Sweet Mary, Mother of Joseph! 2023 is kicking my ass, and we've barely made it to March!
Everything that could go wrong has gone wrong. But I think I'm passed the storm for now.
Managed to crank out one chapter here while also working on other projects.
Y'all let me know what you think

"Go ahead," Nurse James directed. Valerie lifted her leg out to the side. After a few seconds she was told to stop, and the nurse recorded the measurements. "Good. Now the other leg." Valerie switched to her left leg, leaning against the support bars so she could stand on one foot. Again, she lifted her leg. "A minor improvement. You're healing quite well."

"Yippee me," Valerie sighed, brushing her mohawk behind her ear. "At this rate, I'll be able to walk normal by the end of the decade."

"I know it's frustrating," Nurse James said. "These things take time, but I can guarantee your persistence will pay off. It's not unusual for us Earthlings to take over a year to regain strength after an extreme injury. You are on track to be operating at normal levels well before that."

"You can only say that because 95% of your patients are kids too young for cybernetics," Valerie retorted.

"Actually, that statistic is for my elderly patients," Nurse James smiled. "Children tend to heal much faster. A quirk of evolution."

"Sure," Valerie said, not wanting to argue. She would much rather get through her therapy session and move on with her day.

"Let's get started on your leg exercises. After that we'll take a break then move on to upper body and motor skills." For the next two hours, Valerie was led through various stretches and exercises by the pink hair nurse.

James had been assigned as Valerie's physical therapist by Trauma Center, as per request of some corpos at Arasaka. Apparently, he helped a bunch of corpo kids get back on their feet after a drunk driver t-boned their armored bus with a massive pick-up. The corpos were so impressed with how James helped the kids, that Arasaka made sure Trauma Center gave him any work they requested of him.

Valerie wasn't sure how to feel when she learned all this. Being widely requested meant that James was fully booked, and there was no room for being late to an appointment. It also implied that the executives saw her as a child, which while technically accurate, was still insulting considering she was almost as old as the Emperor himself. It also didn't make much sense if her biology was on par with an 18-year-old, or a girl old enough to legally work at a strip club.

Despite all this, Valerie found it hard to complain. His experience with children meant James was nicer than most of the doctors at the hospital, and he had the patience to deal with her sass. And it wasn't like there were many options for a replacement therapist. Most people would take the cheaper, quicker route and just replace the offending limb with cybernetics. This resulted in James working in a limited field at a premium price.

After their two hours, Nurse James handed Valerie a computer shard with instructions for a new set of home stretches. Valerie said thank you, grabbed her cane, and hobbled her way out of the hospital, the burn of exercise fresh in her limbs. She made a quick phone call to let her Arasaka appointed driver know she was finished, and he was pulling up to the curb just a few minutes later.

"How did your session go, Miss Welles?" the driver asked, opening the door for her.

"Oh, you know. Improved by an inch, only a mile to go, or however the saying goes," Valerie shrugged before climbing into the back seat. They driver closed the door behind her once she was situated, and they were off.

"Returning to work, Ms. Welles?" he asked.

"Yes, please, Mr… I just realized I never got your name."

"It's alright, Ms. Welles. You may call me Hilburg."

"Mr. Hilburg? You mean as in Nelson Hilburg?" Valerie questioned.

"Ah, so you've met my brother?" Hilburg chuckled.

"The stick up his ass head of R&D Financing? Yea, I've work with him."

"Never heard Nelson described quite like that before," Mr. Hilburg laughed. "But then again, I assume most people are too scared to speak poorly to him."

"Don't worry, I insulted him and pretty much everyone else at Arasaka during our last meeting," Valerie said. "Even received a stern talking to about it."

"I'm sad I wasn't there to witness it, Ms. Welles."

Valerie smiled softly at the driver through the rear-view mirror. "You seem pretty cool. You got a first name, Mr. Hilburg?"

"Francis."

