Jackie Welles might have been a morning person, but that was usually because he had gotten at least six hours of uninterrupted sleep the night before. Something that was currently being denied to him as the internal chime of his holo pulled him from the haze of sleep.
'Do Not Disturb' mode was just a suggestion if the number trying to call you was on your emergency contact list. Something which was a very short list in Jackie's case.
Number one? Mama.
Number two? Misty.
Number three – and the current source of his annoyance: V.
"Cabrón better be being held at gunpoint by Smasher himself..." Alright, maybe that was a little much, but Jackie couldn't deny that he was still pissed off that V had used that damn shard.
["It's two a.m., the fuck you want?"] He rubbed at his eyes, a yawn escaping him as he did.
["Need your help, Jackie."] He knew some of V's training had included the ability to stay calm when (potentially) being coerced into doing something. But that didn't seem to be the case if the frustrated and...tired tone of V's voice was any indication.
Nor did it mean the Latino would be anymore forgiving with his next reply.
["You ghost me, and the others for a couple weeks. Then decide, at two in the fuckin' morning, that you want my help with something?"] Jackie raised himself to a reclined position on his garage's couch, adjusting the pillow behind his back. ["This had better be good cabrón."]
["Gonna kill Jenkins."] V replied, a small amount of determination mixing into his earlier tones.
Jackie almost wanted to laugh at his reply, but instead it came out as a huff. ["Wasn't that always your plan? Why you've invested so much time and money into the crew? Done so much 'setting up' as you termed it?"]
["I'm done being patient."] Angry as he was at V, the shift in the man's tone made Jackie just a little nervous. ["That's why I'm calling you Jack. I need someone who knows what I have planned and can trust."]
That last part stalled the reply forming on his tongue, doing nothing to calm his quickly fraying nerves. On one side, helping him would mean he could get his own answers about everything directly. On the other, it meant dealing with V face to face since their last interaction at the Med Center. And while Jackie had been able to vent some of his frustrations at the situation...They really didn't part on the best of terms.
["Understandable, but why now?"] He swung his feet off the couch, properly sitting on it now. ["Why throw all your in-progress plans to the wind like this?"]
["Look, do you want in on this or not?"] Jackie should have known V would dodge the question. Or maybe he really didn't have an answer for it. ["There's a lot to be gained, and I'm really the only one who loses if this goes tits up."]
The Latino man held in a sigh as he considered what little V had told him. Perhaps if Jenkins was out of the picture, V might be a little more relaxed. More inclined to talk to him about...everything. And if that idea failed? Well, Jackie still had one of the biggest bartering chips but-
["Need an answer Jackie."]
["Alright...I'm in."] He answered, not caring about how hesitant he sounded.
["Good."] Jackie could almost see V nodding. ["Meet me at the Afterlife. Six o'clock. Tonight."]
Before he had a chance to ask another question, V hung up. As curt as the man's words were, Jackie felt he heard just the faintest hint of relief in V's tone.
Too bad he couldn't say the same. The initial feeling of unease from the start of the call had returned. And while the matter of the call didn't require his attention until later. Jackie knew there was no way he could crawl back under the throw and sink into the couch to get a little more sleep.
Resigning himself to that fact, Jackie decided to use his newfound time to distract himself with a few rounds of Hishou Panzer in the hopes of kicking Pilar's ass the next time he saw the guy.
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When the appointed hour arrived, Jackie's unease at the whole situation hadn't lessened. He had stepped into the Afterlife with no real expectations of what this meeting would entail. No doubt he'd find V tucked away in one of the private booths, maybe with a bottle and a couple of glasses before him. Ready to negotiate and discuss business.
After a brief conversation with Emmerick, and a few words with Claire that included his drink order, he was directed to the booth in question. His guess had proved true, and while V was there with a bottle and some glasses. There were a few additional faces that he was surprised to see.
Rogue, two Maelstrom borgs, and Tiny Mike, a merc who Jackie recognized, but had never worked with personally. By the empty glasses and amount of liquid left in the bottles scattered around the table, it seemed the others had been here for a bit longer than Jackie thought.
"Jackie." Rogue was the first to see him, greeting him with a nod. This action was picked up by the others, with only V's greeting seeming more stiff than anything.
"What the heck is all this about?" He asked, declining Rogue's invitation to sit even as Claire brought his drink over.
"Just going over the detes of the job with the others." V answered, and several files were sent his way. Jackie nodded, figuring that the others had already received the information he was getting now. "First file is Arthur Jenkins's profile." V explained as Jackie looked the file over, comparing what he knew of the man from V versus what was in the file.
The second file that he opened contained stills of Arasaka Tower's exterior. While they were from all different angles, one window in particular had been circled or marked in each of the images.
"If you couldn't guess, that's Jenkins' office in those stills." V gestured to the two borgs. "Our friends here are going to take a 'borrowed' Trauma AV and give the tower a fly-by. I'm not fussy about where and how they do it, but the majority of the damage needs to be done around the indicated points."
"Clever." Jackie answered. "Trauma's pretty much got carte blanche to go wherever without raising suspicion."
"Oh yeah. We get to blow shit up, give Arasaka a black eye, and play with some sweet tech all at the same time." One of the borgs added, before discussing with his friend what would be best to bring. "Think we should test out those incendiary rounds?"
"Mind if I get a few of those?" Tiny Mike asked, "they might come in handy for lighting up the safehouses at a distance."
"Eh, they might not work as well as you'd think for that...But I'll give you our supplier's number." Borg number two replied before excusing himself and his buddy to make preparations. Their words and actions making Jackie raise an eyebrow even as he saw Tiny Mike receive a message.
"Hang on. What do you mean safehouses?" He stared at V, eyes narrowing even as he opened up the remaining file. It was filled with pictures of various buildings around Night City, and the coordinates of where to find them.
"That's where Mike and his team come in. While Maelstrom flushes Jenkins out, Mike and his crew are going to go around and blitz Jenkins' safehouses." Jackie saw V gesture to Tiny Mike, who nodded.
"Still trying to decide if it's going to be better to burn 'em or bomb 'em to knock them out of commission." He replied, head tipping to the side. "Know you told me to keep the collateral damage to a minimum, but not sure if we'll be able to take out the one in Japantown's west side without messing up the units around it."
"Trip the fire suppressant system. Flood the place out to render most of the tech inside useless without compromising the surrounding units." Rogue suggested, and Jackie saw Tiny Mike nod and mutter that that was an idea.
"Have to see if I can get one of my runners on that." The man stood up then, extending a hand out to V who shook it. "Pleasure doing business with you V. Going to fill my crew in on the detes, alright?"
Jackie saw V nod, and watched as the merc took his leave. That left only himself, Rogue, and V behind...along with one final job.
"As for you and me Jackie, we'll be going after Jenkins." The corners of V's mouth pulled up just slightly as he sent over some more coordinates. "We'll meet up there, and wait for the borgs to begin their assault. Once Maelstrom have flushed him out, we'll pursue him. You'll be on your bike, I'll go by car. Once he's isolated enough thanks to his safehouses getting burned, we'll ambush him."
Jackie hummed as he considered V's plan. It was actually pretty solid; flush him out, but give him nowhere to go. Jenkins would run until he found what he could consider safe harbor. Said harbor would probably be somewhere out of the way with little to no traffic – lessening the chance of him (or them) being caught.
"Sounds good. But I just have one tiny little question." Jackie made a pinching motion with his fingers, eyes narrowing. "Why'd you cut me out of the meeting V?"
"We're short on time. And a lot of it wasn't relevant to your job and mine." He replied, starting to slide out of the booth. "All we need to do is get Jenkins alone long enough to deliver the final blow."
