shadowrun 40 The Burning Time (8 page)

"And then we’ve got him," Talon said with satisfaction.

Two knocks at the door sounded, followed by a pause, then two more knocks. Talon got up and opened the door.

"Hey," Trouble said.

"Hey," he replied.

"Sorry I’m late." She walked past Talon into the room.

He noticed that Trouble was wearing the same clothes as yesterday when they’d gone to Otabi’s apartment yesterday. She’d never been a fancy dresser, but he’d never known her to sleep in her clothes unless she had no other choice. More than likely, she hadn’t gone home last night. He was more curious than ever, but still didn’t ask.

He closed the door while she took a seat next to Val on the couch.

"You didn’t miss much," Val said. "Boom was just saying he’s heard from Otabi, but that he hasn’t gotten back to him yet."

Just then an electronic ringing noise came from the troll’s desk. Boom glanced down at the ID code of the incoming call.

"Ah, speak of the devil," he said. "Looks like somebody’s getting impatient." Boom tapped the touch-sensitive surface of the desk with one thick finger, transferring the call to the cell-phone built into his skull and wired directly to his speech and hearing centers. He also ran the audio through the tiny speakers in his desk, so the others could hear the whole thing.

"Hello?" The voice sounded both nervous and desperate even in just those two syllables.

"Hello, Mr. Otabi," Boom said to the empty air, his voice relayed over his headphone. "What can I do for you?"

"I, ah, just wanted to know if there was any progress regarding. . .what we talked about earlier."

"As a matter of fact, yes," Boom said, turning an eye toward Talon. "I was just about to call you. I set up another meet for tonight. Eleven o’clock, here at the club. Is that acceptable to you?"

"Can. . .can you make it any sooner?"

"I’ll see what I can do," Boom said. "Why don’t you come by at ten, and we’ll see."

"Okay," Otabi said. "What about the price?"

"Four thousand nuyen, which includes the deck modified to your specifications. Paid on a certified credstick."

There was a long pause on the other end of the line.

"All right. See you at ten."

"You got it," Boom said, and Otabi hung up. Boom rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "That should do it. Our boy is hooked. All we have to do now is reel him in."

"Is all the hardware ready?" Talon asked.

Boom nodded. "We’ve still got the simchip. I also acquired a few run-of-the-mill chips and a modified deck from a chummer who’s got a warehouse full of old Fuchi stuff that got sold off for a song when the corp broke up. He’s good at making just the right modifications without asking any questions."

"Wiz," Talon said. "Then all we’ve got to do is wait for Otabi to show up and make the deal. This time there won’t be any problems." No one rubbed it in that he’d fragged up the previous meet.

"Our timetable’s a little off," Hammer said. "Maybe we should make sure everything else is still in place so this will go down like we planned it."

"Is that doable?" he asked Trouble.

She started, as though she’d been thinking of something else. "Hmm, oh yeah, no problem there. I can’t go too deep into the system without tipping security that something’s up, but it shouldn’t be a problem to get the kind of data we need."

"Great," Talon said. "I think that covers it."

He called up his time display. They still had hours before the meet with Otabi. "Who wants to grab a bite? I’m starving." Hammer and Boom nodded, both of them known for their larger-than-human appetites. Val also said to count her in.

"I think I’m going to pass," Trouble said, throwing her jacket over her shoulder. "I’ve got some things to take care of. Will you need me tonight?""Um, no, I guess not," Talon said.

"Good, then maybe I’ll get a head start on that Matrix overwatch work. Give me a call when we’re ready to go." Without further ado, she headed for the door.

"Sure. . ." Talon said as the door opened and closed, " . . .thing." He directed a quizzical look at the others, who just shrugged. At least he wasn’t the only one in the dark about what was up with Trouble.

A little while later, the runners were gathered at a restaurant in Chinatown, enjoying their dinners. It was one of their favorite spots, but it was odd for them to be here at the dinner hour. They usually came late at night after a run. Most Chinatown eateries were open all night.

Talon picked at his lo mein with his chopsticks. "It was kind of weird for Trouble to take off like that," he said. The noise of the restaurant was enough to mask casual conversation, and he had Aracos on the lookout for anything suspicious.

