The two of them went to the range to test Iron Guts, then made fine adjustnts based on how it handled.
Gloria arrived at the clinic while they were at it. She changed into her white clinic coat and ordered two breakfasts. Coffee and synthetic hot-pressed sandwiches. She'd seen the clinic open early and known Vito was in. He'd never been able to stand fried noodles or anything like them — his words were that Night City had turned Eastern cuisine into a satanic ritual — so she ordered these instead.
Breakfast arrived. She carried it out to the range and found Rebecca testing the gun.
She'd heard about what had happened to Maine's crew. But one of the best ways to comfort soone is to not bring up the thing that hurts.
"Morning, Rebecca. I brought breakfast for both of you."
Gloria handed her own portion to Rebecca.
"Thank you, Mrs. Martinez."
Rebecca set the gun down and took it. Vito pushed his breakfast back to Gloria.
"You eat. You're watching the shop later. I have a commission on right now. I haven't been in much."
"That's fine. What brought you in so early today?"
Vito laughed it off.
"Nothing much. Picking up so equipnt."
Gloria had the eyes of soone who could see straight through you.
"The cyberware in the warehouse... hasn't gone anywhere, has it?"
Vito scratched the back of his head.
"Cyberware? Of course not. It's not like I'm heading to war. Why would I need all of that installed? Never mind — I need to tune the Captain. The upcoming work might involve infiltration. I need to get my kit sorted."
He retreated from the range at speed.
"Rebecca, few more shots after breakfast, then co up front and I'll make the last adjustnts!"
Gloria smiled wryly. To outsiders, Vito was a composed and serious rc. In front of friends he was permanently twelve years old.
Boop boop boop.
Jackie, calling while Vito made his escape.
"Hey, Jackie. Did you find anything?"
Vito cut straight to it.
"Found sothing. There's soone selling out of an underground passage on Jig-Jig Street. Word is it's hard-to-find black BDs."
"Has T-Bug found a candidate yet?"
Vito added a TSX Biting Cuckoo muzzle to the Captain while he talked. That attachnt took a serious amount of muzzle noise off the gun. The elent of surprise, delivered quietly.
"Bug didn't say. Probably still working on it. Anything on your end?"
"Getting there. Co to the shop. I arranged sothing good through Stints. We'll get it installed, then pass Vik a share so he can put so new stock on the shelf."
"On my way. I'll ride over."
Vito hung up and sent Stints a ssage, setting a eting at Cannon Square in Heywood.
Stints arrived in a police cruiser with three officers in trail.
"Hey. Brought backup? Sergeant Stints doesn't trust ?"
Stints ignored the sarcasm. He had the three wait outside and walked with Vito into a taco shop.
"It's early morning. I still need to get to the precinct after this. Of course I brought people."
He handed Vito a data chip.
"Everything you asked for is in there. Use it yourself. Don't spread it."
Vito took the chip and verified it, then smiled.
"This thing is going to end up on the market sooner or later. With how NCPD operates, you people would sell your own conscience. Citizen data is nothing."
Stints had nothing to say to that. It was true and he knew it.
"My information."
Vito ordered two burritos and two espressos, then gave Stints what he'd asked for.
"The man you know as Woodman — Oswald Forrest — is just a lubricant in the Tyger Claws' exploitation operation. The real head of Clouds is a man nad Hiromi Sato. He lives on the top floor of the H8 gabuilding and almost never leaves his penthouse.
Hiromi's superiors are the two bosses of the Tyger Claws. That said, I don't think those two would be in direct contact with a small-ti NCPD player like Dutt."
Stints had what he ca for. He nodded.
"Good. Transaction complete."
He started to stand. Vito's voice stopped him.
"Have so breakfast before you go. Or have you run out of things to say to ?"
Stints sat back down. He wanted to see what this was leading to.
The server brought the food. Vito started eating. Stints didn't touch anything.
"So which umbrella are you under now? Arasaka? Zetatech?"
"None of your business."
"Stints. Have I been too nice to you lately?"
Stints saw where this was going and moved to leave.
"Stints, I wouldn't move too fast. My right hand has the taco. My left hand has Eddie pointed at sowhere you'd rather keep intact. You don't want to lose your little friends, do you?"
Stints's expression went flat and cold.
"Are you out of your mind? I gave you what you wanted."
Vito finished the burrito. Sipped his coffee at a casual pace.
"Talk to . Maybe I can help you earn so credit with your new boss."
Stints held back for a few seconds. Then:
"Arasaka. Kaoru Togo."
Vito understood imdiately.
"Rember that corporate psycho? The little ssibal."
Stints nodded.
"That person isn't simple. He's Arasaka — Security Division. His girlfriend is also Arasaka. She set up a covert surveillance point inside his old undercover location. I happened to find that spot. And I also happened to pull so data from Liu Yongzhe's computer while I was there."
Stints was interested now. He'd heard things about Arasaka's internal conflicts.
"What kind of data?"
Vito sipped his coffee.
"I didn't open it. Things that don't make money and invite trouble aren't my area of interest. Better to find it a ho with soone who can use it. It references Frankfurt. If your Arasaka patron is running with Yorinobu's faction, he might want this."
Stints pressed down the excitent and kept his tone asured. He didn't want Vito reading too much eagerness into him and driving the price up.
"Maybe. I don't particularly want to get pulled into corporate politics. But a little extra credit never hurts. What's the price?"
"No price. Find Jotaro Shoji of the Tyger Claws. I know he has a location, but the bastard has a sharp nose and moves fast. I need you and your people watching Kabuki and Little China. The mont he surfaces on the street, you notify . Once it's done, I give you Liu's data."
Stints ran the calculation and nodded.
"He do sothing to you?"
Vito put his gun away and stood.
"Just a commission. The person I'm contracted to deal with has to die."
30 advance chapters at patreon/Eatinpieces
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