Nothing's Free in the Free Zone (IC), Adventure 1: Broken Star Options

[DrZaius]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:20 PM, July 30th, 2075

Smiling back at Brandy, Grease holds up a hand. "Whoa whoa whoa; I'm not sure we're quite there yet. We haven't even seen the upstairs yet! There are some serious questions about this property, and we can't really consider signing an agreement before we find out the details. These are questions we'd ened answered before we could even start an agreement like that. Isn't that right Jo-Jo?" Grease beams at Jack, a loving smile for someone who he clearly holds dear.

[Jack VII]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:20 PM, July 30th, 2075

"I don't think she's being pushy, baby," Jack consoles Grease. "This kind of thing is usually just a formality. But since we've just met, do you mind if we take the time to review this contract before accepting it, Brandy? I can look it over while we speak with Mr. and Mrs. Manuel..."

[Lobo0705]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:22 PM, July 30th, 2075

Brandy looks hesitant, but seems to be swayed, caught up in what appears to be such a loving couple's exchange of affection, along with a desire for a larger customer base. "Alright. Jo-Jo, why don't you look it over, it is fairly boiler-plate. I'll go upstairs and see if Mrs. Manuel can answer some of your questions." She heads up the stairs, her business skirt showing her legs to good advantage, and walks down a short hallway and knocks on the door.

Jack examines the contract, "It seems straightforward enough - its as she says, fairly boiler-plate in language." After a brief wait, Brandy appears again at the top of the stairs and motions the two of them to come up.

Jack and Grease climb the stairs, arriving at the landing and seeing three doors, two bedrooms and the bathroom in between them. Mrs. Manuel is standing outside her bedroom door with Brandy next to her. "Henry, Jo-Jo, this is Maria. Maria, the gentlemen have some questions for you about the house."

[Jack VII]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:22 PM, July 30th, 2075

"Hola Mrs. Manuel, it is our pleasure to meet you. Your casa is beautiful. If we were to purchase the house, our plans at the moment are to update a few things and resell it if the market is right. Because time becomes a factor in that circumstance, we did have a few questions that we wanted to ask you. Our apologies for disturbing you, Brandy has been fantastic, but we think these are things only the owners could answer."

Jack mentally took a deep breath, silently berating himself for what he was about to do. "We noticed that Mr. Manuel had already packed up his belongings in the basement and appears ready to move out. Is the rest of the family prepared to do that as well? The quicker we can get to work, the more able we would be to adjust to market fluctuations."

Without pause, he continued, "Also, we noticed the window and carpet in the living room area that needed replacement. We hope that was nothing more than neighborhood children playing pranks, but we would need that to be replaced or credited against the sale price. Additionally, I would like to speak with whoever performed routine maintenance on the house over the last few years. It's hard to pick out areas that need to be addressed on a quick walk through, but it would be very helpful for flipping the house. Was that Mr. Manuel or someone else?"

"Finally, how attached are you to the furniture? We might want to purchase it if the price is right."

[Lobo0705]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:23 PM, July 30th, 2075

As Jack climbed the stairs after Brandy, admiring the view, Grease slipped his hand into his pocket, took out one of his microdrones and flicked it across the room. The drone deployed its wings at the last second, swooping off to go hide some where in the house.

"Well, my husband passed recently, and, I'm sure you understand, it isn't something I would like to talk about. My son and I can be gone quickly if the sale goes through - even faster if you are buying the furniture as well." She looks downstairs at the living room. "We've gotten several estimates for replacing the window, we can take that off the price of the home, if you can't wait. The new carpet should be here on Saturday."

"I can't help you with regards to the maintenance, Jimmy used to handle everything around here." She looks sad, with a hint of anger.

[DrZaius]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:23 PM, July 30th, 2075

When Mrs. Manuel finishes her story, Grease is in tears. "Oh my god- I am so, so sorry. We had no idea! Oh, and to think we were going to haggle about money at a time like this!" Brandy frowns at the suggestion, and Grease continues.

"I can't even imagine losing.. oh.." Grease turns and buries his face in Jack's shoulder briefly. "Please, I am so sorry. Jo-Jo, would you grab me something for my eyes?" Grease breathes deeply, his eyes wide with sympathy.

"To lose a father and husband.. How did something like this happen?"

[Lobo0705]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:24 PM, July 30th, 2075


Maria moves and puts a hand on Grease's shoulder. "There, there honey, its okay, I'm not mad. I've always known that Jimmy was in a dangerous line of work. Now, why don't you go to the bathroom and wash your face, you look like a wreck." She gives his shoulder a little squeeze.

She leads him to the bathroom, and then steps back to give him a little space. She turns to Jack and whispers, "Such a sweetheart, any emotion he feels he just shows it, doesn't he?" As Jack nods, she continues, "Listen, you both seem like very nice gentlemen, I'm happy to sell you the house, and truth be told, I want to get out of this place. Jimmy wasn't happy here the last few months, and with him passing, well, the less said the better."

