Price of a Bounty (Reliance on Citizens Makes Us Great!) (21 page)

***

The
next evening, I returned to The Dry Martini. My mark stood at the
bar looking just a little nervous. He hadn’t spotted me yet. As I
walked past, I discreetly took his wallet.

I
chose a seat at a small round table, checked his ID and waited for
him to notice me. A few minutes later, he sat down.

I
smiled. “You’ve decided to accept my offer.” It wasn’t
a question.

“I’m
not sure.”

I
rested my hand lightly on top of his. “Yes, you are.”

“How
much would something like this cost?”

“It
depends on your needs.”

He
reached into his pocket, then handed me a rumpled business card.

“Cybonautics
– the security company?” I looked at him, and he nodded.

“That’s
the president of Cybonautics. I’d like his data processor access
codes. Can you get them for me?”

“40,000
gats,” I suggested.

“That
seems steep. How about 20?”

“Have
you ever done anything like this before?”

He
just stared back.

“35?
The payoff for you would be well worth it.” I paused to let
that sink in.

He
narrowed his eyes. “30 thousand.”

“Done.
No payment will be due until the job is complete.”

“If
I don’t need to pay until the end, why would I pay you at all?”

“You
didn’t really just ask that. Did you?”

“You’re
willing to take the job, and you don’t even know who I am.”

I
smiled and held out his wallet. “Brody Delaney, soon to be
executive officer of CalTech Security, if you don’t blow it.”

He
reached for his wallet and began to thumb through it.

“Everything
is there, minus one business card.” I held it up. “I’d
like to keep it, if you don’t mind.”

He
nodded once. “I accept your terms.”

“Then
we have a deal. In two weeks, we’ll meet back here, at say…7:00?
I’ll bring you the codes, and you’ll bring me the money.”

“Why
so long?”

“Long?
For a job like this? The president of a security company…
Stealing the codes from his office would be close to impossible as a
solo mission. I’ll need to get into his house. Even that will be
tricky. I need time.”

“You’re
sure you can do this?”

“I
can, and I will.” I smiled. “How about one more dance?”
It felt good to be back in the game.

He
stood and held out his hand. I placed my fingers gently onto his
palm, and we moved onto the dance floor.

-Keira-

A
Job Gone Wrong

It
was nearly midnight when I walked upstairs from the servants’
quarters. Gaining access to the house had been fun. The butler
liked to play drinking games at a local pub on his night off. I’d
won, of course. He was having so much fun that I doubted he even
realized he’d brought me home. At least he remembered the passcode
to get back into the manor. I smiled. Guy would be pleased that I
hadn’t been hired to kill.

Silently,
I moved through the kitchen and down a dark hallway. The moon
offered the only light. Even so, I had no difficulty finding the
office on the first floor.
But what’s this?
An unexpected
silhouette cast a shadow against the far wall. The safe was open and
the person appeared to be writing something in a notebook.

Without
a sound, I crept inside the room and lowered myself against the wall.
I needed a minute to think. Who else wanted those codes? There
weren’t too many companies in the line of security. Had someone else
also hired a Freelancer?
What were the chances? What are my
options?
I could just wait and then retrieve the codes for my
client too.

When
the shadow closed and locked the safe, I got a good look at it.
Damn, it’s one of the high techno kinds. I don’t think I’ll be
able to crack it.

The
shadow turned toward the door. From this angle, I could see that she
was a young woman. Chances were good that she had the codes I
needed. I would have to follow her and…

She
reached the door and was just about to step into the hall when she
hesitated. Then she turned and looked directly at me. I stood. We
studied each other for a moment.

“You’re
good,” she said. “I didn’t hear you come in.”

“So,
what are we going to do about this?” I asked. “Are you
willing to share?”

“Well,
we don’t want to draw any attention.”

“I
agree.”

“But
I can’t let you take anything.”

“Why
not?” I looked at the papers in her hand. “You did.”

