Chapter Summary: After returning from Nellis, House asks Beth to investigate the Omertas. At Gomorrah, she, Boone, and Arcade run into an old friend of Boone's who is in desperate need of help. The situation turns out to be far more sinister than anyone expected.

Chapter 27: Perdoname Mi Vida

After leaving Boone and Arcade in the presidential suite, Beth rode the elevator up to the Penthouse alone. The doors opened to the gleaming white room, bright with the sun streaming through the windows.

"Good afternoon, sugar," the Jane securitron greeted her in her usual breathy voice. "Mr. House is expecting you."

"Thank you," Beth replied and proceeded down the steps, feeling rather fatigued after the walk back from Nellis in the heat. At the bottom, she was surprised to see a chair with a small table beside it in front of the screen.

"Good afternoon, Elizabeth," House's voice came from the speakers. "Please, have a seat."

With a raised eyebrow, she sat down in the chair. Before she could say anything, one of the securitrons wheeled toward her. Defensively, she was about to stand again when it set a glass down on the table next to her and wheeled away. She picked up the glass of clear iced liquid and sniffed it curiously. "Ice water?"

"I thought you might be thirsty after your travels."

This was very strange. "What is all this?"

"At our previous meeting, you commented that my 'manners left something to be desired.'"

She had completely forgotten she'd said that. It seemed that Mr. House never forgot anything, however. "Thank you?" she said with uncertainty, taking a tentative sip, then a gulp. The water was as pure as any she'd ever tasted, even more so than in the suite itself. As it washed away the stale feeling in her mouth and cooled her dry throat, she realized how thirsty she had been.

"Now, to business. I trust you were able to make contact with the Boomers?"

"Yes. They've agreed to support the NCR against the Legion when the battle comes."

"Excellent. Their firepower should prove useful."

"I've also assured them that after the battle, if they still wish to remain isolated, they won't have any interference from us."

"Their weapons don't have enough range to pose a threat to Vegas, so after the battle, they are of little consequence."

She took another sip and set the glass back down. "That might not be entirely true."

"Oh?"

"One of their requests was to raise a bomber from Lake Mead. So we did."

"I see." He paused. "It isn't ideal, but what's done is done. A single bomber won't pose a significant threat. On to new business. Your next assignment won't take you far. I need you to investigate the Omertas at Gomorrah."

"Investigate how? And why?" She was getting a little tired of being House's errand girl, but she supposed he had no one else to do it. The trip to Nellis had been rewarding, at least. Maybe this would be, as well.

"As the battle for the Dam looms closer, I have grown more concerned about them. Their underhanded nature has always been reliable, but they have been unusually cooperative, as of late. Months without a single complaint? They're up to something nefarious and I want to know what it is."

"What can you tell me about the Omertas?"

"When I found them, they were calling themselves the Slither Kin, a tribe that was as vicious to others as they were fiercely loyal to one another. Little has changed in that regard. They had a reputation for inviting outsiders into their yurts, drugging them, and then either murdering or enslaving them."

"I suppose you gave the casino the name 'Gomorrah' to reflect this...inhospitable nature." Beth was quite familiar with the reference, since she had been raised by a rather religious father and had read the Bible several times over. Although she wasn't sure how much she believed anymore, she still remembered quite a bit of what she'd learned.

"Yes, though few people understand such allusions these days," he said with slight amusement.

"Where did they get the name 'Omertas'?" She was certain that was not a biblical reference.

"Their tribe reminded me of another clan, of sorts, that Vegas used to attract long before the war. 'Omerta' was their term for the code of silence concerning their criminal activities."

She was about to ask why he would offer so much to a tribe that was known to be so untrustworthy, but figured that was a discussion for another time. "And how do you propose I get them to talk to me?"

"The receptionist, Patsy, had been providing me with information in exchange for payment, but she's been quiet for months, as well."

"How were you contacting her before?"

"Through Benny," he said with a twinge of annoyance.

"Hm."

"I'd start with her."

"If I find out the Omertas are plotting something, what do you want me to do? Bring evidence back to you?"

He scoffed. "This isn't a court of law. If the Omertas pose a threat to the economic or physical security of New Vegas, do whatever is necessary to neutralize the threat. You are fair and reasonable. I leave it to your judgment."

Beth stood up, draining her glass and setting it back down. "I'll see what I can do. Thank you for the water."

"Good day, Elizabeth."

The prospect of going into Gomorrah wasn't a pleasant one. Beth had set foot in there exactly once and as soon as she'd seen the scantily clad women and men in leather collars dancing in cages, she'd made a quick exit. It was too close to the non-consensual situations she had seen far too many times.

At least she wouldn't be going in there alone.