"Call me Valerie. If you are available later, I need a ride home, Francis. All my friends are busy getting ready for the party this weekend."

"You're hosting a party?" Francis asked.

"Mama Welles is hosting a big party for Day of the Dead at El Coyote Cojo. Festivities are supposed to go the entire weekend. I hear most of The Glen is getting involved."

"Sounds fun. I'd be happy to be your ride."

"Thanks, choom."

Once they arrived back at the Arasaka offices, Francis parked on the curb and opened the door and helped Valerie out.

"I'll message you once I'm done for the day. Shouldn't take more than 3ish hours to finish my work," Valerie said.

"I look forward to it," Francis nodded at her. "It's nice to have a polite passenger for once."

"I mean, if you're interested, I won't be able to get my driving license for a long while. I could ask for you to be assigned as my permanent driver," Valerie suggested. "Real easy job. And I wouldn't owe the Valentinos anymore gas money."

"Perhaps. I'll ask the Transportation Director about it. You can ask whoever you need to, and we'll see if we can make it happen."

"I look forward to working with you, Mr. Hilburg," Valerie grinned playfully. She offered her hand to the driver, which he shook with enthusiasm. "Welp, back to it. See you later, Fran-"

"LOOK OUT!" a passerby yelled out.

"Hu?" Valerie turned to the voice.

The green woman's eye when wide when she saw a male Zbornak rushing straight at her like a speeding truck. Instincts kicked in, and she reached for her sidearm. Before she could draw it, Francis pushed her aside with all his strength.

Valerie was shoved a good five feet away, falling to ground. She looked up at Francis just in time to watch him get ran over by the Zbornak. Like a bursting water balloon, Francis's body was split into bits by the impact, his blood and organs splashing across the Zbornak and the surrounding area. The Zbornak kept charging forward, leaving Valerie to stare at the open air that she was occupying just a few seconds earlier.

The green woman took several deep breaths to recalibrate her mind. There was a Zbornak. Male based on the size and the rhino-like horn on his snout. He was changing at her, but she was shoved aside. Francis saved her. Francis was dead.

Wiping the blood from her face, Valerie turned and sat up. The Zbornak had crashed into the side of another nearby building, leaving a sizable hole in the wall. He had already pulled himself from the rubble and was gearing up for a second charge. Valerie didn't have enough mobility to stand up and get out of the way, so she drew her side arm and took aim. The revolver didn't have enough power to penetrate a Zbornak's horn, so she would need to hit him in the eye and hope that forced him off course.

Valerie didn't get a chance to shoot though. As she was about to pull the trigger, a squad of Arasaka soldiers rushed out of the building the Zbornak had just crashed into and shot him dead. The horned Extra didn't go quietly. His size let him scream and swing wildly at the soldiers for nearly five seconds before they had filled him with enough lead to kill him.

Valerie rested her head against the passenger side window, watching the skyscrapers fly by.

Vinny tapped his finger against the steering wheel as he drove. Out of all the ways to break in his company car, this was not how he had imagined it going. Giving Valerie a ride home was going to happen eventually, but these were some extreme circumstances leading up to it. It was all made worse by Valerie's unusual silence. The two Vs loved heckling each other, but the green woman had barely said a thank you since they left the office.

"You… wanna talk about it?" Vinny hesitantly asked. No response. "How about the ship designs? Those coming along well?" Still nothing. "Jenkins gave me the weekend off to… you know… bodyguard, and all that… Think Señora Welles will let me crash on the couch if we get a little hammered?" Dead silence.

Vinny let out a quiet sigh, choosing to focus on the road and the sound of his Mizutani.

"You know… what the worst part is?" Valerie suddenly spoke up. "When I turned in the ship blueprints, I offered Nelson my condolences. Mama taught me that was the polite thing to do. But he didn't know his brother had just died a few hours earlier. And when I told him what happened… he barely reacted. I'm not sure he even cared. It's so… confusing…"

"And… this upsets you?" Vinny asked, trying to get a grasp on what Valerie was saying.

