Nothing's Free in the Free Zone (IC), Adventure 2: A Dish Best Served Cold Options

[Melpomene]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:13 PM September 11, 2075

<<@Team [JustJack] Anyone with a gentle touch want to ask about the wife? If this is Huiquing's house, I would assume his wife lives there as well...>>

<<@Team [Melpomene] Copy that.>>

Mel mentally pauses the security tape, and begins to archive the information on the vase. She looks at the Johnson, regarding her with a neutral expression.

"Ms. Li, I know this is probably an area you would rather not touch on, but what about the wife? She lives there, is that correct? Is she a homebody? Should we expect her around the house, and if so, would we expect her anywhere near the objectives?"

[Lobo0705]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:14 PM September 11, 2075

Jingfei's lip curls upward in a sneer, and Chapel has trouble keeping up with the translation.

"Umm, so half of what she said was a series of insults, the salient bit is that you can assume that there is no love lost between the two. She says that Huiquing's wife, Chen Baozhai, is out of town, and will be gone for the next week. She often travels around the world, which is the only thing she seems to like about the woman."

[Melpomene]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:14 PM September 11, 2075

<<@Chapel [Melpomene] You should keep this girl on your speed-dial. With a little prodding, she may pay big to have the wife taken out.>>

A five second pause.

<<@Chapel [Melpomene] Not that I'm trying to tell you your business.>>

A three second pause.

<<@Chapel [Melpomene] (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) >>

[Lobo0705]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:14 PM September 11, 2075

<<@Melpomene [Chapel] You've almost read my mind. There is something else I want to discuss with you after Ms. Li leaves.>>

[Jack VII]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:14 PM September 11, 2075

Good to see that Mel... the ork paused, struggling to remember the woman's full name. Remembering it was something fancy, he just gave up on trying to remember it and figured he would stick with Mel. Good to see that Mel knows her biz.

Accessing his messenger application, Jack composed and sent a message, looking forward to the response.

[DrZaius]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:14 PM September 11, 2075

Looking around the table to see if anyone had anything else to say, Grease nods at Jingfei. "Thank you for answering our questions. I apologize for the bluntness of some of my inquiries: with such a short time frame I felt sparing your feelings was a luxury we could afford if successful. I hope to have the objects in your possession soon, we will do everything in our power to deliver them to you safe and unharmed. Rest assured you have selected the right team." He finishes with a slight bow of his head.

[Lobo0705]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:15 PM September 11, 2075

Snap speaks for the first time, "I'm wondering about the magical defenses. I know you said they should be 'light', any idea what that means?"

Chapel turns to Jingfei and speaks briefly, and then awaits her response. Soon he turns and says, "Huiquing is one of those who has turned from magic as a solution to problems. He does not like it, nor does he trust it. I know that he has had his house heavily warded, as I remember him speaking about sparing no expense to prevent others from using magic against him. I don't know much about magic myself, but I don't believe there is anything else on the property that would fit your description."

Snap nods a thank you, and the team looks briefly at one another, and nods. Grease speaks up again, "Ms. Li, thank you again for the information. I believe we have all we need for now, and would like to speak to Chapel alone for a few minutes."

Chapel relays the information to Jingfei, and then stands as she rises. Before she exits the booth, she says something, the look on her face plaintive. "Remember, please, do not kill Huiquing. I fear he has lost his way, and although I want him punished, I do not wish him dead." As she leaves, the teams catch a glimpse of two figures who have been lurking in the shadows who leave with her, a tall man with a brush cut in a suit, and a striking red headed woman, the side of her head shaved to reveal her implants. They take up positions in front and behind Jingfei and take her out the door.

When the doors close, Chapel drains his glass, and turns back to the team. "About that," he straightens his tie, "I've got another 50,000 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nuyen.gif) for you if you kill him."

[Melpomene]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:15 PM September 11, 2075

Mel watches the woman leave the table, then sees the two escorts with her.

Curiouser and curiouser.