After allowing the bouncer to confiscate their obvious weapons, they proceeded to the casino floor. Boone and Arcade hung back while Beth asked the man behind the front desk about the receptionist, but was informed she wasn't scheduled for another hour, so the three of them decided to take a look around. The casino floor seemed to be larger than the one at the Tops and it was quite busy. A burnt smell lingered in the air from the torches that lit the area. Beth idly wondered if there was adequate ventilation or if they were all being slowly suffocated into a stupor. Maybe that was how the Omertas got their patrons to gamble more.

They made their way through the casino and back into the lounge area dubbed "Brimstone." To their left as they entered, there was a stage with a mostly naked woman gyrating in a rather unenthusiastic manner. "The fumes seem to be affecting her, as well," Beth thought.

"Craig?!" a voice called out as they approached the bar, causing the three of them to turn around. A woman came rushing over, dressed in brown pants, a button-up shirt, and heavy duster in the manner of an NCR ranger. When she reached them, she hesitated a moment before throwing her arms around Boone. "I can't believe you're here."

"Good to see you, too," he replied with clear surprise, returning her hug.

Arcade nudged Beth and asked, "Who's that?"

"No idea," she answered, feeling a twinge of insecurity.

"It's nice to finally see a friendly face in this hellhole," the woman said as she pulled back and smiled wearily at him, holding onto his arms as though to steady herself. Her brown skin was somewhat ashen and her eyes were bloodshot. Her wavy black hair was tied back in a messy bun.

"Gaby, are you alright?" Boone asked.

"No, I'm not alright." She let out a shaky breath. "My sister's missing."

"Ana?" There was clear concern in his voice.

She nodded quickly. "Yeah."
"Come, let's sit and you can tell us what happened," Beth said gently, motioning them toward a corner table away from the other patrons.

"Gaby, this is my partner, Beth Evans," Boone said putting his hand on Beth's back as they walked to the table. "And Arcade Gannon. This is Gabriella Vida, a good friend from back home."

Gaby just nodded to them as she sat in a chair between Boone and Arcade.

"What happened?" Boone asked.

She wiped her hand over her face. "The last letter I got from her was almost three months ago. She said she was going to come to Vegas and try to get a job. I wrote back telling her it was a bad idea, but she did it anyway. No one in our family has heard from her in over a month. The NCR has been moving some of us rangers from Baja to the Dam to reinforce their defenses, so I requested a transfer. Took three fucking weeks." She grimaced in anger, clenching her teeth together. "I got in six days ago, sent to Ranger Station Alpha, and was just approved for emergency leave the day before yesterday. Ranger Lineholm and Chief Hanlon wanted to let me go right away, but fucking bureaucracy." Other than her level of emotion, it was as though she were giving some kind of report. "I almost went AWOL, but..." She shook her head.

"When you got to Vegas, what did you find out?"

"I found one of her friends. They both got jobs waitressing here about two months ago, but then Ana didn't show up for work last week and no one has seen her." She wiped her reddening face again. "This is so fucked up. I told her not to come here. She's just a kid. She shouldn't be anywhere near a shithole like this."

Boone reached out and put his hand on her shoulder, also looking upset.

"I've tried to find out more," she said, her voice cracking, "but the only other person who will talk to me is a prostitute named Joana. I've hit a dead end with what she told me. Everyone else just blows me off. I don't know what to do."

"We'll find her."

"Yes, of course," Beth confirmed. "You don't have to do this alone." While she didn't have a sister, she knew what it felt like to have someone she loved just disappear. The deep feeling of hopelessness and worry, but also anger, dug into her at the memory.

Arcade nodded, but otherwise stayed silent.

"I'm pretty good at finding out information people don't want to give," Beth added.

"She is," Boone said. "She...helped me. Found out something I couldn't. If anyone can find Ana, it's Beth. I promise."

Beth felt sweat form on her brow at the endorsement, hoping she could live up to it. She really didn't want to let either of them down.

Some of the tension seemed to leave Gaby's shoulders and the look of despair on her face softened. "Thanks."

"Pardon me for saying it," Beth said, "but I think the first thing we should do is get you dressed in something a little less conspicuously 'NCR ranger.' These tribals aren't keen on the NCR and a change of clothes might keep anyone you've spoken to before from recognizing you." In places like this, there was a constant sea of new faces. People would likely remember being asked questions by an NCR ranger, but maybe not the details of her face.

"I don't have any other clothes."

"I do." Beth turned to Boone. "Why don't you and Arcade do some recon around here while I take Gaby back to the suite. We won't be long." She would have suggested Boone take her, but she figured he wouldn't be the best at picking out women's clothes. Plus, she wanted to fill her in on their mission from House.

Just getting out of Gomorrah seemed to improve Gaby's demeanor. She let out a sigh of relief as soon as they stepped outside. As a ranger, she was likely used to being in the open air, not in a noisy casino surrounded by gamblers, prostitutes, and gangsters. Beth felt similar.

"Did they reopen this?" Gaby asked with confusion as they walked up the steps to the Lucky 38.

