips curled back in a snarl. “I’ll fucking kill you,” she spat.

“Now, now,” he smirked. “We’ll have none of that. Seems I’ve chosen the quiet life after all. No blaze of glory for me.”

Her eyes zeroed in on the barrel of the gun, then her head snapped back, the gunshot ringing in her ears as flashing warning messages blinking in her optics. Then her body went numb, though she was somehow keenly aware of the rough carpet itching her cheek.

***

“Sure you don’t want a newer model,” Doctor Vektor asked for a third time. “Your NCPD insurance should cover most of the cost and you’d get a new look. Could fix the scarring too.”

“Nah, I’ve grown to like it,” River said with a wry smile. Vektor wasn’t the first ripper to try to get him to upgrade his cyberware and he certainly wouldn’t be the last. “A simple fix will be enough.”

“Alright, I’m not one to judge,” the old man chuckled. “Maybe a little, but to each their own. Now, sit back, relax, and we’ll get you sorted in no time, Detective.”

River sat down, making himself comfortable. He pulled out his personal to jack in so that the ripper could do a proper sweep of his systems, but paused when he heard a crashing sound by the main entrance.

The door swished open and someone stumbled down the steps.

“Vik,” a man called out, then muttered a string of curses in spanish. “...went to shit, ugh,” he groaned. River sat up but Barry was faster.

“Holy hell, that’s a lot of blood,” Barry said. “What happened?” He helped the man across the room and River jumped out of the ripper chair.

“Give us room,” Vektor barked and immediately got to work. River and Barry took a few steps back, giving the ripper space to move freely. “Nice wrap. V did that? Where is she? Jackie, need you to talk to me, friend.” He injected the merc and the man seemed to gain some awareness.

“V… She went in alone, told me to wait,” his face contorted with pain. “Waited as long as I could, saw them…carry her out…” A chill ran down River’s spine. “Stuffed her…in a trunk and…drove off.”

The ripper's face turned to stone, sorrow entering his eyes. But he kept working, focusing on the patient he could help right in that moment.

She was dead. Gone, just like that. Or not… He’d said she was carried out. That doesn’t mean she’s dead. River stepped around to the other side, keeping well away from the working ripperdoc.

“What exactly did you see?” He asked.

Jackie turned his head slightly, enough to glare at him. “Not telling a pig anything, pendejo.”

“Did you see the license plate?” River went on, ignoring the comment. 

Barry joined him, his face as grim as the ripper’s. “If you did, Welles, we could track it, see where they took her and get her back.”

“If we do nothing,” River added, “she could lose whatever chance she might still have.”

Still the merc hesitated.

“Talk to them, you fucking gonk,” Vektor grunted and gave Jackie a stern look. “If she’s not dead already it could be her only chance.”

Jackie sighed, slumping in the chair. He leered off a string of curses and closed his eyes. “Fine, I’ll talk.”

Chapter Text

“Jesus,” Barry groaned. “There they go.”

“Mhm,” River hummed. He tried to not stare at the car too openly but it matched Welles’s description and the partial license plate he gave them. But it was leaving the landfill. Which meant that they’d already dumped her. That in itself did not bode well.

Judging from the grim look on Barry’s face he knew the man thought the same thing. The chances of this being a rescue was minimal at best, but in the very least he would retrieve her…body. To think it was only last night that he’d first laid eyes on her sparkly smile and that mischievous glint in her beautiful brown eyes.

Now she was gone.

The leather of the steering wheel groaned under his tight grip. “They came from that way,” he said tersely, then set off in the direction he’d seen the car coming from. They skipped every bit of protocol in the book to catch up to the culprits as fast as they could. If he hadn’t, well, then there would’ve been a guaranteed repeat of his last investigation.

Mack couldn’t speed up fast enough, it was an old hunk of junk, but still reliable. Just getting a bit slow.

“End of the road,” Barry remarked as they rolled up to a giant mountain of trash. “She could be anywhere.”

River killed the ignition and stepped out of the truck. He scanned the area, noting the fresh tracks in the mud and series of footprints. Also fresh.

“Gotta be close by,” he said following the tracks. “We’ll have to dig, they wouldn’t risk leaving her out in the open. There’s flashlights in the back.” He turned on night mode on his cybereye, but since he hadn’t had the time to get it fixed it wasn’t easy to see much with or without night vision.

“Here,” Barry said as he jogged up to him, handing him a flashlight.

They started treading the heaps of trash, shoving aside large pieces that looked like they could hide a body. Seconds stretched into minutes, one step, two steps, a chunk of metal here and a giant trash bag there… It all melted together as time crept by. They didn’t talk, nor did they shout for her just in case the assholes would return.

No, they searched in silence, keeping their flashlights pointed down to search each nook and crevice.

A blanket of melancholy fell over him. This damn city would be the end of him too one day. The City of fucking Dreams. For the rich maybe, but not for anyone else. It was all a beautifully wrapped shithole filled with false promises and groundless hopes. And tonight it had claimed another victim. Another victim he couldn’t save in time.

His boot caught on something soft and he paused, crouching down to get a better look. A foot, wearing a high heeled shoe. He raised his flashlight and signaled Barry who promptly stopped what he was doing and made his way over.

River pulled aside a metal sheet, then an old TV the size of a damn car and tossed it aside. His heart skipped a beat, his gaze caught on bloodied face and the empty hazel eyes staring up at him. Dead. He didn’t even need to check her pulse to know, the endless stare and the gaping hole between her eyes was proof enough. With one slow move he swept his hand over her face, closing her eyes.

“Is she dead?”

“Yes,” he said solemnly. He gathered her up in his arms carefully, as if it made any difference, and swallowed the lump in his throat. “Let’s take her back. The ripper or Jackie will know who to contact.” She had mentioned a mother and a brother, but she’d never told him their names and he suspected ‘V’ wasn’t really her name either. So he had no way of finding her family.

Barry nodded and let out a shaky breath. “Fucking hell,” he muttered, his shoulders slumping.

It was a long walk back to the truck, each step feeling heavier than the last. He kept studying her face, hoping, praying that he’d been wrong that she would open her eyes. No chance of that happening though.

He climbed into the back seat and motioned for Barry to drive. He just couldn’t let himself let go of her yet, didn’t want her to be alone. As stupid as it sounded… He hadn’t even had the chance to get to know her before she’d been taken away.

Barry shook his head as he backed up and turned the truck around. “Like what’s even the point,” he said quietly. “If not even someone of her caliber can survive this fucking place, then what even are the rest of us doing here?”

“Our best,” River said. “That’s all we can ever do.”

Barry fell silent after that, lost in his own thoughts and focused on the road ahead.

Despite it all, River placed two fingers where her pulse should be. Nothing. Just nothing but cold skin. He tilted her head to the side to examine the injury. No exit wound, which meant the bullet was lodged in her brain or skull. Low caliber then, and a shit gun. Not that it had mattered in her case. No pulse, no life.

Thud.

River blinked. That had to have been wrong, or he’d just felt his own pulse in his fingertips.

Thud………thud.

He straightened up, adjusted her enough so that he could bend down and listen to her heart. Thud……thud…thu-thud-thu-thud. 

“Holy shit,” he breathed out.

“What?” Barry asked, trying to look at them through the rearview mirror.

“That’s…impossible. Her heart just started beating,” he said, not quite believing his own words. What the hell? He was sure there’d been no pulse there until now, but… maybe he’d been wrong? It could have been so faint he just hadn’t noticed. “Step on it, Barry! She’s alive!”

Her eyes flew open as she sucked in a lungful of air. She started flailing weakly. No, reaching. She was reaching for something at her hip. There was nothing but an empty holster there, the gun long gone. Maybe it fell out at some point or she lost it during the job.

“Woah there, easy, easy,” he cooed as he reached over and grabbed her hand. “Hey, hey, look at me.” Her panicked eyes shifted to him then, and she blinked several times before the panic slowly melted away. “Yeah, remember me? The fumbling gonk from last night. And if you look in the driver’s seat you’ll find your favorite neighbor.”

Her gaze flicked forward and Barry waved to her in the rearview mirror. “Hey, V,” he said, his voice a bit shaky. “Gave us a bit of a scare there,” he added with a forced chuckle.

Her lips parted but no words came out, just barely audible moans. He felt her relax in his arms and her head lulled against his chest as her eyes fluttered close again as a soft sigh passed her lips. River, however, tensed up as he made sure his fingers stayed on the side of throat making sure he kept track of that soft sign of life.

She kept going in and out of consciousness for the rest of the drive. Sometimes he’d look down to find her watching him in silence only for her to close her eyes and drift away once again. One time she’d managed to utter a single name and he’d reassured her that Jackie had made it to the clinic and he’d been alive and well the last time he saw him.

That seemed to have eased her worries and she’d slipped off again and stayed unconscious until they parked outside Misty’s shop. With the merc bundled up in his arms he slipped out of the truck and hurried inside, running through Misty’s shop and out to the back alley then down the steps to the clinic. He was aware of Barry following behind, but he kept his attention on the woman in his arms.

“She’s alive,” he announced as he bounced down the steps. “Shot in the head.  Bullet’s still inside.”

“Chair, now,” Doctor Vektor said. “Everything’s ready.”

River placed her down gently, her head lulled to the side and he carefully straightened her up. The doc would need to see it to examine her, couldn’t do that if-

The doc just waved him aside, silently commanding him to step back and stay out of the way. His fingers swift and sure and every move deliberate. He soon had her connected to his computers and her vitals showed up on his displays. Misty joined them and fell into her role in assisting Vektor with the surgery, handing him tools when he asked, sometimes even before he asked, and wiped away blood  when needed.

River stepped back, unsure if he should leave or stay. The doctor hadn’t explicitly told them to leave, but then again he was too busy keeping V alive to really notice them.

“Think she’ll make it?” Barry asked quietly.

“She’s in good hands,” he said, keeping his voice equally as low so he wouldn’t disturb the doctor. He glanced at Barry. “I’ll be sticking around, if you want to go home and get some rest.” Barry hesitated so River added, “I’ll holler on the holo if anything changes.”

Barry nodded. “Alright, if you need to crash just come on up.”

“Thanks, man.” He patted Barry on the shoulder before the man shuffled out of the clinic. River puffed his cheeks and sat down on a stool and braced his elbows on his knees.

“...gotta cut through the occipital bone, no other choice…” Vektor said, mostly to himself. He did that for each thing he did, talked himself through everything. It reminded River of a dentist.

The surgery took a painstakingly long time and it was early morning by the time the bullet was out, her skull reinforced and the wound stitched and bandaged. He helped move her to a proper bed but the ripper didn’t want her moved to one of the back rooms where her partner was resting. He needed to keep an eye on her, he said, watch for any changes.

River didn’t argue and didn’t press the doctor about his own appointment even though the glitches were beginning to give him a raging headache. It wasn't important right now.

Vektor sat hunched in front of the computer, V’s vitals ticking in one corner and something else occupying most of the screen. A bunch of medical jargon that River couldn’t make heads or tails of, but he took note of the worries frowns on the doc’s face.

“Can’t be…” Vektor muttered to himself as he got up and walked to V’s side. He tilted her head slightly and pushed her hair out of the way to reveal her chip ports. River leaned forward, trying to see what he was doing, but then the computers started screaming and her vitals fluctuated wildly. “Shit,” Vektor muttered. He did something again and it all went quiet and her vitals slowly stabilized.

“What was that?” River asked and the doctor nearly jumped out of his skin.

“Dammit, Ward,” the man huffed. “Nearly scared the life outta me.” He ran hand through his thinning hair. “Not sure what it is, some experimental tech not on the market. It’s labeled ‘Relic 2.0’ on the main file and it seems to contain…a digital version of a person if I’m reading it correctly. Gotta do some more research though. But it’s damaged, I was gonna remove it but it seems to be…integrating with her neural net. Which concerns me,” the doc's words faded and River got the feeling he was mostly talking to himself again.

“Strange,” Vektor went on, now looking at her brain scan. “How very, very strange. Come, look here,” he said and motioned to the screen.

River pulled his stool over and peered at the screen though he wasn’t sure what he was looking at.

“See here,” Vektor said, pointing at some discoloration on the scan. “These are nanites that were stored within the chip. The bullet damaged the chip slot and the chip and somehow initiated what is called the ‘Engram Protocol’ according to the data I found. They seem to have started repairing her damaged brain tissue before you even made it into the city. In fact,” he said and opened up the live feed of her biomon. “Here it shows a full flatline for a full hour and twenty-three minutes, she was by all rights dead. But the nanites from the damaged chip brought her back.”

River frowned. “So I wasn’t imagining things when she suddenly regained a heartbeat.”

“Nope, she quite literally came back from the dead. But,” he opened another file, “this is what’s on the chip. From what I can gather it’s a digitised psyche, a copy of a person that the chip is now actively trying to upload to her neural net. Effectively working on erasing her in the process.”

River blinked. “What? What does that mean?”

“It means,” he said slowly. “That if we can’t separate the chip and the nanites from her brain, eventually V will no longer exist, and in her place will be this man; Robert John Linder. Also more commonly known as Johnny Silverhand. Rockerboy and terrorist from back in the twenties.”

“The guy that nuked Arasaka tower,” River finished. “How much time does she have? And what do we do?”

“Too early to tell, the process hasn’t even reached the first percentage,” Vektor said. “For now it seems that the nanites are more focused on healing her rather than rewiring her. Only once she’s back on her feet will I be able to make an estimate. As for what we do… I dunno, this is outside my field of expertise. Got no fucking clue where to even begin.”

River scratched his chin. “And guessin’ we can’t just take it out? That’s what you tried just now, right?”

Vektor nodded solemnly. “She’s dependent on it now, if we yank it out she’ll die. If it’s left in, she’ll die.” He sat up straight abruptly and turned to face River. “Well damn, I forgot about your appointment. Go on, get in the chair.”

“Oh, we can wait. I don’t mind. You must be exhausted.” God knows he himself was. It had been a very long night.

“Nonsense, siddown, detective.” Vektor rose and started tinkering with his tools. “Couldn’t sleep now even if I tried. So get in the chair. And let’s consider this appointment on the house. Payment for saving V’s life.”

After a moment of thought he decided to follow the doc’s orders and climbed  into the chair. It felt odd, knowing that mere hours ago the woman he’d talked to one single time, and had somehow burrowed into his mind and soul, had been fighting for her life in that very same chair. But that was true for most ripper chairs he supposed, but it just felt closer to home right at that moment.

“So,” Vektor said. “How’d you know V? Can’t say I've seen you around before.”

“Oh, heh, since the other day. We met less than forty-eight hours ago,” he gave the doc a sheepish smile. “Asked her out actually.”

“Now that’s what we call lucky timing,” Vektor chuckled. “Who knows what would’ve happened if you hadn’t been here. Hold still, time to remove the cybernetic eye…”

No matter how many times he’d done it, it always felt odd when the cybereye was taken out. He was still connected to it, and would see from both the angles of his regular eye and the cyber one. Which could be nauseating with too much movement.

“So my next question will be; Did she accept?” Vektor asked with a slight grin. “Known the kid for months now and can’t say I’ve ever seen nor heard her talking about dating. You must have been convincing.”

River let out a chuckle. “Guess I’m lucky too then. She did give me her number after all.” He glanced over her sleeping form and his smile faded. How trivial it was to talk about dating when she now had much more important things to worry about. He wanted to help her, but… What could he even do?

“My my, must truly be serious then,” Vektor mused and winked at him before looking down at the cyberware and kept on tinkering. “Ah, I see what the issue is now. This should only take a minute,” Vektor said slowly.

River leaned his head back and his attention drifted once again to V. Her chest rose and fell with the soft breathing of sleep and her expression was peaceful. No longer panicked or contorted in pain. But that didn’t mean she was alright. If what the ripperdoc said was true, then she was actively dying even if the vitals didn’t show it. To be deleted and replaced by another, he could barely imagine it. The thought was just too…otherworldly.

“That should do it,” Vektor said and inserted the cyberware back into its socket. “As good as new. You should get some rest, even heroes need sleep,” he chuckled. “If you want I could notify you when she wakes, though she’ll be out for a while. Got a lot of healing to do, that one.”

“If she consents to it, then I wouldn't mind,” River said as he slid off the chair and stood up.

“Of course, I’ll make sure to ask her. Go on now,” the doc said and nodded towards the exit. “And don’t be a stranger.”

“I won’t, don’t think my eye has been this good in ages,” he added with a wry smile. And it wasn’t a lie either. He stopped at V’s side and reached over to take her hand, but he stopped, unsure if she’d have wanted him to touch her. What could he even say? Sorry you're dying? Still up for that lunch? Good luck and may the odds be ever in your favor?

Sometimes silence was the best choice.

Still, he hoped she would survive.

Chapter Text

The news anchor lady was going on and on and on about the series of events on Konpeki Plaza. Though mostly the news about Saburo’s demise, and each news outlet got it all wrong. V rolled over on her side, one arm dangling off the edge of the couch as she peered up at the screen.

A drone had caught her and Jackie’s jump from the penthouse floor, though it was too far away and muddled by the rain to actually show them in any meaningful way. Her kiroshis protected her face, and the suit she’d worn was nondescript at best. Jackie’s case was a bit less fortunate, luckily the images were too blurred to make much out even on him. Though if they managed to clean up the image they would be able to make out some of the tattoos on his hands, not to mention his damn face. And that would spell disaster for them both.

She rolled back around and draped an arm over her eyes. Her head was pounding, but Misty’s omega blockers had chased away her new mind tenant for now, but not before the asshole had slammed her head repeatedly into the window. She’d hoped an ice cold shower would help, but the incessant throbbing continued.

Now she’d resorted to wallowing in her own misery while listening to the news reports of their train wreck of a heist.

A buzzing sound filled the apartment but she didn’t feel like getting up so she ignored it. Both Misty and Jackie could just go right on in, though they always buzzed once first anyway. She probably should have pinged him, but the last couple of days had been a nightmare and she hadn't had the energy to talk to anyone. 

She didn’t hear the swishing of the door opening as she’d expected to and instead the buzzer rang a second time. Sighing, she activated the intercom through her holo connection.

“What?” She said, nearly wincing at how rough her voice sounded even to her own ears. She hadn’t really spoken to anyone since Misty and Jackie had rolled her in the other day. Since then she’d been fighting for her life against the parasite leeching away at her neural net and his numerous attempts on her life. To say she’d gotten next to no sleep was putting it mildly.

“Got some chinese takeout,” a familiar voice replied through the intercom. “And some beers if you’d like some.”

She blinked, then sat up straight, the sudden movement aggravating her headache. That voice… Barry’s friend, the guy she’d given her number to because she found him cute. Then when she woke up in the car and lashed out in pure panic, he’d spoken to her. Softly and reassuringly.

He saved her life.

She jumped to her feet and stumbled her way to the door. She froze midstep, realising she and the apartment looked like a total mess, but decided to ignore it. The guy had seen her with her brains practically on display after all.

With a single button press she unlocked the door and it slid open. His large frame filled the doorway and that sweet smile on his face sent butterflies fluttering inside her stomach.

“Strangely enough,” she said, “chinese and beer is exactly what I needed right now.” She stepped aside and waved for him to enter. “I, uh, sorry about the mess. Wasn’t expecting guests and the last few days have been…yeah.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he said. His gaze flicked to her forehead, to her flashy new scar and the undeniable bruise that was forming. “You doing ok?”

“Oh, uhm,” she let out a tense chuckle, her mind racing for a believable excuse. “Yes, just had a bout of dizziness last night, a side-effect of my killer headache I’m guessing. Anyway, ended up headbutting the window. When I fell, that is…” She forced out a light laugh, hoping he’d drop the subject. He opened his mouth, probably to prod more, but then her stomach growled loudly for several seconds. “Food,” she said, flashing him a wide grin and snatching one of the takeout bags he was holding.

His laugh made warmth bloom inside her chest. Fucking hell, why was this man so, so, so… She barely knew him, she’d had all but one proper conversation with him, and even then he’d taken her breath away. Maybe there was something in the air, some kind of dispersed poison that made her so…giddy?

She spun around and bounced over the back of the couch, landing perfectly on the cushions. She propped her feet up on the table and opened up the bag, taking out the box inside. It smelled divine, and that made her stomach growl even more.

“Any preferences?” She asked as she started gobbling up the food. 

The couch dipped a bit as he sat down next to her, tough with decent enough space that he wasn’t encroaching on her.

“True Crime in Westbrook? It’s on channel six.”

She arched an eyebrow and slowly turned towards him. “Aren’t you a cop? Not enough crime on the job?”

The big guy shrugged. “I find that it helps give some perspective.”

V slowly shook her head. “You need a hobby, big guy,” she muttered in between bites.

“Maybe,” he said, and gave her a smile so breathtaking she almost forgot to chew her food. They ate in silence for a minute, the news continued blaring on the screen. Thankfully it had moved on to something else, apparently while she’d been laid out in Vik’s clinic the past two weeks the mayor had kicked the bucket.

Not that she cared about some dirty old suit. What was more important now was figuring out how to fix her problem. But where to even start? The only person she knew with experience with cyberware was Vik, but he’d already stated there was nothing more he could do to help her.

No, she needed someone higher up. But getting someone from Arasaka was a no go, if she contacted anyone there they’d hand her over immediately for the murder of Saburo. So she couldn’t go to them. But maybe she could get someone to come to her. The docs she’d grabbed in the penthouse had mentioned one Anders Hellman and the man had been on the holo with Yorinobu in the braindance.

However, nabbing a corpo suit wouldn’t be easy, she’d need Jackie’s help. And find someone to help them even find the guy…

“What’s yours?”

She blinked. “Huh?”

“Unless you want me to believe doing merc work is your hobby,” he said with a sly grin.

“Ha, funny guy. But gotta admit blasting scavs is quite fun. Doin’ my part in cleaning up the streets, Detective,” she added with a mock salute. But though he chuckled at her joke she could see the expectation on his face. “But, uhm, back with the Bakkers my mom tried to get me into medicine. Had me workin’ in the medical tent with her a lot more than I wanted to. But in my down time I used to tinker a lot. On engines and shit like that. Had a Galena I modified myself actually, but poor Gally broke down on our way here. Had to dump her.”

“Shit, that sucks. Did you ever get it back?” He asked with an earnest tone in his voice as if he really cared about her lost ride. Or maybe she just wanted him to care, though it didn’t matter. She was going to die, all odds stacked against her.

“No, I went back to where I left her but she was gone,” she sighed. “Someone must’ve found Gally and towed her away.” She gobbled down the rest of her food and washed it down with the beer he’d opened for her. A true gentleman, this guy.

“Or just desperate to get in your pants.”

She waved the thought away. Why would she even wonder that? She’d given him her number hoping something would come out of it herself. She’d be lying to herself if she claimed she didn’t find him attractive.

“Gimme a fuckin’ break. He’s a goddamn pig. A waste of your breath. Clock’s tickin’ and you're sitting here wondering what his cock would taste like. Look, I get it, we got off on the wrong foot, but I have an idea. One that’ll benefit us both, just gotta ditch this sad sack of shit. Fifty years might have gone by but-”

Right, that asshole. Those weren’t her thoughts at all. V grabbed the pill bottle from the table and popped the lid, then tossed back a pill while the terrorist went on about some friends of his that might still be around somehow. What a delusional prick.