To others, V's actions might have seemed a snub towards him. But that simple admittance made Jackie realize something.
"You're throwing yourself into work again," he leveled a finger at V. "What happened to bring this on?"
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Rogue slide out of the booth, telling V to keep her updated as she moved to grant the pair some privacy. V said that he would, standing up and reaching for his jacket. For the first time in months, Jackie was able to appraise his current state.
His clothing, while clean, looked like it hadn't been properly pressed and folded. Not to mention that the collar of his shirt was crooked, and only one of his cuffs was rolled back. His hair looked like he had just rolled out of bed, and there was the faintest hint of a five o'clock shadow on his chin.
What stuck out the most to Jackie however was V's face. Now under the full light, he could properly see the bags that had formed under his eyes. Could see just how tired and hollow his optics looked. If Jackie had to sum up V's appearance in one word?
Haggard. Or maybe broken would have been better.
"V? You doin' alright?"
The question was ignored, and Jackie noticed an odd gait in V's normally confident walk as he moved over to the bar. He heard V order a bottle of tequila, and watched him stash it in his jacket before heading up the stairs and out into the city. Downing the rest of his drink to steady his nerves, Jackie was quick to follow V's path and tail the man from a distance.
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Jackie was all set to hop on his bike and follow behind whatever car V might have climbed into. But instead of stopping at one of the cars in the lot, he just kept walking through it. Pursuing on foot, Jackie stayed far enough back to keep him in sight at all times. While also granting himself the ability to delta if something went bad.
"Where's he going?" He wondered, seeing V ignoring all of the stores and other points of interest to dot their route. In the distance, he could see the waterfront that sat on the east side near the Afterlife. Another block and the smell of stagnant seawater started to mix in with the usual polluted scent that was Night City's air. V's steps remained strong until he came to one of the staircases that bordered the waterfront. With a deep sigh, V planted his ass on one of them and pulled out the bottle in favor of taking a drink.
Jackie took a couple minutes just to see if V was meeting with someone else. When no one showed up and V looked content to just sit, drink, and stare at the water, Jackie decided to move in.
"Heh, took you long enough." V scoffed, voice heavy but with just a dash of his usual tone. There seemed to be no animosity coming from him as he held out the bottle of Tequila, shaking it slightly to entice Jackie into accepting it. Jackie rolled his eyes and accepted the bottle, taking a seat beside his friend, he took a generous gulp from the bottle.
The cheap Tequila burned as it went down, and Jackie had to suppress the urge to cough. Instead, he sat there in silence beside V. Now that they were alone, the corporate slave seemed more incline to talk and answered one of his previous questions.
"Gloria and I..." He began, almost haltingly. "We had a fight. Think...Think I lost her again." One of his hands reached out, and Jackie handed him the bottle in understanding. He watched as V took more than a few large swallows of the golden liquor before admitting, "I'm...not handling it well."
"That's an understatement." The Latino man kept the thought to himself, instead placing a hand on V's shoulder. "Fights happen in even the best of relationships. Lord knows Misty and me have had a few, and I'm sure Maine and Dorio would admit the same."
"Think this one's a little different." V took another drink, passing the bottle back to Jackie. "We got talking about the future..."
"As all good couples should." Jackie accepted the bottle, but didn't drink.
"But the thing is, in order to talk about the future..." V swallowed, "had to talk about the past."
"You find out why she left you?" Long as he had known V, and knew of his relationship with Gloria. That was something that had never been discussed between them. At least, not in any level of detail.
"No, only talked about my past." V replied, "...and Neo-Oaxaca came up."
Jackie always picked the worst time to take a drink. The platitudes he had ready to go in response to V's words flying out of his mouth with the cheap Tequila along with one single word. "What?"
"Yeah." That one word hung in the air between them as V took the bottle back and took a drink. The admittance left Jackie at a loss for words. Even years later, Neo-Oaxaca wasn't something he or V ever talked about. Sure, he had told David out of necessity, and in confession to Padre. But that wasn't something he would ever discuss with Misty...or anyone else for that matter.
"We're never gonna be able to move past that, are we?" He reached for the bottle, and V handed it over willingly.
"Probably not." V agreed as Jackie took a drink and handed the bottle back.
Thinking about it, Jackie had to admit it was an oddly trusting, if not slightly misguided gesture on V's part for him to have mentioned it. Gloria was a nice woman, and Jackie freely admitted he saw her as a friend. Call him a romantic, but he was glad that she had a thing for his best choom. And that fate had seen fit to give V another chance to be with the one that got away.
"So why the hell did you bring that up with Gloria?" The question came out as he handed V back the bottle, seeing him take a sip before answering.
"I love her, Jackie." V took another sip, "didn't want any secrets between us."
Romantic a sentiment as it was, Jackie couldn't decide if that made the situation better or worse. He couldn't even begin to imagine what Misty's reaction would be. Sure, she saw the aftermath of such things working for Vik, but so did Gloria working as a street-scraper. Would her reaction be better or worse? What exactly had Gloria's reaction been?
Much as Jackie wanted more information. To know exactly what him and Gloria talked about...He'd known V long enough to know that he wouldn't get much more out of him than one word answers. And even that would be a stretch. Knowing that, and the contact between the two of them over the last few months – It was actually a wonder that V had told him as much as he had.
Jackie had let out a hum of acknowledgment at V's answer, wordlessly asking for the bottle again. As it changed hands once more, an uneasy silence seemed to settle over the two of them. Aside from their breathing, the only sounds to break it were the occasional gulp or sloshing of liquid as they passed it back and forth.
It was only when their bottle was empty that either of them actually moved beyond adjusting their posture as they sat on the steps. Just looking out over the water, both lost in their thoughts about the current and upcoming events. Jackie had been first to his feet, one hand extended out and down to help V get to his. Empty bottle left on the steps, V grasped his hand with a shadow of his usual strength and accepted the assist even as the soft rumble of a car's engine filled the quiet night.
"And there's my ride." V gestured towards a modified black Villefort with a checkerboard stripe along its side; the signature paint job of the Delamain corporation. "I'd offer you a lift but..."
"Don't worry about it." Jackie started walking with V towards the waiting vehicle. "Might head back to the Afterlife, have another drink before heading out myself."
"Alright." V stopped, one hand resting on the roof of the Delamain. "You got all the detes I sent you?"
"All up here." Jackie tapped his head, giving V a small smile as he climbed into the cab. "Take care, V."
"You too Jackie." V gave a nod as the door closed, and the Delamain drove off to its destination. Jackie stayed by the water until the tail lights of the car were out of sight. Only then did Jackie begin his own walk back to the Afterlife.
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Having treated himself to one more drink at the Afterlife, Jackie had returned to his garage feeling no more relaxed than before. It also wasn't as late into the night as Jackie would-have hoped, with the clock on his old stereo showing that it was only half past nine. Feeling too tired to work out or play games, but also too wound up to try and get some sleep. Jackie decided to try and see if he could get some second hand details from his nephew.
["Jackie?"] David sounded a little confused. ["Everything good choom?"]
["Hey sobrino. Know it's getting late but I was wondering if you've got a few minutes to talk?"] Never mind that his nephew was an adult now. Some people just liked maintaining a sleep schedule.
["About?"]
Jackie hesitated for just a moment, deciding to skirt the truth a little. ["Ran into your father earlier an-"]
["Hang on a minute..."] David's tone changed to a more surprised one, and Jackie heard a curse as a million images and ideas flashed through Jackie's head about what his nephew might have been doing before the call.
["I'm not interrupting something, am I?"] He wiggled his eyebrows, even though David couldn't see the gesture.
["No, was just in the shower."] Jackie resisted the urge to ask if he was alone in the shower. ["What did he want?"]