"Not exactly." Beth stepped past the securitron standing guard and pulled open the heavy door, leading the other woman into the empty casino.

"What the fuck? How did you get in here?"

"It's a long story. Short version is that I kind of work with Mr. House."

Bewildered, Gaby looked around as she followed Beth into the elevator. "This is so fucking weird."

"You have no idea," Beth thought. Her own gauge for what constituted "weird" had been recalibrated many times over the years and this part barely registered.

They rode up to the presidential suite in silence. Beth led the way to the master bedroom and started looking through the closet. "There's probably something in here that would work."

"As long as it's not a dress," Gaby said.

"No problem." She wasn't a fan of them either. After a bit of rummaging, she found a pair of dark pants and blue long sleeved shirt that looked to be about Gaby's size. "The shower works, if you want to use it."

She took an experimental sniff under her arm and wrinkled her nose. "I suppose I should," she said. "I haven't had more than a whore's bath since long before I left Baja. Ugh, I smell like a half-dead brahmin." She took the clothes with a thanks and Beth led her to the bathroom, showing her where the soap and towels were. Stepping out and closing the door behind her, Beth soon heard the water running.

It was likely that Gaby hadn't eaten recently, either, so she went to the kitchen to see what was available. Out of the fridge, she pulled out a bowl of leftovers from the previous night and a cold bottle of Nuka-Cola, then set them on the table.

All of this had been an unexpected development. Now that she thought about it, Beth assumed that this must be the friend from back home Boone had mentioned joining the army with. They seemed pretty close, but he hadn't talked about her much. She wondered how long it had been since they had seen each other. From what he had said, the NCR moved First Recon around a lot. The rangers seemed to be even more mobile.

Beth tried to ignore the nagging jealousy in the back of her mind. It had only been a couple of days since their talk about Carla and Beth was still sorting through her feelings. The timing was particularly bad. She was reasonably certain that had Gaby come along at another time, it wouldn't have bothered her. She wasn't the jealous type, she told herself. Although, she had never been in the position to be jealous before now, so maybe she was.

Less than five minutes later, Gaby emerged and joined Beth in the kitchen. Her hair was tied back neatly now and she looked a little less haggard than she had before. Her dirty clothes were folded neatly in her hands and she set them down on a chair.

"Thought you might be hungry," Beth said.

She looked longingly at the bowl and her stomach made an audible rumble, but she shook her head. "No, thanks, I'd better get back."

"It will only take a few minutes. You can't very well help anyone else if you're starving."

Gaby's mouth twitched in contemplation. "Fine. I guess you're right." She sat down and started to eat as Beth popped open the cola for her. "Mm, did you make this?" she asked with her mouth full.

"Yeah, no. Arcade made it last night. He called it 'ghoul-ash.'" She shrugged. The name was kind of gross, but the dish itself was pretty good. "Sorry that it's cold."

"No, it's great. Thanks." She took a long swig of the cola. "Fuck, I haven't had a cold Nuka in...I don't even know how long."

Beth leaned against the counter. "So, I also wanted to take a minute to fill you in on what else is going on. Bo—uh, Craig, Arcade, and I were at Gomorrah investigating the Omertas for Mr. House."

"Oh?" Gaby took in another forkful of food before she had completely swallowed the last one.

"Apparently they've been acting strangely lately, keeping more to themselves. He thinks they're planning something."
"Do you think my sister's disappearance is connected?"

"I don't know. We had just gotten there when we ran into you. I wouldn't dismiss the possibility. The timing is certainly suspicious. With the four of us working together, I think we can find out what's going on over there."

"Okay..." Gaby said reluctantly. "But if that other shit gets in the way of finding Ana, I'm out."

"As far as I'm concerned, finding your sister is the most pressing thing right now. That's our top priority." It was obvious that Boone and Arcade would feel the same way. The longer Ana was missing, the less likely it was that they would find her. Beth just hoped it wasn't already too late.

"Thanks."

"Things might get sticky in there. You got a weapon you can get past the bouncer?"

"A good ranger always has a hidden weapon. Or three." She brought the cola bottle to her lips and finished the rest in two gulps.

Beth smiled appreciatively at the sentiment. "Alright then." She decided that she and Gaby were going to get along really well. Opening the fridge, she reached in and retrieved another Nuka-Cola. Gaby probably needed the caffeine, since she was clearly sleep-deprived.

"Hey, I just wanted to say that I'm glad I finally got to meet you, even under the circumstances. I can't say you're at all what I expected."

"Huh?" Beth raised an eyebrow at her as she popped the cap off the bottle and set it down. Had word about this "Courier" business gotten as far as Baja?

She shrugged. "I know Craig and I kind of lost touch over the years, army life being what it is. I heard he got married a while ago and I was sorry I couldn't be there-"

Beth put her hand up to stop her. "Wait. No, no, no. I'm not...I'm not his wife."

"You're not?"

