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"Panam, stop saying such strange things…"
"Strange?"
"Yeah, Panam getting serious with these questions is a strange sight. I've gotten used to a slightly reckless but competent girl I can count on. And now I see my girlfriend, too. But these strange, serious questions…"
I shook my head.
"What, you think I can't be serious?"
I shrugged.
"Should I be offended?"
"Better to just tell me what you want, straight up, no games."
Ugh…
She shook her head.
"…you see right through me…"
"Well, I am your boyfriend."
I smirked at Panam's words, as she sharply swerved the wheel to avoid a speed demon driving some jalopy through the city.
"Yeah…"
"Panam?"
Ugh…
"Sooner or later, the Aldecaldos will leave Night City…"
"And?"
I squeezed Panam's thigh a little, and she gave me an anxious look.
"…I know I might be rushing things a little, but would you like to join the clan? To leave with us when we decide to leave this place?"
"I thought you didn't get along with Saul…"
"With Saul, yeah, but this is my clan, my family. I grew up with them, and just because Saul's been annoying me lately doesn't mean I'm gonna abandon them."
She turned her head my way, and I saw concern in her eyes. My answer to this question really mattered to her. So I decided not to play with my words and not to dodge the question.
"Watch the road…"
She turned away from me and flinched slightly as my hand moved a little higher on her thigh. But this time she didn't stop me; she just tensed up a little.
"Panam, you're right. You asked this a little too early, but if you want the answer right now…"
She gave a shaky nod.
"…then I'll tell you the truth. Nothing's keeping me in this city, but I'm not planning on busting my ass to get out of it, either. However, if you and I really become a couple…"
"But we already are, aren't we?!"
"Panam, we just started dating… or rather, you just agreed to give me a chance and became my girlfriend today. We're just getting to know each other. For example, since you fell asleep first, I know you make funny little smacking sounds with your lips in your sleep…"
Panam blushed in embarrassment.
"…but all of that is still not enough. However, when the time comes for the Aldecaldos to leave Night City, and if we're still together by then, it will mean that we're good for each other, and then I'll go with you, even if they don't invite me into the clan."
"You… but I…"
She sighed, and her fingers gripped the steering wheel a little tighter.
"Panam, you're my girl, and we'll be together as long as we're happy. You know me; even if I have to stop being a solo, I won't fall apart. And you won't fall apart with me, either. We'll be together, Ghost and Cherry."
"Cherry?"
Panam looked at me in utter surprise.
"Well, you named your car Thorton, so you're the cherry on top of the cake."
She smirked.
"That's funny… Cherry… I like it…"
The car sharply moved into the right lane and turned onto a small street where it stopped. The engine, as always, wasn't turned off, and I again moved my hand a little higher on my Cherry's thigh.
"Alright, I'm going…"
She nodded, and I leaned up slightly and kissed her on the lips. Slowly, to show my feelings for her. And she kissed me back. The kiss held everything, even a hint of fear that it might be interrupted.
Breaking the kiss, I pulled away from Panam and looked into her eyes.
"Just go already…"
She smirked and waved me off. I got out of the car, closed the door behind me, and then quickly looked around. Once I figured out where I needed to go, I headed toward the exit of the alley.
Walking out onto the main street, I quickly went past two houses, right up to the Tiger Claws bar. Without getting too close, I turned into a side alley. Reaching the dead end, I quickly took out my harpoon gun and, shooting it, climbed onto the roof. Then I walked across the top of the building.
Once on the other side of the roof, I crouched down and looked into the alley that ran right next to the Tiger Claws bar, where the optics I needed to get were now stored.
The fact that there was only one guard at the back entrance didn't bother me; they were completely sure that no one knew about this place, and they probably had some kind of cover from the cops. So I had to act very carefully.
Activating my optics, I scanned the bar in all the modes available to me and realized that there was one more person inside the storage room, about ten more sitting in the bar itself, plus one bartender and two guards at the main entrance.
Uff… I quickly looked around and realized that this time, there was no getting out of this without a few bodies. So I used the script I had bought on one of the junction boxes in the alley, and it started sparking.
"Huh? What the fuck?"
While the Claw got up from his spot and walked toward the box, I cranked my Sandevistan up to the maximum and quickly jumped off the roof, pushing off the walls of the alley with all my might. One jump, two pushes off the walls, and after the second push, I literally crashed down on the Claw, plunging my knife right into his temple.
Minus one…
I checked the bar with my optics and realized no alarm had been raised. That was good. I quickly searched the body, pocketed a pistol and a couple of bills, and then threw him into a dumpster nearby.
Another script on the door, and it opened with a quiet hiss.
"Huh? Sam, you gotta take a piss?"
A female voice came from the back room, but I didn't care. In the time I'd been working as a solo, I had already had to kill girls. It wasn't good, in fact, it was bad, but in this world and this city… it was either you or them, so I activated my Sandevistan again. Taking a step to the side, I threw my knife, and it went right into the girl's eye socket.