["Talked with him about a gig, but that's not why I called."] He took a deep breath. ["Noticed your old man looked really out of it. He told me he got into a fight with tu mamá, but wasn't very forthcoming with the details..."]
["And you're hoping I will be?"] There was an amused yet reluctant hum from David. ["Didn't take you for a gossip..."]
["David. We might have our rough patches, but your dad's my best choom. And your mom's a nice woman and fellow Latino who I've come to see as a friend."] He sighed, ["and I just don't want to see either of them upset. Nor do I want to see you upset over this."]
["I was already mad at V before this, but..."]
["But?"]
["Maybe it's because I finally have a full set of parents...But I just don't feel right talking about this behind their backs."] The admittance made Jackie hum, even as David continued. ["But if it will help mom, and maybe help V. I'll tell you what I can."]
["Thanks sobrino, I owe you for this."]
["Being a hundred percent honest, I was outside when the majority of the conversation happened. I only came in at the end to find mom crying and pushing V away, right before...she asked him to leave."]
Unseen, Jackie nodded as David told him how he went to Gloria to comfort her. The woman just holding him and crying into his shoulder while he did his best to comfort her. Eventually, Gloria had calmed down enough to tell David some of what V told her, albeit very fragmented.
["Mom told me how V said his family could best be described as bastards, and she had to agree. That he told her some of the sketchy shit he'd done for Arasaka."] He heard David pause and take a deep breath. ["Told her about Neo-Oaxaca of all things. Don't know how detailed he was about it, but fuck. I...I know I was disturbed by what you told me, but for mom to hear it?"]
["Yeah..."] He didn't know what else to say, giving David a minute to collect his thoughts.
["But I think what really got her was the fact that V admitted that the incident at the GIM was his fault. All the detes, us being there included. The other stuff was just words, but she saw the news. Think' that that's why she told him to leave... probably the load that busted the server."] That made Jackie hiss, and he sensed David nodding. ["She kinda fell into a loop afterwards. Crying and sounding like a broken vinyl about how she couldn't believe that he did that. That he would put her friends, and his own son in such a dangerous situation."]
["She's not wrong about that..."] Jackie ran a hand through his hair. ["Know I was more concerned for you than myself at the mall. But that aside, how's your mother doing now?"]
["She's fine, just emotionally drained."] David sighed, ["I stayed with her for a couple hours after V left, least until she calmed down enough to get herself ready for bed. And then I called Nadia to see if she'd mind checking in on her as well. Figure a nurse would know better if there was any actual issues than I would."]
["Smart. And while I think I know the answer to one of these questions; have you heard from her or V at all today?"]
["Nope. But not hearing from V doesn't surprise me."] He could feel his nephew's sarcastic smirk. ["And while I didn't hear from mom directly, Nadia did call to say that she was doing okay, but needed some time, if that makes sense."]
["It does."] He let out an airy chuckle, having heard that one a few times. ["Thanks David, really appreciate the information."]
["Don't mention it."] His nephew huffed. ["Seriously, while I hope what I told you can help, don't tell mom or V what I told you."]
["I won't sobrino. Ex-Valentinos honor."] He held his fingers up in a 'V' and crossed his heart – not that David could see, but by the sound to come over the holo, probably sensed. ["Anyhow, I'll let you go. Have a good night David, and thanks again."]
David returned the greeting, before hanging up. The call should have made Jackie feel better, knowing exactly what had been talked about. But instead he just felt a bit more burdened by the knowledge. Late as it was, Jackie felt compelled to try and get a hold of either party now that he had additional knowledge.
He tried Gloria first, not quite sure how he'd broach the subject but willing to try. After several moments, it was obvious to him that she wasn't going to pick up, so he ended the call without leaving a message. His mind tried to come up with reasons, ranging from David's right that she doesn't want to talk, to that she's already gone to bed to...He shuddered, willing his brain to focus on the more logical and nicer reasons.
"Well, let's try the other one..." He selected V's number and waited as the call connected. Similar to Gloria, it just rang and rang with no sign that V was going to pick up...Or bother to call him back. Jackie ended the attempt with a sigh, once again telling himself that V wasn't picking up for several of the same reasons he chose for Gloria's answer.
Either way, Jackie was left feeling no better about the whole situation than when he started.
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After failing to get a hold of either V or Gloria, Jackie figured it might be for the best if he tried to get some rest. Somehow, both his body and mind agreed, and he fell asleep soon after he stretched out on the couch. Normally, Jackie would wake up ahead of his alarm, but today the program got to do its job.
"Mierda." He silenced the alarm, rubbing at his ear despite the sound being internalized. "Now I remember why I trained myself to get up before it went off."
Complaints aside, Jackie got up and stretched before running through his morning routine. The only change he made to it? Putting together his gear for the hit later in the day. V hadn't asked him to bring anything special, but Jackie still felt the need to make sure everything was in order.
He went for his usual choice of clothing, figuring if they were going to be tailing Jenkins, it would be better to be inconspicuous. About the only thing he changed out was his jacket, switching for the one that had armor plating inside. Helps stall bullets and provides extra protection in case of automotive accidents.
As for arming himself, once again Jackie was thinking less might be more. He grabbed his two favorite girls and slipped them into their holsters, along with several spare magazines. For melee, he went with his machete – the blade's weight an odd comfort against his back. To round out his arsenal, six grenades were stashed in the various pockets of his jacket. Less than he'd like to travel with, but hopefully more than enough with whatever V might have been bringing to the party.
Jackie looked then at his Arch. She had been tuned up, filled up, and polished to perfection. If everything ran smoothly, the only thing the girl would need after this was a good washing. And if anything happened to his bike? Well, V would be getting the bill and Jackie wasn't going to negotiate on that.
Satisfied that everything was in order, Jackie decided to try and get a hold of V again. Getting no response on the holo, and feeling restless, Jackie decided he head out a little early and check some of V's usual haunts. He drove by David's place, and then by Gloria's – not seeing any of V's cars parked nearby. Stopped off to see Vik and Misty in the hopes that V might have come in for a check-up before the gig. His search eventually took him to City Center, and then to Corpo plaza – but he still couldn't find V. He treated himself to lunch from one of the restaurants in The View before deciding that it was close enough to his and V's intended meeting time that he could head to the given coordinates without issue.
The meet-up point was a grenade's throw away from the tower, in a partially empty parking lot occupied by an assortment of... Well he wouldn't say fancy cars, but it was obvious their owners were most likely suits. He rolled into the lot, figuring the NCPD squad car in the lot explained the absence of a guard in the booth. Ignoring most of the cars, he focused mostly on finding those that fit the description of V's. There was more than a few, but the one that caught his attention the most was a Ragnar with Arasaka colors – but no other tags marking it as such.
"Of course he'd be here first." He chuckled, parking his bike nearby and hopping off in favor of looking at the van. Upon closer inspection, it was an Arasaka vehicle – the decals on the windshield advertising that fact clearly. But he couldn't be certain that it was V's based on the outside alone. He placed his hands against the driver's side window, trying to peer inside when he heard the scuff of a boot on pavement before feeling someone tap on his shoulder.
"Hey."
Normally, Jackie would have drawn iron in this situation. But given that he was expecting V to contact him at some point simply let his hand hover over one of his guns. He turned around, but instead of seeing V came face to face with an NCPD officer wearing a helmet with the face shield down.
"Oh shit!" Jackie threw his hands up, suddenly unnerved. "Swear I was just checkin' this car out officer." He started to turn slowly, keeping his hands up as he did. "Thought it might belong to a choom of mine."
"Uh-huh." He could feel the officer's eyes running up and down him. "And how does a Valentino like you make friends with an Arasaka executive?"