"I mean… I don't know," Valerie shrugged. "Francis seemed nice, but I didn't really know him. I'm not going to miss him or anything, but…"

"But?"

Valerie let out a long sigh. "In my experience when someone dies, there is a lot more grief in the community. I would have expected his brother to have at least reacted a little. Show some sort of shock or regret. But he didn't care. No one at the office cared. Except for me apparently."

"I'm sure Hilburg cares about his brother's death. Give him time to process what happened," Vinny reassured her. "You did just drop the news on him. Maybe it didn't connect right away."

"Alright. If you are sure."

The rest of the ride was quiet.

Valerie was not having a good weekend. Oh, sure, Halloween was fun. That technically wasn't part of Dia De Los Muertos, but it still got lumped in due to being the preceding day and its similarities to the Mexican tradition. Instead of honoring the dead, Halloween was more a celebration of the spooky and occult. It gave people a chance to embrace the weirder parts of themselves. Well, weird by Heywood standards. Some people in Watson did that on a daily basis.

For Valerie and her friends, it was a chance to party. She went out with Jackie, Isabel, Vinny, and David, barhopping across Heywood and checking out the storefront displays put up for the festivities. Isabel even went through the effort of helping her with her makeup, making Valerie look more like a Rockergirl than an Extra.

"Bit heavy on the eyeliner, don't ya think?" Valerie quirked her eyebrow at the Valentino girl.

"Nonsense, amiga!" Isabel said. "With that attitude of yours? You're a hardcore punk in the making."

"Awww, thank you! Just don't tell my boss that." Both girls had a good laugh at that.

It was an all-around great night for the five friends. Until people started putting the marigolds out…

Flowers were a large part of the Day of the Dead. They were used as decorations and as a part of The Ofrenda. Marigolds were the most traditional flower to use, as the bright color and scent were supposed to represent the sun and help guide spirits back to their families.

Valerie had made a point to tell Mama Welles that she had a severe pollen allergy when she learned about this. It was a side effect of living on a spaceship for so long. Mama Welles was understanding and made a point to buy fake flowers for the house and El Coyote Cojo. She also reassured Valerie that flowers were expensive, and most families would opt to using them only in their homes, assuming they could afford real flowers at all.

What neither of them would learn until much later was that Biotechnica had made great strides in developing genetic engineering for plants in the last few years. The technology had become cheap enough that it was considered profitable for areas outside of food and fuel production. As a result, the cost of flowers had come down considerably. Not enough for your average person to buy a dozen daisies to liven up their apartment, but plenty enough for a Heywood family to splurge for such an important holiday.

"*achoo* What- *achoo* the fuck- *achoo* I thought- *achoo* AAAHHH!"

"Calm down, Hermana," Jackie said. "We'll get you some tea. Something to clear you right up."

Valerie could only nod, as her nostrils were becoming too congested to speak clearly.

"You sure she won't need a doctor?" Isabel asked.

"We'll hit up Vik when we get the chance," Jackie said. "No need to call up Trauma Team for a little sneeze."

David let out a snicker as Valerie continued to sneeze, drawing everyone's attention.

"Wat?" Valerie accused with her watery eye.

"Kitten," David smiled, struggling to hold in his laugh. Soon the other three were also struggling to not laugh at the Extra.

"Oh… Dios mío. She does sneeze like a kitten," Isabel giggled, covering her mouth. The three men were soon unable to hold back and started to laugh out loud.

"This entire night, and now you chose to speak up?" Valerie growled, glaring daggers at David. She stepped towards him, pressing her finger against his chest. "If I didn't know- *achoo* better, I'd put this cane through- *achoo* your stupid head! *achoo*" Her threat only made the others laugh more.

