Oz followed Trig off the dance floor and past the bar. Xyr skin felt buzzy from the bass beat and dancing. So many bodies brushing against xem had been a novel, if somewhat uncomfortable, experience. Especially given xyr clothes did little to buffer the sensations of skin bumping and pressing past.

  Sensory overload would have been a risk if not for Trig’s constant pressure and call for xyr attention. So long as xe could focus on Trig and not everything else, it was almost enjoyable.

  Now, with Kato in sight, xe did xyr best to get xyr head in gear. A quick scan told xem Kato had a cloaking device so all xe could glean was the club owner had a little tech done on his head - hearing mostly and seemingly to make up for lack thereof rather than to enhance. Oz was certain it helped listen in on things too but had met a number of Harry’s clients in militech and various gangs who’d lost their hearing. Shootings, bombs, and any number of other loud bangs could do a number on the eardrums even with preventative measures.

  Sphinx, Trig’s buddy from earlier, was working the bar noise, chatting the owner up. Spotting them, he gave Oz a flirtatious smile but departed without a word.

  Oz wasn’t sure what to make of Sphinx. No one had ever really approached xem with overt sexual interest before and so xe didn’t have any past social interactions to call on to guide xem through the conversation. Xe hoped Trig would handle conversations with his friend in the future, at least until xe could talk to someone like Verana or Silk about how to navigate that sort of thing.

  “I heard we had a rockstar in our midst,” Kato said, greeting Trig. “I don’t have set up for live shows but if you got some tracks to give to the DJ, Sphinx handles most of that for me.”

  “I’m not here about music,” Trig said, “not this time. I’ve got other work that brings me in.”

  Kato looked him over, glanced at Oz and nodded - clocked and filed. “Upstairs?”

  A nod from trig and the three made their way up to the VIP lounge area. A bouncer closed the space behind Oz, catching Trig’s eye as he pulled xem in close, wrapping an arm across xyr hips.

  “Don’t mind Les,” Kato said as he turned at the second floor landing. “He’s traded out his cock and balls for muscle years ago. Your girl is safe.”

  Trig sneered and Oz wondered why someone would need to trade genitals for muscle.

  The second floor was separated into three sections. The largest was an open area with lounges that looked over the dance floor. The gaggle of women that had been in front of them in line earlier took up the main seating area. They were loudly giggling as they teased a male waiter who was delivering a round of brightly colored shots.

  Beyond them was a black wall with two shut doors. Kato opened one with a wave of his hand over a small com built into the wall.

  Les remained outside as the other three entered and the club owner shut the door.

  “Whats the deal, Trig?” Kato asked, his posture relaxing into a defeated slouch. “I got corpo sorority girls out there with Daddies who could bomb my whole business and a whole ordeal with liquor shipment on top of corpo PIs breathing down my neck. Last thing I need is you bringing me trouble.”

  This room was set up similarly to the open air lounge but traded noise for quiet money. Cush chairs and couches, tables, and a private bar in the back corner were ready for high end clientele who wanted privacy.

  Beyond the bar was a row of windows that looked over the street. Oz noted one spot gave a decent rooftop view of Bekker’s warehouse. Xe perused it while listening to the two men talk.

  “It’s not like you to have your panties in a twist, Kato.” Trig said, leaning on the back of a nearby couch as if this was a pleasure call.

  Running a hand over his chrome cap, the club owner sighed. “You’ve not heard have you.”

  “I hear lots of things,” Trig deflected.

  Kato looked annoyed as he pulled a case from the pocket of his jacket. Popping it open, he offered it to Trig who took out a long black cigarette. Kato did the same then turned a narrowing gaze on Oz as if just now wondering if xe was a possible problem.

  Harry hadn’t told Oz if he and Kato were on good terms. Everyone in Mercy knew xyr boss but that didn’t mean they liked doing business with him or trusted his people. For now, xe kept xyr mouth shut and xyr head tech covered with Verana’s wig.

  “Don’t mind Oz,” Trig said, pulling a lazer-lighter from his pocket and offering to light Kato’s cigarillo. “Xyr ears are as safe as mine.”

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  This made Kato snort but he accepted the light with the words. A couple of puffs, then he went on. “Seven of my patrons have gone off grid.” He sighed. “Seven that were important enough to note anyways.”

  Oz considered this as Trig took a long drag and turned his head so that the smoke avoided xyr direction. When he spoke, his tone was light, as if commenting on the weather. “Missing persons? In Mercy? That's like saying there's gangs and drugs. People come here to get lost, Kato, you know that.”

  “Not like this,” Kato said, shaking his head. “Not corpo kids slumming it with Daddy’s cred. Sure you get the dumb fucks who think their name means shit to the local gangs but you know how it is, Trig. All these corpo brats got tracking chips and shit. Hand me that ashtray, dollface”

  It took Oz a moment to realize the older man was talking to xem. Dollface? That was new. Xe picked a chrome ashtray off the bar and brought it over to the men.