"Okay, first. I'm not one of the Valentinos...Well, not anymore. Left that life behind..." He heard the officer snort, the man raising his face shield. Now facing the man fully, Jackie was met with a familiar face. "Second, what you just did? That's racial profiling choom! I should have your badge for that!"
"Sorry Jackie," V kept his voice low, but there was a faint smile on his lips. "But I had to make this look legit." He motioned towards the squad car, and Jackie realized that's why he was able to get into the lot in the first place. "Still clear on our part in all this?"
"Hang back and tail the guy as he runs." Jackie confirmed, getting a nod from V in return as the man lowered the face shield again. The click of his face shield locking into place seemed to be a signal, and suddenly Jackie became aware of the hum of an Aerodyne's engines and the signature sirens of a certain company. He looked up at the sky easily seeing a Trauma AV, spray-painted with Maelstrom's colors, flying towards the tower. As suspected, the IFF tags that marked it as one of Trauma Team's kept Arasaka's infamous anti-aircraft systems from activating and rendering the AV to scrap as it passed into their airspace.
"Might want to hang back by your bike." Jackie understood the unspoken request and moved back to his bike even as V moved towards the squad car. To anyone watching, it probably looked like the cop was running Jackie's detes while Jackie checked something on his bike. He had just come even with it when he received a call from V. ["Heads up, the fireworks are about to start."]
Jackie was thankful for the warning as he looked up in time to see the doors on the AV lift up to reveal several Maelstrom Goons behind it. He heard the tell-tale hiss of rockets being launched from the AV, all of them directed at one point in particular. These bigger explosions were accompanied by the smaller, rapid fire peppering from various models of light machine guns. On the ground, he could hear bystanders starting to scream as they realized what was happening.
He glanced over at V, seeing him looking at where Jenkins' office had been even as the AV started to circle the tower and continue its barrage. The sounds of screaming, glass cracking, and explosions was all around him, but heard V clearly over the holo.
["Get your bike out of here. Jenkins is on the move."]
Instead of responding, Jackie complied with V's request and drove so that he was just around the corner, but still able to see the lot. Alternating between watching the attackers, the people on the ground, and V. Jackie didn't know how long he waited until he saw a man matching the picture from the file emerge. As V suspected, Jenkins was accompanied by several security guards as they lead him over to one of the vehicles. Several additional cars rolled in around it, and Jackie saw V move to intercept Jenkins.
["Hang back. Gonna spike him so Trauma can't interfere and so we can track him."] V sent over the holo as he came even with the man. He saw Jenkins jump slightly at V's appearance, but guessed the man didn't recognize him. Or just chalked him up to being an officer in the right place at the right time. Jackie watched the two of them exchange a brief word, before V gestured for them to leave. ["Alright, got him to let it slip they're heading to City Center first claiming I'll radio the station. He's going with the standard four-man escort. His is that silver and black Ragnar, escorts are taking the standard Arasaka models."]
["I see 'em. Want me to follow?"]
["No, want you to start heading to the coordinates of the safehouse downtown in City Center. They'll probably pass you, so fall back a bit if they do."] He saw V climb into the cruiser even as Jenkins climbed into his car while the escort team got in theirs.
["Keep me posted."] Letting V take over monitoring duty for now, Jackie kicked his bike into gear and worked on putting a little distance between himself and the target.
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True to V's guess, Jackie was passed by the security team about a quarter of the way to the safehouse in Downtown. They were moving in the standard formation of one in the front, one to each side (when space allowed, with the escort car always taking the side closest to the buildings) and one in the back. He held back, always keeping them in his sights even as V gave him updates thanks to whatever hack he had spiked Jenkins with.
He followed the detail to the first set of coordinates; A building located near the waterfront. At least, that's what the still in the file had shown at the time. Now however, all that met their eyes was a fire charred building with blown out windows, and a chunk of the roof missing. It was clear that the fire suppression system had done its job and prevented the building from outright collapsing. But even at a distance Jackie could see most of the interior had been gutted by...whatever Tiny Mike's team had set off.
["Looks like Tiny Mike's team worked their magic here."] Jackie sent over the holo, not seeing V's car anywhere nearby. ["One of the guys on security just came out, seems to be confirming that the place is torched."]
["Good."] V went silent a moment, and Jackie watched as the convoy started to move. ["Looks like they're on the move. Can you tell which way they're going?"]
["Looks like they're heading north, possibly up towards Little China."]
["Rest of the safehouses are to the East. They probably want to avoid heading anywhere near Corpo Plaza right now so they're going to cut through Watson. If I had to guess, they're probably aiming for one of the Japantown ones."]
Jackie agreed with V's assessment as he quickly checked over the locations of the various safehouses. Including the one in Downtown, there were four other confirmed safehouses. Three of them were in Westbrook: One was on the border between Japantown and North Oak, while the other was in the middle of Japantown. The third one was in Charter Hill, and rested near the boarder with Santo Domingo. The final confirmed safehouse was in Arroyo.
There was also a mention of one in Pacifica in Coastview, and another out in the Badlands, but nothing concrete. He had mentioned this to V when they started tailing Jenkins. But V told him not to worry about it – Pacifica was too far a run from their current position. And if there was one out in the Badlands, it would probably be Jenkins' last resort given how far removed from everything it was.
["I'm in pursuit. You mind either cutting through Corpo Plaza or Heywood and coming in from the South?"]
["I'll head through Heywood. It'll take a little longer, but I'm less likely to get caught up in whatever roadblocks 'saka or the actual NCPD might have thrown up."] He figured the Maelstrom team was either done with their raid, or got shot down by now since forces from both sides would be swarming the area. Trying to get detes from those on the streets. Reports from those on the inside. It would be stupid of him to even try. ["You want me to hit the one in the heart of Japantown?"]
["Yeah, go for it. That'll give you a broad area to patrol, and we might be able to catch him in a pincer if he runs for Charter."]
Jackie sped off down the highway, taking full advantage of his knowledge of the streets of Heywood to quickly make his way across The Glen and into Vista Del Ray.
["Just crossed over the water at Kabuki, heading in."]
["Just crossed the district line myself."] Jackie replied, ["he goin' for the North-east side?"]
["More than likely."] There was a pause on V's end, no doubt the man checking something. ["Yeah, he's on course for it. How far out from the other one are you?"]
["Maybe a mile, traffic's heavy and even I'm having trouble getting around on my bike."] Jackie laughed, before cussing out some gonk for cutting him off. He revved his ARCH's engine and shot up the middle between the offending gonk and another car and flipped him off before speeding ahead.
It didn't take him long to find the safehouse in question once he got out of the clusterfuck of traffic. He could smell the smoke and see it still spiraling up from the smoldering remains of what had probably been a small office or apartment at one point.
["Damn, Mike and his boys work quick."] Jackie brought his bike to a stop, hanging on the outskirts of a group of curious onlookers who were staring at the once occupied lot. There was a token showing from emergency services, and a pair of NCPD officers were trying to maintain some order around the area. ["This one's been reduced to ash and rubble. Wonder what they hit it with to bring it down so fast?"]
["Don't know, but Jenkins just pulled up to his other Japantown house."] He heard an airy hum leave V. ["Or what might have been a safehouse. Looks like this place got hit with some firebombs and then flooded by the suppression system. Seems they might have tossed out an EMP grenade or two if the additional level of fucked the tech around here is is any level of indication."]
["Him and the team on the move again?"]
["Yeah, and from what I can tell. Jenkins is getting jumpy."] Once again V went silent, and Jackie knew for a fact he was observing Jenkins and the team. ["Looks like they'll be coming your way, but I have a strange feeling they're not gonna stop if what you're saying is true. So be ready to pursue if you see them."]