“Fuckin’ pussy,” Johnny said. “Done some thinking, you gonk, don’t want you de-”

He fizzled out before he could finish talking and she let out a sigh of relief. The news circled back around and once again the short clip of blurry V and Jackie was playing on the screen. She glanced at River from the corner of her eye, gauging his reaction. But luckily the detective didn’t seem to be putting two and two together. At least not yet.

Maybe the parasite was right about one thing, hanging out with a cop, a detective, right now wasn’t the best idea. But… He seemed to be genuinely concerned, and not to mention genuinely interested in her. He wouldn’t have asked her out to lunch if he wasn’t.

What absolute shit timing.

V sighed. “You don’t have to do this, you know,” she said carefully.

“I know, but I wanted to check in on you, make sure you were doing alright. Wasn’t exactly in the best shape the last time I saw ya.” That soft smile again made her cheeks flush. 

“Yeah, guess not.” She looked down at the empty bottle in her hands. Why did his smile have to be so disarming? Blowing him off was not going to be an easy task. “River… Thanks for this, the lunch and all. For saving me. Guess I made your acquaintance just in time huh,” she added, and gave him a slight smile.

“Would’ve helped you even if we hadn't already met, V,” River said. “And you sort of helped yourself actually. Vik said that if you hadn’t tended to Jackie’s wound, he wouldn’t have made it to the clinic at all. It was him that gave us what we needed to track you down.”

“Heh, I guess all those hours in the medical tent came to good use,” she said, forcing out a low laugh. She should just tell him, get it over with. While before the job she’d had every intention to get to know him, now things were different.

Just say it, get it over with.

“River, I...this…” She paused, biting the inside of her cheek.

“Not how you envisioned our first date, huh?” He asked with a wry smile. And she did not fail to notice the suggestive, although fleeting, look in his eye.

“Hah, firstly this is not a date,” she huffed. “And secondly, it’s not like that, so get your mind outta the gutter, big guy. I’m not the kinda woman that’ll drag you off to the first motel ‘round the corner on the first date.”

River raised his hands. “Wasn’t implying that at all. Was thinkin’ more in the line of candlelight, dinner, maybe a movie.”

“Really?” She arched an eyebrow. A small voice in the back of her mind tried to remind her to shut him down, to tell him they weren’t happening anymore because of her fucked situation. But that small voice was too small. “I was under the impression that lunch was what you asked me out for.”

“Well, maybe dinner for the second da-”

The buzzer went off again and barely a second went by before the door swished open.

“Eeeeyy, chica! You’re finally back among the living,” Jackie exclaimed as he waltzed in, a takeout bag in one hand and a bottle of tequila in the other. He eyed River cautiously. “See el cerdo has made himself comfortable.”

“He got me some chinese and wanted to see how I was doin’ with one less hole in my head,” she said, flashing him a big grin.

“Ah shit, beat me to it, I suppose,” Jackie grunted. “Guess I’ll have to eat this delicious synt-chicken satay m-”

“Don’t you dare, gimme that!” She reached for the paper bag and the prick waved it out of reach for a solid three seconds before laughing and letting her have it. “You boys spoil me,” she snickered as she tore open the packaging and dug in to her second helping of lunch. Or maybe this counted as dinner at this point.

Jackie made himself comfortable, popped the cork on the tequila bottle and took a swig before handing it to her.

“So, chica, what’s the plan now? Gotta do something…” He glanced at River briefly. “About the thing.”

“I know about the chip,” River chimed in. “And the engram. There’s no need to be secretive about that.”

Her eyebrows shot upwards and she nearly spat out the tequila. Jackie was on his feet in an instant, gun drawn and pointed straight at River. V leapt up from the couch, positioning herself between the jumpy merc and the seated cop.

“Jackie,” she warned. “Talk first, shoot later. And sit your ass down.”

Jackie didn’t budge. “That what you told Dex too before he planted lead in your head?”

“Seriously low blow, man,” she huffed and rolled her eyes. “And need I remind you workin’ with that dipshit was your idea. Put your gun away and sit down. Now.” She stared him down until he holstered his gun and dumped back down on the couch.

“Well damn, hermana, you sound like my mama when you use that tone,” Jackie grunted. “Fine, do your thing.”

Her head was throbbing again, but she ignored it as she turned around and crossed her arms as she towered over him where he was still seated. The glare she gave the cop could almost set a building on fire. “Spill, what do you know? And don’t you dare omit a single dete.”

River cleared his throat. “I was in the clinic while your doc was figuring it all out,” he started. He held her gaze unflinchingly as he went on to basically repeat everything Vik and told her when she woke up, down to the fact that she was still dying. “What I’ve deduced myself is that this chip is a variant of the Secure Your Soul relic, and that you and your partner most likely did not acquire it through legal means. In fact, seeing as this experimental chip is not official yet in any reports, means that you had to acquire it from the source. Which would be Arasaka. Or perhaps…where recently the head of Arasaka was before he tragically passed away.” he gaze flicked to the screen. “More specifically Konpeki Plaza.”

“Can I shoot ‘im now, hermana?” Jackie said and she could hear the tension in his voice.

V ignored Jackie, though she too was itching for her gun. Wait…where the fuck was her gun? Later, she’d look for it later. She tried to swallow the lump in her throat, but her mouth was as dry as the fucking desert.

“We did not kill Saburo Arasaka,” V said, enunciating each word to drill in the statement further. “That is the plain truth. That wasn’t the job.”

“But you were there,” River stated matter of factly.

“And what are you going to do with this information?”

River shrugged. “Nothing. I don’t know anything,” he added, that sly little smile returning to his lips. “V, I promise you that no word that was spoken here nor at the clinic will be repeated to anyone that’s not Doctor Vektor, Mr. Welles, or yourself. You have my word.”

Jackie scoffed behind her and she was inclined to do the same. V reached forward, offering the cop her finger.

“Pinky promise,” she said. The surprise flashing across his face was worth all the gold in the world. “Gotta be a real cold son of a bitch to break a pinky promise, big guy.”

“Alright,” River chuckled then hooked his chrome pinky with hers. “I pinky promise. And I’ll add in that if you need my help with anything, don’t hesitate to ask.”

“Might take you up on that.” She tried not to relish his touch too much, and their pinky’s separated all too soon.

Jackie sighed. “As long as you leave the badge at home,” he muttered.

“Okay,” V breathed out and dropped back down on the couch. “Now that that's outta the way… Heard anything from Evelyn, Jack?”

“Nah, not a single ping. A bit strange, would think she'd be anxious to get the chip.” He still watched River with distrust, and perhaps she should as well. But she couldn't find it in herself to be suspicious of the man, not after he'd saved her life.

“With the amount of media cover your heist has gotten,” River started, “she’s probably laying low for now.”

“True, but we still need to find her,” V added. She rose and walked over to the window, leaning heavily on the sill as she looked out on the city without seeing it. Evelyn had known a lot about the Relic. More than someone in her position would, which meant there was someone else pulling the strings. Someone perhaps with enough knowledge on how to safely remove the damn thing. “Whoever she was working for might be able to help me get the chip out.”

“Not gonna be easy getting in touch with people like that,” Jackie mused. “Especially if we can’t get a hold of Parker, no.”

V drummed her fingers on the warm metal. The sun had descended behind one of the tall buildings but the heat still lingered for a little while longer. “There’s always Hellman,” V said as she turned around, crossing her arms as she leaned against the sill. “Is that something you can swing, big guy? He’s the lead scientist that worked on the Relic.”

River rubbed his chin, a furrow forming between his brows. “Might be above my level, but maybe a top tier fixer could scrounge something together. Like Rogue in the Afterlife.”

V exchanged a look with Jackie. If they were gonna afford Rogue’s service then they’d have to get out there now and grab every job, gig, and subcon they could get. That woman was not going to be cheap.

“We could do it, chica,” he said as if he’d read her mind. “But better get goin’ soon then.”

She nodded curtly. No time like the present. “There’s one more thing,” she said and fixed her gaze on River. “I made Dex a promise before he shot me. And I fully intend to keep it. Think you can find out where that rat scurried off to?”

He held her gaze for several seconds, probably trying to read her intentions. And right now she couldn’t give a flying fuck if the cop knew that she wanted to murder the shit out of that asshole.

“Definitely think I can swing that,” he said eventually. He rose. “Alright, sounds like we all have some work to do. When I find something you’ll be the first to know.”

She pushed off and strolled across the room to her wardrobe, grabbed a quick outfit then jabbed in the code to her armory. She was keenly aware of River’s eyes on her with every move she made. “You guys mind stepping outside? Gotta change.”

“Why?” River asked with a twinkle in his eye. “That shirt’s kinda cute on ya. Unless it’s a warning about a second date.”

She arched an eyebrow then glanced down. On the front of her shirt was the illustration of a pig with a knife stabbed through its head and blood and brains spraying out. Her cheeks were instantly aflame and it got even worse when Jackie barked out a loud laugh and River smirked.

“I…uhm, it’s not… Fuck, I just grabbed something this mornin’,” she rambled while her cheeks reached the scorching heat of the sun. He’d said ‘second date’. So he wasn’t scared off by all the shit she was in. Whatever that means for what they’ll be or not she’d have to think about later. “And today does not count as a date. We said ‘go out’ and eating in my pad is not ‘going out’.”

“Hold on,” Jackie said, suddenly catching on to what they were talking about. “You guys are fucking dating?” Jackie blurted out. “Jesús Cristo, V…”

“Hey, no judging,” she said and pointed her finger at him. “If he turns out to be an ass I’ll deal with him myself,” she cooed and winked at River. “Now, if the two of you could kindly step the fuck out. We got things to do and places to be.”

She shooed them outside, then tooka  steadying breath before she get herself ready and went after them. Time to get to work.

Chapter Text

“Fuckin’ hell,” she winced. She gritted her teeth as she slowly stuck the needle into her skin and began to close up the wound on her arm. The bullet had just grazed her, luckily, but it still hurt like a bitch. Her own fault, really, for getting all up and close once she’d run out of bullets.

“Evidence uploaded to the NCPD database,” Jackie said. “At this rate we might as well get our own badges, doing all their work for ‘em at this point. You good?”

“Yeah, almost done,” she grunted, tying off the stitches then cut the thread. “How much do we have now?”

“Mhm,” Jackie hummed. “Just rounded sixteen large.”

She opened the vehicle panel and called for her Hella. “Might be enough. Let’s go to the Afterlife. I’m drivin’.” She packed up her emergency kit and threw it into the drunk with the rest of her things. As she walked to the driver’s side, her phoned pinged

Hot Cop - 7:47 PM
This yours?
[ IMAGE ATTACHED ]

Her face split into a big ass grin when she saw the still of her beloved gun. The one she’d lost when dickhead shot her. She got in behind the wheel as she typed her response.

V - 7:50 PM
Dying Night!!!! My baby!!!
You have noooo idea how much I’ve missed that piece of iron! Thank you so much for findin her!!!

Hot Cop - 7:51 PM
Haha, a beloved piece I see ;-)
I’ll bring it by after I finish up here. Your place?

V - 7:52 PM
Maybe. We’re headed to the Afterlife now, gonna see if we can get an audience with the queen. Wish me luck!

Hot Cop - 7:52 PM
Good luck! Heard she’s a bit picky…
I’ll holler when I’m headed your way, if you’re not home we’ll just meet up instead. No stress.

“Usually helps to step on the chooh, chica,” Jackie drawled.

She glanced at him briefly. “River’s at the No-Tell motel, found my gun and lookin’ for clues.”

“Aw isn’t that sweet,” he grunted. “Can’t believe you’re actually gonna trust this guy. Let alone date his ass.”

“Amen to fucking that!” Johnny practically shouted. “If I’d been in the-”

“Right,” she cut in, glaring at the rearview mirror where the asshole showed up and flipped her off. “Time to go…” She typed a quick text before stuffing her phone into her pocket.

V - 7:56 PM
Sounds good! Gettin behind the wheel now, bye!

Hot Cop - 7:56 PM
Drive safe!

She started up Hella and soon they were on the road driving in silence. Near silence. The engram was singing along to some oldie rock song on the radio. Not just singing it, but being obnoxiously loud with the sole purpose to annoy the living shit out of her.

She switched the channel until she found the most annoying song in existence and turned up the volume. Jackie looked at her like she’d grown a second head because he knew she hated that song with a passion, but she was not about to explain the war in her head right now.

Johnny groaned and made gagging noises before he fizzled away.

Grinning like a fox, she flipped off the rearview mirror. Even though he wasn’t there she had a feeling he’d see it anyway. She wasn’t really sure how he worked yet aside from being a chronic pain in the ass.

“Dex really scrambled your brain, didn't he?” Jackie said slowly once the song ended. “First you start dating a pig and now you jammin’ to Pon Pon Shit? You ain’t right, chica.”

“Don’t forget that the only reason you can sit here and bitch about me slowly and literally losing my mind, is because I made sure you didn’t die,” she said sweetly. “Be nice or you can wait for your bike.”

“So touchy,” Jackie chuckled.

“So ungrateful,” she shot back whilst biting back a smile. Her vision flickered with pixelated glitches and she blinked rapidly to chase it away. Something moved in the rearview mirror and she glanced up to find that the engram had returned, lounging in the backseat.

“Look, obviously got off on the wrong foot here,” Johnny started but she had no intention of listening to his bullshit. She reached for the blockers she’d stuffed into her pocket. “Wait, just hold on a fuckin’ sec and let me finish. Goddamn… Look, I get it, you’re pissed off and I don’t blame you one bit. But I’ve been thinkin’, and figured we could work together on this-”

“You got some fucking nerve,” she practically hissed at the digital ghost. “First you're out to kill me, now you wanna be my pal like nothing happened? Seriously?”

“Woah there, chica, chill… Thought we were just jokin’ around,” Jackie said, taken aback by her outburst.

“No, not you. I was…talking to the engram…” Just saying those words out loud made her as insane as it sounded like.

“Don’t gotta talk out loud to talk to me. I’m in your damn head.” Johnny snorted as if it was that obvious. How was she supposed to know how this shit worked?

“What do you want?” She glared at his reflection.

“Like I said, I’ve processed some shit, changed my mind. Besides, heard you talkin’ about Rogue and I can help you with that.”

She rolled her eyes. “You? Help me with Rogue? Go fuck yourself, dickwipe.”

“Hey, wasn’t easy for me either. You woke up with an extra hole in ya, I woke up in your head. Wrestling with your thoughts, your memories. Think we’re even. And I’ve taken a step back in case you didn’t notice, looked at things and think we can help each other. We can start with Rogue, her and I go back to the stone ages.”

“You’re the ghost of christmas past, asshole, any friends you had are either dead or so old their memory’s gone.”

He looked straight into her eyes, lowering those idiotic aviator glasses. “Johnny Silverhand died a legend. Nobody forgets that.”

The traffic light switched to red and instead of slamming on the brakes she stomped down on the chooh instead. Someone honked and shouted at her as she sped through the intersection, narrowly missing another car.

Jackie cleared his throat. “You alright or…”

“Not now,” she said curtly.

“So you fuckin’ know Rogue,” she said, returning her attention to her backseat passenger. “What would I say to her? I got a talkin’ brain tumor claiming to be her old friend Johnny?”

The asshole shrugged. “Trust me, Rogue’s heard dumber shit than that. Way back when you weren’t even an itch in your daddy’s ballsack.”

She cut a grimace. “Dude, gross.”

“Rogue’ll dance to any tune I play her. Just get us to the Afterlife.”

“One, we’re already going there, asshole. And two, there is no ‘us’.”

“Whatever, just get us there,” he snorted, then fizzled away causing her vision to glitch again.

“Dickhead,” she muttered under her breath. She noticed Jackie watching her closely, a concerned frown etched into his forehead. She sighed. “Johnny thinks he can help us with Rogue. He used to know her, back in the twenties.”

“Huh, if she even remembers him,” he said off-handedly, though that concerned look persisted.

“‘Xactly what I said,” she scoffed. “And seriously, Jack, I’m fine. Stop worrying.”

“I’ll stop when you’re no longer dyin’. Can’t help but feel guilty, you know,” he said and looked away. “You didn’t even want to work with Dex, but you did for me, chica. And look at you now.”

“Yeah well… I still made the decision to do the job,” she said slowly. “It’s not your fault, I coulda said no. Coulda backed out.” She pulled into a parking lot and took the space next to a black and red Herrera Outlaw. “Nothin’ we can do now except try to keep me from dying. Again,” she added with a slight smile.

She killed the engine and stepped out of the car. Felt odd, walking down those steps into the club. Last time they were here the air had been thick with nerves and anticipation. Now… Well now she was just desperate for any lead that could save her.

“Hey,” she said cooly to the bouncer, Emmeric, who was blocking the door.

He just nodded. “In ya go,” he said, sounding bored.

She glanced at Jack briefly before stepping inside. She’d expected more of a pushback from the bouncer like last time though he must have remembered them. She set course for the booth she’d seen Rogue sue last time, giving the bartender a slight nod as they walked passed. Jackie fell in step behind her, acting more like hustle than a partner.

“No,” a woman said within Rogue’s booth. “This trouble, the net around me, you wove it,” the woman sneered. “You know it, I lost everything! Through you!”

“Lemme be plain. Again,” Rogue said, unimpressed by the other one’s rising temper. “Solve your own problems, clean up your own shit.”

“You know what, Rogue? Go fuck yourself.” The woman spun on her heel and marched out of the booth, bumping her shoulder into the hustle on her way out. Their eyes locked. “Be careful who you bargain with,” she warned before storming off.

She watched the woman go, her attention locking on the logo on the woman’s jacket. Aldecaldos, a nomad. She exchanged a glance with Jackie before turning to face the old fossil of a fixer. Hopefully she’d have more luck than the angry nomad.

She cleared her throat then stepped closer to the bodyguard, earning herself a warning look. She ignored him and tried to get eye-contact with Rogue.

“Rogue? Wanted to talk,” she said, trying to sound confident.

Rogue looked her up and down, her face an unreadable mask. Then she waved a hand. “It’s ok,” she said to the hustle.

One step closer. Now hopefully Jackie would let her do the talking, he wasn’t always too good at that. Hell he’d almost gotten them fucker over with Maelstrom the way he was squaring off with Dum Dum instead of sitting his fucking ass down. She looked over her shoulder at him, then nodded towards the hustle, hoping he’d get the memo. He just shrugged and went to wait outside the booth.

“Hmm, not here, not there. Who’re you?” Rogue said as she turned to face her. She didn’t offer her to take a seat so V remained standing before the Queen.

“Name’s V,” she simply said. Since their disastrous heist was plastered all over the feeds, she had a feeling Rogue actually already knew who she was. The fixer was probably just making conversation, feeling her out.

“And what is it you want, V?” Rogue asked curtly. Blue glitched flickered across her vision and Johnny bounced onto the couch and sat down perched on the back of it. She took a deep breath. Of course he was going to make things difficult…

“All these years… It’s really her. Fuckin’ Rogue, just kickin’ it back on a couch at the Afterlife. Don’t mess with her, she’s got MR-eyes. See right through you. Give ‘er the truth.”

“Stay out of my way…”

She squared her shoulders. “Need your services. Gotta track a guy down.”

“Mhm?” Was all Rogue said, still seemingly disinterested in her.

“Anders Hellman,” she went on. “Hot-shot engineer. Worked for Arasaka.”

Interest sparked in Rogue’s eyes. “Millisec.” Her eyes glowed as she activated a holo-call. “Anders Hellman. Pinpoint him for me?”

V blinked. That was easy… She let out a short laugh. “Thanks.”

Rogue leveled a look at her. “Jumpin’ too soon. First, my help comes at a price. Second and third… Dexter DeShawn, T-bug… Ring any bells? One dead, one missing. Yet you and your partner walked out unscathed.” Her piercing eyes seemed to see right through her, or maybe that was just Johnny’s comment putting her on edge.

“Theeere’s the bitch I know,” Johnny said, grinning. “Ask her about ‘Saka Tower. How they shot me up in front of her.”

V crossed her arms and held Rogue’s stare. “They knew the risk. All sorts of shit happens to all sorts of people. Happens to the best. To you too, Rogue,” she added with a little smile. “Arasaka Tower, ‘member? Who’d you lose back then? Johnny something…”

Rogue leaned back, a ghost of a smile playing on her lips. “Ah, you came prepped. ‘Course. Anyways, feelings be damned, I’ve always said. This is pure biz. You need my help, so get those eddies ready.”

Johnny nodded in the corner, mighty satisfied with himself. “Mhm, see?” He said, reeking of self importance.

A payment request appeared in her notifications and her heart nearly stopped. Holy fuck, good thing they’d scrounged together all they could. Her mouth went dry as she accepted the request, transferring a full fifteen thousand eddies. Almost everything they’d earned after a full day of running between gigs.

“There you go,” she said, trying her best to sound unfazed at the amount.

Rogue gave a curt nod. “Come back tomorrow, we’ll talk.”

“Till then,” she said before turning and walking out of the booth.

Once they were out of view from the booth she let out a long shuddering breath. That was that, they had the ball rolling on Hellman. Jackie grinned like a hellion.

“Holy shit, V, this is next level,” Jackie snickered like an excited child. “Rogue Amendiares… The queen of the fucking Afterlife talkin’ to us… Well, you, but still. Doesn’t get any higher than this.”

She rolled her eyes. “You said that about Dex too… And this time I’m definitely not in for the fame. Fuck being a living legend. I just wanna survive this shit.”

Live. And go home. See her family again. She hadn’t exactly left on the best of terms. She'd gotten a mere handful of texts from Vinnie about how amazing it is to be part of Snake Nation. And her mom… Well, she assumed she was still pissed about her leaving for Night City since the woman hadn’t even bothered to open the texts V had sent her the past few months. Not a single peep.

“Earth to V, you okay?”

“Huh, yeah, sorry.” She gave him a sheepish smile. “Was just thinking. While we wait for Rogue to do her thing I’m gonna head over to Lizzie’s, see if Evelyn’s hiding out there or if anyone knows anything. Judy might actually know something, they seemed close… Don’t have to come with, I can handle this one on my own.”

“You sure?” he asked, frowning.

“Yeah, I got this. ‘Sides, Judy’s a bit jumpy, doesn’t like strangers. She might not talk if you’re there.” She nudged his shoulder. “Go, spend some time with Misty, It’s been a busy day, after all.”

“I mean… If you insist I’m not gonna turn that down,” he shrugged.

They left the Afterlife and hung by her Hella until Jackie’s bike arrived. She waved him goodbye before getting in behind the wheel herself, though she didn't turn the engine on. Maybe instead of going all the way to Lizzie’s, she could just call Judy instead. Would for sure be much faster.

She opened the augmented interface and flicked through her contacts with through command until she found the name she was looking for and initiated a call.

Judy answered on the second ring.

“V? That you? Sheesh, I thought you were… gone,” Judy blurted with a surprising amount of worry in her voice.

“Heh, you’re not alone in thinkin’ that…” V scoffed. “Thought it was game over for me too.”

“Things went ass up, huh, not as planned?”

V arched an eyebrow. “Heard about the heist, I take it. Must have talked to Evelyn,” She prodded, hoping Judy would tell her something. Anything.

Judy rolled her eyes. “Didn’t need to. Whole damned city’s heard.”