She didn't have time to understand anything, and I was already next to her, catching her slumping body. I also dragged her outside and threw her into the dumpster.
Quickly looking around, I noticed a few computers, but I didn't have time to hack them. So I went to the door that led to the warehouse and, activating a hack script, I smirked as the door opened quietly.
After all, it wasn't for nothing that I had spent eddies on these scripts; working without them was much more difficult.
"Fuck! I hit the jackpot today!"
I couldn't help but say it out loud. Because in addition to the optics that were in a prominent place, I also saw several other implants, as well as tight bundles of bucks. And there were far more of them than in the apartment I had ripped off recently. And the best part was that there weren't any bugs in these bundles at all. Well, of course. It was a secure location, a base where a bunch of Claws were constantly hanging out, pretending to be customers. What could possibly go wrong?
Well, this could…
I smirked and started putting what caught my eye into my bag. Naturally, the first thing I put in the bag was the optics, and only then did I add a couple of other chrome gadgets and the tight bundles of money.
Five minutes…
That's all the time it took for me to put everything I could find into my small bag. And for the first time, I regretted that my bag was so small; I didn't take even half of the bucks that were lying on the shelves.
However, greed killed the gonk, and I wasn't a gonk. So I calmly turned around, left the warehouse, and used a script to close the door. Then I left the back room, which I also closed with a script.
Taking out my harpoon, I called Panam, who answered very quickly.
"Cherry, I'll be there soon."
"Got it. The engine's warmed up, as always…"
I shot the harpoon at the roof and quickly climbed up. Then, after crossing the building, I used the harpoon to descend. After detaching it, I walked over to the car.
"Been waiting long?"
"Just a little…"
Panam smirked, and I calmly got into the car.
"It's our lucky day, but first to the drop-off point. I need to send Regina the optics and a couple of other implants."
"Your words…"
The car started moving, but Panam glanced in my direction with a lot of interest.
"…you found something else?"
"Only more bucks that just overflowed my bag. You know, for the first time, I regretted not buying myself some military backpack that I could have crammed a lot more money into."
"Greed is a bad feeling…"
"I know, and I'm not going to change my bag, simply because if I had stayed there any longer, I could have been caught. This way, we have money, the job is done, and we don't have to work anymore today."
"That's true…"
"I just have to get this cash transferred to my account through Regina. I don't want to keep that much on me…"
I shook my head.
"Yeah, it's not a bank here. They could break into our apartment, too…"
Saying those words, Panam gave me a sly look.
"Well, I've been thinking, now that I'm not alone and we need a place for us, we could look for a bigger apartment."
"Why?"
Panam looked at me in surprise.
"We have enough space. It's not a mansion, but it's cozy and more than good. And if we move, we'll have to pay more for the apartment."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, in the clan, I live in a tent…"
I looked at Panam thoughtfully.
"I need to think about buying a used RV…"
"Huh? What for?"
"Well, if I ever leave Night City with you…"
"That's a bad idea…"
The car smoothly stopped, and Panam nodded toward the street.
"There's the drop-off point. We'll talk after you report to Regina."
I nodded and got out of the car. I walked over to the drop-off point, put everything I needed to send Regina inside, and then called her.
"Listening, Ghost…"
"I've sent the optics, a couple of other implants, and some Tiger Claw documents…"
"Isn't that a bit much?"
I shrugged.
"I made it look like a lucky robbery, less chance they'll get to your friend, and through him, to you and me. I also took the bucks that were lying around. The ones that were poorly guarded. Can you put them on my account?"
"Send them. You know the percentage."
"Yeah…"
While we were driving, I had already transferred the cash into opaque packages and sent them to Regina via the drop-off point.
Getting back into the car, I sat down and looked at Panam.
"So why is that a bad idea?"
"What do you even know about the nomad life?"
"You travel from city to city. The time you spend in new places can vary from a couple of months to a couple of years… that's about it."
"Well, that's generally right…"
Panam nodded.
"…but it's a very superficial understanding. Alright, let's start a little more broadly. You've been to the clan's camp a couple of times. You're not one of us yet, but you know the people. Did you see any RVs there?"
"Uh… no?"
"Why so hesitant?"
I shrugged.
"Alright, you got the right answer. You didn't see them, and you couldn't have, because there aren't any. No self-respecting nomad would buy one of those."
"Got it…"
"Wanna tell me why?"
"Too slow?"
"Exactly… too slow, too clumsy, and not very practical when there's no way to stay in prepped parking areas. In short, there are a lot of downsides. It's much easier to throw a big tent, a cot, or a sleeping bag into the back of the car…"
Panam shrugged.
"And why would you need a car? If you join the clan, you'll be riding with me."
"So what would I need then?"
"Well…"
Panam tugged on her earlobe.
"A bigger tent, maybe a cot…"
I nodded my head.
"Got it. I'll have to get on that, because you guys can take off at any moment, and there might not be time to go shopping."
"So you're serious about all this?"
"Why not?"
"I get it…"
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