["Engine's runnin'."] Jackie took a moment to 'adjust' something on his bike, before taking a spin around the block a couple times. Each couple laps he would stop, act like he was adjusting something, before taking the bike for a 'test drive'. True to V's prediction, Jenkins' convoy came through. But after taking one look at the smoldering pile of rubble, hit the gas and headed East towards the Charter Hill safehouse. ["Convoy just passed by, didn't even slow down to admire the view. Looks like they're shooting for Charter Hill now."]
["Stay on 'em, but be ready to divert to Santo if needed."]
["Got it, in pursuit."] He let them get a block or two away before taking up the chase. There seemed to be an odd urgency to the convoy's movement, and there was much less distance between Jenkins' car and those of his escorts. Jackie couldn't help the laugh that left his mouth as they crossed into the 'richer' side of Westbrook.
["And Mike and his boys beat everyone here again."] V's voice sounded almost impressed.
["How bad's the damage?"]
["You ever see those building implosion videos? Looks like one of those, except on a smaller scale. Can't even tell what color the house was."]
["Like an actual house house or..."]
["Jackie, focus."] He could just hear the sound of V rubbing his temple. ["Jenkins is about two miles out from the house. Start heading towards the Arroyo house. I'll meet you there."]
["Timed that right, just came upon one of the few spots I can bang a legal U-turn."] Okay, so maybe that didn't matter in the long run, but Jackie was proud that he'd only broken four, maybe five traffic laws in pursuit of Jenkins this whole time. ["See you there."]
He received no response from V, instead focusing his attention on getting into Arroyo. It always was both impressive and depressing to see the marked differences between certain parts of Night City. Given how it bordered Charter Hill on its northside, it was a perfect illustration of the other side of the tracks. Course, it was still a few steps up from Pacifica on the decrepit and unfinished building side. It was really a toss up on which would win the award for 'dirtiest district' but Jackie wasn't about to dwell on that.
Especially not when he was pulling up to the final safehouse, which looked to be untouched.
It seemed to be an old parking garage, and while there was fresh graffiti over faded paint and more than a few chips in the concrete. The whole of the exterior seemed to be in good repair. Even the garage and other doors only showed the occasional ding or rut in their surface.
["Eh V? You sure you got the right coordinates?"] He pulled his bike into a nearby alley, hiding from view as he dismounted. ["I'm at the place in the detes and it still looks...Well, not as fucked up as the others."]
["Are there any windows? Can you see inside?"]
["Might be able to sneak a peek from the attendant's office. But there's no other windows...least none I can access from here on the ground."] Jackie kept his back straight and posture alert as he left his bike in favor of moving to the small clerical window that rested on the street-side of the building. Not seeing anyone around, he peered inside the office. It seemed normal at first glance; a computer, cash register, several monitors, and basic office furniture. But everything was coated with a layer of dust indicative of just how long it had been since anyone used the office for its intended purpose. He could just see out the interior window, but all he could see was support posts and pavement. ["Can't see shit from out here..."]
Jackie's eyes drifted to the pedestrian entrance, and he tried to open it on a whim. "Locked. Of course..." He noticed then that the garage door looked like it was elevated slightly and crouched down to tie his shoe. It was open just enough for Jackie to be able to slide a hand underneath and lift it enough to where he could sneak under. Releasing his grip, he expected the door to slam down, but it instead remained in place.
["And I'm in. Fuckers forgot to close the garage door all the way."]
["Shit. Be careful in there Jack."] He gave an unseen nod as he let his eyes adjust to the low light of the garage. ["Jenkins and them are on their way down. I'll try to keep you posted when I know they're close."]
["'preciate that."] Jackie blinked a few times as he stood up, taking in his surroundings. Lines on the ground and painted numbers on the poles showed that this place might have once been a legitimate parking garage for the surrounding businesses – but that didn't seem to be the case anymore. While there was still room to store a few cars, it seemed most of the free space had once served other purposes.
In one corner that might have been a workshop of sorts; there were broken tables and shelves and a scattering of machine parts and unidentifiable shrapnel across the floor.
Another section might have been a kitchen, and Jackie had to resist the urge to take the low-hanging fruit that would have been calling it a 'mess hall'.
A third section had torn privacy screens, and he could make out the outline of footlockers and cots behind them.
["Stepping back out. Seems damaging the outside was too much for the boys, so they wrecked the place on the inside."] He told V, slipping back out and sliding the door shut ninety-eight percent of the way. ["Not sure what they used, maybe GASH grenades as I could smell burnt ozone. Or maybe they just did it the old fashion way and came in swinging. Either way, no way Jenkins is gonna want to stay here."]
["Hopefully he'll stay long enough for us to move in. Which speaking of, if you're not already out of there..."]
["Slipped out while we were talking."] He moved back over to his bike. ["Managed to close the door too."]
["Perfect, Jenkins should be there in the next couple minutes."] Jackie was already reaching for his guns, even as V told him he'd take the lead and it would be Jackie's job to provide ranged support. ["Don't care about the others, but Jenkins is mine."]
["Wouldn't even think of crippling his legs for ya."] He half expected V to make some comment about letting him get a shot in if he called, but was met with radio silence. Sighing, Jackie peered out from the alley, watching for the convoy.
His wait wasn't long with the convoy rolling up a couple minutes later. Like with the first house, he saw several members of the detail get out of their cars and start moving towards the place. They had only taken a couple steps before the sound of a police siren filled the air, and V rolled up in his patrol car with the lights flashing. The detail stopped, more than one readying themselves for potential conflict as V stepped out of his car.
Jackie saw V approach with his hands clearly in line of sight, tapping his badge as he was met by several members of the security force. At a glance, it seemed V was offering assistance; even gesturing to his patrol car which Jackie noticed was parked in such a way that it prevented others from getting near the house.
Or to get away from it.
While he couldn't hear what was being said, he could tell that V's ruse was working. A couple more members of the detail came over, as if to be briefed on the new development. Against common sense and protocol, even Jenkins rolled down his window to get a better view of the situation.
It was only when V had most of the detail around him that all hell broke lose.
Jackie saw V launch himself at the closest guy, a mantis blade stabbing through his neck. Another one dumb enough to try and pull him off met a similar fate, except he got it in the chest. Both bodies fell to the ground with a wet thud even as the others drew their own weapons and started firing or moving in on V.
He watched as V ducked and dodged the various strikes thrown his way. Could tell when he activated a quickhack or two to mess with those who had drawn iron. Another guard went down when V sliced off his arm, while a fourth got their face filled with lead from one of V's pistols.
["Jack! Need some cover fire!"]
That was all he needed to hear, and Jackie started peppering the detail from the safety of the alley. He could hear one of them hollering about back-up, but couldn't tell if the man was referring to him...Or looking for additional support.
One of the bolder guys decided to try to keep to his job description and signaled for Jenkins and one of the other vans to get out of there. His efforts were rewarded with a slash from V's blades that nearly cut him in two. As for the van that tried to make a run for it, a couple shots at the driver's side window made whomever was behind the wheel hesitate – giving enough time for V to rush over and slash the tires before delivering a close-range shot to the driver.
More shouting came from the remaining members of the detail who were quickly being shredded thanks to the efforts of the two. Sure, V was doing most of the work but Jackie had taken down a couple of them as well. His eyes went to Jenkins' van, seeing that the window had been rolled up and that the man was trying to back up and get out of there.
["V! Might want to hit Jenkins' ca-"]
Several loud explosions cut him off, followed by a blinding flash of light. Jackie cursed, squeezing his eyes shut and shaking his head as he waited for his vision to return. His curses were joined by cries from some of the remaining security details members, but that's not what grabbed his attention.