  “And they’re not being tracked?” Trig asked, raising his arm to beckon Oz to him.

  Standing there, holding the ashtray as if xe was a piece of furniture, wasn’t too different than was Oz did at Harry’s. Then there was the feel of Trig’s hand reaching up and caressing xyr back absentmindedly.

  Usually such proprietary touches gave xem a bad feeling - like when Harry put a hand on xem to make sure anyone looking was well aware he owned Oz. This however, the feel of Trig’s warm fingers running a circle over xyr lower back, was almost enjoyable.

  Kato sighed. “It's like they vanished. Their last known location was this block. This bar.”

  Oz focused on xyr holo screen, bringing up a search on news about missing people in Neo Paloma connected to Mercy. Nothing much showed up. The most xe could find was a few gossip blogs and half-killed press releases. It figured that these corpo types wouldn’t want news of one of their own going missing in Mercy. Might give their rivals bad ideas about where to go hunting.

  “And it started three weeks ago?” Trig asked.

  Oz followed the line of questioning and looked back out the windows at the warehouse. What was it that Harry had said about Bekker? The tech dealer had moved into Mercy just about three weeks ago.

  “Yea, there abouts. At least, that's what the PIs are saying.” He jerked his head as his wrist-com lit up with a message. “The bastards don’t let up. I’ve already told them, I don’t keep track of their brats. You come to Mercy, you gotta have a little bit of a death wish, you know?”

  “Yea, I know.”

  “What is it you want, Trig?” Kato asked, his wrist-com blinking again.

  “Just looking into some things. Maybe we can help each other out.”

  “What you got related to this shit?” Kato almost looked hopeful. Oz doubted it was that he thought Trig would save him from this current issue. More likely, the club owner would be happy to pass the corpo hires onto someone else so he could get back to his business as usual.

  “What do you know about Bekker?” Trig asked, finally giving the other man a glimpse of their hand in the game.

  Kato frowned. “Big tipper, brings his boys over here to party now and then. Heard he gives good deals on tech.”

  “Good is understatement,” Trig said.

  Kato took another drag as he eyed the younger man. “You think he has something to do with my missing patrons?”

  Trig shrugged, “Not that I know. Let me and my girl have a few minutes up here and I’ll fill you in if I get a lead.”

  Before Kato had time to look annoyed, Trig touched his wrist-com. “Just an hour,” he said. “Give us a moment to admire the view. Then, we will be out of your hair.”

  Oz saw Kato glance at his own wrist as creds were passed. “Just a look at the view?”

  “And if the view ends up bad, we go the opposite direction of your club.”

  That, and the creds, seemed to ease Kato’s concerns. He nodded to the two of them and left.

  Once the door was closed Trig turned to Oz. “Missing tourists at the same time as Bekker shows up with cheap tech?”

  Seeing they were both on the same page, Oz returned xyr attention to the windows overlooking the warehouse.

  “It's a good look at the space but,” Trig frowned at the guards who patrolled each side of the building, “can’t see much from here we didn’t already see on the ground coming in.”

  He wasn’t wrong. From xyr view, the warehouse gave very little away. What windows were there were blacked out. No light, infrared, nothing seeped through. Xe guessed the glass was bullet proof on top of that - most glass was in Mercy.

  “What about the door security? Locks and shit?”

  Oz glanced at Trig and then back at the warehouse. “Standard tech. Harry has some similar on his warehouses. Not too hard to open up if we can get by the muscle only…”

  “Only?”

  Xe gestured to two guards pacing along the perimeter. “I need to get close enough for an uninterrupted…five minutes? Three if we’re lucky. No way those guys are gonna allow that.” Xe imagined best case scenario they’d be warned off with threats of violence, and that's if they could get close enough for xem to make a wireless connection with the security com.

  The guards met near the side door almost directly across from Kato’s. They were talking to each other, one gesturing across the road to a nearby alley. A drunk was staggering and leaning against the wall. Rather than run him off, the guards seemed to be laughing at him, letting him burn himself out.

  Oz wasn’t surprised. The man was hardly a threat. He could barely walk.

  “That’s an idea,” Trig murmured.

  Frowning, Oz turned then followed Trig’s gaze back to the drunk. Xe figured xe had an idea of what the other was thinking but couldn’t imagine pulling it off. “I don’t think I can act well enough to fool guards and I can’t function well if I was actually inebriated.

  Trig snorted. “Inebriated. You sound like a corpo cop, Oz.”

  “Drunk then,” xe retorted. “Whatever term you think works best. The outcome is the same.”

  “Chill,” Trig said, finishing his smoke with a smile and looking over Oz in a way that made xem feel like xe did when Sphinx had flirted with xem earlier. “I got a better idea.”