V sighed. Right… “Listen. I need to find Evelyn,” she said. To hell with being coy and shit.

“I really don’t wanna talk about her,” Judy said curtly, her lips pressing into a thin line.

V ignored her comment. “Know where she is?”

Judy glared. “What’d I just say? Drop it. I won’t tell ya again.”

“Judy… You're my one hope, the only lead I got.” V leaned her head back against the head rest. “I gotta find her. And I know you can help me do that.”

“Who told you I’d want to?” Judy shot back.

“Can we meet? Let’s meet, please. You at Lizzie’s?”

Judy didn’t answer, just ended the call and left her sitting there in silence.

“Dammit,”she hissed, and hit the steering wheel in frustration. Fine, she would just have to march down into her den after all. Her finger hovered over the ignition button just as a message ticked in.

Hot Cop - 8:47 PM
Closing in on the Afterlife. You still there?

Headlights lit up the inside of her car for a second before an old and dirty Thorton Mackinaw rolled into a parking spot just a couple spaces down from her. She bit her lip, then stepped out of her car and locked it behind her before walking over to the Mackinaw. After one glimpse of the person inside, she opened the passenger door and slipped into the free seat.

“Slick wheels, Detective, though it does need some love,” she said, flashing him a big smile. She noticed his hand was hovering over his gun, probably spooked by her sudden appearance.

He let out a breathy chuckle. “V, shit, thought I was about to get jumped,” he said, visibly relaxing. “Guessin’ you’re here for what’s in that glove compartment.” 

Gleefully like a child she opened the compartment and snatched her beautiful gun. “You’re officially my favorite badge, big guy.” The weight of her gun was a wonderful feeling, she’d missed it more than she realized. “Seriously, thanks a lot. Find anything else?”

He nodded. “Got some footage, caught your fixer facing one of the cams. Currently sequencing his face and the license plate of the car they stashed you in. Hopefully we can track their movements through the city, though with cameras at every intersection, that shouldn’t be too hard. Unless he covered his face and swapped wheels.”

“Let’s hope he’s not that smart then,” she said wryly.

“Nothing to do but wait now," River said. “So, wanna grab that lunch? Or something.”

“Actually, I’m on my way to Lizzie’s,” she said slowly. River arched an eyebrow in a silent question. “Not for thrills,” she added quickly. “Just talked to Judy, a friend of Evelyn’s, and she was extremely irritated when I asked about her. I just wanna head over there before she can give me the slip.”

“Alright then, buckle up.” He started the engine and started backing out of the parking spot before she could even blink.

“Uhm,” she said slowly as she put on her seatbelt. Not because he’d told her to, but because of personal experience from her teenage years. “You’re coming with?”

“If you don’t mind, of course,” he shrugged. “Figured you could use the backup since your partner isn’t here. And besides, the Deshawn case is currently in limbo until I get cam hits, so I got the time.”

She bit back a smile. “Look, I sent Jackie home ‘cause Judy is jumpy around strangers. No offence, but doubt your badge is gonna make her feel any better.”

“Then I’ll wait outside,” he simply said, his little smile sending butterflies fluttering in her stomach and her cheeks warming up.

“‘Kay, deal.” She rolled down her window and leaned her elbow on the frame, the wind tossing her hair around. Having him near was strangely comforting considering the short time she’d known the guy. But it was just…right. And that feeling also sparked guilt, reminding her that she lived on borrowed time and there was a chance she wouldn’t for more than a few weeks.

She was wasting his time, while flirting with him felt good, exciting… he should be spending that time looking for someone that he could actually have a real relationship with.

“Tell him to fuck off then,” Johnny chimed in with pure glee. Of course, he’d want nothing else than for her to ditch the cop. But…he had a point.

She breathed in the chilled night air. “River,” she started, but the words eluded her. Silence fell over them until River spoke up.

“I know,” he said. “I stand by my offer to help you, V. Date or no date, if I were in your shoes I’d want to focus on surviving too, rather than whether or not to date a guy I just met.”

She studied his face closely, reading the sincerity on his face as well as in his voice. This guy had to be some kind of saint. A rare breed in this city.

“Thanks,” she said after a moment. “Just know that when I gave you my number I fully intended to, you know, explore our options or something.” She felt her face flush with warmth as the words passed her lips. She was talking like they were already in some kind of committed relationship. But talking to him felt so natural, right. “What I mean is that it’s…we shouldn’t start something right now. With everything going on.”

“I understand,” he said with a small smile. “Wanna be my friend though?” he added with a playful glint in his eye.

She let out a breathy chuckle. “Yeah, friends’re good.”

They rolled up on Lizzie’s and River had to drop her off because the parking lot was filled to the brim. Not ideal, seeing as he would have to idle on the side of the road or circle the street. Not that she expected any issues of the kind that would need a quick getaway, but you never knew in places like this.

“Hey, haven’t I seen you here before? Got a good memory for faces,” Rita Wheeler drawled. “Here for a good time?”

“Need to talk to Punchin’ Judy,” V said, cutting straight to the chase. “She in her den?”

“Yep,” Rita said, shrugging her shoulders then she stepped to the side. “Take the stairs down. I’ll let Judy know you’re coming.”

She gave the bouncer a nod in thanks before striding inside. The crowd inside the main room was insane. Models walked the stage, moving seductively to get the frothing guests to choose their BDs. The more views, the more revenue they pulled.

She managed to make her way to the BD lounge area where there were a lot less people. Some Joytoys stood talking in the hallway, one even trying to halt her as she walked by while the guy she was talking to hushed her saying she was Judy’s friend. He must have seen her come out of the den last time she was here.

Voices could be heard at the bottom of the stairs and became even clearer as she stepped through the doors leading to the den.

“Stop telling every joytoy you meet to come here,” a woman huffed. “The hell am I supposed to do with ‘em all?”

“I don’t,” Judy shot back. “Must be our rep. The girls need help, they come here,” Judy added off-handedly.

V approached slowly, unsure of whether or not to disrupt the conversation. On the upside though, Judy wasn’t about to go anywhere.

“Last time I checked, we weren’t running a shelter,” the other woman scoffed.

“Come on, they all deserve a chance,” Judy pleaded. “Any one could end up useful. Give it some time, they’ll pay for themselves.”

V stepped forward, catching Judy’s eye. Her face instantly turned into a scowl when the woman noticed her. The second woman caught the shift in Judy’s behavior and followed her gaze.

The woman’s eyes shot daggers. “You so concerned about strays, go take care of your guest,” she spat before marching off.

“Suze! We’re not done here,” Judy called after her.

“Oh yeah, we fuckin’ are!”

V bit the inside of her cheek and only hesitated a second before going the last couple steps into Judy’s little BD den just as she dropped down on the chair behind her desk. Judy’s scowl deepened.

“You just don’t give up, do you?” Judy pressed her lips into a thin line, her eyes narrowed. “Got nothin’ more to say to each other. Thought I made that clear. Or was I just too subtle for you…”

“Listen,” V sighed, she didn’t have time for some damn verbal sparring. “Have you seen Evelyn? Need to talk to her. It’s important.”

Judy leaned back, frowning. “Why? So you can make her your scapegoat for your trainwreck of a heist?”

“Just need to know who she was working for,” V pushed on, ignoring Judy’s distrust for her. She didn’t care and had no time to fuck around. Not when the Relic’s installment bar was taunting her every second. 11%, moving slowly. For now.

“That’s it?” Judy blurted out.

“That’s it,” V repeated. “Judy, you don’t need to worry, I won’t lay a hand on her. The job… It wasn’t a total bust. But I need to get in contact with her to move forward.”

Judy watched her for several heartbeats, as if she stared hard enough she’d be able to read her mind or something. But then the tension in her shoulders seemed to melt away along with her apprehension.

“Fine, all right… Evelyn’s a doll,” Judy started. “Used to work at Clouds. Cig case on my table’s got the address,” she said, gesturing to a small, metallic case. “Take it, and once you find Evelyn, give it to her.”

“Thanks,” V said and stepped around the desk and grabbed the case, flipping it open and scanning the address. “Megatower? Luxurious.” She gave Judy a curt nod before heading for the doors.

“Wait,” Judy said suddenly. V stopped in her tracks and glanced back, reading the worry on Judy’s face. “Umm… Just let me know how she’s doing, okay?”

“Sure, I’ll give you a call,” she said softly.

“Thanks… Thank you, V.” Judy turned to face her computer screens, but she didn’t turn it on. Just sat there staring at the blackness.

Maybe she should’ve comforted her in some way or something, but instead she just walked away and flicked River a quick text telling him she was on her way out again. When she got outside she spotted River’s truck still idling where she’d left him. She jogged over and jumped into the passenger seat.

“Did she talk?” River asked as she put on her seatbelt.

“Yeah, next stop is Clouds,” she said. “Evelyn used to work there, they might know where she’s run off to.”

“Alright then, to the dollhouse we go.”

It wasn’t a long drive to Clouds, a few minutes later River rolled into a parking spot and killed the engine. They walked up the steps and entered an elevator where she punched the right floor number. 

She crossed her arms and leaned against the wall. Her vision flickered and she swallowed down the wave of nausea that hit her the moment Johnny fizzled into existence pointing finger guns at the cop across from her. V rolled her eyes.

“Grow the fuck up,” she muttered out loud before catching herself. River arched an eyebrow. “Not you,” she added hurriedly. “The parasite. He’s being a nuisance.”

“Ah, I see,” River said slowly, but a frown formed on his face.

She bit the inside of her cheek. “I know it sounds…crazy. But I can see him and hear him. Sometimes. We're sorta two minds sharing headspace, ya know.” She wasn’t sure why she felt the need to explain herself, but she knew for certain she didn’t want him to think she’d lost it.

His frown, however, deepened. “He’s active? I was under the impression the upload would take a while.”

V shrugged. “He is active, but the neural rewiring process is at 10%.”

The elevator dinged and they walked in silence towards the big neon lights leading the way to Clouds’ main entrance.

“More Tygers,” Johnny mused.

“Huh?”

Johnny sighed dramatically. “Don’t pay much attention do you? Nah, all you can think about is Detective Flacid over here.”

“Get to the point, asshole.”

“Guess I gotta spell it out to ya. Braindance chick is hiding somethin’. No coincidence we’ve seen multiple Tyger Claws already. They must control the building.”

She frowned. “Think this is a trap? Think Judy’s lying?”

“Something wrong?” River asked, studying her face closely.

“See the Tygers?” She nodded to another pair hovering the shadows.

“Well fuck me sideways, taking the cred for my observation. Slick move, cunt.”

“Yeah, but as long as we don’t bump into any familiar faces, we should be good.” He didn’t elaborate further on that and gestured for her to enter Clouds first. She arched an eyebrow but didn’t ask. He probably had beef with some Tyger Claws, had probably arrested more than a handful of them too.

As they entered the reception area the woman behind the counter looked up, smiling sweetly.

“Welcome to Clouds,” she announced enthusiastically. “Where we know what you’re looking for. Jack into the terminal and we shall find you both a perfect match. Will it be a joint session or separate?”

“Uhm,” V said slowly, glancing at River and spotting the smile he was clearly trying and failing to hide. “Actually… we, uh…” She couldn’t help it, all her mind could think about right now was River in a state of undress lounging on a bed. Which did not help at all. 

River reached into his pocket and held out his badge. “We’re looking into a doll, one that recently worked here.”

The receptionist blinked. “Oh, my apologies, detectives, wasn’t aware you were cops,” she said with a nervous tinge to her voice. “This must be about the incident a few days ago, right? I wasn’t here that day so I can’t tell you much. But feel free to check the booth. Booth eleven, I believe it was.”

“Thank you so much for your help,” River said, giving the woman a disarming smile that seemed to melt the woman where she stood.

“Before you go,” the woman said. “We have a strict no-weapons policy here at Clouds. Please leave all items in a locker by the door.”

“Of course,” River said with a curt nod. She trailed after River towards the lockers where she unholstered Dying Night and stuffed it into a compartment. River arched an eyebrow. “No other weapons?”

She shrugged and raised her arms, twisting her hands back and forth to show off her gorilla arms implants. “I’m a simple woman, detective.” She didn’t wait for his answer and instead turned to the lady behind the counter. “Hey, miss, do I gotta detach these? Or can I keep ‘em?”

“I suppose doing your investigation without arms would be somewhat awkward,” she snickered. “You may keep those. Just…don’t use them.”

“‘Course, thanks. Alright, partner, let’s do this thing.” The ventured into the main hall as brightly lit with neon and the entrance had been. She scanned the area, ignoring the obvious sounds of people fucking and doing whatever behind the shaded glass walls.

She spotted some descending numbers and turned down a hallway, wandering with River silent at her side until they found booth eleven. The glass door slid open, letting them in and slid shut behind them. She turned to River, crossing her arms.

“Really gonna snoop around here or should we split up, go ask some of the dolls some questions?” She asked.

“Doesn’t hurt to look around first,” River said, walking over to a stain on the wall. “Would look strange if we don’t. Hmm”

“Fair enough,” she shrugged. “What’re you saying ‘hmm’ about?”

“Blood on the wall, a couple of days old. Small wound,” River stated.

“Huh, so shit hit the fan in here… Think that holo projector got anything?” She strode over to the setup, kneeling down by the case and pressed the power button. Lit silhouettes appeared on the bed and her heart skipped a beat. “Holy shit, that’s Evelyn.”

“Seriously?” River blurted out.

“Hundred percent,” she muttered. The guy was kissing Evelyn’s feet, trailing upwards while Evelyn moaned exaggeratingly. There was no way she felt that good from that sloppy act from the guy.

Then her brow furrowed and Evelyn reached for her head, her breathing growing heavier for a second before she started spasming. Violent seizures threw her about on the bed and the guy she was with fell back, scrambling away. The seizures seemed to end, though only long enough for her to catch a breath before she got up on her feet, stumbling around. She stumbled forward, hitting her head on the wall where bloodstain was then collapsed on the floor in a frozen state, like her muscles just seized up making her unable to move.

“Well, look at that, doll going psycho. Mystery solved.”

“Shut the fuck up,” she snarled at him. “Call me crazy,” she said out loud to River. “But this looks like a remote hack to me. A netrunner must have accessed the subnet somehow.” 

River nodded. “Weird, or maybe not. You guys made a lot of enemies after Konpeki. Surely someone has to be pissed off it went sideways.”

“I guess… or maybe whoever she worked for decided to clean house. Like Dex did with me.” The holo projection ended with Evelyn motionless on the floor, her breathing ragged. Nothing else, nothing about what happened after. Whether she died in this room or not. “This doesn’t tell us much. Aside from her getting attacked.”

“If anyone knows, it’d be the boss of this place,” he said and V nodded in agreement.

“You know, I have a feeling this gig would have been much harder without you, big guy,” she said, flashing him a wide grin. “Do your thing, flash your badge, get us an audience with the king!”

His laughter made her toes curl. Damn he had no right to sound so…so… So goddamn fine. The sound of his voice, his laugh. His chiseled handsomeness. It was all enough for her to just get lost in—

“Well, you comin’?” River asked and only then did she realise he’d said something.

“Uh, sorry. Johnny was being loud,” she said hurriedly and set off towards the door.

“The fuck? I didn't say shit!”

“Zip it, limp dick.”

She paused long enough to let River take the lead and trailed after him through Clouds, unabashedly enjoying the view of his broad shoulders. The mere thought caused her brain tenant to mentally gag and pretend heave like some kind of goddamn little brat.

They reached the entrance to the VIP section, where a grumpy looking guard held up a hand to stop them.

“Show your membership cards,” he grunted.

River reached into his coat and pulled out his badge. “Need to talk to your boss,” he said. “It’s regarding the incident with the doll,” he added, laying heavy emphasis on ‘incident’, though she wasn’t sure why he did.

She felt Johnny roll his eyes. 

“What?”

“Just sometimes it feels like you’ve been living under a rock. Oh wait, you actually have! HA!”

She gritted her teeth. “Care to enlighten me then, o’ wise dipshit?”

“Fine,” Johnny sighed. “Detective Turd Head has deduced the same thing as me, I reckon. The Tygers Claws, dumbass. The building is full of them. Whatever happened to that joytoy needs to stay on the hush hush. Can’t have words of a doll going batshit crazy, bad for biz. And bad biz is unhealthy. Of the deadly kind. Whoever runs this place does not wanna get on their bad side. You followin’, dust brain?”

“No need to be a dick,” she grumbled. Sure, she didn’t know all there was to know about Night City and the gangs and all that, but she knew enough to survive anyway. Jackie had been a good help there, maybe she should’ve brought him along after all…

“Fine,” the guard grunted, responding to something River had said that she’d been too distracted to hear. “On you go, but don’t mess around,” he added, giving them both a warning glare.

River just nodded then the pair of them went through the doors and up the stairs to the VIP area. Right into the den of the tiger.

Chapter Text

“Sleazy motherfucker,” he heard V mutter under her breath as they left the establishment. “Bettin’ you he did something to her,” V said, glancing at him briefly. “No fucking way he just helped her out of the goodness of his heart.”

He just nodded. Mister Forrest had that air about him, a man that took whatever he wanted when he wanted with no care about those he hurt along the way. Definitely not a gentleman in any sense of the word. Hell, the way he spoke to V in there had him bristling, he even considered punching the fucker in the face and he could tell V was itching to activate her gorilla arms too.

But the guy had talked, had pointed them in the right direction. Hopefully.

They got into the truck and he started driving towards Jig-Jig Street. Though it wasn’t far and they could’ve walked, but he was starting to feel like time was off the essence here for Evelyn. He only half listened to V as she called her friend, letting Judy know what they’d found out and where they were going next.

“Know anything about this guy? Fingers?” V asked just as River parked the truck outside the infamous Jig-Jig Street

“Only rumors,” he said. “Supposedly he’s generous to his clients. Takes other payments than eddies, if you get what I mean.”

V wrinkled her nose. “Another sleazy asshole… Fucking great,” she said dryly, looking downright disgusted at the mere thought.

He looked her up and down, noting the stiffness in her shoulders, how she pressed her lips into a thin line. The cold fury in her eyes that she tried to hide from him. Ever since their conversation with Mr. Forrest she’d been wound up tighter than a priest's balls in a dollhouse and his detective brain wanted to find out why. Why react so harshly? Was it all just because of Evelyn, a woman she’d known for a hot second? Was she scared that Evelyn might not be able to help? Or was it something completely unrelated but talking to Woodman had triggered some kind of past trauma?

They walked through the lively street in silence, River keeping a close eye on V while she looked like she was a million miles away, not really seeing anything around her. Lost in her own mind. Talking to the parasite or reliving past memories? Or perhaps worrying about Evelyn. The possibilities were endless.

They rounded a corner and were met by three wannabe thugs blocking the door to the clinic. The idiots barely got to open their mouths before V grabbed one of them by the face and threw him aside like he was nothing more than a ragdoll. 

“Outta my fucking way,” she growled, the other two guys backing up immediately.

“Chill out… Fuckin’ hell man,” one of the grumbled while the other ran over to their fallen comrade, helping the guy back on his feet.

“Crazy bitch,” the other spat, before they all hurried away, dragging their choom with them.

He followed V inside. Something was up for sure. It was like someone had flipped a switch and the sweet woman was swapped out with a merciless…well, merc.

“You good?” He asked carefully as they ascended some stairs.

“Yeah,” was all she said, though it didn’t sound very convincing. However, it was clear she didn’t want to talk about it so he kept his mouth shut and just let her lead the way.

They entered a waiting area and a woman was pacing anxiously back and forth. The woman’s eyes locked on them the second they stepped inside.

“There you are,” she said, then her gaze flicked to him and her eyes immediately narrowed. “The hell, V? A badge? You serious?”

Three of the people sitting on the waiting couches immediately jumped to their feet and rushed outside, casting worried glances at him as they pressed past him. Of all the patients waiting, only two remained. One lying on the couch grabbing her gut in pain and the other holding her hand in comfort. The latter, a man, kept giving River nervous glances.

River caught the man’s eye and shrugged. “I’m off the clock,” he just said, but it was enough for the man to relax a bit.

“A detective,” V specified, talking to the woman he assumed was Judy, the friend of Evelyn V’d mentioned earlier. “One that saved my life when he didn’t have to. If you don’t trust him, then trust me, Judy. He’s good.”

Judy hummed, watching him through narrowed eyes. “Fine, but you keep your pet pig on a short leash.” She spun on her heel and began banging on the door again.

V glanced up at him, giving him an apologetic smile. He just shrugged, Judy’s behavior wasn’t his first judgmental rodeo. Everywhere he went there were cop haters in one shape or form, he was more surprised when he was welcomed with open arms these days. 

“Fucker is taking his damn time in there,” Judy muttered under his breath.

“Then let’s hurry things up a bit,” V said as she marched to the door. Judy stepped to the side as V activated her gorilla arms and jabbed her fingers into the crevice. Her arms hissed for a second before she tore the door open like it was made of a piece of paper. 

“W-what the hell?” A guy exclaimed inside. The ripperdoc they were looking for River assumed. “Get out of my clinic! Right now!”

Judy let out a whistle. “Nice,” she said, giving V an appreciative look before she strode inside. V followed in after her, sticking by her side with her arms primed and ready in case the ripperdoc should try anything stupid.

River leaned on the door frame and crossed his arms. Not that he thought that Fingers would be able to get past V, but on the off chance that he did then the door would be blocked.

“Evelyn Parker,” V barked at the man, ignoring the poor doll lying in the ripper chair with half her face missing. “I know she wound up here at your…clinic.” Even if he couldn’t see her face, he knew she was scrunching her nose in disgust. And rightly so, this ‘clinic’ looked more like a sex chamber.

While he’d taken the lead with Woodman, he was curious to see how his favorite nomad would deal with this asshole. Of course, if things turned ugly, he’d step in, but… He couldn’t help but want to see her do her thing even if her patience was a bit thin at the moment. After all, Barry’d said she was becoming quite popular on the merc arena.

Fingers gave her a mean stare as he got back to work on his client. “Evelyn… Evelyn… Hmmm.”

“Think a bit faster before you’re the one needing a facelift,” V said, taking a step closer, her fingers flexing.

Fingers barely offered her a glance and kept on working. “You see, my client here is likely to feel ever so slightly awkward if I leave her with half her face missing,” the ripper drawled.

“Tell me where Parker is,” she said curtly, her meager patience waning further. 

“Yes but-”

V marched forward, getting up in the ripper’s face forcing him to take a step back. “You can go back to playing doctor once you’re done with us.”

Fingers sighed. “I guess you’ll have to wait, darling,” he told his client, bravely ignoring the merc that was just about ready to tear his face off. “Circumstances are what they are.”

“My fucking eye can’t wait!” The woman complained, her voice shaking and River spotted moisture gathering in her eyes.

“There there, wipe away those tears. Don’t want anything short-circuiting now, do we?” He put his tools down and trudged over top a sink, taking all the time in the world. V and Judy followed, boxing him in so the sleazebag had nowhere to run even if he tried. “You Tyger Claws? Far as I know I’m all paid up,” he grunted as he washed his hands.

“We’re with the Mox,” Judy said, crossing her arms.

“The Mox? Why didn’t you just say so? So, what brings you here?” Fingers smirked, and River could feel the aura of annoyance coming off of V in waves. That damn ripper was treading waters more dangerous than he knew.

