Whats the word, friend? Hutch said, but David could hear annoyance in the syllables. Saw you got family with today. Good to see a father so concerned with his sons business.
David zipped his fly and trundled over to Hutch. He kept his voice low.
Hes just being an asshole. Its nothing. Weve got to meet, David said. We have to talk. Not now, but weve got to.
Slow, slow, slow, Hutch said. Nows not a good time.
Tomorrow night, David said. The usual place.
Cant do that. Other plans.
Tonight, then, David hissed.
Davids hand terminal chimed, and a moment later, Hutchs did too. The local newsfeed pushing a breaking story. David didnt look away. Hutchs expression shifted from annoyance into anger and then a wary kind of amusement. He shrugged.
See you tonight then, little man, Hutch said. His lopsided smile looked dangerous. David nodded and trotted back out to the commons. He wouldnt tell Hutch about the message or about Leelee being in trouble. Hed just say he wanted to find her. Hed say it was about his placement because that made it seem like there was something else. Distracting. He got back to Mr. Oke and his father, gathering himself back together, willing himself to act normal, before he noticed that the commons was silent. Everyone was hunched over their hand terminals, their faces gray or flushed. Even his father and Mr. Oke. The newsfeed push had a picture of a public corridor, the air hazed by smoke. A policeman hunched over something, one hand on his hip. The header read EXPLOSION IN SALTON.
What happened? he asked.
Protestors, his father said, and the anger in his voice was startling. Anti-Earth protestors.
Davids hand terminal chimed again. The header shifted.
EXPLOSION IN SALTON; THREE CONFIRMED DEAD
Aunt Bobbie was tight-lipped when they got home, sitting in the common room with a massive black weight in her hand that she held without lifting, like a child clutching a favorite toy. The monitor was set to a newsfeed with the sound turned low. Live feeds of the damage in Salton played out in the four corners of the monitor, but she didnt seem to be looking at them. Davids mother sat at the table scrolling through her hand terminal. When David and his father walked in, there was a moment of eye contact between his parents that had the weight of significance. He didnt know what it meant. His father tapped Davids shoulder in a kind of farewell, then stepped over to the railing.
Hey, sis.
Hey, Aunt Bobbie said.
Did security talk to you?
Not yet, Aunt Bobbie said. They know how to find me if they want to.
David scowled toward his mother. He couldnt think of a reason that security would want to talk with Aunt Bobbie. He tried to make it into a threat against him, that theyd be looking to her for information about the batches hed cooked for Hutch, but that felt too wrong. It had to be about the bombing, but he couldnt make sense of that either. His mother only lifted her eyebrows and asked how the meeting with Mr. Oke had gone. His father answered for him, and the uncomfortable tension around Aunt Bobbie shifted into the background.
There was going to be a party for the whole family tomorrow night, his mother told him. Pop-Pop and the cousins were coming from Aterpol, and Uncle Istvan and his new wife were making the trip from Dhanbad Nova. Theyd rented a room at the best restaurant in Breach Candy. David gave a quiet, generalized thanks to the universe that hed arranged to see Hutch tonight instead. Slipping away from his own celebration would have been impossible.
After dinner, David said some vague things about friends from school and celebrating, promised not to go to Salton, and ducked out the door before anyone could get too inquisitive. Once he was out walking to the tube station, he felt a moment of relaxation. Almost peace. The whole ride out to Martineztown, David felt almost like he was floating. His datasets were done or else not his anymore, and even with all the rest of itLeelee and Hutch, the protestors and the bombings, the family party and the prospect of leaving homejust not having the lab work hanging over him was like taking a vise off his ribs. Once he was in Salton, working development would be a thousand times worse than anything in the lower university. But that was later. For now, he could set his hand terminal to play bebapapu tunes and relax. Even if it was only for the length of the tube ride to Martineztown, it was still the most peace hed had for himself in as long as he could remember.
Hutch was waiting for him when he got there. The construction lamp threw off harsh white light, the battery hissing almost silently. The shadows seemed to have eaten Hutchs eyes.
Little man, he said as David stepped into the room. Wasnt thinking to hear from you. Was risky, talking to me with family and authority right there beside us. You were looking jumpy. People notice that kind of thing.
Sorry, David said. He sat down on a crate, rough plastic clinging to the fabric of his pants and pulling his cuffs up around his ankles. I just needed to talk to you.
Im always here for you, my friend, Hutch said. You know that. Youre my number one guy. Any problem youve got, Ive got.
David nodded, picking absently at his fingernail beds. Now that he was here, he found the subject of Leelee was harder to bring up than hed expected.
I got into development.
Knew it. Developments always the place for the smart ones. Play your cards, and youll be riding this planet like a private cart, Hutch said. Thats not why were here, though. Is it?
No, I wasI wanted to get in touch with Leelee. See if maybe she wanted to come celebrate it with me. Only my hand terminal went corrupt and I didnt have her information on backup and I was thinking that since you David swallowed, trying to work the knot out of his throat. Since you know her better than anyone.
He chanced a look at Hutchs face. The man was expressionless as stone, turned in and silent. It was more threatening than bared teeth.
She came to you. David had promised himself that he wouldnt tell Hutch about the message, and technically he didnt, but the silence implicated him. Hutch drew a deep breath and ran his hands through his hair. Dont worry about Leelee. Im taking care of Leelee.
She seemed like she was in trouble.
Okay, little man. You dont follow whats happening here, so Im going to help. I own Leelee. Shes mine. Property, see? And she screwed up, started being with the wrong crowd. She got political. People like us dont do that. Earth. Mars. OPA. That shit is for citizens. It just draws attention for people like us.
She looked scared, David said. He could hear the whine in his voice, and he hated that he couldnt keep it out. He sounded like a kid. She said she needed money.
Hutch laughed. Dont ever give that bitch money.
Property, David said. She wantedshe wanted to buy herself. Didnt she?
Hutchs expression softened to something like sympathy. Pity, maybe. He leaned forward and put a hand on Davids knee.
Leelee is a slice of poison with a pretty mouth, little man. Thats the truth. She did a bad, stupid thing, and now shes working that mistake off. Thats all. I know how much money you have because Im the guy that gave it to you. You dont have enough to clear her debts.
Maybe I could
You dont have half. Youve got maybe a quarter. Theres nothing you can do for that girl. She gave you a hard-on, and that was nice for you. Dont make it more than that. You understand what Im saying to you?
The deep, sickening tug of humiliation pulled at Davids heart. He looked down, willing himself not to cry. He hated the reaction. He was angry with it and with himself and with Hutch and his parents and the world. He burned with embarrassment and rage and impotence. Hutch stood up, his shadow spilling across floor and wall like spent engine oil.