He heard the sound of tires squealing as Jenkins decided to throw caution to the wind and floored it. There was an unsettling thump and a metallic crunch as something got clipped by the Ragnar, before the sound of the engine started to fade.
["Shit! Jenkins made a run for it!"] He blinked, peering out of the alley. Even with blind spots, he could see the beaten and bloody bodies of the security detail. It took him a moment to find V, seeing him impaling one of the guards who decided to try and use the radio in V's car to contact the actual NCPD. ["What were you thinking?"]
["Wasn't me who threw it!"] V replied, tossing the dead guard out of the way as he climbed into the cruiser. ["We've got to go after him...Scan shows he's making a run for the southern Badlands."]
["Any idea where he might go?"] Jackie hopped back on his bike, waiting to see which way V was going to go.
["He's going to want space."] The car moved past Jackie then, lights flashing but siren off. ["My guess is he'll aim for Jackson Plains – plenty of abandoned buildings to shelter in if he can put enough distance between us and himself. Security would be higher around the Flats, but I suspect Jenkins is on alert against any sort of authority now."]
["Trusting you on that."] Jackie pulled out of the alley and took off after V, the only communication between the two being an occasional update on Jenkins' position.
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While Jackie knew that Ragnars – especially the corporate models could move. He didn't realize that driving like a bat out of hell was something taught to Arasaka Executives. Sure, he usually said his prayers when riding with V, but figured the man was the exception and not the rule. Meanwhile, Jackie had to admit it was a stroke of genius on V's part to have 'borrowed' a patrol car.
No one decided to intervene and help out either side. The trio even blew past a couple additional NCPD officers who seemed more than content to let the one car already in pursuit handle it. Of course, there always had to be one dumb-ass who either wasn't paying attention, or thought themselves above everyone else. Jenkins made it through a four-way stop with ease, while V just barely avoiding hitting the suit that felt drinking his coffee was more important that paying attention. Only Jackie had to slow down and swerve around the gonk, temporarily losing sight of V and Jenkins.
["You still with me Jackie?] V asked, a minor hint of concern in his adrenaline charged voice.
["Yeah, just got reminded of why I hate Quque's..."] Jackie cursed, ["'cept I lost sight of you."]
["Stayed straight through the intersection...Shit, Jenkins just banged a left around Megabuilding H4."]
Jackie could see the Megabuilding up in the distance, and taking advantage of having a smaller and more maneuverable vehicle went as the crow flies and took advantage of smaller alleyways and the sidewalks that the larger cars couldn't pass. He came out from behind the building and hopped back on the main road, catching a brief glimpse of flashing blue lights up in the distance.
["Think I see you...Mind killing your lights for a second so I can confirm? Or blaring the siren?"] Keeping his eye trained on the flashing lights, Jackie smiled as they turned off for a couple seconds, before turning back on with a couple short blast of the siren. ["Confirmed. Gonna be on your left if I can get close enough."]
Still weaving around, Jackie once again managed to get a car's length behind V. Jenkins still had a good four car lead on the pair, something that he maintained even as he took the turn that sent them out into the Badlands towards Jackson Plains. Here, the only traffic the three had to contend with here were those who worked around the solar plants or had the means to head outside of Night City's limits at the border. As such, they were able to move in and shorten the gap by a length.
Realizing that he had no chance of losing them on the road, Jenkins decided to go off-roading. His tires threw up a cloud of sand and dust as he quit the road in favor of the packed dirt of the desert scrubland. Not willing to let him go that easy, both V and Jackie turned and continued the chase.
["I'll go left, you go right."] V called, hitting the gas now that there were less obstacles to dodge. Jackie sent back the affirmative and copied V's example. There was now less than a two car gap between them when it happened. While V and Jackie weren't strangers to off-roading, the hidden hazards of the landscape were something foreign to Jenkins. His car clipped a large rock that had been buried by the sands, causing him to lose control and roll the van.
The Ragnar tumbled a couple times before landing on its roof in a nearby ditch. Jackie brought his bike to a stop at the rim, and saw V do the same just a little ways away. Peering down, he saw Jenkins struggling out the shattered windshield; injuries from the crash clear. He had a gash on his forehead, and his face and hands had multiple cuts from where the glass had cut him. Jackie noticed the suit was heavily favoring his left arm even as he dragged himself forward on his elbows. It was only when he struggled to his feet, using the van's frame for support, that Jackie noticed the odd angle Jenkins' right arm was hanging at an odd angle.
He looked to his side, seeing V quickly slide down into the ditch and move to intercept Jenkins even as the suit tried to step away from the vehicle. The Latino half expected V to shoot him where he stood, or maybe tackle him and spike him with something else. Instead, V did the last thing he expected.
He stood before the haggard executive, hands crossed over his chest but in clear view. There was no emotion on V's face, a stark contrast to the pained terror that Jenkins' own was sporting.
"What...What do you, want from, me!?" The suit demanded, trying to sound like he was still in charge even through his heaving breaths.
"Want you to listen." V replied, an icy calmness in his tone even as he removed the helmet that had been hiding his face the whole time. The color drained from Jenkins' face at the same time the helmet was dropped to the ground.
"V-V?" Jenkins stumbled backwards, and the man would have fallen had V not reached out and grabbed his right arm. The suit screamed from the pain, but wisely made no further effort to move. "Wh-what's this about?"
"Neo-Oaxaca." Jackie involuntarily shuddered at how emotionless V sounded. Had he sounded like that when discussing it with Gloria? Was that-
"That's what you want to talk about? After all this time?" He heard Jenkins wheeze shortly before the man started screaming as V tightened his grip on the suit's busted arm.
"Yeah. I do." V's grip didn't lessen even as Jenkins whined about the pain. "Want to know your reasoning for why you sent a team – your team mind you. To the slaughter."
"I didn't au-Argh!" Jenkins screamed as V pulled him forward, kicking out as he did. There was a loud crack as V's boot met Jenkins' left shin, the sound soon muffled as the suit started screaming. It was only V's grip on his arm that allowed him to remain standing.
"Shh, just be quiet and listen." V's grip didn't lessen even as he reached into one of the pockets of his uniform and pulled out what looked like one of the cheap medical injectors and hit Jenkins with it. Even though V was still holding him in a bone crushing grip, Jenkins let out an audible noise of relief. "Don't make me regret wasting that on you..."
Jackie's eyes narrowed, but he remained on the lip of the ditch, watching as V continued.
"Now, I think I know what happened all those years ago." V's grip seemed to loosen just slightly. "But I'd like to hear your version of it...And I don't mean what you put down in the official files."
"That is my version." If it was anyone else, Jackie might have been impressed with that answer. Too bad it wasn't the answer he or V wanted to hear.
"Really? Because I can't help but feel its missing a couple details." Still holding Jenkins upright, V delivered another kick to the man's left shin. Whatever relief the injection had brought doing little to counter what must have been excruciating pain if the tears in the corner of Jenkins' eyes were any indication. "Like who tipped off the Cartel that a team from Arasaka was moving in? Or why you sent in a team of rookie CI agents to try and overturn their control? Or just what was so important about that independent city that so much could be put at stake?"
Jackie moved as close to the edge as he could without running the risk of falling into the ditch. He knew V had been sent for the purpose of 'cleaning up' so Arasaka could move in and take over the place. Gain access to its resources and trade routes. What he didn't know was some of the finer details, and he hoped that either Jenkins, or V, would spill them.
"Don't play dumb V." Jenkins was still trying to act the part of an executive dealing with an underling. "You know, Neo-Oaxaca was Night City-lite. Another independent, free-city on the coast. Trade routes, unique goods and resources...What corporation wouldn't have wanted to get their ha-Aah!"