V glanced back at him, catching his eye for a brief moment. Her chest rose and fell with a deep breath before she returned her attention to the ripper.

“Already told you. Evelyn Parker. Need to know where she is.”

The leering ripper stepped around them. “Step into my office, please,” he cooed, walking off toward another door. “Many girls come through here, sooo many. But let me put it to you this way, I believe in giving each and everyone one of them the personal touch. Ask anyone.”

River followed after them, making sure to guard the office door like he’d done with the previous one. Despite why they were here, he liked acting as the hustle, letting someone else do the detective work for once. Maybe he should take notes, implement some of V’s tactics should they prove fruitful.

Fingers talked on and on as he dropped down onto a cushy chair. “I’m more than a chop-doc. See, I know what people truly want. To be flattered, praised, patted. To feel like…like they deserve it. Of course, I can’t remember each and every one…” He peered up at V with his beady little eyes. “Even if it’s a specimen as exquisite as you—”

V’s hand snapped forward and she grabbed the ripped by his ear. “Suggest you start rememberin’ all you can,” she sneered, pulling him to his feet only to toss him to the dirty floor. Before Fingers could even make a move, she was on top of him, pinning him down with her fist poised to strike. “Either that or I’ll make sure you never forget my face.”

“Two beefers from a BD studio took her!” Fingers started squealing immediately, his eyes widening with fear. “Didn’t even know their names!”

“Want details, dammit!” V hissed. “Name the studio!”

Fingers trembled, sweat beading on his forehead. “They mentioned a moth of all things, virtus with the Death’s Head! Said she’d be good for the moth!”

V hovered over him for a solid five seconds, long enough that River took a step forward to pull her off him, but then she rose to her feet before he could. She still looked like she wanted to punch his faceplate right off his skull, but she stepped away, exchanging a look with Judy. The latter let out a shaking breath.

“Need air, I’ll wait outside,” was all Judy said before she hurried past him.

V hesitated for a moment, then she said, “Give us a moment?”

“‘Course, go after her,” he said. Crushed out the same way Judy had gone and River trudged out of the office. The woman was still lying on the ripper chair, still with half her face lying on a small table next to her.

She glared at him. “Need my fuckin’ doc, what you guys do to him?”

“He’ll be back soon,” he said. “Apologies for the inconvenience.”

She leered off a bunch of insults and curses, but River paid it no mind. Besides, V hadn’t beaten the shit out of Fingers so as soon as the man changed his pants he’d be right back with his patient.

He lingered in the waiting room for a moment, giving V and Judy some time to talk and himself some time to think. The Death’s Head… Chances were they would find what was left of Evelyn’s body. While the case of the Death’s Head BDs had never crossed his desk, he’d heard talk about them around the precinct. All snuff, and the dealers vanished like smoke every damn time any detective got even remotely close.

He glanced at the time and decided that girls had had enough time for themselves, They had to get moving. When he stepped into the hallway Judy was nowhere to be seen while V stood leaning on the railing,  She glanced at him and smiled, her eyes lit with a holo call.

“Know who makes them?” V asked the person on the call. “Where’re they scrollin’?” She was silent as she listened to the answer and he itched to hear what the other person said. V frowned. “Which would be…?” She asked, as if trying to prompt a better answer. She rolled her eyes. “Can you get me one of those recordings?” She waited again for a couple seconds. “Thanks, Wako,” she said and the call ended. 

“We got a lead?” he asked once she turned to fully face him.

“Yup, we’re going to a toy shop. Come on, got no time to waste.” She spun on her heel and strode down the stairs leaving him to hurry after her. She was walking the like the devil himself was nipping at her heels

“V,” he said, instinctively taking her hand to halt her. He wasn’t even sure why, but he couldn’t stop himself, it just happened. V stopped dead in her tracks and looked down at his hand long enough that he quickly let go. “Sorry,” he said quickly. “It’s just… Something’s biting at you. And call it a detective’s hunch, but I don’t think it’s about Evelyn.”

Her hazel eyes locked on him, holding his gaze for a solid five seconds. “It’s nothing,” she said eventually, a tinge of annoyance entering her voice. And…sadness? “How about we steer that detective’s hunch of yours towards our active case?”

“Alright, V. Sorry, didn’t mean to pry.”

She just shrugged and turned away, making a beeline for the toy shop she’d mentioned. A toy shop for adults. She slipped inside without waiting for him, so he decided to just hang back and while she dug around for information. Giving her some space and because he doubted the shop owner was a huge fan of ‘pigs’ like most people in this district.

He rubbed the back of his neck. He was such a leadhead… Why did he grab her hand? Why did he push her about what was bothering her? They were out here looking for her missing friend that clearly was in deeper shit than both she and Judy had expected and here he was acting like a buffoon.

If she wanted to talk, then she’d talk. But not if he pushed her boundaries.

“Big guy,” V said next to him, startling him out of his own rambling thoughts. “Gotta meet up with a dealer. Can’t bring you along for that one because-”

“He’ll see the cop in me,” River said, finishing the sentence for her. “Want me to stay close? As backup?”

She shook her head. “I’ll be fine on my own. Judy’s waiting in her van, meet you there?"

“Heh, think she’ll let me ride along?” He asked jokingly in an attempt to lighten the mood between them again.

Her lips twitched, a small success. “Already let her know you’re comin’, Riv. See ya in a few.”

“Wait,” he said just as she turned to walk away. “Are you buying it off him? Got the scratch for it?”

She paused. “Figured that’d be the easiest way,” she said with a slight shrug. “Got some eddies leftover from the gigs Jackie and I did earlier. Rogue didn’t take it all,” she added with a light laugh, some of that usual carelessness making it back into her demeanor. “That woman is expensive as fuck.”

River let out a chuckle. “Don’t doubt that for a second. Holler if you need anything.”

“Will do, big guy.” She gave a slight wave then went on her way. He itched to follow after her, despite her wanting to do this on her own. What if something happened? She would be alone.

But he ignored that voice wanting to go after her and instead headed for the outskirts of Jig-Jig Street where Judy was with her van. He gave the women a curt nod and went to stand off to the side of the road to wait for V.

Judy pursed her lips, hesitating for a moment. Then she lowered her window. “Get in the back,” she huffed. “Lookin’ like some damn undercover cop hangin’ around like that.”

“Right,” he just said and started towards the van and opened the side door. The back was a bit cramped, filled with various equipment that looked like they had been tossed in at random. He found himself a spot, though there wasn’t exactly a seat for him. But it would have to do. In fact, it sort of reminded him of when he was a kid riding in the back of his dad’s truck, wind and dust whipping at him as they sped across the open landscape.

One of the few memories he had of his parents. Aside from the night that they were murdered.

Judy puffed her cheeks. “I told her not to go to Clouds,” she said, though it sounded like she was mostly talking to herself. “Shoulda done more…”

“Can’t blame yourself,” he said. “Nothing good will come of it.”

Judy shook her head. “Had no idea anything had even happened,” she choked out. “We’ll find what’s left of her rotting corpse.”

He wanted to console her somehow but just then his notification lit up with a call. “Hold on, V’s calling,” he said, then hit the accept call icon. “H—”

“Heeyyy, honey,” V cut in, exaggeratingly sweet and loud. “Babe, I’m soooo sorry for calling this late but I’ve been out shopping all day and missed the metro,” she pouted. “Then I hailed a Delamain but I’ve maxed out my cred. Don’t got enough to cover the bill. Think you could wire me a measly twenty eds, honey? Promise I’ll pay you back!”

He blinked. Taking a second to fall into this sudden role. He sighed loudly. “Oh, sugarpie, always so careless with your money…” Judy slowly turned around, a mix of disgust and curiosity on her face. He quickly held a finger to his lips, to keep her from talking. The only reason V’d be so animated was because someone, probably the dealer, was listening.

“Pretty please,” she pleaded. “I’ll make it worth your while, honey,” she cooed and his mouth went dry. Sure it was all pretend, but damn him, didn’t her voice when she talked like that stir something within him.

“Fine,” he huffed. “But no more detours and we’ll need to have a long talk about your spending, sugar. You can’t keep maxing out my accounts like this.”

“You’re the best! Love you, honey, and expect something special tonight,” she added with a purr that sent his blood roaring through his veins.

“Love you too, sugarpie, can’t wait for your surprise.” He ended the call and quickly wired her the eddies while taking long breaths to calm his hammering heart. Shit, she wasn’t even actually flirting with him and he was falling harder than a teenage boy.

“Sugarpie?” Judy grunted. “What the fuck?”

“Ehm, she was playin’,” he said quickly. “The dealer was listening is my guess, and she needed a few eds for the BD.”

“Huh, couldn’t come up with anything better than sugarpie? Dude…” Judy shook her head slowly.

“It was the first thing that came to mind,” he shrugged. Judy made no further comment on that but he caught her glancing at him in the rearview mirror from time to time. He nearly let out a breath of relief when he spotted V jogging towards them. 

She opened the front door and slipped into the passenger seat, handing Judy a shard as she settled in.

“Your face is red,” Judy said offhandedly.

V blinked. Her gaze flicked to him for a split second. “‘Cause I ran. Wanted to hurry up a bit, you know.”

“Uh-huh,” was all Judy said. “Let’s go through this thing, see if there’s anything to salvage. Have the wreath I gave you?”

“Yup, let’s roll,” she said, fitting the wreath on her head. “With a master BD tuner this should be a walk in the park.”

“We’ll see,” Judy huffed.

River waited. A bit perturbed he didn’t get to see what they were seeing, but V talked through everything they saw down to the label on some old boxes.

“PIzza is fresh, but the coffee is cold. Like, from the day before,” V said, then took a couple sniffs as if she was smelling the food. “Mhm, Buck-A-Slice, pizza shares its DNA with styrofoam, not somethin’ you’d schlep across town for.”

“Which means a Buck-A-Slice should be close to the area,” River said. He pulled out his phone and brought up a map of the city, plotting in the fast food restaurant. It didn’t exactly narrow down their search.

“There's some kind of coveralls over here,” Judy said.

“See it,” V said slowly. “Got an Electric Corp patch on there.”

River added Electric Corp power plant to his search. They had to be close together if their assumption about the pizza and coffee were correct. Most of the markers on the map were too separated, but there were a couple options. But only one of them he knew to be abandoned.

“Charter Hill,” he said as the girls removed their head gear. “There’s a big old complex there, abandoned. With a Buck-A-Slice right ‘round the corner.”

Judy started up the van. “I know the place.”

He braced his hand against the side of the van as they set off at what he could definitely tell wasn't the speed limit. But he said nothing, one could argue that it was indeed an emergency situation. V twisted in her seat so that she was half facing him and Judy both.

“Most likely the place’ll be crawling with Scavs. Could be dangerous,” she said, fixing her gaze on Judy as she said that last part.

“Don’t even dare suggest I hang back,” Judy muttered. “You find us a way inside while I’ll scan the subnet, see if there’re any blueprints of the complex lyin’ around.”

V chewed on her lip as she glanced at River, quietly asking for his input. 

“It’s not a bad plan,” he said, earning himself a slight scowl from V. He got that she was worried about her friend, but if it had been any of his people in there he’d want to do anything in his power to help too. He was not going to take that away from Judy. “The two of us’ll sweep the place, find a quiet way in, avoid trouble.”

“They’re Scavs,” V grunted.

“And I’m a cop, V. Technically I shouldn’t be goin’ in at all without a warrant,” he said carefully. Not only that, but if the plant was occupied illegally by Scavs, then he should be calling it in and not go on some vigilante mission. But if he did… Then he’d have to jump through all the NCPD hoops before they could come for Evelyn, and by that time V and Judy would’ve torn through the place anyway. It was better if he was ‘accidentally’ at the scene and provided aid instead.

“But I’m not turning my back on this,” he went on. “I should report this in, but it would take too long for the NCPD to even assign anyone to this case. Just… Let’s try to keep casualties to a minimum, alright?”

V watched him for a moment, mulling it over. “Fine, if the plant’s infested with Scavs, we’ll try to be quiet. Hopefully there’s not too many.”

He nodded, understanding what she was saying. If there’s a lot of Scavs then a fight might be unavoidable. More paperwork for him if so.

They drove in silence for several minutes until they finally pulled up across the street from the plant, shrouded in the shadows of a broken streetlight. V and River got out while Judy prepared her computer to do her thing.

They walked as quietly as they could, V taking the lead as she slinked along the walls and climbed up a broken down floor. She reached down, offering him a hand up. He took it and grunted in surprise at her strength as she pulled him up. Though he shouldn’t be, gorilla arms were notorious for their added strength and he was sure without even scanning her that she was packing some other enhancements as well.

He peered over the edge, down at the entrance to the EC plant. Three by the front, another couple guys off to the side. He felt a sharp tug on his coat and quickly stepped back.

V placed a finger to her lips then pointed to their left. Another guy. With a perfect overview of the entire place. They had to—

He couldn’t even finish the thought before V set off, her steps as quiet as feathers falling on grass. In a matter of seconds she had her arm wrapped around his throat and a hand clamped over his mouth to stifle his grunts. Then he was out, limp on the floor.

Just as quietly she dropped down to the level below, grabbing first one guy tossing him into a dumpster, then sneaking up on the other with barely a few heartbeats in between. And just like that the sidedoor was clear. He just stood there admiring her for a second before hurrying after her, catching up to her as she slipped inside the main building.

“We’re in,” V whispered. Then she nodded.

V motioned with her hand, quietly telling him to stay put before she went on herself. He could hear the Scavs talking amongst themselves, one moving not far from them at all, his boots scraping the concrete floor. He slowly reached for Crash, removing the gun from its holster. One wrong move, if that guy just turned a little bit to the left…

“The fuck…” A voice said above them. Both his and V’s attention snapped upwards in time to see the Scav on the suspended walkway fumbling with his gun and pointing it towards them. River raised Crash but two shots echoed through the building before he could even squeeze the trigger. The guy above and as well as the guy who stood closest to V dropped dead where they stood. 

Their gazes locked and V choked out a small laugh.

“Guess we’re not doing this quietly,” she snickered.

“Guess there was a shootout and I had to assist, huh,” he shrugged. The other Scavs shouted and seconds later bullets rained around them.

“Guess so,” she cooed. Then she shoved her gun into its holster and smirked. “Cover me.”

“Wha-”

But before he could even get the words out V was already on the move, jumping into the fray like the Scavs wasn’t armed to teeth. On the other hand, the Scavs out on the floor looked just as surprised as he felt as she came in fists swinging. The first gonk didn’t stand a chance, receiving the full force of her punch straight to the face. The man dropped dead in the next second and V twisted toward the next.

River snapped out of his stupor and fired upon the Scavs at V’s six before they could rain lead down on her. They powered through the plant, V punching and throwing any gonk in her way, and River shooting anything that moved in V’s blindspots. A couple guys turned and ran away, but most were laid to waste in their wake.

Once they’d cleared the upper level they waited in a staircase leading down for Judy to catch up to them, then they ventured on with the pair of them leading the charge and clearing the rooms as they entered.

They found a control room and Judy got to work on hacking her way in and getting control of the cams. 

Judy let out a shuddering breath. “She’s here, marking her location for you,” she said with a quiver in her voice.

River and V nodded. There were about a dozen Scavs on high alert between them and the room Judy’d marked. Nothing they couldn’t handle. He watched V from the corner of his eye, her laser focus was dazzling despite the blood splatters on her face. MOre blood would coat her, them both, by the end of this raid.

“We’ll clear the way,” V said, her gaze intently on the screens showing the various angles of the cameras, probably to make note of where everyone was before they went in blasting again. “Stay here.”

Judy nodded. “Right, I’ll try to work some magic from here. Go.”

He and V headed for the door, turning towards the furnace room and the scurrying rats within. V arched an eyebrow, a slight smile on her lips. He answered with his own tilted smile and got a firm grip on Crash. V flexed her fingers and he could hear the hum of cyberware activating.

“Let’s roll, partner,” V purred, then punched the door so hard it flew off its hinges. Panicked screams echoed inside and he could hear as they scrambled for cover.

“They won’t even know what hit them,” River said, giving her a wink earning himself a wild grin in return. Bloody, sexy, breathtaking. Completely mesmerizing. In the past he’d scoffed at Joss when she’d claimed he’d fall truly in love some day. A first glance, soul deep kind of love. But now… He was aware how ridiculous it was, having only known her for a short time, but she made him feel right. Like he’d found that one missing piece.

Bullets ripped through the air and his attention snapped back to the room before them and to keep those rats off V’s ass.

***

“This gonna hurt a little,” she warned before applying the disinfectant. The wound wasn’t all that bad, the bullet had just grazed him but it had been deep enough that she’d deemed it necessary to stitch him up. For no other reason than to make sure he was alright of course…

He barely flinched as she cleaned the wound and only studied their surroundings. They’d repurposed Judy’s kitchen into a makeshift medical area to patch themselves up while Judy sifted through the recordings on Evelyn’s rec implant.

Though they’d both made it out with few injuries, they still acquired a couple each in the end. She herself got a nasty cut from a katana wielding bastard, but that wound was already stitched and bandaged. Now it was her turn to take care of him.

“You know, you didn’t have to. It barely grazed me,” he said as he looked down at the slender wound on his shoulder.

She shrugged and grabbed the numbing agent. “Would you rather have a slender scar or an irregular ugly one?”

He chuckled. “Just sayin’ I coulda done this myself. Done it a thousand times.”

Of course, she knew he was right, but she’d just wanted to do it. A small thank you for helping her out even though he hadn’t had to. That and she wanted an excuse to have him close. However, that’s not what she said.

“Two reasons,” she cooed. She picked up the needle and thread from the counter. “It’s my fault you got shot in the first place and you stitched my arm up. That’s reason number one.”

“Got grazed, but sure,” he said with a slight smile. “And the second reason?”

“No matter how good you are, stitching yourself up is hard, and,” she drawled as she got to work. “My stitchwork is better than yours.”

His eyebrows shot up. “Really? I think I did pretty well.”

“Yeah, but you’re clearly field trained. Guessin’ the NCPD is skimping on the budget in that department.” She bit back a smile as she glanced up at him, noting the glint in his eye. “‘Sides, my mom’s a doctor and she wanted me to be one too. You can imagine how disappointed she is in me now.”

“Actually bettin’ she’s pretty proud of you, she just doesn’t show it,” he said and she just gave him a dubious look while tying off the thread and cleaning around the wound again before applying an adhesive bandage.

Her mom, proud of her. Not in a million years. That woman hadn’t even bothered to answer her texts or calls ever since she left camp. The motherly love was more absent than her damn father. She began cleaning up, shoving all the bloodied cotton pads into a bin. But before she could stuff the various bottles into the bag a hand landed on her forearm, stopping her.

“Hey,” he said softly. “Judging by your face just now I’m guessing she’s one of the ‘other reasons’ why you left the Bakker Clan.”

“Sort of,” she sighed. She eyed his hand, still resting upon her arm. He’d grabbed her hand earlier that evening too but had let go so fast as if he’d burned himself. But not now. “Really wanna know? Don’t got enough family drama of your own?”

He shrugged, his lips tilting into a slight smile. “I do, but someone else’s drama would be a nice change of pace.”

She rolled her eyes but couldn’t help but smile a little. “It's nothing too exciting. Mom and I’ve had our differences, like any family, but never thought she’d completely cut me off just ‘cause I wanted to find out who my father was. Look here,” she said and pulled her phone out of her pocket and opened it to the chat log and scrolled through the list of messages. “At first I sent her texts daily to let her know how I was doing, now it’s more like once a week. But she hasn’t opened our chat once since I left.”

“Silent treatment on steroids,” River scoffed.

She grunted in agreement. “That’s not all,” she went on and pressed the call button. It rang once, then the second ring began but ended abruptly and changed into the busy beep. “Every damn time I call she ends it before it rings four times. She was pretty quick today actually.”

River braced his elbow on the countertop, his brow furrowed in thought. “Makes you wonder what really happened, huh, why she’s this mad about you looking for answers. What’s her name?”

She arched an eyebrow. “Why?”

“If she was a registered NC citizen, then she’ll still be in the older archives,” he said slowly and she could almost see the gears churning in his head. “And, if they were married, then I should be able to pull the marriage certificate-”

“And my dad’s name,” she finished for him.

“Name, occupation, residence, if he married again, if he got other kids,” River went on, a smile growing on his lips.

She watched him for a few seconds. “I…River…”

“I can do this and still look for Dex, V, no problem. In fact, finding your father will probably be much easier.”

She hesitated for a second, eyeing him closely. “I can’t exactly afford a detective right now. Already owe you some cash, and I owe Jackie and Vik several thousand each, I-”

“Not asking for payment,” he cut in. “I want to help.”

She chewed on her lip. “How about this, if you ever need to, you know, get in somewhere without a warrant or something like that, you can call me. Deal?” She held out her hand and waited for him to take it. He grasped her hand in a firm shake.

“Deal,” he said with a wry grin. “So, does your wonderful mother have a name?”

“Marilyn Verlice Gediminas, it’s a mouthful, I know,” she added with a chuckle. She opened the chat log with River and sent the name there too so he’d have the correct spelling. “If you see a picture of her and then tell me I look like her I will punch you in the face.”

He let out a huffed laugh. “Duly noted.”

The door to the bedroom opened and Judy strode out. “Got something,” she announced, annoyance marring her voice. “Let me set it up so you can view it as a BD. Gonna need another minute.”

“Thank you, Judy,” she called after her, but the tuner disappeared into another room. V cut a grimace. “I think she's still pissed at me,” she said in a hushed voice.

“Don’t think you should worry about it,” River said, keeping his voice down too. “She’s had a rough day.”

“Yeah, we all have,” she sighed. Her gaze wandered to the bedroom door where Evelyn was resting. Whatever horror she’d been through, it was clear it had left its mark. And that look on her face, the emptiness in her eyes… It was all too familiar.

“You good?” River asked.

She blinked. “Yeah, just tired. I can hear my bed beckoning all the way from H10,” she sighed. “You don’t have to stick around, guessin’ you got work in the morning.”

“Can’t wait to get rid of me, huh?” He chuckled.

The sound warmed her heart and her gaze fell to his lips. Would he be a full on tongue guy going in hot and hard, or the slow and passionate guy that took his sweet time exploring any and every sweet spot she had. Those big hands, warming her bare skin—

“Eh, sorry, was just jokin’,” he said suddenly, snapping her out of her trance. “Didn’t mean to make things awkward or anything.”

“No, no,” she said hurriedly. “I just…zoned out. Been runnin’ gigs since I left home and I’m just beat. Been a long day. Wouldn’t wanna get rid of you in a million years, Riv,” she added, giving him a sheepish smile. And it was true, for some reason his presence was simply soothing, like there was nothing to worry about because he would be there for her no matter what.

An odd thought, considering she’d known the guys for such a short time, but… That tranquility of watching a setting sun painting the sky in brilliant colors, that’s what he felt like.

“In that case,” River said, relief evident in his voice. “Think I’ll stick around until you’ve finished up, drive you home. Wouldn’t want you falling asleep behind the wheel, you know.”

She bit the inside of her cheek. “You do know most wheels in this day and age have auto drive,” she drawled. “Sounds to me like you’re just looking for an excuse to spend more time with me.”

He chuckled, smiling a bit abashedly. “Maybe, is it a valid excuse though?”