Then Chapel speaks. "About that, I've got another 50,000 nuyen for you if you kill him."

Mel's head swivels. "And the plot thickens! This situation is clearly not a standard smash and grab. What's happening here? Who were those two with her?"

Her tone is filled with interest rather than concern.

[Lobo0705]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:15 PM September 11, 2075

Chapel responds to Mel's questions, pouring himself another glass of wine from the bottle the waitress had left at the table.

"As you might expect, Ms. Li is quite fearful that Chen Huiquing will try again to take her life. I have contacted a trustworthy agency to handle her security detail until this situation has resolved itself."

Sipping the wine, he continues on. "Huiquing is not a popular man. I am aware of certain parties who are interested in his demise, and the proverbial 'kill two birds with one stone came to mind.'"

Placing his wine glass down, he finishes, "Please understand that you are under no obligation to take the extra money to assassinate him, I simply offer it as an opportunity for both of us to make some extra money."

[Jack VII]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:15 PM September 11, 2075

Jack was glad he wasn't drinking anything when Chapel made the supplementary offer. Coughing to cover his surprise, the ork mentally composed a message to Mel.

<<@Mel [JustJack] Personal protection detail. They work for a woman named Valkyrie who does that kind of thing... we had dealings with her on our last job>>

The ork contemplated Chapel's offer. He wasn't a fan of wetwork, at least not the kind that just concerned money. He had argued strongly for the need to kill Truck during their last job, not only because of the logistical complications of trying to keep him on ice while they took care of Lynx and the rest of their team. If the ork was honest with himself, he felt the troll had simply deserved it for all of the killings, particularly those horrific sacrifices. So far, Huiquing didn't sound like a boy scout either; there was no way to climb that high in any criminal organization without getting a lot of blood on your hands.

Turning to Chapel, Jack asked, "For this, uh, bonus... do we have to agree to it before hand or do we get paid if the opportunity arises and we take advantage of it? Also, any requirement as to how he is taken out? Can it look like an accident or are they trying to send a message?" While waiting for the response, he sent a quick message to the team.

<<@Team [JustJack] Just putting it out there, but if Mrs. Johnson is willing to spend this much money to spite her amante who she claims to still love, what's she going to do when she has more money and someone kills him?>>

[DrZaius]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:15 PM September 11, 2075

Looking around the table, Grease frowns.

We're getting ahead of ourselves. Being put in a position to kill him is going to take a ton of work on top of everything else.

"Let's not put the cart before the horse. We need to get into his house before anything else. Do you happen to know anyone in the CAS sector who could help us with equipment? We may be able to get small items through the border, but I'd prefer to go up against a bunch of Triad bodyguards with more than my warm smile."

[Lobo0705]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:15 PM September 11, 2075

Chapel leaned forward in his chair, rubbing his hands briskly as he and the team got to business.

"Jack, I present this as an opportunity to you. If you can capitalize on the opportunity, and bring back proof, then we both make a little extra money. If you can't, well, nothing ventured, nothing gained. So don't feel that you obligated to do this. The interested parties want him dead, and they want to make sure everyone knows he got hit. They don't have any special requirements, nothing ghastly like torture or severed heads, a double tap to the chest and coup de grâce to the forehead should be quite sufficient."

His face registering mock surprise, he answers Grease's concerns, "Why Grease, I thought your warm smile would be quite sufficient to deal with a few paltry bodyguards. I'm disappointed. However, on the off chance you require some extra equipment, I do have someone whom I can put you in touch with over on the CAS side of the border. He goes by the name Stone, a surly little dwarf with a disgusting chaw habit. My advice is to bring a cup when you meet with him, unless you fancy tobacco juice all over your shoes."

Chapel sends you a quick message with his commcode.

"Tell him that I sent you, and he should be able to handle your requests."