"Not that weird," Hammer said, demolishing another chicken wing. He tossed the bones onto the plate in front of him. "She tends to get kind of caught up in stuff, you know?"

"You mean obsessive," Val said with a smile.

Hammer smiled back. "I wouldn’t say that. . .well, not to her face anyway. It’s just that when she gets into something, she gets totally into it, you know? Devotes all her attention and energy to it, especially when it’s a run. She probably just wants to make sure everything is set for when the run goes down."

"Yeah, but it’s not like she has a lot to do on this one," Talon said. "She handled the research and dug up the info on Otabi. There’s some overwatch, but the rest of it is pretty much up to us."

"Maybe that’s it," Boom said. "She doesn’t have a lot to do so that’s why she wants to make sure everything is perfect."

"Or she’s feeling a little left out," Val speculated, scooping some more rice onto her plate. "I mean, that happens when you haven’t got a big part to play."

"Yeah, but that happens to all of us," Talon said. "Is something bothering her?"

"You’re the mage," Hammer said around another mouthful of food. "Can’t you tell?"

"I suppose I could, if I’d thought to look," Talon said. "But I don’t generally go around checking out everyone’s aura, and by the time I noticed she was acting funny, she was gone. Besides, I wouldn’t feel right about reading my friends’ auras without permission."

Hammer nodded. "I appreciate that, chummer." Then he turned to Val. "Remember how Geist used to do that all the time? Look at you like he was looking right through you? Man, that was spooky."

"Oh yeah," she said with a laugh. "And you weren’t the one going out with him. Being with someone who knows what you’re feeling all the time— sometimes even before you do—can be a real pain in the hoop."

"Really?" Talon said, "I thought most women wanted a guy like that."

"Well, there’s sensitive and then there’s too sensitive," Val said, running a finger along the rim of her water glass.

She gave Talon a wicked smile. "I guess you’re just insensitive enough, Talon."

CHAPTER TEN

More and more, Roy Kilaro was sure that Dan Otabi was the man he was looking for, and he decided to keep a close eye on him. Sooner or later, Otabi would make a mistake that would give him away, and Roy could triumphantly expose the danger to the company.

There might even be a promotion in it, he thought, maybe to a security job. Maybe even a chance to work with the Seraphim, the company’s famous (or infamous, depending on who you asked) counterintelligence division.

Roy decided to set up some programs that would alert him to any unusual activity at the Cross Bio-Medical Merrimack Valley facility, particularly on the part of Otabi. The whole reason he’d introduced himself to Otabi was in hopes of spooking him enough that he would make a mistake.

Once his monitors were in place, he picked up a radio tracker at the local Warez, Etc. store. It was the kind of spy-gear parents bought to keep track of the whereabouts of their kids when they’d borrowed the family car. It didn’t have much range, but it would have to do.

From there, Roy drove to Cross MV facility. He located Otabi’s car in the lot and planted the small magnetic transmitter under the bumper. The he returned to his own vehicle parked nearby to wait and watch everyone going in and out of the facility.

It was late afternoon before he finally saw Otabi finally come out and drive off in his car. Roy activated the tiny tracer and followed at a discreet distance, checking the GPS map on his dash to see where the sarariman was going.

It wasn’t far. Maybe a kilometer or so from his office, Otabi stopped to make a call at a public vidphone. Watching from a short distance away, Roy regretted not buying surveillance gear that would have picked up what Otabi was saying or identified whom he was calling, but he hadn’t thought of it. Otabi’s call was brief. A minute later, he was back in his car and returning to the office. Roy briefly considered trying to crack open the public telecom to access its memory, but decided it would be too difficult and too risky. Better to stay on Otabi and see what he did next.

He then followed Dan Otabi to a nearby town, concealing the Chrysler-Nissan Spirit behind a big Titan truck while Otabi went into the bank and then came out again shortly after. His last stop was through the local McHugh’s drive-through to pick up some food, then he returned to the Cross facility.