She glanced over at the doorway to Judy’s little office, spotting the woman getting up. V rose then, stepping around River as she said, “This shouldn’t take long,” and flashed him a smile.

“I’ll wait here then,” he replied, the look in his eye making her heart leap for a second and she had to set her focus on Judy and the task ahead before she decided to do something stupid. Damn him… Keeping things completely platonic was going to be hard if he kept looking at her like that. Not that she’d complain…but in the end it wouldn’t be fair to him should things go sideways.

She strode into the office and sat down, letting Judy talk her through the BD she’d ripped from Evelyn’s rec implant. It led to even more questions than answers and Johnny was no help either, being all cryptic and shit about this Alt woman. Yet another person from his past he claimed could be of use to her. Which she doubted hard.

Pacifica. How to even begin to find the Voodoo Boys? Being one of the most reclusive gangs in NC where strangers were rarely welcomed… Yeah, getting in touch with them was gonna cost her eddies she was already short on.

“Thanks, Judy, ‘preciate it.” She slipped off the BD wreath. Diving into BD’s always made her nauseous and she had no idea how people could just sit through them endlessly day after day.

Once she stepped back out into the main room she noticed the kitchen was now completely spotless and the emergency medkit was all packed and ready to go. 

She and River bid Judy goodbye before heading out and though she usually loved and preferred being behind the wheel herself it was nice climbing into the passenger seat, strap in and just lean back and relax as River drove them through the neon lit night.

After revelling in that feeling for a few minutes, she eventually decided to give Padre a call, hoping to cash in some goodwill from the fixer and maybe get him to toss her a bone and refer her to a fixer in Pacifica. Anything to help with her search. Padre made no promises but at least he said he’d look into it. It was something.

“Field trip to Pacifica?” River asked after a while.

“Yeah,” she sighed, not too excited about the prospect. She then filled him in on what she’d found on the BD. About the mystical runner and that what she believed to be the Voodoo Boys had hired Evelyn to nab the chip to use Johnny engram to find Alt somehow. It all sounded strange even to her own ears as she spoke it all out loud.

She closed her eyes for a second, letting the hum of the engine soothe her mind. The next she knew, RIver was opening her door and gently nudging her awake. Shit, had she nodded off for a moment? Sure felt like it.

She didn’t complain when he walked her to the elevator, nor when he entered it and punched her floor number for her while she leaned her head back for another smidge of relaxation. A long, long day. And tomorrow was not going to be any easier. Rogue, Hellman… However that was going to happen, she needed a goddamn miracle.

The elevator dinged and she started moving on auto pilot towards her pad, River trailing along her side in silence. Staying close, yet not too close. Not close enough. Shit, she’d have to send him away before she dragged him to her bed.

She drew a shuddering breath. “River, I…uh…” Her vision started flickering and a sudden wave of nausea slammed into her gut and a piercing migraine rammed through her brain. The world started spinning as her chest contracted with a cramplike pain.

“Woah there,” River exclaimed, his strong arms wrapping around her as she stumbled forward  and slapped a hand over her mouth as a wretched cough tearing through her throat.

[ RELIC MALFUNCTION DETECTED ] Bold letters flashed in her notification panel as if she hadn’t already figured that shit out. Her legs got swept out from under her and it took her a second to realise River had picked her up and carried her into her pad.

“Shit,” she grunted, peeling her hand from her face to see the fresh blood glistening in her palm. “Fuck… I’m okay,” she breathed out, though she made no move to signal him to let her down. “It’s…it’s almost over now.”

“What was that? Should we head to Vektor’s?” He asked as he carried her into her apartment, pausing just inside the door to give her a chance to reply.

She shook her head. “Just need some rest is all,” she said, doing her best to give him a reassuring smile. “Uhm, guess the Relic glitched out or somethin’. I’m good now, really. You can let me down now, big guy,” she added with a light laugh.

“Right, yes, sorry,” he said hurriedly and gently set her down. Her face was on fire, yet she didn’t actually want to step away. And though she was now standing firmly on her own two feet, River wasn’t moving away either, still staying close enough that all she needed to do to touch him again was to lean in.

She rubbed the back of her neck instead. “So, uhm, thanks. For today. Things probably would have turned out differently without you. Especially with Woodman,” she added wryly. Oh how she’d wanted to turn that man’s face into a bloody, unrecognizable pulp.

River let out a short laugh. “Yeah, could tell your knuckles were itchin’.” His gaze traveled down for a second and that worried frown returned. “You sure you’ll be alright?”

“Yeah,” she shrugged and wiped her hand on her pants. “Relic was glitchin’ out, it’s fine now.” She bit her lip and stuffed her hands into her pockets. “I got Vik on speed dial though, so no need to worry. Promise I’ll see him if it gets worse,” she added with a wry smile, hoping to ease his worry a little bit.

“Heh, I’ll try not to,” he said, with a slight smile. “Suppose I should let you get some rest now. ‘Sides, gotta drive home and-”

“Or you could crash here.” The words were out before her synapses could even register the thought. “I mean, it’s late and, uh, been a long day. You’re probably just as beat as I am. Unless you'd rather drive home, of course, not gonna tie you down or anything.” The nervous laughter escaping her made her want to dissolve into a puddle and disappear.

River was silent for a few seconds. “Crashin’ here does mean a shorter commute to the precinct.” He hummed, thinking it over. “You sure you don’t mind?”

Her heart started pounding in her chest. “Not at all.”

“Got a feelin’ I don’t got any say in this arrangement,” Johnny scoffed.

“Quiet,” she hissed back.

Her vision flickered for a second and Johnny glitched into view for long enough to flip her the bird right in her face.

“Asshole,” she grumbled. “You know what,” she said out loud to River. “I think the couch might be a bit too narrow for you. But… The bed should fit us both.” Johnny groaned in her ears but she just ignored him. “Promise I’ll keep my hands to myself,” she added jokingly, earning herself that gorgeous disarming smile of his.

“I promise the same, you won’t even notice I’m there,” he added, flashing her a big smile.

“Great! I’m just gonna clean up then get everything ready. Sit tight, detective,” she said and pointed to the couch.

“Yes, ma’am,” he chuckled.

“Fuckin’ hell. I’d rather you put iron in your mouth and pull the trigger.”

“Technically you squeeze triggers,” she drawled. “And it’s not like I’m gonna ride the man, we’re literally just going to sleep. No ghostly threesome tonight. Tomorrow however…”

Johnny only answered with continuous gagging noises while she cleaned up to which she rolled her eyes. For a guy over eighty years old he had the mentality of a damn toddler. She sighed.

“Look, I like the guy and I get it’s weird for you, but I’m not gonna stop living my life just because you’re nestled in my brain,” she said, staring at herself in the mirror. “But I meant it when I told River we should keep things on the down low, I—”

“Nah, you’re just lonely, desperate for anything with a pulse to shag you till next Sunday," Johnny scoffed. “You’re not gonna make me fuck a cop.”

She rolled her eyes. “Dunno why I even bother,” she muttered under her breath, then snatched the bottle of pills, shook one out and tossed it back, swallowing it dry. “Good night, asshole.”

“I swear, if I so much as-” He fizzled out before he could finish the sentence, the blockers doing their job perfectly. She finished cleaning up then stepped out into the living room space.

“You’re turn,” she said to River who was quietly sitting on her couch. “Make yourself at home,” she added, giving him a small smile.

He rose and stepped forward, pausing right in front of her. He half raised his hand as if he wanted to touch her, but stopped himself. “You sure you’re okay?” He asked.

“Yeah,” she shrugged. “As okay as I can be. Looming death and all,” she added, forcing out a laugh. Though that didn’t seem to ease his worry one bit. This time she laughed for real and playfully punched his good, uninjured arm. “Seriously, big guy, you’re a bit of a worrywart, aren’t ya?”

“Maybe a little bit,” he chuckled. “Hope that’s not a problem?”

She bit back a smile. “No, not at all.” Not at all because that’s cute as all hell, she finished in her head, though she was not about to speak that out loud. Nope, not a chance. She cleared her throat. “I’mma see if I got an extra blanket and pillow. When’re you getting up?”

“A bit before eight,” he said.

“I get the edge then. I’ll be lucky if I get four hours before I gotta head out again,” she grimaced.

“Damn, we better get to it then,” River said with a wry smile.

“Yeah.” 

He stood there for a few more heartbeats before he set off towards the bathroom as if suddenly remembering that he was supposed to clean up. She watched him go, until he was completely gone even from the reflection in the mirror. Right, the missing door she’d forgotten to report to maintenance…

So from where he’d been sitting on the couch he would have had a front row seat to her scowling at herself in the mirror. She puffed her cheeks and swept the thought to the back of her mind. Blanket, pillow, sleep. In that order.

And hopefully tomorrow would bring some news about Hellman or that Pacifica fixer.

Once the bed was made and River returned from the bathroom and crawled to his spot and she’d claimed her spot on the edge while keeping a decent amount of distance between them. She rolled onto her side, facing him. Stealing one last look at him while struggling to keep her eyes open.

“Sleep tight, big guy,” she mumbled.

“G’night, V,” she heard right as her mind faded into the realm of dreams.

Chapter Text

For once he was happy for being stuck in the office even though sorting through reports and double-checking old ones were tedious and depressing. Not that he spent too much time on that though, instead he’d been running searches on V’s mother for the past two days and only going back to his actual tasks whenever the chief entered the office area or anyone walked too close.

So many cases, so few solved in time to even help the victim. Most of the time they were already dead and gone before he could even stick his pinky toe into the case.

Except with Evelyn. For once he’d been able to help in time. Sure, he’d skipped all the legalities of the matter and practically gone in merclike, but it had been efficient and oddly freeing. At least Evelyn was alive, scarred for life maybe, but she could get help for that. And she had friends in Judy and V.

“Hello, earth to Ward,” Han drawled from opposite the desk. “Are you even listening?”

“Huh, sorry.” He blinked. “What were you saying?”

“The rabid psycho that managed to get into City Hall was already a whackjob before his psychosis,” Han said, looking almost impressed at the tragedy.

Rhyne, right. With the whole situation with V and her predicament, he’d temporarily forgotten about that… How in the hell had that case gotten closed so quickly? How did the patrol officers lose him after putting the perp in the back of their car? Where had he gotten the chrome? How did he get past security? None of the answers to those questions were anywhere in the reports. 

None of that was really important now. Rhyne was dead, no amount of detective work could save him. But V still had life in her, still had a chance. And if taking over the search for her father and Dex could help her focus on finding some cure to save her life, then he’d gladly do that.

River shrugged. “Heard about it on the news a few days ago.”

Han nodded. “Sliced through the hustle and practically tore the mayor to pieces.” Han shook his head. “Rhyne really should’ve taken the NCPD’s offer. None of this would’ve happened then.”

River glanced at Han across the desk but said nothing. A notification pinged and his attention snapped to his screen, the tag ‘MVG’ snagging his complete attention. Finally.

He clicked the link and began sifting through the files. Since it was a bit of an unusual name there weren’t too many hits and he quickly got rid of the ones that were listed deceased and those who had recently changed addresses within the city border. In the end leaving him with only a handful of options.

He reached for his phone and flicked V a quick text.

River Ward - 3:37 PM
Just to make sure. Was your mom born in NC?

V - 3:38 PM
Nope, she moved here from Lithuania. Trying her luck at the City of Dreams I guess haha Does that help?

River Ward - 3:39 PM
Mother like daughter :p
Thanks, narrows down my search quite a lot actually 

V - 3:39 PM
That close already? Damn, River, workin miracles! 

River Ward - 3:40 PM
If what I got pans out. What you just gave me narrowed it down to one divorced Marilyn and one reported missing. Both timestamped about 20 some years ago.

V - 3:41 PM
Our birthday is october 12th, if that helps. 2053.

River Ward - 3:41 PM
Our?

V - 3:42 PM
xD
Yes, me and Vinnie. We used to call ourselves the Double Vroubles! Instead of trouble haha. You know how I’m like, imagine there’s two of me and the other one is the testosterone bull version!

River Ward - 3:43 PM
Think I can imagine haha

V - 3:44 PM
Had Vinnie been with you at Clouds then you’d have had to pull him off of Woodman. 100% would’ve beaten the shit outta that asshole. Still wish I had tbh.

River Ward - 3:45 PM
Completely understand, but honestly don’t think that man was worth getting your hands dirty :) and sayin that as a friend and not a cop haha.
Would be interesting to meet your brother though. 

V - 3:46 PM
You two would probably be all like ‘bros’ and shit xD
Buuuut gotta bounce, Jackie and I‘ve teamed up with another merc. A nomad actually. Aldecaldos. Rogue hooked us up yesterday, apparently she thinks this merc can help with Hellman. Hopefully we’ll have some Relic answers by the end of the day :D 

River Ward - 3:47 PM
I hope Rogue is right, remember, if you need another pair of hands you know who to call!
Good luck and stay safe out there, V.

V - 3:47 PM
Always!
Hey, so once Hellman’s booked, wanna grab a beer? Gonna need to wash down some sand after all this time out in the badlands xD

River Ward - 3:48 PM
I like that plan!
Holler when you’re back in town :) 

Han sighed loudly. “Whatever. Gonna go talk to Gonnagal, should be more interesting than this.”

River glanced up as his partner rose and trudged away. Apparently his partner had kept talking but he hadn’t heard a word of it. Besides, the conversation with V had been infinitely more interesting anyway.

He cross-checked the new info V had given him with the two hits he had on Marilyn. Seemingly the woman reported as ‘missing’ fit the best with the 23 years, assuming she’d split within the first year of V and her brother being born. He marked the name and address of the man Marilyn had married before shutting off his computer. Granted, the address was old but it gave him a reason to get out of this stuffy room. He could always look up the man later if the address didn’t pan out.

“Where are you going?” Han asked from two desks down.

River blinked. “Taking a sick day,” he said curtly. Without giving any other explanation he turned and walked out of the bullpen, leaving Han to deal with the rest of the paperwork on his own. He’d make it up to him some other time.

When he made it to Mack, he loaded up the address he’d found and started up the engine. It was about a half an hour drive, slowed down by the heavy traffic leading into City Center. Eventually he turned down Barkley Avenue and rolled into a streetwise parking outside a towering building. It was a fancy street, on one side there were corporate offices, on the other expensive looking apartments.

It was the latter he walked up to, entering through the glass door into a large lobby. A woman sitting behind a large reception desk eyed him up and down, her lips tightening in displeasure.

“This is a private building, sir,” the woman drawled.

He cleared his throat and pulled his coat aside so that his badge was visible. “Detective River Ward,” he said. “Looking for someone. The address in the case files was old but hopefully you can help me.”

“You’d have to come back with a warrant, Detective, you know this-”

“Vance Kovacz,” River pressed on, “do you know him? It’s regarding his wife who went missing over twenty years ago.”

The receptionist watched him through narrowed eyes, holding his gaze for a full twenty seconds before her eyes lit up blue with a holo call. River steeled himself. This could go one of two ways. Either she was calling security, or the man actually still lived in the same building.

“Sir, pardon the intrusion,” she said to the man on the other end. “A detective wishes to speak with you.” She was silent as she listened to the reply from the other end of the call. “He says it’s about a missing person, your wife… I see. Yes, sir.” She blinked and the call ended. “Third elevator. Fifteenth floor,” she said curtly.

“Much obliged,” was all he said before setting course for the elevator, leaving the sour woman behind.

His phone pinged and he pulled it out of his pocket as soon as he spotted the sender ID. An image greeted him, a selfie of V in what looked like a modified Mackinaw. Jackie was in the back seat making bunny ears with his fingers behind V’s head and a woman he didn’t know was at the wheel driving.

V - 4:32 PM
Look at this merry little band gettin ready for today's trouble! How’s it going on your end? Catching some bad guys?
[ IMAGE ATTACHED ]

River Ward - 4:33 PM
Don’t get into too much trouble now haha.
Actually about to meet one of the two i suspect might be your father :) 

V - 4:34 PM
Me?? Never :)
Seriously though????? No way you found him this quick?

River Ward - 4:34 PM
We’ll see, this guy did have a wife that went missing around the time you were born, so fingers crossed!

V - 4:35 PM
Won’t lie, just the thought makes me nervous as fuck…. 

River Ward - 4:35 PM
I’ll ping ya as soon as I’m done here :) 

The elevator dinged and he quickly shoved the phone into his pocket. The elevator doors opened and he stepped out into a gilded hallway and was met by a lifesized portrait of a man posting proudly before a bland background.

“Detective,” a man said to his left and River turned towards the voice. He wore a fitted suit, and looked very much like the man in the portrait. Only older. The man shook his head. “After all these years the PD finally got something I assume,” he said, his words quip. “Come, have a seat. Scotch?”

“No thanks,” River said quickly, following Mr Kovacz further into the lux apartment. “I’m on the clock. And I hate to disappoint you, I’m only reevaluating the case. Trying to revitalise it, take it outta the freezer. So to speak.”

Kovacz sighed. “So still nothing,” he muttered, shaking his head. He sat down in a plush chair and motioned for River to take the one across from him. “So tell me, Detective, why now?”

“Wouldn’t exactly call it nothing,” he said as he took his seat. “I’ve been in contact with a young woman that might be connected to your wife.”

“Might might might,” Kovacz scoffed. “Sounds exactly like back then. Nothing tangible.”

“Maybe,” River said, smiling slightly. “Just to clarify, sir, you were married to Marilyn Verlice Gediminas in the year 2051. And were expecting a child during the fall of ‘53?”

The man nodded slowly. “That is correct. My sweet Verlice… And we were expecting two children, for the record. Twins. All this should be in the police reports.” 

“Indulge me, I’m aware you’ve gone over this with other detectives countless times, but seeing as I’m new to the case I’d like to get your account of events rather than read about them. Mr Kovacz, would you mind going through the events with me? From before her disappearance.”

Kovacz sighed again and rubbed his temples with his fingertips. “It's so long ago. Have a new wife now, Isabella, a wonderful young woman. Though she’s failed to give me a son so far. Only a matter of time though.”

“Congratulations on the new wife, sir. How would you describe Marilyn in the time before she gave birth?” River leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees as he waited for the man to answer.

“Verlice,” Kovacz corrected him sternly. “That’s how she preferred to be addressed.” River just nodded in acknowledgment of the statement and waited in silence while the man was digging through his mind for anything from twenty years back. “She was so full of life. Happy, excited…” He got up and wandered over to a console and opened a drawer. “She had everything planned out, their names, their bedroom. Everything.”

He pulled out an old picture frame and closed the drawer. “This was her, five months pregnant, I believe it was.” He handed the picture to River then sat back down in his chair.

His heart nearly skipped a beat. It was almost uncanny how similar she looked to V. The shape of her smile, her chin, even the dimple on her left cheek was identical to V’s own. They even had the same thick mane of wavy, black hair. Now he understood why she didn’t want him to mention their likeness. She’d definitely heard it a billion times before.

“So she was her normal self?” River went on. “No abnormal behavior?”

“None that I saw,” Kovacz sighed. “She just left. Or was taken. But I was never hit with a ransom demand so I can’t think of anything else. She left, and kidnapped my children in the process.”

River frowned. A wife doesn’t just up and leave with her kids like that if everything was fine. Whatever happened still affected Verlice to this day. So much so that she’d cut all contact with her own daughter. Was that to show her displeasure of V trying to find this man or to keep her distance from him?

“Tell me about the twins. Boys or girls?”

“I fail to see the relevance of that to the case,” Kovacz said slowly.

“Please, indulge me,” River said again.

Kovacz pressed his lips together, then he shook his head slightly. “Fine. They were not identical. A boy and a girl actually,” he said curtly, tapping his finger on the armrest. “Verlice settled for Vincent and Valerie barely a week after she learned their genders. Like I said, she went all out for those two. Even hand stitched their baby blankets herself. Said it was important to give it a personal touch that simply making a custom order could not compete with.” He scrunched his forehead in thought. “I believe Vincent’s was green and the other one was purple of some kind. Not a dark purple, a lighter color. Again, how is this relevant to the case? You mentioned a young woman before, who is she?”

“As I mentioned she might have a connection to the case,” River reiterated from before. “Do you remember the twins’ date of birth?”

“I do, October 12th,” Kovacz said. “In ‘53. Three months later I returned to an empty home. Wife and kids gone. Now who the hell is this young woman you mentioned?”

River sat silent for a moment. So far everything pointed towards this man being V’s biological father, but what was itching at his mind was the fact that Verlice had run away.

“What was your relationship like?” River asked, ignoring the man’s question. “Your dynamic, I mean.”

“It was a mutual partnership,” Kovacz said, lips tight with annoyance. “She had her family business and I have mine. But she was also the love ofy life. If you're implying I did something to make her leave then you can walk out that door right now, detective.”

“I was not saying that, was just trying to understand why she’d leave all this behind,” he said, motioning to the living space around them. Even if he sold his soul he would never be able to afford a place like this himself.

Kovacz leaned forward. “You know something, the PD wouldn’t dig this up if not.”

River smiled. “We might.” He pulled out his phone. “A young woman came to Night City roughly eight months ago after finding out she had a father here. A woman who’s twenty-three years of age, born October 12th, with a twin brother she refers to as ‘Vinnie’. Which I assume is a nickname for Vincent, I’m sure we can clear that up with her later of course.” He opened the still V had just sent him and placed the phone on the low table, sliding it across for the man to see. “After seeing the picture of your late wife I’m sure you’ll agree that the resemblance is undeniable. Uncanny, almost.”

Kovacz gingerly picked up the phone and examined the photo closely. His mouth went slack, his throat bobbing as he swallowed.

“She’s the spitting image of Verlice,” he choked out. And River nodded. “Is that a scar?” Kovacz asked, his brow furrowing.

“Yes, a couple weeks ago she was shot in the head,” River said, leaning back in his chair. Kovacz’s attention snapped to him, his eyes growing wide. “She’s fine,” River added quickly. “She was released from her ripper’s clinic some days ago now. That picture she snapped a few minutes ago, so as you can see she’s in good health.”

As good health as she could be, though he wasn’t about to go into details about the Relic and how it was consuming her neural net every second of the day. In fact, he’d probably already said too much.

Kovacz shook his head slowly. “I… this is… You’re sure this is my daughter? I mean… in this day and age she could've had her face altered to look like my wife. She wouldn’t be the first to try to get money out of—”

“That’s your take from this?” River arched an eyebrow. “V traveled far and wide to get here, with nothing but the clothes on her back, to find the father she never had. Risked the ire of her own mother and brother in doing so. At least take a moment to meet with her. See for yourself.” River reached forward and Kovacz handed him back his phone. “I’m sorry your wife left you, Mr Kovacz, but this is your chance to get some of your family back. And perhaps get some answers only she can give.”

Kovacz rubbed his face. “It’s a lot to take in,” he said slowly. “Did you say ‘with nothing but the clothes on her back’? Are you saying my wife raised our children in poverty? I find it hard to believe a woman of her stature would stoop to that level.”

“Where would she go then in your opinion?” River watched the man closely, noting the disproving frown.

“Verlice comes from a wealthy family in Lithuania,” he said. “Though they always claimed she wasn’t with them and had lost contact with her after she disappeared, I always assumed they were just keeping her from me.”

“Why would they do that?”

He shrugged. “It’s been over twenty years, detective, and I have a million theories about why she left and none makes sense. Do you know where she went?”

