JOE HAD REPORTEDLY spent his newfound freedom getting plastered at a dive joint just outside of Chinatown. Afterward he staggered home and assumedly fell face-first on his ratty sofa in a drunken stupor just as the sun was rising.
At least that's what I figured when I kicked his door in off the hinges.
A cold, nickel-plated muzzle pressed against my temple when I stepped into the dark apartment. Naturally, I froze with my hands upraised in the most non-threatening manner I could assume.
"Must be at the wrong address. Thought this was my pad."
"Very funny, Mick Trubble. The famous Troubleshooter. Thought you'd catch me off guard? Joke's on you. I was expecting you to show up."
"So it seems." I remained still as he patted me down and relieved me of the Mean Ol' Broad. He slipped his snub-nose in his waistband and stepped back, pointing the Broad at me.
"This will be good. Down and out Troubleshooter loses big time at poker, and ends up committing suicide after being marked by the Russian Mob. No one will ask any questions. Just another loser taking the easy way out."
I gave him a wry glance. "This isn't Faye's idea, is it?"
He frowned. "Does it matter?"
I shrugged. "Figure Faye would be too smart for this kind of shoddy attempt. Seems to me your little plan doesn't have too much going for it."
"Yeah? Why is that?"
"You're gonna shoot me with my own gun. In your apartment?" I tsked and shook my head. "How do you explain that to the boys in blue?"
He considered for a minute. "Breaking and entering. I have a legal right to shoot you."
"I thought you said suicide. Make up your mind, Ace. If it's breaking and entering, you better shoot me with your pistol. Then place my revolver in my hand like I was trying to plug you. Makes it easier when the dicks ask questions."
His brow furrowed in confusion. "Why…why are you telling me this?"
"Hey, just trying to help you out, Ace. I get the feeling you're not very good at this sort of thing."
He pointed the Mean Ol' Broad in my face. "You think I won't plaster your brains against the wall right now? I'm with the Jade Dragon Triad, you son of a bitch. Killing you is nothing to me!"
I punched him in the face.
He yelped and staggered back, one hand flying to his broken nose. "You…bastard!" He pulled the trigger.
Nothing happened.
I made good use of his confusion to pick up a wooden stool from the bar and shatter it over his head. He crumpled to the floor in a shower of broken wooden splinters.
I knelt, snatched his snub-nose from his waistband, and flung it across the room.
"Guess you didn't notice the fingerprint sensor on the Mean Ol' Broad's trigger." I plucked her from his twitching fingers. "It's easy to miss, especially since it's mostly exclusive to mech weapons. The Broad is a special gal, though. Had that little upgrade installed, 'cause you never know when some dirty rotten skel is gonna try to blast you with your own bean shooter. Now, this is how it's gonna go, tomodachi. You're gonna tell me where to find Faye, or Sue Li, or whatever her name is. In return, I'll leave you in one piece when I walk outta her. Deal?"
He looked up with pure murder in his eyes. "Tomodachi? That's Japanese, you asshole. You think we all look alike or something? That's so typically racist!"
"Oh, I'm sorry. I only came here to beat you senseless until you gave up Sue Li's location. Didn't mean to be culturally insensitive. My apologies."
"Look, you can hurt me all you want." He winced, squeezing the bridge of his nose with blood-plastered fingers. "Pain is like a lover to me. Nothing you can do will make me betray Sue Li."
"Nice." I jabbed the Mean Ol' Broad against his temple in a non-too gentle manner. "Thing is, I'm not buying the whole loyal act. You're an errand boy, Joe. Small fries. You think Sue Li cares whether you make it out of this little situation alive? You're just a loose end to tie up. Personally, I don't care about you, either. Know who I really care about? Me. And right now, I got a price on my head. I'm a dead man walking if I can't get hold of Sue Li and get my dough back. So do yourself a favor, Joe. Look into my eyes and believe one thing: I'll kill you if you don't tell me where she is right now."
Joe looked into my eyes.
"HELLO, SUE LI."
She didn't look surprised when she slowly emerged from the wheeler and shut the door. She had chosen to park her borrowed ride in an inconspicuous neighborhood that just so happened to be two blocks away from the Transit Express station, where for a steep price a body could purchase a one-way ticket out of town. Some folks say New Haven is a dream, and you can only wake up if you leave. Others say there is no ticket out of New Haven, that Transit Express is an illusion to make unmanageable residents disappear. No one can really say, because no one has ever come back.
Rain had just started to drizzle, sparkling in Sue Li's hair like liquid crystals. The streetlights painted the area in iridescent blues and yellows, fighting against the gloom from the trees and houses. It had taken me all day and nearly all night to track her. She was good, but I was desperate.
I stepped closer, holding the Mean Ol' Broad up so Sue Li could see the cold glint of gunmetal. She set her suitcase down, clutching a wide-brimmed hat to her chest as though it were a flak jacket. Her head tilted slightly to the side, eyes studying my every move.
"Joe gave me up, didn't he?"
"Can you blame him? You used him like you used me. That night I followed you. It was all a set-up, wasn't it?"
"When I saw you tailing me, I arranged for Joe to arrive on the scene. All a part of the act, Mick. To play on your emotions. Joe was useful in some small ways. But it was time to part ways with him."
"You knew I'd track him down."
"I expected you might."
"Yeah, or maybe you expected he might kill me."
She ignored the accusation, choosing to look me directly in the eyes. The rain became a steady shower that wet her fur stole and satin dress, plastering the fabric to her diminutive frame and framing her face with glossy ringlets of raven hair.
"Are you going to shoot me, Mick?"
"Depends on whether or not you cooperate, darling. Mighty rude of you to cut me out like that. I thought we had something."
"We had a game, Mick. We played it, and you were dealt a bad hand. That is the way of gambling. You knew this from the start."
"Bullshit." Vapor exploded from my mouth into the cold downpour. "I need that money, Sue Li. You had to know the kind of people I borrowed from. I can't go back empty-handed."
"You're good at taking care of yourself. People talk about you. They say you're not a man to cross. You should have no problem taking care of whoever comes for you."
"Well, there's a flip side to that. If I'm not a man to cross, you should consider yourself in a lot of danger right now."
Raindrops slid down her porcelain cheeks. "I don't think you have it in you to hurt me."
"Then don't give me a reason. I just want what's mine. I just want what's fair."
A smile touched her lips. "If you want what's fair, you should never gamble."
"I'm not playing, Sue Li. You deal with me, and I'll take on whatever it is you're mixed up in. You have my word on that."
She considered it for a single moment before dismissing it with a tiny shake of her head. "You can't help me, Mick. My troubles are beyond even you. You don't know about my past."
"I don't care about your past." The words ripped raw from my throat. "I'm willing to deal with it, whatever it is. You and me, Sue Li. It doesn't have to end this way."
The rain streamed down, cascading in sheets. Sue Li was reduced to a silhouette in the deluge. Her voice was barely audible. "You really would, wouldn't you? You really care that much."