"Alright, I think that's enough fun for one Halloween," Vinny spoke up. "I've sobered up enough to drive you home," he told Valerie. "Think you gangsters can make it back in one piece?"

"We'll be fine, Vinny. Just drive slowly," Jackie said.

"Later, corpo," Isabel waved as the three walked away. "Make sure your novia takes her medicine." She laughed when Valerie flicked her off at the last statement.

"I already called the car. It will me here in a minute," Vinny said.

"Thanks," Valerie gave him a soft smile. She fell into another bout of sneezing before Vinny's autopilot car pulled up to the curb, and he drove her home.

First thing the following morning, Valerie called up Dr. Vektor about what to take for her allergies. He suggested taking antihistamines, as they were cheap, effective, and would probably be safe for her to consume. Valerie thanked him, hung up, and spent the next ten minutes pestering Sylvia for a ride to the pharmacist.

"Why can't Jackie take you?" Sylvia asked, still trying to rub the sleep from her eyes.

"Jackie said Padre needed a job done on short noticed. He probably won't be back till after lunch," Valerie said. "So how about I make you a cup of coffee, and then you can give me a ride over to the shops. Sound good?"

"I'm helping Lupé finish setting up for tonight," the Zbornak answered. "And I need to hunt down Wander, wherever he ran off to."

"Come on!" Valerie whined. "It will take less than 15 minutes. I don't want to suffer all weekend."

"What about Vinny? Isn't he supposed to be your bodyguard?"

"He went back to his apartment to shower and grab spare clothes. He'll be back in an hour."

"Then go in an hour."

"Seriously?" Valerie frowned Sylvia, but only received a raised eyebrow in return. "Is this because of what happened at the office yesterday? No one is going to try anything while I'm in Valentino territory. It would be suicide."

"That has nothing to do with!" Sylvia retorted.

"Then what is it? Scared to be seen with me or something?"

"No! It's just-" Sylvia let out a long sigh. "Forget it. I'll give you a ride. Let me get some coffee first."

"Thank you." Valerie was grateful but couldn't help watching Sylvia with suspicion as her friend walked away.

That evening, Valerie found herself at El Coyote Cojo with nothing to do. The first hour or so was alright. She got to watch the dancing and chat with some of the friendlier Valentinos. But the green woman soon grew bored. She couldn't help much in her current state. She couldn't dance. She tried to paint a sugar skull but gave up when she realized she was subconsciously painting it to look like Lord Dominator. She couldn't even go around and greet people. Most of the non-gangsters in the Glen either didn't speak English or were too scared of her to talk.

Drinking was also out of the question, as Mama had restricted the alcohol for the day. That way El Coyote could be open to families for the festival. All they had were your usual selection of carbonated drinks and a soda Mama had imported from Mexico. Valerie didn't know what a tamarind was, but she hated the flavor.

"Holding up alright, Hemana?" Jackie asked, breaking Valerie from her trance.

"Oh, hey Jackie. Andy," she said.

"Sup," Andy greeted. "Not enjoying Dia De Los Muertos?"

"Look at you finally getting in touch with your roots," Valerie rolled her eyes. "To answer both your questions, no. I'm not."

"I tried to warn you," Jackie shrugged.

"I thought you would be loving this," Valerie said. "You're usual so proud of your heritage."

"I am very proud to be a Mexican. But I'm also a Night City native. Add in that I'm a solo and well…" He gestured around to all the decorations. "Anything that involves respecting death starts to lose its appeal."

"Understandable," Valerie nodded. She stopped when she noticed the child hiding behind Andy. "Uh, Andy. What's with the kid?"

"I was wondering how long it would take you to notice," Andy smiled. "Valerie, meet Mandy. She's the McCoys' kid."

"McCoy has a kid?"

"Yep. I babysit occasionally." Andy stepped aside revealing a girl that looked about four feet tall and was wearing a bright green hoodie and green shoes. She stared at Valerie with wide eyes before scooting behind Andy again.