[Melpomene]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:16 PM September 11, 2075

<<@Chapel [Melpomene] Was this side deal what you wanted to talk to me about after speaking with Ms. Johnson? >>

<<@Just Jack {Melpomene] Got it. Thanks. >>

<<@Team [Melpomene] Every minute we slide deeper and deeper into this domestic situation. >>

Chapel, what are the chances that Ms. Johnson decides that she won't pay because we got her beloved killed? Also, how much heat to we bring down upon us, and you, if we do this deed?"

[Lobo0705]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:17 PM September 11, 2075


[color="#FFFF00"]<<@Melpomene [Chapel] Yes, figured it would be easier just to get it out in the open air all at once.>>

Chapel moves his head slightly from side to side. "Ms. Li will not have the opportunity to not pay you for your services, should you be successful in retrieving the artifacts. You will deliver them to me, and I will have them sold and provide her with the agreed upon monies, deducting my fee and yours. As far as the heat? As for me, I am simply a businessman from another country. I do not worry for myself. As for you, should you not be identified as the killers, and be able to escape back to the fine UCAS, I would not have much worries either."

He smiles, "We work in a dangerous business my friend, it would be safer for you not to do it, but not as lucrative."

[DrZaius]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:17 PM September 11, 2075

<<@Team [Grease]: Agreed. I'm not sure how I feel about double-dipping here; the Johnson was pretty clear as to their wishes. If she is what I think she is, getting on her bad side could be problematic. She could be working for a different gang for all we know.>>

Grease's smile is thin. "Good that our German friend had to leave town; he wouldn't be interested in that type of work."

He refills his glass of wine from the bottle on the table. "So, what about transportation? Do you know any Coyotes who could get us in or out? I think we should try to get in on our own, but if that isn't feasible it's always a good idea to have a backup plan in case we need to make a getaway without going through customs."

[Jack VII]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:17 PM September 11, 2075

"Opportunity noted." Jack said, still not entirely sure on what would suffice as far as killing Huiquing. He'd entirely prefer to make it look like an accident so that Jingfei wouldn't pay someone to kill them, but it was the world in which they lived. With both his inquiry to Honeypot and Chapel providing a contact, the ork figured they were covered as well as they could be for logistics. He was just a little worried about how much they were going to be able help out given the limited time frame. With that in mind, he sent a message to Grease.

<<@Grease [JustJack] Whenever you close the deal with Chapel, make sure to ask for an advance. It's going to be expensive to get any gear on such a short time frame>>

[Lobo0705]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:17 PM September 11, 2075

"I do, in fact, know a Coyote or two. That being said, those services aren't cheap, so keep that in mind..."

[Jack VII]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:17 PM September 11, 2075

Jack frowned. "Like Grease said, I think we're going to plan to get in and out officially... well, at least as officially as our SINs allow us. With that said, I don't think any of our plans have actually worked as intended." The ork paused as he thought he could smell the faint scent of CS gas. "I think we're going to definitely want to set up something for a return trip. I don't have high hopes we're going to be able to get back across without having to answer some serious questions. What are our chances of getting someone to agree to work on retainer? We'll front some money they get to keep even if they don't have to lift a finger, then paying the rest if we actually have to use them?"

[Lobo0705]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:17 PM September 11, 2075

Chapel smiles at Jack and says, "Free money is never something that Onyx will never turn down. I'll make the call, and set up the arrangements if you would like. She'll probably want to meet virtually to finalize things."

[DrZaius]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:17 PM September 11, 2075

Grease nods.

<<@Team [Grease]: Any other loose ends?>>

"So, we'll travel into the CAS. We'll have to purchase gear there, as well as have monies available for our coyote friend to be able to get us back out. We'll be infiltrating a mostly unknown location, in an extremely short time frame. And.." he grins. "You want us to go against the wishes of the Johnson, and potentially take out a high-ranking Triad in an organization very few of us are familiar with. I for one don't want to look over my shoulder every time I go for takeout. So, I think an advance of 20% sounds reasonable. And if these items are as valuable as you say, I think that 120,000 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nuyen.gif) is closer to the mark. Or at least, a bonus for returning both intact."