Roy didn’t see him again until well after quitting time. Oota drove home to his apartment, but apparently didn’t bother to inform the police about the break-in, because none showed up. Roy thought that was confirmation that Otabi had something to hide. He’d looked edgy and nervous that day, like he was expecting something to happen, maybe something related to the call he’d made from the public vidphone.

Roy waited in his car across the street from Otabi’s apartment complex, sipping lukewarm McHugh’s soykaf from a paper cup.

It was nine-thirty before Otabi appeared again, went to his car, and drove away. Roy waited a few moments before taking after him, just long enough to create some distance. The tracker was still operating, so he wasn’t worried about having to stay so close that he’d give himself away. Otabi drove toward the bridge into downtown, and Roy followed.

At the Fenway Park stadium, Otabi pulled into a parking garage. The stadium was dark, so it didn’t look like he was planning to attend a game. After circling the block without finding a parking space, Roy also drove into the parking garage. He hoped Otabi hadn’t spotted him. Fortunately, someone on the first level was pulling out just as he was coming in, and Roy quickly claimed the space. He killed the engine and the lights, and waited for Otabi to come out.

He must have parked on one of the upper floors because he emerged from the stairwell a few moments later. Roy kept his head down and watched in his rear-view mirrors as Otabi shoved his hands into his jacket pockets and left the garage on foot. Roy got out of his car and followed, careful to keep his distance as Otabi continued a short way up the street, then crossed over to Landsdown Street.

The street was lined with nightclubs, and Otabi went up to one whose name was proclaimed The Avalon in big neon letters. Roy waited until Otabi had actually gone in before he went to stand in the short line at the entrance. Within minutes, he’d paid the cover and went in.

He didn’t take off his jacket, figuring its armor-cloth lining would come in handy if things got hot. He was painfully aware of how unarmed he was; if things did turn ugly, his only defense was to run. Of course, most of the clubbers around him wore considerably less, though sometimes they wore long coats over their scantily clad bodies.

It was still early and not too crowded, but the music was already going full tilt, with a thudding bass Roy could feel in his bones. Multicolored lights cut through the dark, smoky interior and shimmered on the dance floor. He stayed close to the walls, trying to stay inconspicuous as he wandered into the main room, taking everything in.

He spotted Otabi right away, but not on the dance floor. The sarariman was sitting and talking to someone at a table in one of the tiers that surrounded the main floor. The other guy looked Anglo and he was dressed like most of the other club-goers, but that was about all Roy could tell. He could see something lying on the table between Otabi and his companion, but he couldn’t make out what it was. Roy pondered whether to try and get closer, then decided it was wiser to hang back near the entrance, just in case.

He watched as Otabi drew a slim plastic credstick from his jacket pocket—which he’d probably picked up at the bank earlier today—and handed it to his companion. The other man slid the package across the table to Otabi, who quickly snatched it up, then stood to leave.

Roy walked away from the entrance so that Otabi wouldn’t make him as he exited the club. After waiting a few moments, he followed Otabi out without another look at the man sitting upstairs or betraying any other interest in the situation.

Otabi went directly home with whatever he had picked up from the man at the Avalon. Roy guessed it was chips rather than drugs. Otabi just wasn’t the type to go for the organic stuff. He was probably into sims, maybe beetles. Roy knew that BTL-abuse was all too common in the high-tech, high-pressure corporate sector. The package could have contained something else, of course. Roy had no way of knowing without confronting Otabi directly, and he wasn’t ready to do that yet.

He could make an anonymous call to Knight Errant, who might send officers to investigate, but all they could do was question Otabi. Roy didn’t think they could get a search warrant based on an anonymous tip.

Thinking he should call it a night, he started up the Spirit and headed back to the hotel, mentally working out what he should do next. He had no idea that he, too, was being followed.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

As Dan Otabi and then Roy Kilaro left the Avalon, neither one noticed the small object about the size and shape of a trashcan lid hovering near the roof of the building. Painted matte black, it blended into the shadows behind the neolux lights of the club. But to the small lenses clustered on its underside, the nighttime street was as bright as day. They picked up everything, from the sweat on Dan Otabi’s brow to the nervous glances on the face of the man tailing him from a careful distance.