The Rep-Detect Contact

Thorne put the dossier back in the case and closed it sharply. There were too many prying eyes around for his liking. He took a Spinner from the roof of the Sushi Tower back to his apartment to look over the files properly.

His first thought was just how high up the Tyrell chain the three to be retired were. Michael Lee was one of Tyrell's main genetic designers. At least the real Michael Lee was, Thorne thought. He'd read about him throwing himself off the Tyrell building a couple of weeks back. The photo in the newspaper of Lee after the jump turned even Thorne's strong stomach. Glenn Mironova and Byron Joseph were associates of Lee's and were the only people to witness his death.

Thorne looked at the cheque from Omni again and thought how welcome he'd soon be at Cavatts Bank. He spun his chair around to face the VDU on the wall. "Contact Tony Peters at Rep-Detect." Peters was Thorne's old partner at Rep-Detect before Thorne decided to go freelance to make more money. Peters was just about the only guy Thorne believed he could trust in his business. Peters would still help him out from time to time with a name or two. Within a minute Peters' face was in view. Thorne arranged to meet him in El Diablo's across the Sector.

Thorne arrived a little later than Peters who was sitting in a corner in a cloud of his own cigarette smoke. "Those things will kill you in the end".

"No shit!" Martin replied. "But they taste better than the air around here."

Thorne laughed and passed the dossier to Peters. A look of recognition flashed across his eyes as he started to read the contents. Peters held up the pictures of Byron Joseph and Glenn Mironova. "These have taken out two of our men in the last week alone. The top brass won't touch them any more, no matter what the price."

"What do you mean taken out?" Thorne said surprised. "My contact said no combat training."

"Well, they lied!" Peters shouted. "Who's going to pay this many zeros for a simple roundup job? Take my advice for free and bail out now, this one's too big."

Peters stood to leave but was pushed back down by the bullet that entered his right shoulder. The second bullet entered the right side of his skull pushing him and the table forward and throwing Thorne backwards. Peters was dead before he hit the ground.

Looking in the direction of the gunshots Thorne could see a figure running into an alleyway opposite the bar. His own gun was already in his hand as a reflex reaction. He pushed Peters off himself and gave chase. Nobody else in the bar had moved from their places. A few had turned to look, but a bar shooting in this part of L.A. was nothing new.

Shock and adrenaline carried Thorne after the attacker. He stumbled through the filth and stench of the alleyway half blinded in the dark. Catching sight of the figure ahead stopping he crouched behind a disused Petrochem drum. It was too dark to make out the figure's face. A loud voice from above made Thorne jump. "A new life awaits you in the Off-World colonies!" The U.N. blimp drifted into view above. For a few seconds the spotlights beneath the blimp lit up the alleyway. It was just long enough for Thorne to recognise the figure ahead was Byron Joseph. 'Looks like I won't need the V.K. machine for this one,' Thorne whispered to himself. The spotlight from the blimp moved on and so did Joseph.

Thorne ran quickly through the path Joseph had cleared and soon he was out of the alleyway and into the busy main street of Little Marrakesh. Coming out of the darkness into the array of neon and strobe lights caused him to shield his eyes. Looking to his right he saw Joseph climbing into a Spinner. Joseph hit Purge on the Spinner console and started to rise through the rain.

Thorne launched himself at the Spinner gripping at the windshield in vain. He slipped but managed to grab one of the front lights. Pulling himself forward he pointed his gun at the cockpit. By now the Spinner was some thirty feet in the air. Joseph threw the steering column up and to the right. The angle of the bullet Thorne fired was forced upwards hitting the top left of the windshield cracking it in the process. Thorne's grip was slipping fast with the rain now coming down hard. Another jolt upwards from Joseph sent Thorne downwards through the rain. He feared these were the last seconds of his life and managed to fire off another two rounds smashing the Spinners rear lights. Closing his eyes he awaited the inevitable.

Date: 2002-05-19 19:45