"Really?" Valerie gave Andy an unamused look. "Bringing a kid who loves the color green to meet me? I'm not a sideshow attraction."

"Valerie," Jackie warned. "You know it's not like that."

"Shut up. It's been a rough week," Valerie retorted through their bond. On the outside, she took a deep breath and smiled at the kid. "Hey, there. I'm Valerie. Nice to meet you." The girl smiled back, but quickly looked away.

"You'll have to forgive her. She's nonverbal," Andy explained.

"Say whatta who now?"

"Mandy is autistic. We're not sure in what way, as the McCoys have never been able to afford a proper doctor. Poor girl is 10 and has never spoken a word."

"Is that so?" Valerie waved as Mandy, and the girl waved back. Then the green woman winked at Mandy in an exaggerated manner, and the girl winked back. "Yea, no. The issue isn't the girl. The issue is you are all too dumb to communicate with her."

"What?" Andy blinked. "Mandy can communicate. She just can't talk or understand complex ideas."

"Nonsense!" Valerie exclaimed with exaggerated gestures. "Mandy is obviously a genius in the making. It's not her fault she is surrounded by primates unable to understand her advance ways."

Andy was too confused to retort, but Mandy was giggling. Jackie struggling to hold in his own laugh only served to egg on Valerie further.

"Look at you. Can't even understand basic, Earth language. You would be lost without the guidance of Jackie and myself."

"Screw you, V!" Andy yelled. "I would be fine on-"

"Silence!" Valerie interrupted. "One shouldn't swear in the presence of Mandy's greatness. Now go! Escort the prodigy elsewhere. I'm sure she could use refreshment."

"God, you're unbearable sometimes. You know that?" Andy shook his head before walking away with a cheerful, little girl in tow.

"Órale," Jackie chuckled. "They been teaching you Shakespeare at Arasaka or something?"

"Nah, just tapped into my villainy flair," Valerie said.

"Well, I appreciate you playing along for Mandy, but did you really need to insult Andy like that?"

"Probably not," Valerie shrugged. "Doesn't make what I said any less valid."

"What do you mean?"

"Mandy understood everything. She just can't say so for whatever reason."

"I swear, if you tell me you can read minds now," Jackie rubbed eyes.

"I can't read minds outside of yours, Hermano," Valerie smiled. "A side effect of traveling galaxies is you learn how to communicate with just about anything. I could figure out a way to talk to Mandy if given enough time."

"Bet Wander could do it faster," Jackie teased.

"I know what you are trying to do, and it won't work," Valerie gave him a pointed look. "My kindness has strict limits."

"I know. I know. I'm going to keep an eye on Andy. Maybe go chat up Padre if I find him."

"Have fun with that. I'll call if I need you."

Valerie was left alone again, sipping NiCola at the corner table. After another 15 minutes of watching people dance and give her sideways glances, she was considering going home. She didn't get the chance as Vinny came rushing in.

"Question," Vinny said after beelining it to her.

"Shoot."

"Did you invite a man with bright, red hair and purple eyes?" he asked.

"I did not," Valerie said, her face twisting into an ugly scowl.

"Do you know him? He's been smoking outside."

"I met him earlier this week. He's just a coward. Tell him to bug off."

"I will ask him to move along."

Vinny turned and was making his way back outside when Jackie nudged Valerie through the bond.

"You still inside?" he asked.

"For now. Might go home soon."

"Don't. I'll be right there."

Valerie didn't question him and waited. A few minutes later, Jackie walked in. Following him was an annoyed looking Vinny and the man with red hair.

"WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?!" Valerie was screaming through the bond, but she was too shocked to move her lips.

"Valerie. You've met Robbie," Jackie started.

"You didn't," the green woman looked at Jackie in disbelief. "Motherfucker, tell me you didn't invite this gonk."

"Come on, Hermana. You can-"

"No!" Valerie stood from the table, staring down Jackie.