Jackie saw V twist Jenkins' arm, making the suit whine and whimper in pain.
"Think I didn't know that?" V shook him, before throwing him to the ground. His foot resting on Jenkins' left shin, effectively preventing the guy from trying to skirt away. Once more, V pulled an injector from his pocket but didn't hit Jenkins with it. Just held it within the man's line of sight. "Now, tell me what I want to know without the corpo double-speak and maybe I'll take away the pain again."
"Alright! Alright!" He tried, but couldn't get his leg out from under V's foot. "There was a bidding war over the area. Corporations wanting a chance to move it and set up shop. Work, work out a deal with the Cartel with a share of the profits. Arasaka, Kang Tao, Biotechnica, and others were all willing to, put in a bid. Their representatives took the eddies, held them as collateral to ensure the winner could pay. Even after they had a 'winner', they held on to everyone's bids. Not that the winner ever saw the city – Cartel sent them packing before they even moved in."
"And I'm guessing you saw that as an opportunity?" V's mouth twitched, "that rather than accept your own loss, you decided to send a crew in to take the city by force?" That was a fool's errand if Jackie had ever heard one. An unheard assessment that V seemed to agree with if the pained laughter coming from the man was any indication. "Oh, and then you decide that you can earn points with the other side as well by contacting them about the team being sent their way." Even with the injector still in his hand, V managed a slow clap, laughter starting to die off. "Got to admit, that's a textbook display of playing both sides of negotiations."
Jenkins flinched as V leaned in close, making sure the man could see and hear him. "You know, if you hadn't done that...We might have been able to survive that little stunt. Might have been able to go in, sabotage their tech and other stuff, and get out with just a few scratches. Weaken them so that maybe bigger teams could move in over time. Slowly flush them out overtime instead of just flooding the place."
"But no, because of you? There was a whole group of them waiting for us. ICE and firewalls surrounding what little tech they left online. I'm still not sure how some of us made it out of that initial ambush. And then how I survived long enough to make it home...Oh wait, I do know."
Jackie flinched, one hand idly reaching to grip the small shard case hooked on the same chain as his crucifix. That damned shard was what had saved V...saved him by proxy as the two of them had run.
"Well, you got your wish Jenkins." How V was still so calm was beyond Jackie's comprehension. "Neo-Oaxaca became such a lost cause that no one would want it. That it was probably better for Arasaka that they lost the bidding war in the long run." He stared down Jenkins, expecting the man to defy or deny the accusation. Instead, the man simply nodded. As if agreeing with V's assessment might save his ass. "I just want to know what your reasoning behind it all was. Why you felt necessary to take such actions that would basically amount to nothing in the end?"
"I..." Jackie saw Jenkins' mouth move, but couldn't hear what he said. What he did know was that it angered V; the younger man grinding his heel on Jenkins' shin even as he crouched down to his level. The conversation continued, but Jackie was only catching the occasional word.
"The report said Biotechnica, huh?" He heard V say clearly in a mockery of Jenkins' voice. "If that was the case, why didn't you just up your bid? I'm sure the higher ups wouldn't have minded you dropping additional eddies if it would have meant forcing out one of our biggest competitors on multiple sides."
"Because I..."
"Because you what?" There was an odd edge to V's voice, a tone that Jackie knew meant V was fully aware of the details. But wanted to hear them from the target of his inquisition.
"Because I wasn't there!" Jenkins cried, loud enough now that his voice echoed around the desert. "I was busy-
"Busy with what? What was so important that you couldn't take the time to complete such a simple assignment?" V now had a vice grip on Jenkins' good arm, the injector discarded on the ground just out of reach of the suit's bad arm. His voice dripping with a venomous rage. "Mind you, one that put you at a virtual table. Something you could have even done from the comfort of your own home!"
Even in the fading light, Jackie could see the fear on Jenkins' face. Could see the tears forming and falling as years of trained stoicism fell away from the disgraced suit. Jackie wondered if Jenkins would lie, to try and come up with something that might appease V. Or would he risk it all and tell the truth, in the hopes that maybe V would reward his honesty.
Too bad Jenkins didn't know that neither option would guarantee his survival. Only that one might make his death a bit swifter than the other.
"I'm only going to ask one more time." V's poked Jenkins' chest with every word. "Where. Were. You?"
"I was at Empathy!" He cried, and Jackie couldn't help the bark of a laugh that escaped him at the answer. The club's name was a huge misnomer – nothing but alcohol, striptease, BDs, and...other services. "Josh – Executive Seremetis invited me along an-"
The sound of skin striking steel with an accompanying scream echoed as V slammed Jenkins into the wreckage.
"You're telling me that the only reason you 'missed' the meeting is because you were busy partying with a bunch of JoyToys?" He shook Jenkins, the action making the suit's nodding overly exaggerated.
"Y-y-yes!" Jenkins cried, even as V threw him to the ground again. The suit tried to scoot away on his elbows, but barely made it an inch before V was standing on his shattered shin. "A-a-ask Seremetis if you don't-"
"Oh, did you not get the memo that your kind are so fond of sending?" Jackie felt certain that if the amount of sarcasm dripping off those words was water that the two would be swimming right now.
"What, what memo?"
"Seremetis is dead." V huffed, answering the question Jackie had. "Auto accident during the last round of street racing. A thrill-seeker to the end, no?"
Jenkins mouth moved, but if the man actually said anything, he didn't hear.
"I know. It was a surprise to me too." The smirk on V's face was at odds with his earlier look. Jackie had heard from the others about how V had joined the races to ice some corporate team. "Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get an answer from Seremetis, so I'll ask you. Why'd you do it?"
"What?"
"Why the fuck did you think getting your rocks off was more important than your assigned job?" V started to press down on the pinned leg. "Why was your personal enjoyment more important than everyone else's lives?"
"H-he p-pro-promised me a promotion. M-more eddies..." The suit screamed as V increased the pressure on his leg, and Jackie could see him growing more and more annoyed. "Pro-promised me more, more than going to, to the table would. I-"
Before Jenkins could say anything else, Jackie saw V's fist slammed into in face with an inarticulate cry. The first hit probably tore the gash on Jenkins' head open even more. The second more than likely addled what little clarity Jenkins had left. The third rendered the man speechless as his jaw broke. The fourth seemed to knock him into what was probably blissful unconsciousness. Or it would have been if V wasn't in berserk mode.
The blows continued, coming even after Jenkins' body had fallen limp. Jackie could see drops of red and pink flying off of V's fist as he slid down the side of the ditch and moved to V's side.
"Shit! Stop choom! He's already dead!" He reached out a hand and placed it on V's shoulder. Seeming to respond more to his touch than his words, V threw one final punch before turning to look at him. The fight was slowly leaving his eyes as he worked on leveling out his breathing. "That's it choom, deep breaths."
"R-right." V gave a nod, and Jackie followed his eyes as they looked to the lifeless form of Arthur Jenkins. At a glance, it seemed Jenkins was just the victim of a bad accident...Until you looked at where his head once sat. Tubs of Eezybeef were of a more solid consistency than what remained of the executive's head.
"Come on..." V crouched down and used Jenkins' shirt to wipe off his bloodied knuckles. "Let's get this cleaned up."
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While Jackie had a feeling cleaning up after this gig was going to be a little more complicated than usual; he didn't expect it to involve staging one hell of an automotive accident.
Between the two of them, they flipped the vehicle so that it was laying on the driver's side instead of its roof. V had dragged Jenkins' body back into the vehicle, posing it in such a way that it looked like he had tried to crawl out the windshield. Jackie wanted to ask V how he was going to explain Jenkins lack of a head, but got his answer as V told him to step aside. With very little regard for his own safety, V hopped into the cruiser and drove it over the lip of the ditch, maneuvering it in such a way that the front tire was resting just before Jenkins. Hopping out, he made a minor adjustment to the body so that it appeared the suit's head had been crushed under the tire.