“Not where,” River said slowly. “But assuming V is your daughter and her mother is your wife, then she joined a nomad clan. And has been living with them since. Still do, in fact.” His gaze flicked to the photo of the mother. “Mind if I take a still of this and send it to her? That way she can confirm if that is indeed her mother in the photo.”

“Sure, go ahead,” Kovacz said nonchalantly. “However, wouldn’t a DNA test be more efficient?”

“I’m sure we can have that arranged as well.” River held the photo of the young mother up and snapped a still of it and promptly flicked it to V.

River Ward - 5:21 PM
This your mom?
[ IMAGE ATTACHED ]

The response was instant.

V - 5:22 PM
Yes, that’s her!
Is that an actual printed still?
Like you’re WITH dad right now :O
Damn she looks so young there.
What is he like? You talked to him right?

River chuckled under his breath. He glanced over at Kovacz who was watching him expectantly.

“V answered immediately,” he explained. “Her enthusiasm is practically leaping out of the screen. I believe that settles our biz for the day,” he said and rose. “Thank you for meeting with me and I’ll get back to you regarding the DNA testing.”

“If you don’t mind, detective,” Kovacz said as he stood as well. “I have a private physician I’ve had for many years, I would prefer if he performed the test.”

“Don’t see why not,” he said and extended a hand. “Till then, Mr Kovacz.”

“Excellent.” The man grasped his hand in a firm handshake. “It’s been a pleasure.”

After bidding Mr Kovacz goodbye and stepping into the elevator, River let out a long breath. He wasn’t quite sure what he’d expected, except he’d expected…more. More emotion, more relief or even a sign of heartbreak. There had been a brief moment when Vance had seen her bullet scar on her forehead, but that had been it.

River Ward - 5:27 PM
Tell me when you got time to talk.

V - 5:28 PM
Sounds serious…. Meeting with dad didn’t go well?
We’re going in on the first step of our plan right now. I’ll holler when we got a moment to breathe.
all good though? You’re ok?

River Ward - 5:30 PM
Take a breath, V, no need to worry. I’m fairly certain this is the guy especially after that photo of your mom, for one. And he knew things. I purposefully said he and Verlice expected ‘a’ child in ‘53 and he corrected me saying twins. Boy and a girl. So at least that and your mom checks out.
We’ll be setting up a DNA test to be 100%, if you’re cool with that of course. And he wants to meet you.
Oh and I took the liberty to show him a picture of you. Think that helped convince him that you’re not some money-grubbing rando trying to scam him for some quick scratch or something xD

V - 5:33 PM
Ooookay, totally on board with the test.
btw, mom’d chop your head off if she heard you use her middle name like that xD If you ever cross paths, call her Marilyn or Mary. Those options are safe
But other than being cautious, what was he like?
Actually, hold that thought, gotta go, need to focus.
Ping you when I can.

River Ward - 5:33 PM
Alright, will be awaiting your call.
Stay safe!

The elevator reached the ground floor and he strode past the secretary, offering her a smile and a goodbye. She only answered with a curt nod. He got a feeling she wasn’t his biggest fan.

He returned to Mack and started up the engine. At first he didn’t have a destination in mind but eventually he set course for the outskirts of the city. He kept half an eye on his notifications, hoping to receive a call or a text from V, or even a ping regarding his cam tracker looking for Dex.

Sadly, it had been silent on that front but there was nothing more to do than wait. He’d combed through the No-Tell Motel and the intersection cams throughout the city, and nothing.

Unless…

That night he and Barry went to look for V they’d seen the car Jackie had described. It drove right past them, but he’d been too focused on seeming inconspicuous and hadn’t actually seen if the car went towards Night City or away from it.

He drove on, until city buildings gave way to dust and sand and the sun setting behind him as he drove east. There weren’t many places to hide out here, An abandoned town, some rundown farms and a riggedy old motel. Besides that there was nothing but crickets and sand.

Now the town he could scout out later, but first he wanted to check out the cams at the motel and hopefully the owner wouldn’t ask about a damn warrant and just let him in. A man could only hope things would go that smoothly. If not… Well, at least he knew V was in the area somewhere and could probably stop by to lend him a helping hand if needed.

As he slowly brought Mack into the parking lot, he made sure to scan each of the vehicles parked. None of them a match to Dex’s ride, though the man was hardly dumb enough to leave that out in the open. Most likely it had been left in a ditch somewhere and the man himself long since past the border.

He parked the truck and strolled across the lot and up the stairs leading to a little bar on the second floor of the motel.

Music mixed with loud chatter greeted him as he entered the bar, and he could feel some of the patrons' gazes turn towards him as he walked over to the bar counter and sat down on one of the tall stools.

“What can I get you?” The bartender asked while polishing a glass with a clearly dirty towel.

“A broseph, please,” River said.

“Alright, comin’ right up.” The bartender put down the towel and glass and popped open a bottle for him and placed it on the counter before him. “Don’t recognize you, stranger. What brings you out to this barren land?”

River took a sip of his beer. “Lookin’ for someone who might’ve passed through here,” River said and set the bottle down. “Was actually wondering if you’d let me take a look at your security cams.” River reached for his belt and unlatched his badge and flashed it to the bartender briefly, holding it so the other guests wouldn’t see it. “The perp would’ve passed through about two weeks back. Possibly with a lackey in tow.”

“A bit outside your jurisdiction, aren’t you?” The bartender drawled, then waved an arm. “City line’s a mile back that way.”

River braced his arms on the counter. “I’m aware. But the men in question are murderers. Doubt you’d want them around, if they still are in the area.”

“Two weeks is a long time, really doubt they’re still here. If they ever even came here.” The bartender picked up the glass again and began polishing it once more. “But all sorts of people come through this place and I can’t possibly remember them all…”

“Then letting me look at the cam recordings shouldn’t be a problem,” River pressed on. “Or give me a copy and I’ll be out of your hair before your other guests find out there’s a cop under your roof.”

The bartender hummed. “I don’t particularly like trouble. It’s bad for business,” he said slowly. “Raffen’s been acting up lately. If your guys killed someone and are on the run, then I’d wager they’re hiding out with them.”

“Your security cameras could clear that up,” River said. He grabbed his bottle and took another swig. “I could contact Dakota, take this through her if you want. I’ve had dealings with the fixer in the past.”

The bartender eyed him closely, considering his request painstakingly slowly as he sat down the now fully polished glass and picked up another one. His gaze swept across the room and River followed suit. No one seemed interested in him anymore, the few people that had watched him upon arrival were now deep in their own conversations.

Then the bartender sighed. “No need, I’ll get you a copy and then—” All the lights flickered for a second and then the entire bar was plunged into darkness. “What the…”

“Are power outages a normal thing out here or—”

“No, gimme a sec,” he said and walked out from behind the bar and headed for the door.

Not about to let them disappear from sight and potentially going back on his word, River snatched up his beer and followed the man outside. Where he almost walked into the guy who’d stopped right outside the door.

“What’s going on?” He asked, but then he saw it too. The skyline, that should’ve been sparkling with light and millions of flashing neon lights against the darkening sky, had almost completely gone dark. Even the tall advertisement beams were gone. “The hell?” He muttered.

“I think those recordings will have to wait, detective,” the bartender said while staring at the distant city with a frown forming on his brow.

River drew a deep breath. “Looks like I’m gonna need a room…”

Chapter Text

V rubbed her forehead as the last of the Relic malfunction ebbed away into a dull ache. She’d hoped that the one she’d had in front of River was a fluke, but here it was again. Not just flickering vision and slight nausea, but more like a full body seizure that had had her crumbling to the ground in spasmic cramps.

Luckily she’d managed to get out of the motel room and away from Hellman. That man did not need to know exactly how fucked she was. To hell with ‘getting comfortable’ in Sweden. No way in hell would she just lay back and let herself wither away and die without a fight.

She cracked her eyes open and glanced at Johnny while he jabbered on and on and on. Arasaka this, Mikoshi that. Alt, Alt, Alt. But she still hadn’t even heard back from Padre about that Pacifica fixer… Without him the Voodoo’s would sooner kill her than let her come close enough to even tell them why she was there.

“Then fucking ping him again, sponge brain. Gonna decomish just waiting around like this.”

“Like this?” She spat back. “We just bagged Hellman, I have the motherfucking blueprints to a secret experimental Arasaka biochip in my pocket. Let me catch my breath, asshole.”

Her holo started pining, the notifications flashing in the corner of her vision. For a split second she thought it was River, that he was calling about her dad or that DNA test she’d agreed to take. But, to her surprise, it was another name flashing.

“Vinnie,” she said as she accepted the call. “You read my texts right?” While she and Jackie had headed for the Sunset Motel with their new pet scientist, she’d filled Vincent in on the details of what she knew about River's findings.

“Yeah,” he said, sounding winded. “Had to call to make sure you hadn't gone psycho or some shit, sissy,” he chuckled.

She rolled her eyes but couldn’t help but smile. Always an asshat… “Real funny,” she grunted. “Still waitin’ on the call from River regarding the test, but he seems pretty positive this is the guy.”

“That’s…great. Uhm, Valley, I’m not so sure this is a good idea,” Vincent said carefully.

She rolled her eyes. “Why? Finding dad was a pretty big reason for me leaving. That, and getting out from mom’s overbearing shadow.”

“Yeah, I know… It’s just…” He sighed. “Valley, when I told Mom about your text about our dad she went pale as snow. Never seen her like that and I’m startin’ to think this is a pretty bad idea. Not to play devil’s advocate or anything, but what if she had a pretty damn good reason for taking us and leaving?”

“Then why not fucking tell us that reason? Being all mystic and shit doesn’t exactly tell us much.” She rose and trudged over to the rusty railing. She leaned on it, overlooking the desolate parking lot. “You know what, tell her I’ll stop my hunt when she reads through my messages and calls me herself to apologize for treating me like dust on a prairie. But no promises on coming home,” she added quickly. One thing she’d neglected to tell him was the whole Relic ordeal… That would have to come later, hopefully never.

Vincent groaned. “Fuck… Stay on the line, I’m gonna go talk to her now. Want me to mute or—”

“I’m all for listening in if you’re cool with it,” she said slowly, her attention snapping to one of the trucks down in the parking lot. It looked very familiar.

“Sure, just gotta disconnect from the holo, go old school. Blazing glowing blue eyes is a bit of a giveaway,” Vincent scoffed. While he did his thing and prepared for their little uncover op, she scanned the beat up bucket of a Mackinaw.

She bit back a smile as she read the name of the registered user. River Ward, her favorite hot-shot detective. She pulled her phone out of her back pocket and snapped a still of his wheels and flicked him a quick text.

V - 7:57 AM
Frolicking or detectiving? Or maybe stalking me ;)
[ IMAGE ATTACHED ] 

“Mom? Can I come in?” Vincent’s voice ringing in her mind nearly made her jump out of her skin. She heard her mother’s voice like a low mumble in the background.

Hot Cop - 8:00 AM
Who’s stalking who exactly? Cuz that looks like my ride, ‘sugar’ :)
So it seems that you are also out here in the boonies. The job went well I hope?
And I’m detectiving, btw haha

“I know,” Vincent said. “Can’t you just tell me what’s going on? Like, is Valley in danger or something? What’s the big deal?” Her mother’s response was too muffled for her to hear, like Vinnie was talking to her through the tent flap or something. “You know what, you should just talk to her, Mom, I know she’s been texting you too…” He sighed loudly. “You two are equally stubborn, I swear.”

V - 8:02 AM
Don’t even with that nick, big guy XD and yes, it went mostly according to plan. Sort of. Got the man I needed and now am the proud owner of top secret schemadocs that I can’t read… :/ sooo that’ll be the next step, find someone fluent in technobabble. Or the pacifica thing, if Padre ever gets back to me :( 

Hot Cop - 8:03 AM
My stalker then :)
You have a room here? I’m in 203, about to head out actually.

She looked over to the right past the bar, and saw a door open and a familiar figure stepped out. He looked around for a second before spotting her and raised his chrome hand in a wave as he headed her way. Grinning wide, she waved back to him then motioned to her eyes, pointing out she was in a call.

She heard Vincent mutter under his breath and gravel crunched under his feet as he stalked away from their mother’s tent. “Valley, you there?”

“Yeah, sorry. Look, Vinnie, I know you hate playing the middle man, but… Could you keep trying? I have something I need to tell her that shouldn’t be over text.”

“Oookay, sounds serious,” he said slowly and she could practically hear the frown on his face.

“Maybe, might be,” she said and straightened up as River reached her. She noticed how he looked her up and down, probably checking her for any new injuries. “Don’t worry though, got some good folks in my corner,” she said, and winked at River.

“It’s when you say ‘don’t worry’ that I know I should definitely worry… Don’t be a stranger, Valley, and I’ll do my best with mom,” Vincent said. “Take care.”

“Thanks, and you too, Vinnie. Talk later,” she said and ended the call. “So,” she cooed and turned her attention to the detective at her side, crossing her arms over her chest. “You’re a bit far from NCPD jurisdiction out here, big guy.”

River chuckled. “So I keep being told. How’re you doin’? No more of those malfunctions I hope.”

She shrugged. “So and so. Progress bumped up to seventeen a moment ago. So that’s exciting. What’re you doin’ out here, big guy?”

“Hunting for clues on your killer,” he said. “And now I have nearly three weeks worth of surveillance to sift through. Hopefully it shows something.”

“Damn, sounds like coffee is on me today,” she cooed. “Really think Dex’s been through here?”

River shrugged. “Can never be sure until I find some evidence. But it doesn’t seem like he ever went back into the city, so the most natural place to go next would be through here.”

She bit her lip. “Want—”

The door to the room next to them slid open and Jackie waltzed out with Hellman slung over his shoulder.

“Hermana, mind bringing the car around? This suit weighs more than—Híjole,” he exclaimed as he noticed River. “Does this guy just spawn outta your ass when I’m not looking?”

“You’re hilarious,” she snorted. “Hella is rolling up. Now stop whining, or Misty will hear about it.”

Jackie scoffed. “No reason to bring her into this, mira,” he grumbled and she just flashed him a wide grin while River, on the other hand, was studying Hellman closely. Jackie noticed too. “Relax, el cerdo, this suit is just taking an involuntary nap. He’ll wake up. With a headache,” Jackie added with a rueful grin.

“A headache is better than dead,” River said. “Less paperwork.”

Gravel crackled beneath them and V received a notification that Hella had arrived. The three of them made their way down the stairs and she popped the trunk so that Jackie could finally put the guy down. Jackie stretched as if carrying Hellman for all of a minute was the greatest workout ever.

“So, back to the city then?” Jackie asked. “Have had enough of all this dust now.”

“Amen to fucking that. Nothing more for us out here anyway. Especially now with bacon strips over here showing his ugly mug too.”

“Actually,” she said slowly, ignoring the dipshit in her brain. “Mind taking care of Hellman? I got some things to discuss with River. Personal stuff.”

Jackie frowned. “Really gotta do that now? Can’t wait?”

“He’s here, I’m here, perfect timing if you ask me.” She rolled her eyes. “And it’s not like I have an abundance of time anymore. ‘Sides, I really wanna know what he’s dug up for me.”

“Right, right,” Jackie drawled. “I see what this is. You just wanna be rid of me for some private time, eh,” Jackie said, laughing. “El cerdo, no funny business. She’ll tear you to pieces and eat you up.” He closed the trunk and strode towards the driver’s side.

V crossed her arms. “Say ‘hi’ to Misty for me, Jack,” she drawled.

“Yeah, yeah,” Jackie laughed as he slammed the door shut. A second later the engine ignited and he started driving away. V watched him leave until Jackie turned onto the main road and sped off.

“Sooo,” she said, turning to River. “Turns out I’m gonna need a ride back into town.”

River chuckled. “I noticed. Lucky for you that I got some free space in my truck.”

“Awesome, I’m driving,” she announced and slipped past him to race over to the driver’s side of his Thorton. The car unlocked as she reached for the handle and she heard River laughing as he walked to the other side.

“Sending your merc partner away just to spend time with me, huh?” River remarked as he buckled up. “Any particular place we’re going? A bit early for lunch, honestly.”

“Back to the city,” she said, flashing him a grin as the engine roared to life. There was some kind of clacking sound coming from under the hood and she itched to go and check it out but decided to stay put. If the Thorton had held together all the way out here, it would make it back just fine. Hopefully. “You on the clock, by the way?”

“No, called in sick,” River said with a little smile. “Why? We’re actually doing that lunch now?”

She shrugged and didn’t answer him, just gave him an incredulous look. She knew that he knew exactly what she wanted to know. She stared at him for a solid five seconds before the detective cracked.

“Alright, I’ll brief you on Kovacz. But eyes on the road,” River chuckled.

Her face split into a wide grin and she turned her attention forward. “Nova. Hit me with the detes, big guy.”

As they drove along the dusty road towards the awakening city, V listened as River went over everything he and Kovacz had said during their meeting. She kneaded the steering wheel, trying to shove down the excitement building up inside. There was still a small chance this wasn’t the guy, she kept reminding herself that as River spoke, doing her damndest to keep her hope at a minimum.

Though many things did line up. All the names, the color of their baby blankets, even their birthday. Still, she wouldn’t give in to the excitement just yet. Not until she’d taken that DNA test.

She glanced over at River when he finished speaking.

“Bit weird,” she said. “That he never moved. I mean, over twenty years living in the same place? Picture of insanity right there.”

River’s chuckled. “Not so unusual, actually. I think that’s just the nomad in ya.”

She gave him a wry smile. “I guess you’re right. So, what’s your professional instinct telling you? Got any gut feelings on this?” They neared the city and she took off on one of the ramps leading to a small suburban area she knew had a nice little food joint with a killer kebab. The meat was probably from rats or whatever, but didn’t matter as long as it tasted good. 

“Feel like we only have parts of the puzzle still,” River said thoughtfully. “Since your mom was so against you coming here. Tells me that there’s more to the story.”

“Well, she’s not talking to me, so dead end there, detective.” V bit the inside of her cheek. Just the thought of her mother made her bristle. “Talked to Vinnie earlier. He tried to get mom to talk but got nothing.”

“Mhm,” River hummed. “Perhaps I could talk to her?”

“You could try,” she shrugged and brought the car into a parking lot and killed the engine. She flicked him the contact as she exited the vehicle. “Hope you’re hungry, ‘cause I'm starving. Could chug down a gallon of coffee too.”

“Long night, huh?” River remarked as they walked towards the small shop, trash piled high all around it.

She puffed her cheeks. “The longest. I’ve barely slept the past two days. Three days, actually.”

“Two gallons of coffee then,” River laughed.

“You get me, big guy,” she cooed, then strolled into the shop. She headed straight for the counter and ordered up their breakfast and coffees. Like most places in this city it was dirty as hell, but River found them a table that looked decent enough. A TV on the wall was blaring ads nonstop and she wished she’d gotten the muting subscription for those damn things.

“Your turn,” River said as she sat down. “No hiccups on the job?”

“Oh, there was a ton,” she huffed. “But I’m still in one piece. Sorta… At least not dyin’ any more than I already am,” she added with a flippant smile. “So this nomad merc we teamed up with had some beef with some Raffen Shiv that had stolen her shit. So, we had to deal with that before we could go after Hellman. That got a bit messy, but we pulled through. Even getting Hellman was a mess, but… yeah.”

A server came over and placed their food on the table and V dug into her kebab. It was even more delicious than she remembered, or maybe that was just because she’d barely eaten anything the past couple of days.

“Hey, hey, everyone, welcome to Infoflash!” A woman’s voice suddenly came from a radio sitting on the windowsill by their table. “Say, did ya’ll lose power yesterday too? Yeah, when the lights went out there I was cooking dinner… Well, if we’re gettin’ specific, I was nukin’ a half-eaten burrito I found wedged in my couch cushion. Yeah, yeah, I know I shouldn’t have… After all, I heard microwaves zap out the nutrients. But hey, it kills the cockroaches too, so ya know… You win some, you lose some.”

V chewed slowly, stealing glances at the cop across from her though he seemed more focused on determining the hazard level of his breakfast.

“Anyway, what was I… Right, the power outage.” River glanced at the radio then, tuning in to the news as well. “Apparently some plant out in Santo short circ’d. Heard the EMPs were knockin’ AVs outta the sky. The NCPD says the blackout led to a hundred and twenty mill in damages all in all. The real tragedy though? I cannot stomach a cold burrito…”

“Hundred and twenty million eddies?!” Johnny exclaimed in her head making her jump and choked on her food “Hot damn! And just to get your hands on one dude. You got some cojones, V.”

“Are you alright?” River asked.

“Yeah,” she said, offering him a small smile. “Swallowed wrong,” she added with a slight laugh.

“Praise? From the infamous Johnny Silverhand? I’m flattered.”

Johnny snorted. “Don’t get used to it, kiddo.”

“Huh, crazy how that outage happened,” River mused. “Don’t think they’ve ever short circ’d like that before.”

V shrugged. “No tech’s without fault. Anything can happen at any time.” She felt his scrutinising gaze and just waited for the barrage of questions or accusations. He was, after all, a man of the law. And she was definitely not always on the right side of things.

“Just got a message from Mr Kovacz,” River said, changing the subject and her tension melted away in the same second. “Says you can run by his doc whenever you got the time.”

Her eyes widened. “Right now?”

“Or later,” he said, smiling softly. “Up to you.”

She leaned back in her seat, grabbed her coffee and chugged it back, nearly burning herself in the process. Grimacing, she set down the empty cup and took a deep breath. This was it, the moment she’d waited for. Moment of truth.

“Not to be clingy or anything, but,” she said, meeting River’s gaze. “Mind coming with? Not that I’m afraid of doctors or anything, I just… You know… Don’t want to be alone.”

“Of course I’ll come with you,” he said, his smile sending warmth coursing through her body. Damn was he gorgeous when he smiled like that. “I can call your mom while we wait for the results.”

“Shit,” she breathed out. “This gonna be the day for answers, I guess,” she said, letting out a breathy laugh. “Thank you, River. Really.”

He smiled again, his eye glinting. “It’s what friends do,” he said.

“Yeeeeaaah, no,” Johnny scoffed as he flickered into existence in the seat next to River. “He just wanna fuck you. That’s all this is. Soon as you spread your legs he’ll be gone faster than you can blink.”

“Mhm, wanna test that theory? ‘Cause I’m all for that,” she purred in response.

“Don’t you fuckin’ dare.”

“Is that a challenge I’m hearin’?” She said sweetly.

“What?” River asked with a hint of laughter in his voice. “Was I too cheesy?”

“Nah, wasn’t that,” she said, throwing her imaginary ‘friend’ a wicked grin. “Our third wheel disapproves of this friendship. Which, coming from a terrorist, just means that this,” she said, motioning between herself and River, “is a good thing.”

“Can’t say I’m his biggest fan either,” River mused.

“A terrorist, a merc, and a cop walked into a scop shop,” V snickered. “You and I are a bit of an unlikely pair, aren’t we? Two different worlds practically.”

“Dunno about that,” River said. “We both solve problems. Though I have to admit doing things the merc way is faster and more efficient than the legal way.”

She arched an eyebrow. “Legal way? Damn, man, biggest backhanded compliment ever,” she huffed. “Tellin’ me you’ve never taken a shortcut? No bribes, no fake reports, no fake sick days? Hmmm?”