Jackie huffed at her defiance. "Could you caballeros give us a moment?" he said, turning to Vinny and Robbie with a smile. "Help yourself to a drink on me. Hey Pepe! Conectar a mis amigos, por favor?" He marched off, grabbing a hold of Valerie and dragging her along. He led her to the supply room with the alcohol, knowing they wouldn't be disturbed.

"Alright, spill it," Valerie said through their bond. "What kind of stupid shit are you trying to pull?"

"I'm not trying to pull anything. I'm trying to cement an opportunity before you permanently slam the door on it," Jackie retorted.

"Is this about the cybernetics offer? How do you even know it's legit?"

"I did some digging, talked to a few fixers. Masami is a real person. He's been working out of Kabuki for about a year. I can't speak for his skills, but rumor is he used to work for Kang Tao in cybernetic development. He went into hiding for whatever reason, right up until he opened shop here in Night City."

"Wow," Valerie's eye widened. "You verified all that?"

"From Wakako and a few small-time fixers," Jackie nodded. "I even have Padre to look into it. He's the only one who hasn't given me a definitive opinion yet."

"Alright, fine. We'll talk to this Masami guy later. Now go tell Maelstrom to fuck off."

"Valerie," Jackie sighed.

"Don't you 'Valerie' me!" the green woman's gaze turned venomous. "I don't care if he lost the look. That man is Maelstrom. He stabbed my eye out! They killed Diego!"

"You think I don't know that?!" Jackie yelled out loud. He took a deep breath to recenter himself before returning to the bond. "I don't need a reminder of what we went through. But if Robbie has changed, then he deserves a chance to prove it. You of all people should understand that."

Valerie looked away at the last sentence. Jackie never brought up her past.

"Fine," Valerie said. "You want to be his friend then go ahead. But don't expect me to do the same."

"I'm not asking you to befriend him," Jackie said. "Hell, V. You don't even have to forgive him. Just talk to him. Give him a chance. And if you still hate him, then you never have to talk to the guy again."

"Enough already," Valerie rubbed her eye. "I'll talk to him. Fuck, you've been spending too much time with the goody goody duo."

Valerie sat in the booth with the three Earthlings, trying her best not to look angry or uncomfortable. Most of the talking so far had been Jackie and Vinny making conversation. It was nice that they were getting along well, but she still didn't want to be sitting there. Her only consolation was the fact that Robbie looked just as awkward at the table.

"Robbie, was it?" Vinny asked.

"Yep, that's me," the man nodded.

"I know Jackie invited you, but is there another reason you decided to come to the party?"

"Funnily enough, I almost didn't," Robbie smiled as he rubbed the back of his neck. "But I did some research into the holiday. Day of the Dead sounded like it would be good for me. A safe way to remember my old life."

"Your old life?" Valerie quirked her eyebrow at him.

"Before I came to Night City," Robbie clarified. "I moved here a few years ago with my fiancée, but… things didn't work out."

"My condolences, amigo," Jackie said. "You're in good company. Everyone in Heywood as lost someone. It's why we celebrate." He took a swig of his soda before continuing. "So, what did you do before coming to the NC?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," Robbie said.

"You are sitting at a table with the weirdest Corpo, Solo, and Extra in the city," Vinny chuckled. "We will believe just about anything."

"Alright. I was a music teacher," Robbie said. "I was supposed to be hired on at Night City University."

"What went wrong?" Valerie asked.

"I'd… rather not talk about that," Robbie looked away. "Carmen's death hit me hard. Let's leave it at that."

"Of course, choom," Jackie nodded. "What's important now is that you're pulling yourself back together."

"Thanks," Robbie smiled, and Jackie and Vinny smiled back. It was like the three of them were becoming best buds. But Valerie wasn't buying it.

"Could you two give us a moment?" Valerie gestured to Jackie and Valerie.

"Why do you want-" Vinny started, but Valerie stopped him.

