Part 7 (1/2)

”Sir! There is the issue of the bill!”

I paused next to Gatz and glanced at him out of the corner of my eye. ”Kev, pay the man.”

Even though Pick had never been a physical physical kind of crook, the kind that waves a gun around and beats the tar out of people, he had everyone's respect for the simple reason that he had survived the streets of New York long enough to grow old, and he knew everything. As a result, anyone in New York who planned to separate some citizens of the System from their yen came to Pick's. kind of crook, the kind that waves a gun around and beats the tar out of people, he had everyone's respect for the simple reason that he had survived the streets of New York long enough to grow old, and he knew everything. As a result, anyone in New York who planned to separate some citizens of the System from their yen came to Pick's.

A lot of jobs had been planned at Pickering's. Most if not all of the major schemes attempted in New York in the past decade had probably been started over rotgut gin at Pick's, and I figured I could do worse for a portent. I slipped Melody a few yen and reserved the back room. Once we were seated back there, I ordered Gatz a bowl of whatever Melody had going in the kitchen and sat there while he ate. It was slow going at first, but some ancient instinct kicked in and by the end he would've eaten the bowl if that hadn't cost extra.

I hadn't even gotten around to my gla.s.s of booze when Ty Kieth appeared, lugging a huge black bag. It was amazing: I slept slept with everything I owned. No one owned anything, anymore; the best you did was work some rich f.u.c.k's property and get some crumbs in return. But Techie freaks like Kieth could always scavenge tons of skag. with everything I owned. No one owned anything, anymore; the best you did was work some rich f.u.c.k's property and get some crumbs in return. But Techie freaks like Kieth could always scavenge tons of skag.

”Cheers,” Kieth said breathlessly, dumping the bag on the floor and tearing it open. ”Give Ty a moment while he scans and cleans the place. Ty doesn't make a peep in public until he's safe.”

I nodded, raising my gla.s.s and taking a sip-always a mistake; Pick's gin was meant to be bolted, winced over, and held down by sheer force of will. ”Knock yourself out.”

He began extracting a startling amount of equipment and laying it in a perimeter around the room, pausing each time to spin around with a handheld device in one hand. Gatz and I watched him silently. When he was done, he grinned and dropped heavily into a chair.

”Well, that's done. We can speak safely now.” He winked at me. ”You're a hot name, you know that? Everyone knows Avery Cates out of Old New York has something big brewing.”

I choked a little on my drink. ”Great.”

Milton Tanner arrived without fanfare and leaned up against a wall, arms crossed, looking very unhappy. I muted the huge Vid installed in the wall behind me with a gesture.

”Okay, since you're all here I a.s.sume we're all on board, yes?”

Ty Kieth attempted a smile, nose quivering. ”I think we're all desperate enough to be in this.”

”You don't speak for us,” Tanner growled. I saw Milton's lips move, silently. ”But yeah, we're in.”

I didn't give a s.h.i.+t why why they were in. ”Okay, let's get started. I have three items to address here. Number one is, as of this moment, you are all in my employ. This job has begun, and if you have any problems with me or taking orders, walk away right now.” they were in. ”Okay, let's get started. I have three items to address here. Number one is, as of this moment, you are all in my employ. This job has begun, and if you have any problems with me or taking orders, walk away right now.”

I waited again. Stony silence.

”We'll make introductions later. The second item is this: This is not a democracy. The money flows through me, so if you want your share, do what I say when I say it. Your expertise is needed and I'll ask for it. But don't argue with me. Questions?”

I waited again. After a moment, to my surprise, one of the twins raised her hand.

”Okay, we're experts, Mr. Cates,” she said crisply. ”I know who Kieth is by reputation. Who's the zombie?”

I glanced at Gatz and grinned. ”Kev Gatz is who you deal with if you p.i.s.s me off.”

We all stared at Gatz for a moment. He appeared to be asleep.

The sisters looked at each other for a second and then looked back at me. ”Okay.”

I nodded. ”The final item is this: How we're going to proceed. We need information. The Electric Church is a protected state-registered religion under laws 321 and 322 promulgated by the Joint Council. There's no detail concerning their activities or facilities. We need to do some recon.” I paused, finally knocking back my drink. It burned, and my eyes watered. ”We're going to begin the discovery process by acquiring a unit from which to extract information.”