“If
we leave quietly now, no one will know that anything was stolen.
That’s the way it needs to be.”

“I
believe we’ve come for the same thing. What would be the harm in
both of our clients gaining access to the codes?”

She
shook her head. “I don’t think my client would like that.”

“He
wouldn’t need to know, and we’d both get paid.”

She
began to move, to circle around me. I moved with her, keeping her in
front.

“Who
hired you?” she asked.

“Who
hired you?” I responded in kind.

Suddenly,
she stopped. I realized a fraction of a second too late that I’d
been played.

A
meaty hand clamped onto my wrist, spun my arm behind me and put me in
a neck hold. Just. Like. That. It was embarrassing.

I
was dragged down the hall and outside. I wondered why the alarm
didn’t go off, and then realized they must have disabled it. Two
blocks later, we stopped, and I was shoved into the backseat of a
car, a car I recognized instantly.

I
snorted. “I’ll drive.” I turned my head toward the man
and the woman. “No names,” I suggested.

Eberhardt
nodded and surprisingly, let me drive. The woman deferred to his
judgment.

“Where
to?” I asked.

“You
can drop me off at A Shot in the Dark,” she said. “Do
you know where it is?”

I
nodded and started the car. I put it into gear and gently pulled
away from the curb. My mind was reeling, but my business in this
matter was with Guy, not with the girl.

After
we dropped her off, Eberhardt turned on me. “What the hell
were you doing back there?”

“The
same thing you were, apparently.”

“But
why? You work for the Resistance now.”

I
turned my head away from the road and stared at him just long enough
to make my point. “Work for the Resistance? What work have I
been given to do exactly? It’s not like I haven’t asked! I need to
keep my skills sharp. I need to keep in practice. What would you
have me do?”

“Train
with me,” he suggested.

“What?”

“I
know what you’re going through. Do you think I just sit around in
the car all day?”

I
shook my head, surprised at his outburst.

“I
get it. You’re bored. You want to be where the action is. So come
train with us.”

“Us?”

“Yes,
the other Raiders and me. We practice regularly, to keep our skills
sharp.”

I
pulled into the garage beneath Guy’s apartment and stopped the car.
Then I turned to face Eberhardt completely.

“What
about keeping everyone’s identity a secret?”

“Yes,
that’s important too, but it’s also important to practice working
together. Remember what I said about backup?”

I
nodded.

“We
practice in small groups,” he continued. “None of the
Raiders know all of the other Raiders, and most of them have never
met Guy, but we do form networks. To start, you can work with me and
the girl you met tonight.”

“Thanks,
I guess. I might just take you up on that. But…”

“What?”

“Why
didn’t you tell me about this before?”

“I
should have. It’s just…Guy didn’t want it that way. I’ve got
your back now though.” He exited the car, and then walked
around to open the door for me.

What
a strange thing for him to say. I thought he already had my back.

We
entered the apartment, and Eberhardt dropped into the first chair he
came to. Guy was on the couch. He put down his book when he saw me.

“Keira!
I didn’t expect to see you tonight.” He started to stand, but
I pushed him back down. Then I sat on his knee and put my arms
around his shoulders.

“Guy,
what were you thinking?” I asked sweetly.

“What
do you mean?”

“Why
didn’t you send me in tonight?”

He
sighed. “Keira, it wasn’t the right job for you. I didn’t
want you to get hurt. I care about you.”

“Wrong
answer!”

“What?
It’s wrong for me to care about you?”

“Don’t
try to change the subject. If you cared about me, you would have
sent me in tonight. I’ve been asking for a chance like this for
weeks now!”

“Well,
it’s not like I sent another woman in.”

“Whoa!
Wrong again!”

Guy
hesitated and looked at Eberhardt. “Is there something you
neglected to tell me about Ricardo?”

Eberhardt
finally spoke up. “Guy, everyone knows you don’t like to send
in the girls.”

“I
didn’t know that,” I muttered.

