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"David…"
"Judy?"
I looked at the girl questioningly. She had come into our tent late in the evening. Fortunately for us, we weren't planning on having sex that night, so we were just sitting next to each other, watching some movie on a hacked connection.
What was the movie about?
Who the hell knows! I was more interested in Panam's lips, which were responding to my kiss with such passion and desire, than I was in what that movie was about.
"I… can I talk to you?"
"Should I leave?"
Panam looked at Judy questioningly, and she shook her head.
"No… it's nothing like that… I was just hoping for a little help…"
"If it's within my power…"
I shrugged.
Help Judy?
Yeah, no problem at all! I'd be happy to help her!
Judy went further into the tent and sat down on a massive chest that was used for storing things but could also be used as a chair.
For a while, we sat in silence. For some reason, Judy seemed a little uncomfortable, and the reason was definitely not the fact that Panam and I were sitting so close together or our kissing. After all, we often kissed in front of her, and I even let my hands wander a little…
"Judy?"
Panam got her friend's attention, and she flinched, focusing her gaze on us.
"Yeah… sorry… anyway… I took your advice…"
"My advice?"
"Yeah…"
Judy nodded her head.
"Not to sue Night City, but to file a lawsuit against a specific official who was responsible for forging the documents. Of course, not right away. I thought about it first, then I went to a lawyer. In short, this case might work out. They might even remove my criminal record…"
"And?"
I was really curious about what Judy wanted from me, since she had decided to ask for something.
"We don't have enough evidence…"
She lowered her gaze to the floor of the tent.
"And you have a plan?"
"Yeah…"
Judy nodded her head.
"We need to get into a couple of places and get data from their archives and servers."
"And can that be used as evidence in court?"
"Well…"
Judy blinked.
"…I went a little further, and after talking to the lawyer… well, if we pay the judge a little something, he'll turn a blind eye to the fact that the evidence didn't come to us through entirely legal means. More specifically, to some suspicious coincidences. The main thing is not to leave a direct trail back to ourselves."
I nodded my head.
"When?"
"Huh?"
Judy looked at me in surprise.
"Just like that?"
"What, did you think we'd be difficult?"
Panam supported my decision to help Judy get the data she needed.
"Well… I thought there would be a price at the very least…"
"Stop."
I cut Judy off, and in addition to my tone being very unyielding and demanding, I also raised my hand, gesturing for Judy to stop saying the stupid things she was about to say.
"Judy, you're our friend, and if we have the chance, we'll be happy to help you. Help, do you hear me? Not provide a paid service, not put you in debt or anything else, but help…"
"I… thank you…"
Tears welled up in Judy's eyes.
"It's nothing…"
I let go of Panam, sat down next to Judy, and put my arm around her shoulders. Panam sat down on the other side of her and also hugged her.
For a while, we just sat in silence.
"So when?"
"In about three weeks…"
Judy spoke very uncertainly.
"Why so uncertain?"
"Well…"
Judy stared at the floor of the tent again.
"…that's the deadline. In three and a half weeks, this evidence has to be attached to the case. If we don't make it in time, the evidence won't be considered."
I closed my eyes…
"Okay, in the next week, we'll drive to Vik's a couple of times. He'll finish replacing my muscles. I'll take another three days to get used to them and recover. And then we'll storm the archives."
"I…"
Judy looked at me in confusion.
"By then, you should have slowly gathered data on the places we'll be hacking. Find their blueprints and learn about their security systems."
"Okay…"
Judy nodded her head.
"Then it's settled. Now, why don't you watch this movie with us…"
"Huh?"
"Just watch…"
I smirked.
"…we weren't planning on doing anything kinky, but if we're left alone, we definitely won't be able to hold back…"
Panam nodded her head…
A few days later.
"You couldn't handle it after all…"
I shook my head, watching Becca and Lucy get into the car with us. Only, while we were just going to Vik's and then coming back after a check-up, they said they'd had enough right away. The tent life wasn't for them.
Which was understandable, of course. That kind of life isn't for everyone, but it was a shame that they couldn't get into the romance of the sand and the tents.
Not that I was passionately in love with that life myself, but I could definitely feel a certain… charm to it.
"This isn't for me…"
Becca shook her head.
"…it's too quiet. Everyone's too friendly. I'm used to every neighbor, well, except for you, either telling me to fuck off or pissing themselves in fear when they see me. And here…"
Becca looked thoughtfully at the camp as Thorton started up and began to smoothly pick up speed.