[Melpomene]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:17 PM September 11, 2075

<<@Team [Melpomene] Plenty, but none that Chapel can help with, as far as I can see.>>

Mel continued with her work, listening to the negotiations. In her mind, she had little interest in killing Huiquing. The pay was good, but the ramifications could be too much. But she still owed so much.

Grease seemed to be good as this, so Mel stayed clear...letting the Elf handle this area.

[Jack VII]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:17 PM September 11, 2075

"I agree with Grease." Jack said, probably surprising those at the table that understood their relationship. "The Triads don't frag around... particularly when losing face, which Mrs. Johnson said was the main reason for this trabajo. It might be some time before the heat cools off and we can work again. Not to mention who we might be potentially slotting off by stealing this stuff in the first place. Someone probably has their eye on those pieces. I think a bit more salario is called for here."

[Lobo0705]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:17 PM September 11, 2075

Chapel sits back in his chair, his fingers twitching for a moment. Grease can see him working the numbers in his head, and his eyes narrow for a moment before he speaks.

"Here's what I'll do. I'll give you a 5K bump in pay for the retrieval, and half that for the wetwork. So, if you do both, you are looking at 157,500 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nuyen.gif) . As far as the advance, my standard is 10% up front, so I was prepared to hand you a credstick for 10K. However, given the difficulties presented on this mission, I'll take that up to an even 12,000 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nuyen.gif) ."


The team looks around at each other, each nodding briefly at the terms set out by Chapel. Chapel nods back, standing up and excusing himself. "The tab is covered, you have the booth until whenever you decide to leave."

You watch him stroll out of the restaurant, and you receive:

<<Team [Chapel] Expect to hear from Onyx within the next hour. Check behind my seat Good hunting. >>

Jack, as the one closest to Chapel's seat in the booth, reaches down and slides his fingers behind the cushions. He pulls out a credstick, and slotting it into his commlink, sees the balance is 12,000 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nuyen.gif) .

[Jack VII]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:17 PM September 11, 2075

Placing the credstick on the table, Jack said, "I probably don't have to say this, but it's all there."

Looking around the restaurant, the ork noticed that it was getting even busier as the dinner crowd started to fill the place. Considering what they were preparing to discuss, he said, "Maybe we should have this conversation somewhere a bit more private?"

Holding a still half-full glass of wine in his hand, Grease smiled broadly and said, "Why ever would we do that? I've still got wine to finish." He held the ludicrously broad smile as a hiss of static filled the air. "So what's the plan? We've got a lot to do and not much time to do it in..."

Jack nodded his head in agreement. "The way I see it, the first major decisión is going to be how we're going to get across the border. I assume everyone has good SINs? If that's the case, it may not be too difficult to just get a travel pass and head over, but we're going to be very limited on what we can bring with us. If we'd rather just bring our own gear, we'll probably need a coyote, but then we have the issue of transportation once we reach the CAS, among other things. Either way we go, I think we need to see if we can secure a coyote to get us out of the CAS just in case everything goes to drek."

[Melpomene]

The New McCormicks Seafood House, East 72nd and Grape Street, 6:17 PM September 11, 2075

Mel watches Chapel leave, then sees Jack find and slot the credstick. Her music continues to pump in her ears, and the video of the attack on Ms. Li still floats frozen in her vision. At the bottom left, the search algorithm for the art pieces continues to run. Then the smell of food hits her.

I should eat.

Mel knows how high her metabolism runs, and this is a good chance to get some (relatively) healthy food into her.

She calls up the menu over AR and selects a double soyburger, chips, and a soda. She marks for it to go...just in case she has to leave quickly...and puts it on Chapel's tab.

"I have a solid SIN, and if we had more time, I could probably dredge up some pretty competent ones for the rest of you. If we're going tonight, that probably is a no-go. I agree on the coyote. I'd rather get stuck on this side and have an opportunity to go to Plan B than get stuck on the other side with contraband and possibly blood on our hands. Have you worked with this Onyx before?"