“And
some of these girls are really good at what they do.”

“But
I second that! Guy, you really need to give me some challenging
work, or I’ll find work elsewhere. Speaking of which,” I
looked at Eberhardt, “I’ll need a copy of those codes.”

Guy
pushed me off his lap, and I landed on the cushion next to him.
“Keira, what did you do?”

“I
took a job from someone who trusted me to do it right.” My
tone was like ice. “He’s getting the codes.”

“Do
you have any idea what those codes are for?”

“Security
protocol.”

“And
how does your client plan to use that information?”

“He
works for CalTech. He wants to move up. That’s all. How do you
plan to use the information?”

“It
will give us Intel into the security systems that Cybonautics uses.”

I
shrugged. That didn’t mean much to me, although I recognized the
name from the business card Brody had given me.

“It’s
the firm in charge of security at the major airports. Having access
to these codes means the Resistance can assure safer passage for our
members, including Scott, including April, and…”

“And
what?”

“I
thought I was right about you.” Guy shook his head, stood and
walked to the window. I sat in stunned silence.

-Guy-

Trust

Eberhardt
moved to join me at the window. He placed his hand on my shoulder
and spoke quietly so Keira wouldn’t hear. “Does my opinion
mean anything to you?”

I
nodded.

“You
were right about Keira, but your feelings for her are clouding your
judgment. If you’re not careful, you’ll lose her. I suggest you try
getting even closer. Trust her with more.” He left then.

I
continued to stare at the night sky. The latch clicked as Eberhardt
let himself out. It wasn’t a new thought. I’d considered trusting
Keira with more, but after this… Was it really my doing, or more
accurately my inaction, that had driven her to take another job? I
took a deep breath as I thought about that and made my decision.

I
turned, but Keira was no longer on the sofa. I sensed movement as
the front door closed without a sound. My heart jumped to my throat.
Not again!
I wrenched open the door. She was already
partway down the hall and gaining speed.

“Wait!”
I called, and Keira froze. “Don’t go. Please don’t.”

She
turned and looked at me. Her black clothing almost allowed her to
disappear into the darkness of the hallway. Almost, but not quite.
Her eyes glistened.

“Don’t
run away again. Please don’t go down that road. Can’t we talk?”

Cautiously,
she approached me, and I heaved a sigh of relief.

“Keira,
I was right about you. I’m sorry I said otherwise. Please come back
inside. There’s something I’ve been wanting to tell you.”

She
followed me in and walked to the window. I stood beside her but not
too close.

“What
I really meant to say before was that the job tonight…there’s
another reason I didn’t want you in on that. It’s a gift for you –
a way for you to be able to visit April in Parisio.”

She
turned her gaze to the stars. I couldn’t quite read her, so I simply
waited.

She
didn’t look at me when she spoke. “May I have the codes
for my client? I don’t like to break contracts, even verbal ones.
It’s not good for my reputation, and I don’t think it would mess up
your plans.”

“It
could.”

“How
so?” She turned to look at me.

“Cybonautics
may discover that another company has learned their trade secrets.
It could ruin them.”

“So
CalTech would be in the lead. Would that really change anything for
us? Couldn’t it even help? Best case scenario, we form a
partnership with CalTech. I could, anyway, especially if I help my
client get to the top. Or, think about this. Let’s say Cybonautics
retains their contracts with the airlines. If people are caught
sneaking through security or messing with the codes, we could make
sure that blame is placed on CalTech and divert attention away from
the Resistance.”

“I
don’t know. Your ideas involve a lot of unknowns.”

“Life
involves a lot of unknowns.”

“Let
me think about it.”

She
nodded. “All right. May I stay here tonight?”

“Why?
So you can sneak out of bed in the middle of the night to record the
codes?”
What was I doing?

“No!”
She looked hurt. “Is that why we always stay over at my
apartment? Because you think I’ll poke around through your things?”

“You
did when we first met.”