He smiled sheepishly. “Definitely a no on the bribes,” he said slowly, shrugging. “Fine, you got me. You though? Ever taken a bribe or given one?”

“Me?” She exclaimed. “Me, who couldn’t even afford an XBD without taking a loan from a friend? Yeeaah, I hand out bribes left and right, duh. Got more eddies than a beggar will see in a lifetime.”

“Alright, alright, have mercy,” River chuckled and held his hands up in defeat. “Then I suppose we should not talk about breakin’ and entering, or theft or—”

“Shut your mouth right now, big guy,” she grumbled then stuck out her tongue at him. His rolling laughter made heat crawl up her cheeks.

***

“No answer or did she end the call?” V asked as she paced back and forth in the waiting room. Her red leather jacket hung over the side of a chair next to him. A small cotton ball was taped to her arm where the doc had drawn blood for the test.

“Busy signal,” he said, biting back a smile. “Relax, V, she’ll answer when she has the time. Besides, at this time of day most people are at work.”

“I guess you’re right,” she sighed and dumped down in the chair next to him. Barely a second passed before she started bouncing her leg up and down, frequently looking towards the doctor’s office. Without thinking, he reached over and put his hand on her knee. She froze immediately and he snapped his hand back.

“Sorry,” he said quickly.

“No, it’s fine, I don’t mind you touching me,” she said with a wry smile. “I just didn’t realize I was doing that…” She bit her lip and drew a deep breath. “This thing got me hella nervous, is all.”

“Understandable,” he said. “Won’t be long now. Wanna go for drinks later? Either in celebrations or as a consolation price.”

“Drinkin’ in the middle of the day? Count me in, rebel detective!” She laughed, a sound more beautiful than music.

“I’m always for trying new things,” he chuckled. Just then the office door opened and Kovacz’s doc waved V inside. She jumped to her feet and left River sitting alone in the waiting room. Vance Kovacz himself wasn’t here, and V’d been slightly disappointed about that. Though the man was probably busy with work at this time of day anyway.

River reached into his pocket and grabbed the shard he had stashed there earlier, then slotted it in. He initiated the security recording and booted up his built in NCPD-ID scanner and leaned back as the tech did the work. The footage played at ten times speed in the corner of his optics and every face captured was logged, timestamped and stuffed in a separate folder for him to sift through later on.

He only made it a couple minutes before a call came in and he had to pause to answer it.

“Who the hell are and why’ve you been calling me?” The woman at the other end of the line practically hissed at him.

River clasped his hands together and leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees. “Miss Gediminas,” he said in greeting. The name’s River Ward. I’m a detective for the NCPD and wanted to talk to about your—”

“Oh my god,” Marilyn breathed out before he could finish. “Is she dead? Please tell me she’s not dead.”

“Your daughter is fine, ma’am,” he said. “I wanted to talk about Mr Vance Kovacz. I spoke with him the other day and V’s currently getting her results for the DNA test.”

“Fucking dammit,” Marilyn practically growled. Then she let out a shuddering breath. “Detective, tell me, do you work for him? Or for my Valerie?”

“I’m doing this for V, ma’am,” he stated. “If there’s something we should know about Mr Kovacz, now’s time.”

Marilyn fell quiet. Not a sound came from the other end of the line for so long he thought maybe she’d disconnected. Then he heard a strangled exhale. “Keep her away from him. Please.”

Their connection severed and River was left frowning. Yes, something was definitely up with this family. But the biggest question mark remained. Why had Marilyn taken the twins and bolted? What did Vance Kovacz do? And would he really hurt V now?

Those questions bounced around in his mind as the office door flew open and V bounced out into the waiting room on light feet, with the biggest smile on her face. A beautiful dimple smile. He rose as she approached, managing almost to straighten up to his full height before her arms were around his neck and he instinctively wrapped his arms around her in return.

“It’s a match,” she announced gleefully as she pulled away, though not fully leaving his embrace. “You did it, River! You’re amazing. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” he said, smiling at her excitement. “I think,” he then added, thinking back on the call with her mother.

“You think? Why, what happened?” She asked, her smile fading slowly. Then, as if suddenly realizing her hands were still on his shoulders, she took a step back. “You talked to mom. What’d she say?”

“After her initial panic about your welfare,” he said with a wry smile. “Her exact words were; ‘Keep her away from him. Please’. Then she disconnected.” He picked her jacket up from the chair and handed it to her. “Wanna get out of here? Grab some drinks and cook up some theories on your family’s secrets.”

She sighed as she took the jacket. “Ever mysterious, my mom… She didn’t say anything else?”

“Aside from worrying about you? No, not really.”

V splayed her arms out, then spun on her heels and started for the hallway. “She’s got a weird fuckin’ way of showing it,” she grunted.

They entered the elevator and River punched the ground floor. “Not to sound like I’m picking sides,” he said and V was already scowling before he could finish his statement. “But she sounded terrified, V. Perhaps we should take a step back, give me some time to dig into Kovacz more.”

“I don’t really have time, River,” V said mutely, crossing her arms over her chest and leaning against the glass wall of the elevator, her gaze fixed on the view and obviously avoiding his gaze. He wanted to close the distance, to gather her in his arms and chase every dark cloud from her mind. But he stayed put, keeping his hands to himself.

“V, give me two days. Please, just enough time to properly screen the guy,” he said. He couldn't help himself, his gaze zeroing on that round scar between her eyes. A stark reminder that she should by all rights be dead. “I don’t want anything else to happen to you.”

She slowly looked over at him. “Okay,” she said eventually. “Two days. And today’s drinks are on you.”

“Two days,” he repeated, relieved he hadn’t had to push harder. Keep her away from him. And he would. At least until he’d found out why. “And drinks,” he added with a slight laugh.

“Better not forget those, big guy,” she snickered, her smile finally making a reappearance.

They reached the ground floor and soon they were walking the side of the street towards Mack. Cars sped by, one even running a red light and nearly running over some pedestrians crossing the street. Just another day in Night City.

“Huh,” V said suddenly and he looked over at her in silent question. “Getting a call. Unknown caller. Curious…” Her eyes lit up blue with a holo call as she answered the caller. “V here, who’m I talkin’ to?” She was quiet for a moment, her lips scrunching as she listened to the person on the other end. “Let’s just say that I got somethin’ that they want.” She listened for a few seconds again and slight annoyance passed over her face. “What’s the job, exactly?”

They stopped by a crossing, waiting for the light to turn green for them.

“Alright then. Some man in a church,” she said, and the light switched to green and they set off again with a stream of people crossing the street. “Got it. Nova, thanks, Mr Hands.” She ended the call and her face split wide grin. “Fuckin’ finally!”

River let out a low chuckle. “Good news, I take it.”

“Ugh, the best. Been waitin’ for that call.” They stopped next to Mack, and V turned to face him. “A small break in the Pacifica puzzle. Just gotta do a job for the Voodoo’s and I’ll get a meeting with who I hope is Evelyn’s contact.”

“I hope it’s the piece you need,” River said. Though he was a bit more transfixed by how the light of the sun made her brown eyes look nearly golden. Stunning, just like all of her. He noticed her cheeks turning lights shade of red.

“You alright there, River?” She asked, arching an eyebrow at him.

“Heh, yes, sorry. I just…” His attention caught on a small, red dot that inched its way from her shoulder across her chest. Towards her heart. “Sniper!” He called out as he snapped forward, grabbing her and twisting her to the side to cover her as the sound of a gunshot echoed between the buildings. The pair of them fell to the ground, his vision filled with a flashing Trauma Team notification. V grunted as the full weight of him landed on top of her.

People around them screamed and scattered but he couldn’t focus on that through the searing pain in his shoulder. The pain flared as V pushed him off her, huffing at his weight. Then she froze.

“Shit, shit, shit,” he heard V mutter. “River, you’re hit,” she hissed. She moved to stand up, and despite the pain in his shoulder he grabbed her arm. Another shot echoed through the air and V ducked down. “Motherfucker.”

“Alley,” he grunted. “Get out of here. Now.”

“Not fuckin’ leaving you behind, River.”

He squinted through the pain as she reached into her pocket. He barely noticed the grenade before she pulled the pin with her teeth and threw the thing down on the ground right where she stood. His heart leapt in a short spurt of a panic before smoke enveloped them. A Smoke grenade, he realized with a sigh of relief.

In the next second, under the cover of the smoke, he felt her wrap her arms around him before the gorilla arms hissed. He wasn’t sure if he should be offended or flattered that she needed the boost from her tech to drag him away. Then again, he was a dead weight barely able to get his feet under him to help her.

He tried to blink away the blurriness.

She propped him up half sitting half slouching against the wall. “Hey, talk to me, big guy,” she said, and he heard a slight quiver in her voice while she was rifling through his coat. “Fuck… Don’t have any huffers on you?”

“Ergh…They’re in the truck,” he grunted and his gaze trailed along the red stain leading out of the alley and into the slowly dissipating smoke. That was a lot of blood.

“Shit, fuck,” V hissed. He felt her fingers on his chin before she turned his head towards her. “Stay with me, ok? I’m gonna call Jackie, then we’ll get you to Vik’s—”

“TT comin’,” he managed to get out. One of the perks of working for the NCPD was the health insurance.

She let out a long shuddering breath. “Alright, good. Great. Gotta keep you alive till then, Riv. How long?”

“Uhm,” he started but the words stuck in his throat as she started stripping. First her jacket went and then her shirt. His attention snatching on the purple bra, the final bastion keeping her from being completely topless.

A foxy smile appeared on her lips. “What? Never had a woman undress for you before?” She cooed, though he could tell she was trying damn hard to keep her tone light. She knelt close to him and he groaned as she pressed the shirt against the wound. “Don’t get your boxers in a twist, okay? Barely three weeks ago I did the same thing to Jackie. At least you don’t have a girlfriend to get pissed at me, right?”

“Not yet,” he said, the words leaving his damn mouth before his brain could even register the thought.

The laugh that bubbles out of her was the most serene music. “That sniper shot you up with a doze of cockiness, huh?” She chuckled. A wave of drowsiness washed over him and all he wanted was to let it overtake him fully. A gentle hand touched his cheek and he forced his eye open. “Hey,” V said, “stay with me, big guy. How long until TT arrives?” Her voice was calm and soothing, but he still detected a tinge or urgency.

“Uhm,” he squinted at the notification, trying to discern the letters and numbers. “Right…’round the corner.” A blaring siren filled the air before he could even finish the sentence and V let out a relieved, shaky breath as she leaned her forehead against his. He closed his eye and relished the feeling of her touch.

“Like right this moment, nova. Stay with me a little longer, okay?” Her voice was so soothing he almost slipped off to dreamland then and there. Until another set of hands grabbed him and he was moved to a stretcher. Something got shot into his arm, and an oxygen mask strapped to his face before the stretcher lifted off the ground.

“I’m coming with,” he heard her say somewhere nearby. Someone else replied though he didn’t really catch the words. “I don’t fucking care about your damn fucking protocol. He’s my…my partner, and I’m not leaving his side.” Footsteps approached and he felt a hand lock around his organic one. “Leadheaded gonk,” she sniffled. “Why’d you have to take the bullet? I’m already dying, you shouldn’t…”

The rest of her sentence faded out as his mind was swept away by the drugs in his system.

Chapter Text

The first thing he noticed was the soft touch on his hand, the gentle caress of  thumb moving in soothing circles. That peaceful feeling vanished in an instant as a memory of a gunshot echoed through his mind. The blood, the burning wound, V trying her best to staunch the bleeding with her shirt.

“V,” he croaked.

A huff sounded next to him. “Try again, little brother.”

He cracked his eye open. “Joss, hey.”

“Hey,” she said, letting out a shaky breath. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I got shot,” he said, offering her his best attempt at a smile.

Joss rolled her eyes. “Really funny… You know, when I got the call,” she choked and tried to blink away the tears. “I thought that…that this was it, this was the call I’d dreaded for years.”

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I was protecting V. The sniper was aiming at her.”

“V, the shirtless woman covered in blood,” Joss said, a hint of humor in her voice.

He huffed out a chuckle and immediately regretted it as pain shot through his shoulder. “She wasn’t shirtless at the time. She’s a friend. A nomad actually, she came to the city in search of her father. I offered to help.” His gaze swept over the hospital room. “Kids at school?”

“No, it’s Sunday, River,” Joss said. “You’ve been out for three days. Tom offered to watch them while I visited you.”

“Who’s Tom?” he asked, frowning.

“New guy. He moved into the trailer park five weeks ago. He has a daughter of his own and the kids love him. And no, you are not going to ‘vet’ him, River,” she added, giving him a crass look. “He’s just being a good neighbor."

“Wasn’t thinking that at all…” He flashed her a big grin.

“Vet your ‘friend’ first if you’re going down that road. Water?” She grabbed a small glass and poured some water from a pitcher. “After I got the call, on the whole drive to the hospital all I could think about was our fight. How that would be the last real thing we said to each other before you died.”

“Joss, what I said, I didn’t mean—”

“But you were right,” she cut in and handed him the glass of water. “I am a good for nothing mother. I can’t fend for my own family, I don’t even own the home we’re living in. Not to mention my oldest son hates my guts and has run away again.” She covered her face with her hands and took a deep breath before lowering her hands again. “Sorry, it’s been a long few days.”

“I’ll go look for him once I’m out,” he said, slowly raising the glass to his lips and taking a sip of that sweet liquid. “And you’re a great mother going through a rough patch, Joss, I’m a huge dick for suggesting otherwise. And Randy doesn’t hate you, he just misses his father.”

Joss sighed. “Me too. Some days. The good things.” She caught him giving her a look. “Don’t start, Mr she’s-a-friend. Sooo, tell me about this nomad.”

“We are friends, Joss,” he said pointedly, though his mask cracked a second later. “But we were originally going to date. Then her sitch changed and, well, we’ve settled for friends till she’s got her thing sorted.”

“In short she’s using you to find her father,” Joss huffed. “And she’s hot. Easily stringing you along because you, like every other man, only think with your second head. Shame, she seemed nice.”

River scowled at her. “She’s got a terminal brain condition, Joss, and I insisted on helping her so that she could focus on herself.”

Joss’s eyes widened. “Oh, I’m so sorry.”

He gave her a pointed look. “Just because she used to run with a nomad clan, doesn't make her like your husband.”

“Fine, fine, I get it,” Joss shot back. “You did not have to go there.” She crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair, pursing her lips.

He tilted his head back and stared up at the white ceiling. Even bedbound with a hole in his shoulder he couldn’t go through one conversation with his sister without starting a fight. He shouldn’t have snapped at her about her husband, it wasn’t fair.

He cleared his throat. “When’s the last time you heard from Randy?”

“Five days ago,” she said quietly. “He said he was going to sleep over at Nat’s but I talked to her yesterday and she said they broke up two weeks ago.”

“Five days,” he repeated. That wasn’t good. He usually came home on his own after three. “Uhm, I’ll file for an early discharge, start looking for him. Have you checked his usual spots?”

“Every single one of them,” she said, her lips trembling. “No one’s seen him, Riv. I’m worried.”

“I’ll find him, Joss.”

“With a busted shoulder? You can’t drive around with that and I talked to your doc and he told me your insurance was spent for this quarter.” Her lips pressed into a thin, angry line. “They saved your life, but they’re not gonna do more than that.”

“So I’ll pay out of pocket,” he said. “Not here, but I know a guy.”

“Trustworthy guy? I’ve heard those street docs can be…shady at best.”

He huffed out a chuckle, then grimaced at the pain it caused. “He’s V’s guy. A reputable ripperdoc independent from the big corporations.” As if mentioning her had been a summons, her name appeared in an in-coming call notification. “V’s calling.”

“She’s been calling you every day,” Joss said with a wry smile. “Which is also why I was giving you shit for calling her a ‘friend’ because it’s obviously more. Put her on speaker.”

He arched an eyebrow. “So you were just giving me shit to give me shit?”

She shrugged. “Answer the call, little brother.”

He snorted and rolled his eyes, but he complied with her request. “Hey you,” he said, unable to keep a smile from spreading on his face. “By the way, I’m with Joss right now. On speaker.”

“Hey yourself, and hey to you too Joss,” V said, unusually chipper. “River, how you holdin’ up?”

“Alive,” he snorted. “Shoulder busted to hell, but I’m alive. Thanks to your generous fabric donation no doubt.”

“Ha, was kinda hopin’ you didn’t remember that part," she said with a short laugh. “I also forgot that bit while watching the surgery from the observation room… Turns out I left my jacket in the alley.”

“Yeah, Joss also mentioned your state of undress,” he said, giving his sister a look. Joss pursed her lips again and slapped his forearm. “Ouch, hey!” He exclaimed.

V laughed. “Don’t worry, shit happens. But seriously, you’re alright?”

“As good as I can be,” he said. “Your turn. How’d the Pacifica thing go?”

“To creepy shit and dead ends. Not sure where to take it from there honestly…” There was a slight disappointment in her voice but there was still that lingering excitement. “But that’s not what I wanted to talk about actually. You’re never gonna guess what just happened.”

“Jackie confessed his undying love for me?” He suggested with a big smile.

V snickered. “Yeah right. Nope, not even close. So yesterday Jackie and I were called out to the Badlands by Regina to hunt down a psycho causing a bit of mayhem.”

His eyebrows shot up. “You’re hunting cyberpsychos? V, that’s what MaxTac’s for.”

“Yeeeaah, and MaxTac has a three hundred percent killrate while I have a hundred percent knockout rate. Regina needs the psychos alive if she and her people are gonna find a cure for it,” she said. “But the psycho isn’t the story, don’t sidetrack me, big guy. So the night sky was really beautiful last night so I suggested to Jackie we camp out, but his cityborn ass would rather watch neon lights instead of the Milky Way.”

River huffed a laugh. “What kind of gonk says no to stargazing?” He became keenly aware of how Joss was watching him. She was definitely reading way too much into this phone call.

“Exactly what I said!” V exclaimed. “So he leaves and I sit down to enjoy the view and, guess what, lucky ol’ me has her night ruined by another fucking seizure. Probably the worst one I’ve had so far, passed out completely. But get this, I sorta wake up to this guy standing over me but I just pass out again. Yeah yeah, I know that could’ve gone really bad,” she added before he could even comment on it. “You can bite into Jackie later for abandoning me. But I just woke up again, about thirty minutes ago or so, and… Wait, let me turn on my cam and show you.”

He grinned at her excitement. Whatever it was, it was making her glow. Her grinning face appeared on his phone and his attention snapped right to the new blooming bruise on her left cheek. Probably from the fight with the psycho…

“Look at this,” she said with the biggest, most excited grin he’d ever seen. The cam flipped around to show the most impressive piece of wheels. Thornton Mackinaw with massive tires and a ton of custom work done to it. “It’s called the Demiurge,” she said, practically giggling. “And it’s mine. How fucking awesome is that? Not even shitting you right now, it was transferred to me by someone named Polyhistor, no idea who that guy is but he left a ton of gear here too. And nosy little me had to go through the comp, and it gets even weirder. There’s some emails and logs on the comp talking about some watcher observing everything that goes on in the city. Creepy shit, really, there’s clothes left on the ground here too. Not mine, just sayin’.”

River hummed. “That is weird. Mind snapping some stills and flick me a copy of the emails and logs?”

“Don’t got enough side projects already?” V asked. “Alright, if you’re up for it. And once I’m done here I’m gonna go take my kickass Demiurge for a ride.”

His brow curled into a frown. “You’re keeping it? V, what if there’s something brewing here.” She wasn’t wrong though. He was taking on a lot of cases now. The most pressing ones being Vance Kovacz and the elusive fixer Dexter DeShawn. And now Randy too, though he was most likely hiding out somewhere with his friends again.

“Hell yeah I’m keepin’ it. Now I can say that mine’s bigger than yours, big guy.” She turned the back on herself and wiggled her eyebrows at him.

Joss cleared her throat. “I’m still here.”

“Sorry, Joss,” V laughed. “I’ll let you two get back to it and I’ll do my best to do some good detective work here before going on my joyride. Talk to you later!”

“Take care, V,” he said, smiling fondly. “And be careful out there since I’m not around to take bullets for you.”

She snorted. “Real fucking funny, worrywart. Enjoy your real sick leave now!” She ended the call before he could come up with a comeback and he instead chuckled and shook his head. 

“Big guy and worrywart,” Joss said slowly. “Just friends, huh?”

He narrowed his eye at her. “Did you miss the part about her terminal illness?”

“Even bigger reason to live and love,” Joss said, wiggling her eyebrows.

“I’m not about to take advantage of a sick woman, Joss,” he said pointedly. “And she wanted to hit pause on our dating and I will honor that.”

Joss threw her hands up. “Okay, okay, I conceive defeat and won’t press you any further.” She looked over at the clock on the corner of the screen on the far wall. “I should get back home. And look for Randy.”

“Take Mack, I’m not gonna need it until I’m out of here anyway.”

“Actually, I’m borrowing Tom’s car.” She reached forward and took his hand. “Rest up, brother.”

“Ah, Tom. Sure you don’t want me to vet him?” He said lightheartedly, but Joss scowled.

“Don’t you dare,” she said, pursing her lips. She rose and said a short goodbye before leaving the room.

River sighed and sunk deeper into the soft pillow. He opened his contact's list and scrolled down until he found Randy’s number. It rang and rang but only when he reached the voice message did he end the call. A knot tightened in his stomach. It didn't have to mean anything, there had been other times where Randy’d refused to answer their calls until either he or Joss found him.

Nothing he could do about it now anyway, not while he was stuck in the hospital room.

So instead he pulled up the security recording from the Sunset Motel again and started where he’d left off before the shooting.

***

“Woohooo yeah!” She hollered as the beast roaring beneath her leapt over the narrow, dried out canyon.

“Fuck yeah!” Johnny echoed. She looked over, grinning at the sheer joy on his face. Finally they’d found some common ground, they were both adrenaline junkies. “Think it can crawl up the side of that trash mountain over there?”

“Let’s find out,” she said out loud. Whenever he appeared like that, an apparition or hallucination, it was easy to forget that he was nothing more than data nestled in the nape of her neck. 

Demiurge roared and she stomped down on the chooh and turned towards the steep side of the mountain. It tackled the smaller trash heaps with glorious ease and its growls deepened as they hit the first major incline. She felt the trash shift and slide beneath the machine.

“Come on, baby,” she muttered, easing up on the chooh, then giving it more pressure, slowly letting Demiurge crawl up ever nearer the top. “Come one, come on, come on,” she urged, eyes peeled on that curving top while balancing the chooh as best she could. It had been a while since she’d let out like this, and months of only driving in the city she was a little out of practice.

“Don’t let up!”

She felt Demiurge slipping again and crushed down the chooh, sending the beast lurching forward. The sky opened up ahead and she slammed on the breaks just as Demiurge leveled out.

“Look at that view,” she breathed out. The city on the left looked almost peaceful, half hidden as it was in the thick smog that never really seemed to disappear even on a nice, sunny day. Somewhere in there was that damn fucking sniper that had slipped away.

Then there was the allure and quiet of the Badlands on the right. The openness, the freedom, and somewhere far to the east was her mother and brother living their lives without her.