She cringed internally at having to be the one to tell someone this. "No. That was Carla. She...she died. A little over a year before he and I met, from what he's said."

Gaby's expression went from confusion to sadness. "Oh. How did she die?"

Beth hoped she wasn't going to ask that question and couldn't hide the gravity of the situation on her face. "It's not my place to say."

"That bad?"

"...Worse."

"Shit. Poor Craig," she said softly.

"Yeah."

"Is that why he left the army?"

"No. He left before that."

"Do you know why?"

"Yes."

"But you're not going to tell me."

"No, sorry." It wasn't her place to convey that information, either. She didn't know if Gaby had heard anything about Bitter Springs, but she was glad she didn't ask.

She pushed the last few bites of food around with her fork. The silence hung heavy in the air before she spoke again. "So, when he called you his 'partner,' did he mean as in working partner or as in girlfriend?"

"Started out as the first, then kind of became the second." For a moment, she worried that Gaby would judge them for getting involved after Carla died so horribly. Beth still felt uneasy about it sometimes herself.

"Well, I'm glad he has somebody."

"Thanks," she said, feeling reassured in more ways than one.

When they reentered Gomorrah, Beth noticed that there was now a woman behind the reception desk. She approached after letting Gaby know she was going to talk to Mr. House's contact.

"Welcome to Gomorrah. I'm Patsy. How can I help you?" the receptionist greeted them with a slight drawl.

Gaby pulled a photograph out of her pocket and showed it to Patsy. "Have you seen this woman? Her name is Anabella Vida. Goes by Ana." The young woman in the photo looked like a younger version of her sister, with her hair falling in loose, dark curls to her shoulders.

"Yeah, she's been workin' here, right?"

"Right. Have you seen her in the last few days?"

"Can't say I have. Sorry."

Letting out a frustrated grunt, Gaby turned and walked toward the casino.

Beth gave a glance around to make sure no one was within earshot. "I've also been sent to collect on some information," she said in a lowered voice. "For you-know-who." Her eyebrow flicked up conspiratorially.

The receptionist's eyes widened for a second. "Dammit. I knew he was going to send somebody sooner or later. Fine. What do you wanna know?"

"There's something going on with the Omertas. They're up to something. I need to know what."

She leaned in and said, "Somethin' is up, but I don't really know anything about it."

"Who would know?"

"You could try talking to one of the lower-level lieutenants, Cachino. Word is that he has somethin' of his own on the side that he don't want the bosses knowin' about. That's all I can tell you."

"Thanks. Consider your debt paid." She thought that the woman probably knew more than she was saying, but if the Omertas were as cutthroat as House had said, and she didn't doubt it, she couldn't blame Patsy for holding back out of caution.

After she caught up to Gaby, the two women found Boone and Arcade coming in from the courtyard outside. Arcade motioned for the women follow them back to the table in the corner where they all sat down.

"We spoke with the receptionist," Beth said. "She hasn't seen Ana lately, but she was able to tell me that some guy named Cachino might give information about what the Omertas are planning. She said he has his own thing going on the side. House emphasized that the Omertas are usually fiercely loyal to one another, but if he's already betraying them, he's obviously not holding to the tribe's 'standards.' He might be willing to talk."

"If not, we could blackmail him," Boone said.

"That, too. I suggest we split up to cover more ground and not seem as suspicious. Gaby, you and Craig go talk to Ana's friend and to Joana." She saw Boone's eyebrow raise at the use of his first name. "See if they have any more information they didn't offer before. Arcade and I will see if we can find Cachino. We'll meet back here in...let's say half an hour."

When they stood up, Boone pulled Beth aside. "I don't like the idea of splitting up."

"We'll be less conspicuous this way. Besides, Gaby needs a friend right now, so you should go with her. Arcade and I will be fine."

"Just be careful."

"I will. You be careful, too."

He gave her shoulder an affectionate squeeze before he and Gaby went outside.

Beth walked over to the bar and flashed a bright smile. "Excuse me," she said to the bartender. "I'm looking for a man named Cachino. Do you know where he might be?"

"Cachino?" the bartender said. "I dunno. Around somewhere."

"Do you know who might know where he is?"

"Nope. Did you want a drink?"

"No, thank you." She turned to Arcade. "I guess we'll keep asking around until we find him."

They talked to a cocktail waitress, two blackjack dealers, and a pit boss, but none of them either could or would say where they could find Cachino. Just as they went into the empty vestibule between the casino and Brimstone to speak privately, a balding man in a brown pinstripe suit charged up to Arcade.

"I hear you've been askin' around about me," the man said aggressively, standing much closer than a stranger usually would.

"I take it you're Cachino," Arcade said, taking a step back, but the man matched his step to maintain the close distance until Arcade's back was against the wall.

"Yeah. What the fuck do you want, dickweed?"

Beth stepped toward them. "We just wanted to talk to you."

"That so? Why the fuck would I want to talk to you?"