"Just go!"

Vinny rolled his eyes but still scooted out of the booth. Jackie stared at Valerie for a few seconds before following.

"Don't do anything stupid, V."

Valerie ignored Jackie, her full focus on Robbie as she stared at him. The man shifted uncomfortably under her gaze.

"You're not gonna take another swing at me, are you?" Robbie tried to joke, but Valerie still didn't react.

"I don't believe you," the woman said. "You might have the two brosephs fooled, but you're still Maelstrom."

"I don't care what you believe," Robbie retorted. "I left that behind, and I don't need you of all people trying to tell me otherwise. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm getting another drink". He tried to stand from the booth but was blocked by Valerie's cane.

"Prove it."

"There's no point. You've already made up your mind."

"Was Carmen real?"

Robbie reached into his jacket and pulled a photo from the inner pocket. He looked at it for a second, then he placed it on the table. Valerie picked it up with her free hand, studying the photo intensely.

It showed a pale man with a dark skinned woman. The man was obviously Robbie. He looked sightly younger and he had far fewer cybernetic lines on his skin but the artificial, purple eyes and red hair gave him away. He also looked much cleaner cut; his casual suit and tie very befitting of a teacher. The woman was also nicely dressed, with an orange sundress and an orange headband holding up her small afro. The background showed the view of Night City from atop the Petrochem Dam, a popular spot for picture taking.

The photo itself looked slightly worn and crinkled. The image hadn't started fading, but the age was still visible. There were no obvious signed of physical edits, and Valerie's eye couldn't spot any signed of digital edits. Further cementing its authenticity was the note written on the back. "Our New Home March 2069"

Valerie looked back at Robbie and was met with an expression of muted rage. His eyes looked murderous, and his subtle shaking suggested he was barely holding it in.

"Why are you shaking? Scared of a crippled Extra?" Valerie mocked.

"Cyberpsychosis," Robbie answered bluntly.

"Really now?"

"It's caused by trauma from using too many cybernetic implants, and can be accelerated by traumatic life events," Robbie said in a monotone voice, as if reading from an encyclopedia. "No one knows why it happens or how to fix it. Only chance a person has is to scale back their cybernetics and hope their mind can heal."

"And how close are you to falling over the edge?"

"I got pretty close when I was with Maelstrom. You have to think of them more as a cult than a gang. They see cyberpsychosis as a good thing. When I left, I had all my chrome replaced with something more… human. That's helped."

Valerie watched him shake for a few more seconds. Then she started to laugh.

"Now, I believe you," she giggled. "This is so much more interesting." She lowered her cane and tossed the photo down on the table. Robbie snatched it up and shoved it back into his jacket, causing the green woman to laugh harder.

"We done?" Robbie spat.

"Yea, we're done," Valerie said as she stood from the table. "Go have fun with your new friends. I'll have Jackie schedule a meeting with this Masami guy. I want you to introduce us." She hobbled away before Robbie could respond.

"Ok. We're all good. I'm going home."

Jackie blinked at hearing Valerie inside his head. He looked around, trying to spot the woman.

"What are we looking for?" Vinny asked, glancing around.

"I just saw Valerie leave," Jackie lied. "We should check on Robbie."

The two men ran back up the stairs and found Robbie sitting alone at their booth. He was shaking and breathing heavily, as if he just received some tragic news.

"Hey there, man," Vinny said softly. "You ok? Need anything?"

"I'm fine," Robbie let out a long sigh. He met Jackie's gaze. "Your 'hermana' is a fucking bitch."

"Yea, I know," Jackie frowned.

"What did she say to you?" Vinny asked.

"I think she's cool with me now," Robbie said. "I'll explain in a minute, but I need a smoke and a drink first. Gin if you have it."

"Sure, amigo," Jackie chuckled. "I'll sneak a bottle from the back. If anyone ask, we're drinking fancy water."

"Understood."