She put the truck in park, then slipped out of the open window and settled down on the hood. Partial hood anyway, she was careful not to bump into any of the hot parts of the engine. Her vision glitched for a second and she braced herself for another attack, but it didn’t come. Instead, Johnny appeared next to her, crouching and looking out at the view as well.

“Hard to think of this city as anything but a sea of opportunities,” she said. “I came here for two things; Get away from everything, and find dad. At least I’ve done the second one.”

“Who’s Nayeli?” Johnny asked suddenly. “Her name keeps popping up in your subconscious every now and then. Yet, you try not to think about her. Except when we were looking for Evelyn.”

“Tellin’ me you’ve been rifling through my mind?” She cut him a side glance.

“Not too many other trash flick tv shows to watch in this sponge brain of yours,” he scoffed. “You’ve buried her deep. She’s one of the ‘reasons’, isn’t she?”

She leaned her head back against roof lights and just stared up at the nearly cloudless sky. Bland, pale blue. She’d rather watch a star-flecked darkness over an empty vastness.

She let out a shuddering breath. “Maybe I should give Dakota a call, see if she’s got anything for me today.”

“Deflecting like a pro. It’s only a matter of time before your memories will show me anyway.”

She pressed her lips into a thin line and shot him a mean glare. Johnny just looked at her calmly, lowering his aviators to meet her glare with an unimpressed look.

“Remember the Raffens?”

“Sure, four of us fucked them up in that cave, same people took Saul.” He put his sunglasses back on and looked out on the horizon. “Motherfucking scum of the earth. Unwanted by both society and nomads.”

“Yeah, well, there are other groups like them. Out there.” To the far east…

“They got her, didn’t they?”

She bit the inside of her cheek. “The Bakkers were too scared to go after them. But Vinnie and I went on our own, snuck out in the dead of night. They…had taken others. We found other women. Some were already dead, others hurt badly.” She swallowed the lump in her throat. “We found Nayeli in a similar state we found Evelyn. She wouldn’t speak, wouldn’t eat. A couple of weeks after we saved her she put a barrel in mouth. I heard the shot.”

“I’m sor—”

She bounced off the hood and entered the driver’s seat again. Though she couldn’t actually make Johnny shut up, he seemed to read the room and kept quiet as she turned on the engine and set Demiurge soaring off the side of the trash mountain. The last thing she needed was to stroll down the memory lane. It was full of shit and bad dreams anyway.

Demiurge’s monster tires hit tarmac and she turned a sharp right. Away from the city. What she needed right now was the wind in her hair and silence. Sweet, blissful quiet. No road. She swung to the left, Demiurge practically flying over the uneven terrain with ease.

“Damn, who needs that many landmines?”

“What?” She asked, arching an eyebrow.

“That farm we passed. Your optics logged a shitton of landmines and some turrets.”

She hit the breaks and twisted around to do a proper scan of the place. And Johnny was right, that farm had a megaton of self defense systems.

“Bit overkill, even for a lone farm in the Badlands,” she muttered, mostly to herself.

“How about we check it out,” Johnny suggested, with an odd edge of eagerness. Fake eagerness. He was trying to get her mind off of their previous conversation.

“And get ourselves blown to bits? No thanks,” she grunted. She turned back around and put the truck in gear.

“Come on, I know you’re curious. With your fancy ass Kiroshi’s avoiding those shrapnel spitters should be a walk in the park.”

She puffed her cheeks. “We’ll circle it once, okay? If there’s anyone home they’d sooner shoot us on sight rather than even let us get near those mines at all.”

“Just sayin’, could be something valuable in there. And you’re in desperate need of some hard, green cash.”

She just gave him a pointed look before fixing her attention on the farm. After the psycho job her bank account was quite plush actually. For now, anyway. Rent was almost due and she still owed Vik and Jackie quite a lot.

The farmhouse was small, with an even smaller shed. THe barn, however, was the real kicker. Farms like this one used to hold beef cattle, feeding towns and cities. That was a long time ago now, fresh meat had been replaced by synthetic flesh 3D printed in a lab.

“Looks abandoned,” Johnny noted. “Look how the windows on the house are broken?”

“Mhm, yes, though it might not mean it’s deserted. Whoever lives here might not give a shit about sand in their living room.” She pulled up close to the barbwired fence at the side of the silos. “Fine, you win, we’re going in.”

She killed the engine and slipped out the window again, climbing up on the roof of the truck. She scanned the ground on the other side of the fence for any landmines, the last thing she needed was to blow herself up. One steadying breath, and with a running step she leapt over the barbed wire and caught on to a metal bar to slow her fall before letting go.

“Front’s a no-go, too hot with the turrets and mines,” Johnny said as if she didn’t already know that.

She just rolled her eyes and tiptoed over to one of the windows. It was dark, and the dirt on the glass was so thick she couldn’t make out much at all. But there were definitely no cows in there now. It was too quiet.

“Doubt this place has any riches to be plundered,” she muttered under her breath.

“If I was a scurrying rat hiding my stash, this’d be the spot,” Johnny said. “At least take a peek inside. Go around back, maybe there’s an unguarded window or something we can climb through.”

She rolled her eyes. “Or I can just punch through the wall. This place is falling apart as it is.”

“Great plan, genius, then everyone in this godforsaken wasteland would hear it. Go around, find a quiet way in. In case the nutjob is home.”

“Fiiine,” she groaned. “If I die it’s on you, asshole.”

“If you die, I die, dumbass.”

“Maybe I should call Jackie,” she muttered, while carefully following the wall of the barn.

“And share the loot? Hell nah, this one’s ours.”

“Aye aye, captain,” she scoffed. She kept going around the barn, but every damn window was barred. This was a stupid idea, and now she was stuck inside a barbed wire fence and the main gate undoubtedly being trapped with mines at the front of the barn.

“Ladder! Are you even trying, jeezus, it’s right fucking in front of your eyes,” Johnny snorted.

“This is your adventure, man, not mine,” she hissed under her breath. Regardless, she sett off towards the ladder. There were a few mines around it, but they were far enough apart that she managed to slip along the wall without triggering them. Whoever lived here was an absolute whackjob, no doubt about that. She grabbed the ladder and started climbing the rickety thing.

“Slow down, dumbo, you’re making too much noise!”

She rolled her eyes again. “You’re making this more tedious than it has to be. If the owner is home he’d be in the house, not the fucking barn.” She reached the top and scrambled up onto the roof. “Fuck me sideway, got an open skylight.”

“Look who’s suddenly interested,” Johnny leered.

“Yeah, yeah,” she thought back to him and flipped off his ghost. She crouched down, squinting at the darkness inside. No lights on, except some hazy lights coming from another room. “Fucker’s here…”

“Don’t you dare back out now, just hit him over the head or make him tell you where the stash is.”

“Can’t believe I’m letting you turn me into a two-bit thief…”

“You’re already a two-bit thief, gonk brain.”

“Asshole,” she grumbled. There looked to be an elevated walkway below the skylight, so she grabbed the edge of the window and lowered herself down. “If someone steals Demi while we’re doing this, I’m gonna kick your fucking ass.”

“Eye on the price, V,” Johnny huffed.

She shook her head, her gaze trained on the side window leading into the lit room. The light was flickering, like the shifting colors of a TV screen playing a show or something. Which meant whoever was in there probably wouldn’t hear her. Probably.

“Holy shit balls!” Johnny exclaimed, nearly making her jump out of her skin.

“What?” She hissed.

“Do you need glasses? Scan the fucking stalls!”

She frowned but did as he asked. She sucked in a breath and her heart skipped a beat. “What. The. Fuck.” She scanned the rest of the stalls, in total counting eight kids between the ages of fourteen to seventeen. All strapped up and hooked to some kind of feeding machine. “What the actual fuck,” she breathed out.

She snuck along the walkway, and treaded down some rickety, rusty stairs until she was on the ground floor. Machines hummed, and weird slurpy sounds came from the tubes attached to the teenagers’ faces. Force feedin’ them some kind of schlop.

There was movement in the lit up window and she crouched down low. Only once the shadow settled back down did she start forward. Some of the boys stirred as she passed, turning their heads in her direction, listening for her movement. Their faces were covered in some kind of latex mask, like something out of a horror movie.

“Turret, numbskull!”

But she was already leaping for cover before Johnny could finish his belated warning. The red laser slowly traveled across the space she’d just been, then started turning away again. She slipped out from behind cover, pulling out a small knife from her boot.

“Really wish I’d invested in some night vision right about now,” she thought. She moved behind the turret, eyeing the shitty DIY wiring. It was a miracle that thing was even working, much less not shooting up the place whenever dust flew by.

“Sure, Miss Minimalist.”

“Hey, at least I got the arms. Didn’t always have those,” she shot back. She wiggled free a green wire, swiftly cutting it and watched as the turret went limp. Dead.

“Remind me how many months it took for Jackie to convince you to get those?” Johnny leered.

“Shut the fuck up, dickwad.”

The machines, she’d have to turn off those damn feeding machines somehow. The room  with the light was probably the way to go, but that fucker was in there.

“Element of surprise is on our side,” Johnny coached, as if she didn’t already know that. Problem was getting there, and whatever other traps or turrets were still around. Unless… “Unless you lure him out here.”

“That could endanger the kids.”

“Just fuckin’ do it, you pussy.”

“Asshole,” she muttered under her breath. A side plating on the dead turret looked like it was about to fall off on its own, so she tore it off the rest of the way and tossed it down the aisle of stalls. Some of the boys stirred, groaning against their masks and tubes.

There was movement in the lit room and V slipped further into the shadows, keeping a keen eye on the darkened hallway.

“Hear that?”

“Sure do, tech’s shutting down. He’s got more defensive systems in there,” she said. “He must be chipped, synced up so they shut down as he walks by.”

“Could be our way in-”

“To the control unit,” she said, finishing his line of thought.

The sound of shuffling feet reached her ears and she cowered down behind a barrel, listening intently as the person from the other room entered the stall area.

“Now now, settle down, my lost little boys,” a man said, his voice sending shivers down her spine. Creep, through and through. The clang of metal echoed through the spacious room, followed by a thud. “Oh my, still have some fight in you. No need for that, my friend.”

She peeked around the barrel and spotted one of the boys closest to her had managed to break free and was kneeling on the concrete floor while clawing at his mask. The stranger, however, got to him, wrenched his hands away from the mask and began attempting to  lift the boy back onto the table.

V gripped Dying Night from the holster and pointed it into the air, letting loose two shots before leaping out and pointing the gun at the creep.

“Hands where I can see them!” She shouted. The creep was in the midst of reaching for something. She would’ve fired at him, at least his hand, but there was a row of trapped boys behind him. “Don’t try anything shithead.”

“Easy, lady, you’ve got it all wrong,” the creep said. “These lost boys came to my shelter, wanted to be here. I’m helping them.”

She arched an eyebrow. “Hey you, kid on the floor,” she said. “Do you want to be here?” The kid shook his head vigorously. “Thought not. Step out into the aisle, shithead.” She kept her aim steady on his chest. Dying Night was a low calibre, if she hit him in the right spot, the bullet would puncture a lung and then get lodged in the bone behind. If she hit any other limbs she risked the bullet flying through and potentially hitting one of the boys.

The creep took a slow step to the side, then he lurched for something she couldn’t see. But she’d been expecting the shithead to do something stupid. The moment he moved, her finger squeezed the trigger and the gunshot echoed through the barn, the creep crumbling to the floor.

She rushed over, her gun still pointed at the asshole and she rolled him over with her foot. He sucked in a rasping breath, his eyes glaring up at her.

“Fucking bitch, you shot me!” He spat at her.

“Yeah,” she huffed. “Told ya not to do anything stupid. Feel that tightness in your chest? That's your lung filling up with your blood, until you choke on it.” She grabbed the back of his shirt and hoisted him to his feet. “Now you and I are going for a little walk, shithead, and we're gonna turn off this machine and set these kids free. Try anything else and I’ll crush your skull with my bare hands. Understood?”

“They’re lost, I’m their safe haven. I—”

She pushed him forward. “Fucking walk, dipshit.” She looked over at the kid curled into a ball in the stall, the mask still firmly on his face. “Kid, stay there and I’ll be back soon to get that thing of you, okay? Don’t go anywhere, the place is booby trapped to hell and back.”

He stumbled, only staying upright because of the steel grip she had on him. He'd have a couple of minutes before he drowned in his own blood, hopefully long enough to get her past the damn turret in the hallway. The asshole was dragging his feet, even in his slowly dying state he was fighting back. Much like she was, but her own wound was invisible.

To her relief she heard the turret shutting down as they approached, then a second one just beyond a plastic curtain. She hadn’t even spotted that one.

“My little lucky charm,” she cooed. She pushed him into the only room she could see and was happy to see all the blinking lights and doodads of a control unit. “Time to turn off the machine.” 

“Fuck you, you fucking cunt whore!”

“How imaginative,” she drawled. “You know what, I can figure this out on my own. Nighty night, shithead.” Before he could respond she slammed the grip of her gun against the back of his head and the man crumbled to the floor.

“Should’ve fuckin’ blasted his brains out,” Johnny huffed.

“He’s gonna bleed out anyway. No point wastin’ bullets.” 

She looked around the room. A weird ass cartoon was paused on a screen, the rest of the room looked more like a control center than an office. Some of the buttons were labeled, but most weren’t. It all looked homemade, a tinkerjob by someone figuring things out as they went. So those labels didn’t have to mean shit anyway. The cablework was shoddy at best, mostly a random nest of lines going in all directions though they seemed to join together in an even bigger mess over a rusty box on the wall.

“Worth a shot,” she thought and walked over to the box. The inside was just as terrible as the rest of the room. But there was a switch. 

“No way it’ll be this easy,” Johnny scoffed.

She flipped it and immediately the lights went out and the hum of the machines died out. “Can’t have bad luck all the time,” she leered and she could feel Johnny roll his eyes.

“Should probably get some help, V,” he said as she made her way back out.

“Could call River. I’m sure some of these kids have been reported missing.” She rushed over to the kid on the floor, unlatched the tube, then pulled the mask off his face. His eyes were closed, but he was breathing. Passed out. “But he’s in the hospital, I should let him rest.”

“Jackie then.”

“Too far away… Panam! After the whole Saul thing she’s back with the family. Time to call in a favor.”

She quickly flicked through her contact then rang her up while scurrying between the boys, unlatching and unmasking one after the other.

“V, what’s up?” Panam said, her voice ringing through her head.

“Need your help,” V said, skipping over the formalities. “I’m in a barn full of kidnapped kids, they’re in pretty rough shape. Eight boys… Fuck, make that seven, this one’s dead.”

“V, slow down, where are you?”

“Good question,” Johnny said. “Out in the boonies somewhere.”

V shot him a glare. “Flicking you my coords. But be careful, I’ve shut down the power in the barn, but I doubt the mines and turrets out front are connected to the same system.”

“Mines, turrets, kidnapped boys, sounds like great fun. We’ll be there in a few,” Panam said then ended the call.

She puffed her cheeks. All the tubes and masks were off the boys, but she left the metal bars strapped shut over them. The last thing she needed right now was a bunch of panicked half conscious boys running outside and getting themselves blown to bits.

She trudged over to the first kid and sat down on the dusty concrete. The kid was still out. Probably for the best seeing as the blood of the creep was all around him. Now that she thought about it, she should probably move him in case he woke up again. 

She grabbed his arm, then hoisted him onto her shoulder, carrying the boy closer to the main gate and away from the blood trail. As she set him down she noticed his eyes flutter open.

“Hey, kiddo,” she said lightly. “Help’s on the way.” Just as she said that she heard several cars approaching, then stopping right outside. Most likely to canvas the area’s defensive systems. “Hear that, they’re already here. Once the coast is clear, we’ll go to their camp and have their doc take a look at you all.”

He just looked at her, then he started taking in the scene and the other boys. “Where’s Tony?” he asked, his voice quivering.

“Who’s Tony?” She asked, though she had an inkling the guy was bleeding out in the other room. “Was he the guy that took you?”

“He said… He said he was my friend, that he was going to help me…” He wrapped his arms around himself, and tears streaked down his cheeks.

“Look, I have a friend in the NCPD. I could call him, he’ll help you find your fam—”

He shook his head. “I ran away,” he whispered. “If I go home Mom’s going to be angry as hell, my uncle too if he’s even there.”

She heard voices outside, especially the unmistakable sound of Panam shouting orders. From what she could hear they were breaking into the main house, probably to  find a way to disarm the hellscape out there.

“I ran away from home too,” she said. “And my mom’s definitely pissed as fuck. Won’t even talk to me. But, even if it hurts, I know that she’s using that anger as a mask because she’s really fucking scared something’ll happen to me while I’m away. What I’m sayin’ is that your mom will be happy to see you again, kiddo. Bettin’ ya she’s worried sick right now.”

“Hypocrite,” Johnny scoffed.

“Am not… I’m well aware my mom is worried too, she’s just being a raging pain in the ass. All she has to do is be honest ‘bout what the fuck’s going on.”

“Blah blah blah, how about we focus our brain on Mikoshi. After the dirtrunners take these kids off our hands.”

“My brain, my hands!”

“Not for long,” the bastard said, grinning like a menace.

“What do I—” the kid started saying but he snapped his mouth shut when the barn door began going up.

“Yo, V!” Panam said as she strolled inside. “Holy shit, girl, you left some details out. What the actual fuck.”

V patted the kid on the shoulder before she rose to her feet, dusting off her pants. “Hope you brought enough wheels,” she said wryly. “Dunno what that sick fuck did to them but most of them are too weak to even lift their own hands.”

“He said we needed our…supplements,” the kid said behind her. “To grow strong and big.”

V bit the inside of her cheek. “Should grab whatever we can here, after getting the boys out. Analyze the schlop from the tubes,” she looked around the barn, scanning anything she could see. “Those feed sacks could be a clue to what he gave them.”

“Gotcha,” Panam said. "Let's get to work then.” She marched over to the nearest kid and began removing the metal bar from over him.

“Nova, I’m gonna bring my truck around. Left it at the back fence when I got here.” She looked down at the boy. “Think you can walk, kiddo? You can ride with me if you want.” The boy hesitated. “It’s a kickass monster of Thorton Mackinaw, just sayin’. If you ride with the ‘caldos you’ll be missing out.”

“Since when did you have a Mackinaw?” Panam blurted out. “If you had that, why were you rolling around in that trash heap Hella?”

She gave Panam an incredulous look. “Don’t smack talk about my old ride, okay? Hella is hella reliable! And I got the truck today, actually,” she added with a sly smile. “Be back in a bit!”

She set off towards the main doors, gave MItch a fist bump on her way and she was not surprised to see half the clan had showed up. Some prepping stretchers for the boys, others salvaging the mines and the two turrets. The owner wasn’t going to need them anymore anyway, might as well put them to good use.

When she finally was behind the wheel of her new baby she let her shoulders sag. Holy shit, this evening had not gone the way she’d thought it would. She should call River, let him know that she was handing kidnapped kids over to the Aldecaldos so that he could check them up against missing persons… But he’d just woken up, he was still recovering. She could wait a couple days before telling him.

A notification popped up in her optics and her heart skipped a beat.

Hot Cop - 7:49 PM
[ IMAGE ATTACHED ]
Looks like we just missed the fucker.

She leaned forward as she studied the still. A snapshot from the security footage from the Sunset Motel. A very clear image of a familiar fat fuck getting into a car almost out of view from the camera. She glanced at the timestamp. Two nights before she and Jackie went out there with Panam.

That asshole had left five days ago and could’ve disappeared to anywhere now. Or maybe… The car, it had Wraith decals on it. So whoever Dex had been waiting on had turned out to be them. Weird.

V - 7:52 PM
Maybe. That ride has Wraith tags on it. I’ll put my nose to the ground out here while I wait for Jackie to join up. If I’m lucky then maybe Dakota knows something.
Thank you, River <3
I owe you a big one!

Hot Cop - 7:53 PM
Don’t mention it, V!
Perhaps I should cash in that favor right away and ask for two new days on your father :) I sort of slept through them…

And then there was that. The old man hadn’t reached out to her, and River had never really given her his contact so she’d just been waiting around to hear from him. Busy corpo suit couldn’t even bother to send her a quick message. Maybe the whole reason her mother didn’t like him was simply because he was an asshole.

V - 7:54 PM
Two new days granted, big guy xD
Has he said anything? Left you any messages? I haven’t heard a peep at all.

Hot Cop - 7:56 PM
Oh shit, yup, he tried to set up a meet while I was out… I hadn’t gotten around to giving him your contact cuz I wasn’t sure if you’d want that at that point. Flicking you his number now!
Sorry about that, V :/ 

V - 7:57 PM
No worries! It’s not like taking a bullet for me was on the agenda after all!
I’ll wait the two days before calling him. Gives you time to vet him, and me some time to deal with shit out here!

Hot Cop - 7:58 PM
I shall work diligently to appease both ladies of the Gediminas family! :D 

V - 7:58 PM
Jeezus don’t lump me in with that woman xD

Hot Cop - 7:59 PM
Love her, hate her. Either way I have a feeling you’d cause hell for anyone who’d harm her. Just like she would for you and Vinnie!

V - 8:00 PM
Dunno about that… I can be very stubborn.

Hot Cop - 8:01 PM
Seems like a common trait for the two of you ;)

“Ahem,” Johnny cleared his ghastly throat demonstratively, tapping an invisible watch on his wrist. She stuck her tongue out to him. But he had a point. She should help move the boys.

V - 8:02 PM
Kindly go fuck yourself, big guy :) 

She almost added ‘and think of me while you do’, but quickly deleted that before sending the text. But she’d been damn near close to sending it. A casual relationship, it had been her own damn idea. Though, on the other hand, with her days being numbered maybe she should try living life to the fullest.

“How about no? Generally I’m all for threesomes and gangbangs, but not with a stinky pig.”

“Your input is duly noted and sent straight to the trash bin where it belongs,” she cooed.

Hot Cop - 8:03 PM
Tempting, but…this heart rate monitor might call for the nurse. With my shitty luck, it would be a male nurse :p 

She chuckled out loud as she read the message.

V - 8:03 PM
Awww, tellin’ me you don’t swing both ways? If it’s a hot female nurse, mind sendin me a still? :D 

Hot Cop - 8:04 PM
Hmm, dunno… But there was this really attractive guy earlier. Saw him in the mirror when I went to the bathroom. How about I send you still of him instead? 

“V, the kids…” Johnny said, though she knew that what he really wanted was for her to just stop talking to River.

She raised her phone in front of her and snapped a selfie.

V - 8:04 PM
[ IMAGE ATTACHED ]
How about I trade you a still of a dirty ass nomad for a still of a hot cop in a hospital gown!

Hot Cop - 8:05 PM
[ IMAGE ATTACHED ]
Fair trade, haha. What’re you going to do with it?

V - 8:05 PM
This and that :) maybe I just wanted to see your face.
Gotta head back to work now! Call you later!

Hot Cop - 8:06 PM
I’ll be looking forward to that call :)
Be careful out there, V.

V - 8:06 PM
I’m always careful, worrywart :p 

She started the ignition and set off around the property fence. One of the Aldecaldos was already leaving, the car weighed down by the two large turrets strapped down in the back. She swung into the driveway, then parked off to the side where she spotted the kid she’d talked to, sitting on a barrel.

Time to get to work and get those kids away from this hell.

And then, then she could start hunting her prey. Dexter would rue the day he decided to fuck with her.