"We were looking to do some private business. Heard you were the guy to talk to."

"Business? I don't know you. Who the fuck told you to talk to me?"

"People. Heard you already have something going on the side."

Cachino's eyes widened in anger and he took a step toward Beth, but she didn't back up. "You better watch what you're sayin', Lady, unless you're looking to get yourself burned. Got it?"

Beth was glad that Boone wasn't there, since she didn't doubt he would have trouble holding himself back when someone was being so openly threatening toward her. That was not the way to handle this situation, at the moment. "Sorry to bother you," she said casually.

He turned to Arcade. "You two better get the fuck out of here if you know what's good for you." With a growl, he stormed off.

"Charming fellow," Arcade said in an artificially pleasant tone. "What's the plan now?"

"We get some evidence of what he's up to, then maybe he'll be more forthcoming."

"That's easy. We can just break into his room and steal it."

"Exactly."

"Uh, I was kidding!"

"I wasn't. You'd be amazed how many problems can be solved by breaking and entering." She looked at the clock on her Pip-Boy. "It's almost time to meet back up. Maybe Boone and Gaby have some information."

"Joana didn't know Ana, but she did know Cachino," Gaby said when they all sat back down.

Boone sneered. "Says he gets rough with the girls. Like really rough," he said. "Guy's a real piece of work."

"We got that impression, too," Arcade said.

"You talked to him?" He looked at Beth with slight alarm.

"More like he confronted us," she answered. "Wanted to know why we were asking around about him. He wasn't in a talkative mood, but I think if we get some evidence of what he's up to and threaten to tell his bosses, he'll crack pretty easily. We just need to break into his room when he's not there."

"What about Ana?" Gaby asked with frustration.

"This is the only lead we have on anything right now. I'm hoping that once we get Cachino to talk, he'll know something about her." She didn't know what they would do if he didn't.

"Fine." It clearly wasn't fine, but there were no better options, at the moment.

"Alright," Beth said, looking at Boone, "you and Gaby stay down here and keep an eye on Cachino to make sure he doesn't go to his suite while Arcade and I are in there. I'll point him out to you."

"No, it's too dangerous. I'm coming with you," Boone said. "Arcade can stay with Gaby."

"Cachino has already seen me and Arcade, but he hasn't seen you and Gaby yet. He's less likely to notice you watching him."

He crossed his arms and his face pinched, but he relented. "Fine."

She put her hand on his arm. "I'll be careful. I promise. I know what I'm doing."

Arcade spoke up, "How are they supposed to keep him from going to his suite?"

"Good question," Gaby said.

"I dunno," Beth said. "Flirt with him. Buy him a drink. Trip him. Whatever."

Boone grumbled.

A couple of goons patrolled the halls, but they didn't seem to be paying much attention. It was easy enough to skirt by them to Cachino's suite. Beth popped the lock with her lock picks and the two of them snuck inside, locking the door behind them.
The suite was larger than she expected it to be, since Cachino wasn't one of the top bosses of the Omertas. Unlike the presidential suite at the Lucky 38, which was more suited for luxurious relaxation, this room seemed to be designed for group gatherings. The open layout came complete with over-sized furniture adorned with stains of various descriptions. Beth wondered how many of those were recent and how many were pre-war. The room was musty with the smell of mildew, booze, and sex.

Arcade's nose wrinkled as he said, "Let's get what we're looking for and get out of here."

"Agreed," she said.

When they found nothing on the suite's first level, they went upstairs to the bedroom. The room was furnished with three large round beds draped in red velvet. One had ottomans set up around it, as though for an audience. Beth was no prude, but this was far beyond her comfort level, even assuming everything that happened here was consensual, which she doubted.

"Maybe I should take some samples," Arcade mused. "See what new pathogens are being created that will eventually kill us all."

"I think I'd rather die than touch anything in here, myself, but you go ahead," she said and they exchanged smirks.

There was a small desk in the corner. Inside, Beth found a book hidden under some papers. Leafing through it, there was an extensive record of Cachino's various activities, everything from his private business dealings to his encounters with various Gomorrah prostitutes. Joana was mentioned several times. Beth wondered why he would feel the need to document all of this.

"Find something?" Arcade asked.

"Yeah, his journal. Come on, let's get out of here."

As they exited the bedroom, they heard the doorknob to the suite jiggle, as though someone were unlocking it. "Shit!" she hissed, pulling Arcade back into the bedroom. She peeked out and saw a woman dressed in a skimpy black dress with a white apron, carrying a bucket of what looked like cleaning supplies. "Do they actually have maids?!" Nothing in the suite looked like it had been cleaned at all recently.

"Seriously? What is she doing?"

Beth watched as the woman lazily fluffed the pillows on the couches, then walked to the stairs. "She's coming up here." Turning, she saw that they had one of two choices: get into one of the beds together and pretend they were supposed to be there or hide underneath. She decided on the cleaner, less conspicuous option. Grabbing Arcade's hand, she pulled him toward the closest bed and motioned for him to crawl under with her.