"A bit much, but won't they be able to track the cruiser?" Jackie gestured to the scene as V got out of the cruiser and slid underneath it. A moment later and Jackie could smell the unique chemical sweetness that marked CHOOH2 stations all over.
"Can you get the lines on the Ragnar?" V asked, even as he slid out from underneath. "And I fried most of the inside before the chase started. All that I left working were the lights, siren, and the radio so I could track NCPD operations."
"Guess that explains why we didn't have company." He replied, cutting the fuel lines before stepping away. He noticed that V had shed all of the clothing that marked him as NCPD and left them in the growing puddle of fuel. He climbed out of the ditch, acting on V's instructions to move his bike to a safe distance. Only once V felt they were far enough away did he use a remote hack to set the scene ablaze. "So, what the odds of him being found?"
"Higher than you'd think." V didn't elaborate and Jackie found he was content with not knowing what V might have meant by that. "Come on, let's head back to the city."
Jackie was about to offer V a lift on the bike, but the offer died on his lips as his Kusanagi rolled up. The two drove back into the city in silence, taking the back roads and alleys until they were able to sneak back into Corpo Plaza and to V's apartment. That silence continued as the two of them proceeded to clean up and dispose of what little evidence remained that might tie them to Jenkins' disappearance.
The sound of ice clinking in a glass followed by the sound of liquor being poured over them met Jackie's ears as he stepped from the bathroom. V was sitting at the table, two glasses and a bottle of whiskey V favored before him. As he approached, V held out one of the tumblers, and Jackie accepted it with a nod as he took a seat.
Jackie wasn't sure how long they sat there, just watching the city in silence. It was only the clink of an ice cube on glass, or the sloshing of liquid that provided any sort of break in the pattern. This might have been well and good for V, but for him?
"So...Where you want to go to celebrate?" It was a stupid question, but one Jackie knew had broken the tension in the past. It seemed to work, as V pulled his attention away from the window in favor of staring at him like he'd gotten a particularly odd implant. "I mean, Jenkins is dead. We got our revenge. I mean..." V's expression didn't change, and Jackie sighed in understanding. "Yeah, this doesn't feel much like a victory."
"Thought getting rid of Jenkins would make everything better. Help lessen the hidden target on David's back...on Gloria's back." He took a drink, refilling his glass. "Not that it matters...I seem to be back to day one with David. And Gloria...Yeah, there's no doubt in my mind that she's gonna delta again."
"Choom, you don't know that." Jackie placed a hand on V's back.
"You didn't see her face." V didn't react, continuing to look out the window. "Didn't see the fear. The...heartbreak." He took another drink. "Never seen her look like that. Even when I found out her family was skirting the poverty line, she didn't look like that."
Jackie hummed, letting V know he was still willing to listen if he wanted to continue.
"Know she regrets running away. Regrets keeping David a secret from me." V took a long drink. "Saw it in her eyes that first time at the hospital..."
"She has her reasons, you know this." Jackie gently shook him. "Or you would if you would let her tell you."
He kept that thought to himself as V continued.
"Yeah, yet here I am being selfish. Telling her my secrets in the hopes it might give me closure. Fat lot of good that did." He drained his glass and traded it for the bottle. "Suppose that might be my one regret in all this. Not getting her side. But what's done is done." V raised the bottle in an almost toast. "Done having regrets. From here on out, I'm makin' sure I go out with no regrets."
V raised the bottle to his lips and probably would have drained the contents if Jackie hadn't stopped him.
"Choom." He pulled the bottle away. "Why the fuck are you so willing to throw your life away over one setback? Okay, you fucked up and said a few things you probably shouldn't have. Changing your newly forged family dynamic before it was even established." Jackie took a drink, gathering his thought. "In hindsight, you should have started light. Let Gloria have been the one to decide how much she wanted to step into that pool at a time instead of throwing her in."
For a brief moment, Jackie wondered if he should take his own advice and offer the truth up to Misty. But that was quickly set aside as he continued to try and knock some sense into his best choom.
"Yeah, she's mad at you. David's mad at you. Most of the crew's mad at you for borderline ghosting them...Fuck, I'm still mad at you because of the shit you pulled at the mall. Oh, and let's not forget our fight in the MedCenter. And you goin' dark and not answering any of my calls." He let out a little laugh as V rolled his eyes. "Think I have more reasons to be mad at you than anyone in this whole situation."
"Get to the point Jack." V snatched the bottle back, taking a drink before offering it to him again.
"Point is, when you called? I answered." Jackie took a drink, letting it calm him. "I had enough time to think about everything. See how everyone was being affected. Much as I was pissed about you calling me so early, I saw my chance to try and fix things. Did I think that meant taking out one of the biggest thorns in our side? No, but I was still willing to listen." He took another drink, handing the bottle back to V. "And you need to do the same. Take a moment and step back. Reach out to the others and let them know you're available to talk, if you're ready or when they're ready...But don't rush things."
V accepted the bottle and held it, taking the last swallow before getting up to trade it for Jackie's preferred bottle of Centzon. He poured himself a glass, before offering him the bottle. Accepting it with his thanks, the two fell back into silence for a few minutes. Jackie would have been content with that, leaving V to stew over what he had said. But the man seemed to have other plans if his sudden muttering about Jenkins' confession was any indication.
"...Covered his ass by sending a team to die." With an almost violent lurch, V shoved his glass of tequila aside and let out a pained groan. Recognizing the sound, Jackie was off his chair and into the living room in an instant. Returning a moment later with the small trash can and placing it at V's feet. V signed his thanks, but didn't look up, continuing his mutterings. "All because he wanted to fuck JoyToys instead of do his damn job. Because he wanted to shortcut the corporate ladder." .
V seemed to be on a loop, talking more to the air than to him about his time in Neo-Oaxaca. Speaking of colleagues lost in the early days. Seeing V looking so sick over it, yet sounding so angry left Jackie with mixed feelings. He could have stopped V at any time, or told him to step back. He might not have done the majority of the killing, but more than one thug had been brought down by his bullets. At the same time, Jackie realized something he had long overlooked.
If V's team hadn't been ambushed, V wouldn't have run as he did.
Wouldn't have found him, locked in that room full of rage from what those Cartel assholes had put him through.
Wouldn't have had someone to watch each other's backs as they ran from hell and high water.
That he wouldn't have made it back to Night City. That Mama, Misty, and so many others would have been left wondering what happened to him.
That one realization brought a pained smile to his face, something that V noticed and commented on.
"Yeah, you're right that we went through hell because of Jenkins. But looking back?" Jackie returned his hand to V's shoulder, making sure his attention was on him. "Well, at least one good thing came out of it."
Jackie playfully pointed a finger back and forth between them.
How long V stared at him like a junkie caught in a searchlight was beyond him. But once the meaning of his words sunk in, something seemed to crack in V. He let out a huff, that turned into a hum, before becoming a chuckle that Jackie found himself unable to resist joining in on. Given the circumstances, there really wasn't any reason they should have been laughing at the moment, but there they were. Two chooms who had defied the odds; having drinks and relaxing while overlooking a city that ate guys like them on the daily.
"Yeah, guess it did." V said after a moment, picking up his glass. "Cheers, Jackie."
"Cheers."
Jackie made certain V was out like a light with the power cut when he left the apartment. He wanted a few hours for his upcoming antics to take root without interruption.
["David, When can we meet up? Your pops is being a sad sack and I wanna fix it pronto."]