"…it's too quiet, although shooting at cans was pretty unusual, especially with a revolver without sights. Maybe I'll do something like that at a shooting range sometime…"
"It's too quiet here…"
When Becca fell silent, Lucy took over.
"…but in my opinion, there's too little information. I'm used to surfing the net all the time, but here it's very limited, and the main traffic goes through the local netrunner. And she's not going to share that traffic."
"Well, you could just buy an amplifier and set up your own channel…"
Lucy gave me a thoughtful look and nodded her head.
"You know, that might actually be the way… my dream is a little too idealistic… and after living like this, away from civilization…"
Panam huffed indignantly.
"…okay, away from the city hustle and bustle, I realized that I wouldn't be able to last long on the Moon. It's just not for me, and the network would be even worse there. So buying an amplifier, a car, and setting it up…"
Lucy closed her eyes.
"…yeah, I can do that…"
"By the way, Panam, we need to stop by one place after Vik's."
"Hmm?"
"I've found a car for myself…"
"And what kind of car is it?"
Panam looked at me with suspicion.
"Well, I took into account everything you told me before and decided to go with a Militech Behemoth."
Gasp!
Thorton swerved to the side but immediately straightened out.
"Are you crazy?"
"No…"
I shrugged.
"It's got a big body, and if I put some of my ideas into it, I can get more space than our one-room apartment. I can set up a workshop, a bedroom, and even a shower! I won't even mention the kitchen."
"A shower?"
Panam looked at me in surprise. And while Panam was only surprised, the other girls looked at me with interest and delight.
"Well, yeah, a shower… of course, it won't be a normal shower. That would be too wasteful. But if I make the water spray more than a regular shower head… in short, by reducing water consumption, you can still enjoy a normal shower. And the water for the shower can be passed through several filters that will clean it completely. I'll just have to make a separate tank for that water…"
"Um… A shower is nice, and so is a gunsmith's workshop… but a kitchen…"
Panam shook her head.
"A kitchen is an extravagance. Everyone in the clan cooks over an open fire, and if someone suddenly has a kitchen for cooking, it's going to look extremely strange."
She sighed.
"So you want me to cook you pancakes in front of everyone? You won't get any…"
"Actually, a kitchen is a great idea!"
Panam nodded her head. She changed her mind in less than a second.
Pff!
"And don't you guys snort!"
She gave the back seat a stern look, where Judy, Becca, and Lucy were sitting.
"You've all had his pancakes… and you know you can't let that get out!"
"I have to agree… so how much can the Behemoth's body be expanded?"
Judy was slightly interested.
"Well, in travel mode, it will be the same, but when it's parked… I think three to four times. It all depends on what you put into it and what technologies you use."
I thoughtfully scratched my cheek.
"If we're going that far, I'd like to steal some old blueprints and study them… that could solve the problem with electricity, not just for the car, but for the entire camp. We could do away with solar panels."
"David…"
Panam gave me a serious look.
"Panam?"
"If you can solve that problem, I will personally advocate for you to join the clan and be appointed as its leader."
I blinked.
"Me? I'm an outsider…"
"You, you. The problem of electricity is second only to the problem of drinking water for us. You can buy food in any city; you just go there in a truck, buy it, and that's it… but we have to haul water in cisterns and be frugal with it. And electricity…"
Panam shivered.
"You have no idea how much work it takes to tap into an existing network without being noticed, or to unfold our solar panels. And then we have to fold them up again before we leave…"
I closed my eyes.
"Well, overall… I don't see any problem with solving the water issue…"
"What?!"
"But only after the electricity issue is solved. If I can solve that problem, I'll come up with something for the water, too…"
In fact, I already had an idea. It's just that people nowadays have forgotten what it means to drill wells, and in my past life, that was done frequently. And even though I personally never had to do it, I have an idea of the process and the equipment needed for it.
Well, at least in a general sense…
"They'll worship you… we'll only have the problem of food left… Saul will be green with envy!"
I shrugged.
"I don't give a shit about Saul's opinion… and honestly, I wouldn't want you to talk about my plans. They're too ambitious, especially since I'm not planning on giving up the solo life. And if it doesn't work out, only you will know about it, and if it does… then we'll make the people happy."
"Okay, but you have to tell me what you need…"
Panam's voice was demanding.
"Me too…"
Judy joined in.
"…you're willing to take a risk for me, so I'll help you in any way I can."
I nodded my head.
"I'll tell you everything after we're done with Vik…"
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