There was barely enough room to belly-crawl between the box spring and the dusty pre-war carpet, but they managed to hide in time. Beth hoped that the pairs of socks, panties, and used condoms had been there long enough that any pathogens were no longer viable.

"You take me to the nicest places," Arcade whispered, stifling a sneeze.

She shushed him just as the maid entered the bedroom. Her light footsteps came closer to them and the toes of her high heels poked under the bedspread. There came the dull thumping sound of more pillow-fluffing. The shoes then moved away from the bed. Beth listened intently as the maid milled around the room, fluffing more pillows, opening and closing the closet, before ultimately moving out of the room, shutting the door behind her.

As they made their way down the hall back to the elevators, Arcade abruptly tugged on Beth's sleeve and pointed to the floor in front of one of the doorways. There were dark spots on the carpet. "Looks like blood," he whispered.

She nodded. Seeing that they were alone, she knelt in front of the door and quickly picked the lock. They snuck inside, shutting the door behind them before switching on the light. What they saw made them both audibly gasp. Laying on a metal table in the center of the room was the body of a woman. She was heavily bruised and had deep cuts all over her skin. There were raw rope burns on her wrists and ankles, but the bindings had been removed. Blood coated the surface of the table and had dripped onto the floor.

"Fucking hell," Beth breathed, her hand covering her mouth.

He slowly walked around to where the woman's face was turned. "Do you think it's..."

"God..." The word was muffled by her hand. With halting breaths, she stepped around to Arcade's side and looked at the woman's face. She closed her eyes and let out a breath of relief, dropping her hand. "It's not her."

"You're sure?"

"Yes. I saw her picture." The feeling of relief was fleeting. "This was still someone. Someone else's sister or daughter." Beth tried to remind herself that she'd seen even worse things, but that didn't lessen the turning in her stomach or the heaviness in her chest.

Arcade's jaw visibly clenched. Pulling a pair of gloves from his pocket, he put them on and carefully examined the body. "She's been dead maybe a day, at the most." He paused, then said quietly, "These injuries...This girl suffered."

Beth put her hand on his shoulder. Once again, she was glad that it was him and not Boone with her. No one should have to see this, but he wouldn't have been able to detach himself at all and wait to act until they had more information. Who knows what he might have done? As much as she hated to admit it, House had been right about Boone being impetuous. The stakes were too high and the danger was too great for any of them to act with haste right now.

Arcade's somewhat clinical air reminded her of her father who had always been able to remain calm even in dire circumstances, whether it had been a child with appendicitis or facing the Enclave at Project Purity. Though she had mostly dismissed their resemblance otherwise, she took a small amount of comfort in it now.

"We'll get to the bottom of this," she said. "Find who's responsible and make sure it doesn't happen again."

"And if we can, we should find out who this woman was," he added.

"We'll try. I don't think we should tell Gaby and Boone about this until we find Ana, though. I hate to keep things from them, but I don't think it would do anyone any good right now."

"You're probably right."

Boone and Gaby sat in a booth, pretending to be fully engaged in conversation while they kept an eye on the balding man in the brown suit. He was sitting at a table near the bar, nursing a drink. The tension in his body was apparent as his eyes roamed his surroundings, but Boone was confident the man didn't suspect them. He was neither paying too much nor too little attention to them. He doubted that a man who was so obviously nervous would be able to keep his suspicions under control.

Gaby fidgeted in her seat, drumming her fingers on the glass of water in front of her. "I hate all this sitting around waiting," she groused.

"You never could sit still. That's why you joined the rangers instead of First Recon," Boone said, the side of his mouth twitching up. "Sitting and waiting was most of my job."

"Speaking of which, I was surprised to hear you left the army."

"Why's that?"

"You'd been talking about enlisting since we were twelve. Always figured you for a lifer."

"Things change." He hoped she would leave it at that. It had been a few years since he had seen her and the last couple of times had been brief, one or the other passing through Camp Golf. So much had happened in his life since then. It felt strange to see her now.

It had been even longer since he'd seen Ana. She'd been only eleven when he and Gaby left home to enlist; he hadn't been back since. She'd be around twenty now, but he could only picture the little girl in braided pigtails that used to follow Gaby and him around like a puppy. Now, she was missing and something terrible could have happened to her. As much as he wanted to tear the place apart to find her, he knew Beth's plan was the way to go.

A cocktail waitress approached Cachino's table, taking his now empty glass and replacing it with a full one. In thanks, he grunted at her and waved her away.

"You're sure Beth can handle this?" Gaby asked.

"Better than anyone," Boone said. He didn't like that he wasn't there to watch her back, but he did know how capable she was.

"Was she in the army?"

"No, just been around." That was an understatement.

