Chapter 53

My scream caused Panam to sharply press the brake pedal, while twisting the steering wheel and sending the car into a skid so that it changed direction.

"Why are you yelling?!"

As soon as the car stopped, Panam slammed her fist on my shoulder and hissed quietly in pain.

"I almost flipped the car!"

"Uh-huh. You'd rather hit a land mine?

"А?"

"I noticed it by accident... just decided to switch the optics to a different mode and I caught a mine."

I sighed.

"And not a push button, but one that reacts to the presence of..."

"Presence?"

Panam grinned.

"Well, it's electromagnetic, I guess. I don't know about mines and how they work. So right now, I'm taking my, uh."

I looked back.

"I'll go."

Lucy moved forward a little to show that she was ready to work and I nodded confirming that I didn't mind taking her along.

"Lucy. you don't have to come with me, I'm not crazy enough to drag a ranger through a minefield. But you and I are going to set up a direct connection so you can work through my deck."

"Tz..."

"What, did he screw you up?"

Becca grinned caustically.

"So, talk..."

I gave Becca a stern look, then nodded to Lucy and she sent me a request for a direct connection, which I naturally approved.

"David..."

"Uh-huh?

"...Just don't use the sandi to its full potential while I'm using your optics. I have a very nice chrome now, one of the best that a non-corporate solo can afford, and I probably won't fry my brains, but it will hit my brains pretty hard.

"All right. (chuckles)"

I nodded and activated a few different modes on the optics in turn, allowing me to detect a few mines. Well, a few... virtually everything ahead of me was booby-trapped. It was impossible to get to the farm on Tortica. It's impossible to get there on foot!

The first two mines beeped and obviously shut down and I moved very slowly towards the farm.

"Look, uh."

Lucy decided to take advantage of the situation and talk to me.

"Uh-huh?

"...do you think you and I could go out?"

"Theoretically? We could."

"And practically?"

"Snowflake..."

"I'll make arrangements with the girls."

"Well, if you're up for it, yeah. We could definitely go on a couple dates and see if our relationship with you could go further..."

"I didn't expect much more..."

"And for nothing..."

"А?"

But I pretended not to say anything. But it was impossible to mislead her in that way.

"Are you saying that you think our relationship is possible?"

"Snowflake... I'll be honest... if I didn't think so, I wouldn't be paying this kind of money for you... no, teamwork and friendship is good, but think about it, would I lend you HUNDREDS of dollars if I didn't consider the possibility of you becoming part of my family?"

"Um... And Smarty, not now, but then. the first time."

"Same reason..."

I shrugged, while Lucy remembered to disable the mines I'd detected. We weren't moving very fast, but it was understandable, because we didn't have the password to disable the minefield, and we didn't have time to look for an access point where the password could be entered. And the mines were of different manufacturers, and as a consequence required different approaches to disable them.

"So you planned the whole thing?"

"Smart girl, I didn't plan anything, it's just that out of my regard for you and desire to build a deeper relationship comes such great generosity in investing in you."

"Uh... I see."

I grinned.

"You see the cameras over there?"

My gaze froze on the camera that hung at the entrance to the Farm.

"One second, I'll hack it now, it should be connected to the general network, we can try to hack the rest of the system through it safely..."

"What's wrong? Why didn't you say something?"

"Look, there's so much ice. the psycho couldn't have planted it. I understand the minefield, it's a bit of a stretch, but theoretically he could have gotten the mines and even set them up and wired them. At the very least, he could hire a solo to do it, but ice like this... this ice, no free runner would put up."

I frowned.

"Are you saying."

"There's a corporation involved."

I sighed.

"Fuck... and you could have guessed it when confronted by Mystique..."

"Well, that collision was an accident, but ice like that... well, personally, I'd be putting him on it for a month, and I don't see why I'd be putting him on a stranger... unless he's a pawn and I'm covering my own agenda."

Inhale... exhale.

"Retreating?"

"No... we call the fixer, let's give her a heads up. maybe she has some people available to take over the order..."

"I doubt it..."

Lucy chuckled sadly, judging by her voice.

"Me too... probably backing out of this order is not an option... but, uh. I have to give it a shot."

And I immediately dialed Regina.

"Greetings Fixer..."

Already with that phrase, without calling her by name, I showed that things were pretty fucked up.

"Quiet?"

"...here's the problem..."

"And her name is Biotech?"

I blinked.

"So you knew?"

"No, I just found out about ten minutes ago. I was able to find out about Mystique, she's been working very closely with the corporation for the last few years. Although I still wasn't sure it was about the corporation, well, until you called... so what happened?"

