Gazing at the piles of cash stacked on the table like a small mountain, Jackie's eyes nearly popped out of his head.
"Holy—this is a ton of eddies."
V looked equally stunned. This single gig had earned more than a hundred of her previous gigs combined.
"Don't just stand there gawking," Lucy said. "Let's split it up so we can all go enjoy life. With this kind of payout, we can take a decent break."
The three of them exchanged a glance, as though reaching an unspoken agreement. Of the 1,450,000 eurodollars heaped on the table, Jackie and V each took only 100,000, leaving the remaining 1,150,000 where it lay, still forming an impressive mountain.
Leo blinked. "What's the meaning of this?"
Jackie rubbed his braided bun. "We can't take that extra million you found in Phoenix Casino's safe. You're the one who spotted it."
"Don't talk nonsense," Leo said. "We all went in there together. Even if I discovered the safe, I couldn't have hauled the cash out alone without you."
V chimed in. "But from start to finish, it was your planning that let us beat the Jotaro Group against all odds. Walking away with a hundred thousand each is more than enough for us. The rest belongs to you, fair and square."
Lucy nodded in agreement. No matter how Leo tried to persuade them, V, Jackie, and Lucy refused to accept more. Ultimately, he had no choice but to keep the extra money himself, albeit reluctantly.
Only after Leo put the bills away did the other three sigh in relief. In Night City, even close friends could fall out over money. Jackie and V had seen plenty of people who ended up turning against each other over a few thousand eurodollars, let alone a huge pile like this. Sure, money was great, but friendships like this were rare treasures in Night City—worth far more than the cash. You could always earn back lost eurodollars, but a lost friend was gone for good.
Jackie stood up. "Well, that settles business. Time for me to head out… Oh, right, Leo, can you help me with something?"
"What is it?"
"You got any tips on making a girlfriend happy?" Jackie scratched his head sheepishly. "Misty and I have had some… y'know, typical couple spats. I was hoping for some way to cheer her up."
Leo shook his head. "Sorry, man. I'd like to help, but I've got zero experience in that area. You're asking the wrong guy."
"No big deal," Jackie said. "Worth a shot."
He waved at V and Lucy, getting ready to leave. V suddenly stopped him.
"Jackie, wait." She leaned in and whispered something in his ear.
Jackie stared at her suspiciously. "Really? You think Misty'll be happy if I do that?"
V grinned, confident. "Definitely. Trust me—I'm a woman myself."
Figuring it was worth a try, Jackie shrugged. "If it works, dinner's on me."
…
After Jackie took the elevator down, Leo couldn't help asking, "V, what did you tell him?"
"Secret." V pressed a finger to her lips, smiling playfully.
Leo shrugged. "All right, if you don't want to say, I won't force you."
V patted his shoulder. "So, what's next on your agenda? You just scored enough eddies to retire for a few months. Think it's time you treated your partners to a big meal?"
Leo waved a hand with a flourish. "Sure. Got over a million in the bank—why not? Name a place, name a dish. But since it's late, you sure you don't want to head home and sleep first?"
"Sleep's always there, but how often do we get to stick you with the bill?" V winked at Lucy before turning back to Leo. "Lucy, what do you want to eat?"
"M-me?" Lucy obviously hadn't expected V to toss the question at her. She scrunched up her face in thought for a while, then shrugged. "Anything's fine."
"'Anything' isn't acceptable," V teased. "We're living large today."
Lucy hesitated, mulling it over. "Then… sushi?"
V patted her shoulder. "Perfect. I know a high-end sushi place in Japantown."
Lucy looked a bit nervous. "High-end? Won't that be crazy expensive?"
V just smiled. "No worries. We've got a high roller footing the bill."
"Yeah," Leo added. "Don't sweat it. I promise not to slip away and leave you two to wash dishes."
He stood, grabbing a white coat from the rack. V nudged Lucy from behind, ushering her toward the elevator. As Leo followed them inside, the doors slid shut and carried them downward, his tactical visor suddenly lit with an incoming call. The ID read: Rebecca.
…
Several hours earlier, Maine's team had gathered in a booth at The Afterlife. Maine lounged on the sofa, legs spread in a big-man pose, with Dorio seated beside him. Rebecca and Sasha were perched together, two petite figures, while Pilar occupied a separate couch by himself, arms draped over the back as he stared at the ceiling.
"So, Maine, what kind of gig are we looking at this time?" Pilar asked, his tall frame stretched out lazily.
Maine glanced around the group. "Our fixer's got a job for us—high risk, high reward. If you're not up for it, no problem. But if we pull it off, the payout's huge."
Pilar waved a long-fingered hand dismissively. "C'mon, big boss, don't say it like that. We're in this together, ride or die."
Sitting across from him, Rebecca had no trouble tearing down his flowery words. "You've only been on the team for a few days and you're already 'ride or die?'"
Pilar leered. "Wanna find out how serious I am? Bring that cute little head of yours closer. Let me show you some big-brotherly love."
"Try it, and you'll be short a few fingers!"
Rebecca and Pilar instantly started squabbling. Sasha slipped in to restrain the rowdy Rebecca, while Maine hooked an arm around Pilar's neck, wrestling him away. It took a solid minute before the chaos settled.
"All right, so what's the gig exactly?"
"The fixer wants us to snag some Biotechnica data. It's inside the Biotechnica building at Corpo Plaza…"
Everyone stared at Maine for a moment. Dorio spoke up for the group. "And… that's it? Nothing else?"
Maine spread his hands, looking a bit embarrassed. "Yeah, that's all the intel we've got."
"El Capitán usually gives you more to go on," Sasha muttered. Since they'd started working with this fixer—whom Maine referred to as El Capitán—he'd always provided thorough details so the team could prepare. A bare-bones briefing like this was unusual, more like the old days with their previous fixer.
"Ahem…" Maine coughed awkwardly, avoiding everyone's gaze. He wore sunglasses, making it hard to read his eyes, but the rest of him radiated unease. Normally he was the dependable older brother figure. Nobody questioned him. Dorio, though, knew him too well.
"Maine?"
He looked away.
"Maine?"
He stared at the floor.
"Maine?"
He turned toward the booth's entrance.
"Maine!"
Dorio's final shout made him flinch. "All right, all right," he said, sighing. "I spaced out for a second. It's nothing major."
Dorio moved closer, her expression stern. Maine shifted sideways to make some distance, but she kept moving in. The sofa was only so big—eventually, he'd run out of room.
-------------------------
You can read 50 advanced chapters as well as 2 daily chapters on!
Patreon(.)com/IDKjust