[Jack VII]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:24 PM, July 30th, 2075

In a low voice, Jack replied.,"Yes, he does have occasional problems with control in general, but we all certainly have our challenges." Bringing his voice back to a normal volume, Jack cut to the chase. "I really do understand you not wanting to discuss your husband's passing but based on what you said about him working in a dangerous job and the damage we saw downstairs... I hate to ask this, but was he murdered here? I really don't want to bring up difficult memories, but that would really impact our ability to resell this house. I understand that you don't necessarily have to tell us this, but there are plenty of neighbors around here we can ask."

[Lobo0705]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:24 PM, July 30th, 2075

Maria's face hardens a little, something around the eyes showing, perhaps fear or anger, or both?. Then she says, her voice cold, the words seemingly rehearsed, "Yes, someone shot my husband here a couple weeks ago. I was in the kitchen with my son at the time. Neither one of us saw anything or heard anything apart from the gunshot. He was dead by the time I go to him, and was unable to tell me anything at all. If you will excuse me, I'm sure Ms. Simmons can handle any further questions, I should get back to my son."

[Jack VII]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:25 PM, July 30th, 2075

"Thank you, Maria. Mis simpatías." Jack said nothing else while he waited for the bereaved widow to leave.

After Maria departed, he turned to Brandy. "I imagine you weren't planning on telling us about that... It's understandable. I'm sure you can understand that we're almost certainly not going to buy this house now. People are unhappy enough when they find out someone died of natural causes in a house, it's going to be even worse if they find out it was from unnatural causes."

Turning to Grease, he said as if thinking out loud, "I don't really even know how we could even try to sell this house. I mean, maybe if it was obvious that Mr. Manuel had been specifically targeted. Otherwise, people are going to really worry about the overall safety of the neighborhood, particularly with children."

[Lobo0705]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:25 PM, July 30th, 2075

Brandy has puts her hand over her face and massages her temples with her thumb and middle finger as Maria walks away. "Ok guys, I can see how this might dissuade you from buying the home. However, things happen - and lightning never strikes twice in the same place. I can pull the crime stats for this neighborhood, it is actually very safe..." She manipulates her commlink for a moment, and the statistics appear before Jack and Grease.

[DrZaius]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:25 PM, July 30th, 2075

Looking with a concerned face over at Jack, Grease messages him.

<<@Jack [Grease] Bug planted. You good to go? Doesn't seem like we're going to get more out of the widow.>>

[Jack VII]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:25 PM, July 30th, 2075

"Thank you for the information, Brandy. I'm sure you'll understand that given the information, Henry and I would like to do a little more digging into the neighborhood and this incident before we considered committing to anything."

Jack's eyes searched out the chronograph on his image link and he sighed, "Oh dear, I do need to get going. I have an appointment with a client coming up in an hour or so and need to prep for it. Thank you for showing us the house, Brandy. Henry and I are going to look into the area a bit more and determine if this house would be a good fit for our portfolio. We apologize for disturbing Mrs. Manuel. Had we knows the circumstances of her husband's passing, we wouldn't have pried. We will call you when we make our decision."

Turning to Grease, he said, "Are you ready, cariño?"

[DrZaius]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:25 PM, July 30th, 2075

Taking Jack's arm, Grease smiles widely at Brandy. "We'll be in touch." As they walk out of the home, Brandy can overhear Grease stage-whispering, "it's probably HAUNTED!"

[Lobo0705]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:25 PM, July 30th, 2075

Brandy follows the two down the stairs. "Ok, I can see your minds are made up on this house. If it turns out you change your mind, or want to look at another house, let me know - you have my number." As they exit the house, she closes the door, shaking her head.

[DrZaius]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:30 PM, July 30th, 2075

Wiping the tears from his eyes, Grease nods towards Jack. "We'll drive around the block, then I can transfer you to the cab so you can go to your meet. We'e got the bug in there, so I think if she's hiding anything or makes any calls we'll know about it. We should leave it there about a day, but after that if we don't get anything I'll pull the bug out to use elsewhere; I've only got 2 of those."

As he starts to drive, Grease messages the rest of the team.

<<@Team[Grease]: Didn't find out much more from the widow. Got a bug planted in case she's hiding anything. Going to drop Jack off for his next meet. He did manage to grab some documents that may be valuable. Amy, Overkill; where do you want to meet me next?>>

[Jack VII]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:30 PM, July 30th, 2075

"Sounds good. Thanks for letting me borrow the cab." Jack said as Grease pulled away from the Manuel residence. Reaching under the seat, the ork grabbed the folder and his pistol. Holstering the pistol and holding up the folder, he said, "I've still got some time to kill before my meet, so I'm going to look through this while I wait. If I find anything interesting, I'll text the team. When I get done with my meet, the cab will bring me to wherever you are, right?"

[Always Overkill]

On E80th Avenue, UCAS Sector, 3:30 PM, July 30th, 2075


Drave looked up and saw Grease's message in his AR display, and responded

<<@Grease: Don't worry about the widow, it was a longshot. Meet us at the Mi Pueblo Market on E80th Avenue. We can proceed from there to the scene.>>

Drave then changed directions on his motorcycle and headed to the Market.

