[Judy: Hey, Evelyn, are you okay?]
[Judy: I heard from the little sister Mox at the door that you got into a car and left. Where are you now?]
[Judy: Damn! I told you not to mess around! Hang tight, I'm going to find someone to rescue you!]
[Judy: Hang in there, Evelyn, you'll be fine! I promise!]
[Evelyn: No need, I'll be back soon.]
[Judy: Evelyn!? Where are you now?]
[Evelyn: Don't worry, Judy, I'll be back soon.]
[Judy: Evelyn, answer the phone... answer the phone! Evelyn!]
In the Mewtwo studio at Liz Bar, Judy angrily slammed her fist on the table.
Worry, panic, and unease intertwined in her eyes, and thoughts of running away occasionally popped into her mind.
But in the end, she impulsively made a decision—no, she had to confirm Evelyn's safety first.
This was the first message from Evelyn in two days, and Judy had once thought she was dead!
Judy paced around the room and, after a while, couldn't resist sending a message to her ex-girlfriend.
[Judy: Mai, do you have any contacts at Spark Team?]
[Maeda Mai: You seem to think too highly of me. That group is the most famous mercenary team in Night City right now, even middlemen have to queue up to get a commission with them.]
[Judy: Please, Mai, help me, a friend of mine is missing, and it might be related to Spark Team.]
[Maeda Mai: I advise you not to court trouble. Do you think even if it's related, they'd tell you? You're just asking for trouble! How does a Mewtwo editor like you get involved with those guys?]
[Judy: Forget it then!]
Judy cut off the communication, sitting in the room angrily, staring blankly at the screen, filled with regret.
She knew she shouldn't have helped Evelyn or should've advised her properly. Whether it was the Internet Supervision or mercenaries, none of them were easy to deal with; she shouldn't have gotten involved in such matters!
Judy, filled with confusion, unease, and panic, tried to find someone to ask about the situation, but it was clear no one could help her.
And Judy didn't dare to act too openly—she knew Evelyn's matter involved many bigwigs, one wrong move could spell disaster.
Until the evening, a sudden knock on the door finally startled Judy, who had been in panic all day.
She cautiously picked up her pistol: "Who is it?"
"It's me! Evelyn!" The voice at the door made Judy almost deliriously happy as she rushed to open it, revealing the exhausted, confused, and panic-stricken Evelyn.
As she stood at the door, she couldn't help but frequently look back, as if something terrifying was chasing her.
"Evelyn!!" Judy joyfully hugged her, but Evelyn pushed her away, closed the door, and finally sighed with relief, showing a weary expression.
"What's going on? Evelyn! Where have you been these days?" Judy hurriedly gave her a bottle of water, but Evelyn only looked for a can of cold beer and gulped down several mouthfuls.
Then, Evelyn, in a somewhat weak tone, said: "Don't ask, Judy, it's the Internet Supervision... they're behind all this."
"Internet Supervision!? Didn't Spark Team hire you to meet that bigwig? Who did you meet, exactly?" Judy asked.
Evelyn shook her head and said painfully, "It wasn't Spark Team, it was a trap by Internet Supervision... I, I was held by them, they opened my head, took away my Mewtwo..."
Footsteps could be heard outside Judy's door from who knows how far away, and Evelyn, showing a terrified expression, looked around anxiously, grabbing Judy's hand: "We have to go, Judy, take me away, we have to hide!"
"Calm down! Evelyn!" Looking at her now, Judy felt an overwhelming sense of pity, she hugged Evelyn, and said in a deep voice: "I'm here, Evelyn, don't be afraid, I'll protect you!"
Judy urgently wanted to know what had happened: "You need to calm down, first tell me what happened!"
"Huff..." Evelyn held her head, drank a few more large mouthfuls of beer, and then, in a somewhat dazed tone, said: "I was taken to see Arasaka Yoshinobu..."
"Arasaka Yoshinobu... my god!" Judy was almost petrified with fear.
She had thought this matter at most involved some big company's manager, director, or perhaps some city council member.
But now Evelyn said she had met Arasaka Yoshinobu!?
"Then Spark Team said that wasn't their target, so I just went on to complete the service as usual... then after I got off the car, Internet Supervision messaged me, telling me to get in their car...
Then I was abducted by them...
They took the Mewtwo recording chip from my brain, and also... did something to my head... My god, I can't remember!"
Evelyn collapsed crying, the stabbing pain in her brain and the vague sense of fear tortured her, making her body tremble constantly.
"You mean, it wasn't Spark Team?" Judy was stunned.
Evelyn cried: "Yes! Now they're asking me why I suddenly disappeared, what's happened, I don't dare to reply to them, and they've already found out I've been working with Internet Supervision behind their backs...