I waited again. Everyone stared at me and Kieth became excited, glancing this way and that to gauge the reactions of the others. ”Wait a sec, Mr. Cates, are you saying we're going to acquire a f.u.c.king Monk Monk?”

I nodded. ”That's priority one. We need to identify a unit, s.n.a.t.c.h it, and then it'll be up to you to dissect and get whatever you can from it.”

Gatz suddenly animated, sitting forward with a sc.r.a.pe of gritty dust beneath his boots, looking over my shoulder at the Vid. He didn't move any more than that, but a vibrating stiffness settled on him and made me watch him from the corner of my eye.

”We can't do this here in New York, though,” I said, ignoring Gatz. ”As Mr. Kieth has pointed out, I've attracted the attention of a System Cop named Moje.”

Milton and Tanner moaned in unison. ”Elias Moje,” Milton said. ”We know that c.o.c.ksucker.”

”So the idea is, we leave here tonight with an action plan for acquiring a Monk,” I concluded.

”Ave,” Gatz croaked. I glanced at him. He was still staring over my shoulder. ”We got a situation.”

I twisted around to view the silent screen of the Vid. I almost jumped out of my skin, because a three-foot-high image of Barnaby Dawson's face filled it. I gestured the volume back on.

”. . . custody and is at large. SSF spokesmen could not explain how Captain Dawson escaped from custody, but did issue a warning to the public that the former SSF officer is armed and dangerous. They note that Captain Dawson had been in Internal Affairs' custody being investigated for several infractions of the SSF Binding Charter, including murder, trafficking in illegal and/or stolen goods, torture of suspects, misuse of authority, cat-”

I gestured the sound off again.

”Another SSF friend of yours?” one of the sisters asked with a raised eyebrow.

Her sister raised the opposite eyebrow. ”I'm thinking we should get hazard pay.”

I stared into Gatz's blank tinted lenses for a long moment. Then I shook myself. ”Just someone we thought was dead. He doesn't factor into this.” I took a deep breath. ”Action plans for acquiring a unit. Let's hear 'em.”

Dawson's face, with his crazy, dancing blue eyes, stayed in my head. I knew I'd be seeing it again soon. If there was one rule every one of us scrabbling for survival at the bottom of the barrel lived by, it was Never Never fail fail to kill a System Cop. to kill a System Cop.

XII.

Forced Into This Life by the Evil World 10010.

”Kieth really came through, huh?”

I glanced at Milton-I a.s.sumed it was Milton-but didn't respond immediately. In my ear, the commlink hummed with dead air, the sound of the city's wind rus.h.i.+ng by. I looked back at Gatz.

”Everyone came through,” I said curtly.

Kieth had produced an astonis.h.i.+ng amount of high-quality tech in a few hours, including the wireless commlinks we all sported, a tiny earplug and ambient microphone that picked up the slightest whisper. Milton and Tanner had somehow found the perfect transport for our quarry. I had armed us, finding just about everything on my wish list in hours-word was out that I was a dead man, on the SSF's s.h.i.+tlist and in over my head, but word also said I was a rich rich dead man, so transactions were easy, even with my credit. Kev Gatz, although his role in our first foray into world-cla.s.s criminal activity was a pa.s.sive one, took it without complaint. He was now standing out on the ruined street, looking like he remained upright through simple habit. dead man, so transactions were easy, even with my credit. Kev Gatz, although his role in our first foray into world-cla.s.s criminal activity was a pa.s.sive one, took it without complaint. He was now standing out on the ruined street, looking like he remained upright through simple habit.

”Where the h.e.l.l are we, anyway?”

I ground my teeth. Milton never shut up. Separating the twins had been a mistake: She chattered aimlessly, and I thought she didn't know what to do when her sister wasn't standing right next to her. ”Newark,” I said stiffly. ”What's left of it. Riots nearly burned it to the ground. No one really lives here anymore, except a couple of villages built out of borrowed stones.”

She nodded. I hefted the sniper rifle I'd acquired and examined its action for the hundredth time.

”You know how to use that, sonny?”

”Yes.”

”I know it's old, it's from the Iraqi Wars. f.u.c.king ancient. But the sh.e.l.ls are armor-piercing, and it'll fire. You know what the Iraqi Wars were?”

I closed my eyes for a dangerous moment, gathering strength. I was Gatz's lifeline; if this went wrong and it looked like the Monk was going to start tearing new a.s.ses, I was going to blow its head off. ”Yes.”