She started to say something else when Cachino stood up and walked toward a guarded door to the right of the bar. That's when Boone let himself get nervous. He didn't know where that door led and he knew they couldn't follow. Heart beating faster, he worried that Cachino was headed up to his suite and that he would discover Beth and Arcade.

He was just about to stand to stop him when Beth sat down next to him. He jumped. "Fuck! Don't sneak up on me like that!" he hissed.

"Sorry. I thought you saw me."

He must have been so focused on Cachino that he hadn't been paying attention to anything else. Looking at her and Arcade, they both seemed to have severe looks on their faces. "Everything go okay?" he asked cautiously.

"Yeah...we got what we needed." She set a book on the table. "This guy keeps track of everything except what he eats for breakfast. According to this, he's been selling chems on the side. That seems like perfect blackmail fodder to me."

"He just went through that door next to the bar."

"I saw. When he comes back, we'll have a chat."

Cachino folded quickly when presented with the evidence Beth and Arcade had discovered. "Alright, you got me, but if the wrong people see that, I'm a dead man," he said, grimacing. "What do you want?"

"Information," she said, holding the journal firmly. "We know the bosses are planning something. We want to know what they're up to."

"Fine, fine. Give me the book and I'll tell you what I know."

Beth was reluctant to give up her leverage, but figured that she remembered enough details that she still had some advantage over him. She handed him the journal. "Here. Now tell me what you know."

With a look of great relief, he took the journal from her and tucked it into the inside pocket of his jacket. "I ain't privy to the ins and outs, but yeah, they're planning something. Something big involving a lot of guns. The only thing they told me is that 'the game is going to change.'"

It reminded her of what Benny said right before he shot her: "The game was rigged from the start." Were the Omertas about to make a power-play against House, too? Even with a lot of guns, did they think they could outmatch House's securitrons? She doubted that they could, especially now that the securitrons were upgraded, but a lot of innocent people would be hurt or worse if that kind of violence broke out on the Strip.

"That's not much to go on," she said.

"I don't know what their plans are, only Nero and Big Sal know everything, but what if I could do you one better? What if we could bring down the big bosses together?"

"Why would you want to team up with someone who's blackmailing you?" Arcade asked.

Cachino's eyes stayed on Beth. "You were askin' around about me, so I did some askin' around about you. Your boy here," he said pointing his thumb at Arcade, "is nobody. But you, you're that Courier who got into Not-at-Home's private Fortress of Asshole. Word also has it that you ran that shitbag Benny off the Strip. That makes you a power player." He smiled slyly. "This could be a mutually beneficial relationship."

"Okay, so once the 'big bosses' are out, then what?" Beth asked, resisting the urge to smirk at his colorful language.

"I take over. Don't worry, I'll run a real tight ship with no funny business."

From what she knew, she didn't trust him and didn't much like the idea of him running the place, but she supposed it didn't have to be a permanent arrangement. Right now, he was a means to an end. They needed to focus on finding Ana and stopping the threat from the Omerta bosses. Everything else could be worked out later. "Alright. What do you purpose?"

"There are a couple of outside guys the bosses hired. Troike and Clandon. From what I've been able to gather, without them, the bosses' plans are fucked. So we get them out of the way first."

"What can you tell me about them?"

Cachino gave Beth the run-down on the two mercs and where they could be found. Troike was a chem addict who had the connections for smuggling weapons onto the Strip. The bosses had secured his loyalty by covering for him after he was caught with a dead prostitute in his bed. Beth wondered if he was also the one who had killed the girl she and Arcade had found.

Clanden was some kind of "specialist," but it wasn't apparent what his specialty was. The man had no apparent vices, which seemed to annoy Cachino. For someone with a whole book of his own documented ones, perhaps Cachino was envious of the other man's restraint. He wasn't exactly sure what Clanden's role in the plan was, but he was in on a lot of meetings with the bosses. In fact, he was in one at the moment that was expected to last for at least a couple of hours. Beth decided that this would be a good opportunity for her and Arcade to break into his suite while Gaby and Boone looked into Troike.

Clanden's suite was similar to Cachino's in layout, but there was something odd about it. Beth and Arcade sniffed the air as they walked in. They exchanged expressions of cautious concern, making it apparent that they were both smelling the same thing: blood.

Beth drew her gun from the hidden holster on her ankle.

Behind the stairs, there was a large red stain on the carpet. A trail led them through a door and into the kitchen where there was even more blood. The counter and floor were covered with it to the point that their shoes stuck to the tiles as they tried to step around. There was no body this time, however.

As they walked up the stairs to the bedroom, Arcade said in a hushed voice, "I was reading once about this serial killer back in the 1800s who used some kind of big fair to lure people to his hotel where he had all sorts of elaborate traps and things he used to kill people."

"You felt the need to bring that up now?" Beth whispered.

"Sorry. This all brought it to mind."