"There's ice... The farm is so protected. it's just terrible. minefield, ice, and we're just approaching the entrance to the farm. There's probably gonna be turrets in there."

"AND?"

"Do you have any other bands in mind?"

"I wish I could say that I did..."

I sighed.

"I knew you were going to say that..."

"You're backing out?"

"Are you kidding me? Look, you know me. if you had another team, I'd back off, but throwing teenagers at corporate... But you gotta understand. as long as it was just a simple psycho helping your friend, I didn't raise the issue of payment. But now the risks are becoming--

"I realize..."

There was a brief silence.

"Fuck..."

"What?"

"Hold on, I'm gonna contact the client. I didn't want to tell him you were already working, but I guess I'll have to. However, once he realizes that Biotech is probably involved, he won't be too keen on getting ahead of you, but as for the reward..."

"I have an idea, but I don't know if he'll agree..."

"What's that idea?"

"I mean, he's working..."

I didn't say Rivera's occupation. It's stupid, but with a corporation like Biotech. they could probably trace the direction of the call, but for now they could try to put the brakes on it, so who was doing it was unclear, and the fixer could have taken another one, while being close to Regina's location to set her up.

"It's pretty self-explanatory...

I sighed and crossed my fingers in reality.

"Good girl, together with the girls, maximum protection for the channel. For the next five minutes, any even corporate fixer should hear only white noise when trying to listen to our conversation."

"Thirty seconds."

And after the allotted time, she said it was ready and I turned to Regina again.

"He can get us information on old police depots. Those warehouses that store equipment like the Basilisk and the Manticore."

"Eek!"

The image of Regina stared at me with a shocked look.

"You've got a lot of demands."

"Don't get me wrong, I don't need new models, I need one or more old warehouses that have this equipment. Preferably not in a single quantity, as well as access points through which I can wipe information about these warehouses, and then empty them. There may not even necessarily be whole equipment, it may be a warehouse of damaged equipment, but not disassembled, but exactly damaged, which is simply too expensive to repair and dispose of."

"I got it. I'll talk to you in a minute."

The connection has been cut.

"So, Snowflake, get ready with the girls for some really hard work..."

"Uh, uh. do you think you're gonna make it?"

A couple of seconds before that sentence, she had engaged Panam and Becca in conversation and the former couldn't hold back her curiosity.

"What's gonna burn out?"

"Our boss has decided to raise a small army for himself."

"Uh?"

"He decided to ask for Basilisks and Manticores as payment for the confrontation with Biotech..."

"Eek?!"

"What? If I get them and I pay them off in installments."

Before I could finish the sentence, I was interrupted.

"Fuck, I give up. you can have as many mistresses as you want, but I'll not only make you join the clan, but I'll nominate you for the position of clan leader."

I blinked.

"Hey, uh. why don't you ask me?"

"Good girl, I'll make a deal with you... but Tihonja, if it works out, he won't be able to get out of it... because the current head of the clan hasn't done half of what our guy has done for the clan... And we'll have to tie him to the clan tighter... Yeah, we're definitely gonna have to get knocked up."

I blinked.

"Uh, uh. is it okay if I listen to you guys?"

"Whatever... if this works out. I'll think you're a fucking god. You've already brought the clan back from its knees. and now this. we're gonna get our greatness back."

"Uh. you're not interested in my opinion?"

"Don't worry, no one will make you work... someone else will determine your daily life, but you will make the important decisions."

"Well, actually, he's a solo and our team leader..."

Judy inserted her five cents into the conversation.

"You will be included in the clan as well..."

"What if we don't want it?"

Kiwi's voice was quite serious.

"Come on... if it all works out, we'll just be solos who can leave Knight City and start working in another city if they want, with a solid base to which we can always return!"

"Except that nothing has been decided yet..."

I decided to cut short Panam's fantasies of a possibly unfulfilled future. After all, Regina had a very definite characterization of this River Ward. And he might not be willing to sell old equipment to the police to save...

Regina called me and as soon as I answered she stunned me with just two words.

"He agrees."

"Ahem..."

"What?"

"I didn't expect..."

"You get one address with all the data if you can only return a dead body. If the guy's alive, you get two addresses and the data. You good with that?"

I sighed.

"More than that."

"All right, get to work."

"Yes, ma'am!"

My image saluted and Regina grinned and disconnected from the connection.

"Let's work ladies, we have a chance to get some old but very good equipment and I'm not going to lose this chance."

"Girls, you're gonna have to do better than that."

Panam admonished our ranchers and I stepped forward again, this time already under the cover of three ranchers working through a direct connection to me...