[DrZaius]

Manuel Residence, Leyden Street, UCAS Sector, 3:30 PM, July 30th, 2075

Grease nods at Jack. "Sure, just tell it where to go and it'll take you there. Message us when you get out of your meet and we'll tell you where we are."

<<@Overkill [Grease]: Got it. Meet you there.>>

[Jack VII]

The Backseat of Grease's Taxi, UCAS Sector, 3:35 PM, July 30th, 2075

Jack slipped into the backseat of Grease's Taxi. The speaker system came to life as he eased into the seat, the taxi asking him in a voice sounding somewhat like a mechanized version of Grease's, <<Where to today, ma'am?">>

Jack growled. "Sir... it's sir." Frowning at the fact he was arguing with a drone, the ork tried to let it slide and said, "I need to get over to McCormick's Seafood House at the corner of E. 72nd and Grape Street by 1645. I know it's basically right around the corner, so go ahead and drive around randomly a bit within a square mile area. Don't attempt to cross the border..."

<<Acknowledged, ma'am. Please buckle up and enjoy the ride. For your listening pleasure, here is the newest single from Eliza Starr called Magic Eyes>>

Jack planned to have words with Grease. Wishing he had dampers or a select sound filter to eliminate the sound of the radio, the ork began to undress in the backseat. Removing his suit jacket, pants, shirt, and shoes, the ork gathered them up as neatly as he could, even though he planned to bring everything to a laundromat before wearing the suit again. Two days in this heat had started to build up light stains from sweat and grime. Pulling out a white short-sleeve, button-up collared shirt with a light blue circuit pattern along the back and shoulders, a pair of dark jeans, a black belt, and black dress shoes, the ork did his best to slip into the clothes within the confined space of the backseat.

Once settled, Jack placed his suit and shoes into the clothes bag Amy had given him. He also placed his Streetline Special in the bag inside his suit jacket, hoping he wouldn't need it at the restaurant. Activating his comm, he rebooted the device to clear it in advance of his meeting. Grabbing the folder, Jack finally buckled in and started flipping through the contents, Eliza Starr's voice accompanying his inspection.

[Always Overkill]

Amy and Overkill, Outside Mi Pueblo Market, UCAS Sector, 3:45 PM, July 30th, 2075

As Drave and Amy pulled up outside the Mi Pueblo Market, Drave's eyes quickly began scanning up and down the street. The file on the Wright murder that Ramirez had given them was a little thin, they weren't even sure where on the street the shooting took place.

As he helped Amy off the back of his Falke, Drave saw Grease pulling up in his Bentley. He waved him over, and once Grease had strode up and joined them, Drave raised a question. "Now, Meine Kameraden, where to begin? We don't have many details on this one, we are not even sure what shop she was shot in front of. The best plan I have come up with so far is to canvas the various regular shopkeepers and vendors asking about the event. Odds are that the murder of a Lone Star Officer out in the street will make a lasting impression in the memories of those who were nearby when the shooting happened."

[Chrome Head]

Outside Mi Pueblo Market, UCAS Sector, 3:45 PM, July 30th, 2075

Amy follows along and meets with Grease. "I agree with Overkill. One of the vendors will know where it happened. That'll be a good start."

[Lobo0705]

Outside Mi Pueblo Market, UCAS Sector, 3:45 PM, July 30th, 2075

The three runners stand in the market parking lot, looking up and down the street. Most properties seem to be commercial, Johnny's Bike Shop, Joe and Joe Junior's BBQ, Stingray's Fetishes and Foci, and the like.

Physical and AR signs hawk the store's wares, proclaiming sales, specials and "Don't sleep on these deals!" Foot traffic is sparse, with most people at work this early in the day, but there are a fair amount of children roaming around, especially near the various eateries.

The vehicles in the road are a mixture of cars, both old and new, and light trucks, each moving along with the Gridguide™. As the runners decide where to start, a sleek, shiny Lone Star Cruiser moves down the road. It is one of the newer Chrysler Nissan Patrol-3s - the newer models that hit the streets in the early '70s. It slips in and out of the traffic as other vehicles slow to let it pass.

[Chrome Head]

Outside Mi Pueblo Market, UCAS Sector, 3:45 PM, July 30th, 2075

Amy panics at the sight of the patrol car. "Drek the government's on to us. What am I doing here? I have to hide. Grease, let me get in your car!" She's looking around as if there was an imminent threat. "Quick! I'm a SINless in a fraggin' patrolled zone, what was I thinking!"

[DrZaius]

Outside Mi Pueblo Market, UCAS Sector, 3:45 PM, July 30th, 2075

Grease shrugs. "I wouldn't get bent out of shape about it. I've got an unregistered pistol on my person. Overkill has several hundred thousand nuyen worth of illegal electronics. Patrols like that are mostly looking for crimes in progress, or suspicious behavior."

Grease gives a thin smile. "Such as someone panicking when they see a police car."