She had already been wondering what sort of horror they would stumble upon next and his comment had only made it worse. Could they be walking into a trap? Were they going to find another body? Would it be Ana's? Her breath caught in her throat.

Fortunately, the bedroom was free of both bodies and traps. Without a word, they searched the room. Beth started with the desk and Arcade with the nightstand. Finding nothing, she rifled through the dresser while he checked under the bed.

"Hey, look over here," he said, pointing to the wall as he stood up. "There's a safe behind this picture."

It took some effort to pick the lock, but Beth was able to get it open. Inside, there was a stack of holotapes. She inserted one of them into her Pip-Boy and clicked for it to play. From the tinny speaker, a man's voice said, "Smile for the camera." Then there was a high, muffled scream. "That's it, baby. Let Daddy see you cry." Beth quickly stopped the recording, not wanting to hear any more. Arcade took a step back, looking horrified.

"Sick fuck," she breathed through gritted teeth, fighting back a wave of nausea. Not knowing what else to do, she collected the rest of the tapes and put them into her satchel, then closed the safe and replaced the picture.

Arcade opened his mouth as though he were about to say something, when he turned his head quizzically. "Did you hear that?" he whispered.

"Hear what?"

"It's coming from over here." They proceeded down a set of stairs on the other side of the bed. At the bottom was a small landing with a refrigerator and sink. The walls were covered by a thick, red curtain. Arcade pulled it back and revealed a door. "The noise stopped." Trying the knob, it refused to turn. "Locked." He stepped aside.

With her lock picks and practiced fingers, she was able to unlock the door in a few seconds. On the other side of the door, there was a small closet and kneeling on the floor was a young woman. Her hands were bound behind her and she had a cloth gag in her mouth. "Ana?" She recognized her from the photograph.

The girl whimpered and then managed to nod. Then Arcade stepped into view and she recoiled with a muffled scream. Tears escaped her eyes and flowed down her cheeks.

"Hey, hey!" Beth said in a calm voice. "It's okay, Ana. It's okay. We're friends of your sister and Craig Boone. You're safe with us." She slowly reached out her empty hands towards the girl. "I'm going to take the gag out of your mouth now." Beth carefully untied the cloth.

"My sister's here? And Craig?" Ana asked in a strained voice, her expression lightening from fearful to cautiously hopeful.

"Yes. We're going to get you out of here and take you to them. I'm Beth, and this is Arcade. He's a doctor. I'm going to cut the binds on your wrists with my knife now, okay?" She'd freed enough people like this to know not to just pull out a knife without warning. After the bindings were cut, Beth helped her stand. She was unsteady on her feet, but looked mostly unharmed, physically anyway. All she had on was a short, nearly sheer nightgown. "Arcade, give me your coat."

Wordlessly, he shrugged it off and handed it to Beth. Since he was considerably taller than Ana, the hem fell well past her knees. She held her arms protectively around herself as she stepped out of the closet.

With her picks, Beth re-locked the door; if she'd had a frag mine with her, she would have been sorely tempted to set it in there. She then replaced the curtains so nothing looked amiss. Up the stairs, she led Ana out of the bedroom. From the mezzanine, they could see the door to the suite was still closed and the room was empty. "Arcade, scout ahead and make sure there's no one between us and the elevator."

He slipped out of the suite and came back a minute later. "All clear," he said.

As they rode down the elevator, she turned to Ana. "You and I are going to get out of this place and to the gate to Freeside. Arcade's going to go get your sister and Craig. They'll meet us there. Then we'll take you to the Followers to get you checked out." Her eyes glanced to Arcade and he nodded.

When they reached the main floor, they separated. The two women walked to the front door quickly, but not so much so that they would be suspicious. No one seemed to notice them. Beth didn't bother retrieving her confiscated gun from the bouncer. It was a trash one anyway. Only when they were outside did she let herself fully breathe. They were safe now, she knew. Even if every Omerta came scrambling out after them, House's securitrons were all over the Strip.

Since when did being surrounded by armed robots make her feel safe?

"Come on, let's get to the gate," she said to Ana.

The young woman nodded and they headed straight for the gate to Freeside. On the other side, they stood inside the checkpoint.

"Move along, please," one securitron said.

"No," Beth replied authoritatively. She didn't want to have to contend with any of the desperate junkies of Freeside that might try to rob them. As long as they were inside the checkpoint, nothing could get to them. The securitron did not respond, but it also didn't speak again.

Ana's eyes were wide. "Maybe we shouldn't stay here," she squeaked out.

"It's alright, the securitrons won't hurt us. I promise. They're here for our protection." She couldn't believe the words were coming out of her mouth, and even less so that she really did believe them.

The gate opened behind them and the sound made Ana jump. Gaby came through first and ran toward her, throwing her arms around her sister. "Thank god! I was so scared!"

Ana didn't say anything. She just buried her face in her sister's shoulder and sobbed.

Boone put his hand on Beth's shoulder and nodded to her appreciatively.