Chapter 9 Chapter Six Straight into the Fortress
Since the fort was still some distance away, and the battle with the Painbringer had left me in desperate need of rest, we decided to hire a carriage instead.Besides, it seemed like a good idea to hide from the limelight in the car first.The horse trotted toward us while keeping an eye on the traffic.It is a very tall draft horse, with silver-white hair like a bright moon, broad and powerful back, extremely handsome silver hoofs, and the 19th-century carriage behind it is even more magnificent.The finest ebony is mixed with white sandalwood and accented with copper inlays.The coachman was sitting on the roof of the front car, wrapped in a fur coat, holding a five-foot-long trumpet gun with many weird curse symbols engraved on the handle.The steed stopped beside me and Joanna, and the coachman looked around vigilantly, ready to shoot if something went wrong.Joanna's mood has calmed down at this moment, and her usual arrogant look has returned to her face, but she was deeply fascinated by the horse when she first saw it, and couldn't help but ran to the horse, patted the horse's back, Touch the horse's nose.The horse neighed a few times and seemed to enjoy it very much.
"What a handsome horse." Joanna admired. "Do you think it likes sugar? Or dessert?"
"No, thank you, ma'am," said the horse. "I hate going to the dentist when I eat those cavities. Carrots are nice, but you don't have them?"
Joanna blinked in surprise, and then said to me in a displeased tone: "You did it on purpose. Whenever I thought I was finally familiar with Night City, you would play this new trick to make me look bad. Tell you, man Patience has a limit." Then she turned to the horse and said, "Sorry, no carrots."
"Then hurry up and get in the car, don't waste my time." Ma said. "Time is money in our line of business, and I have a pile of debts to pay."
"Sorry," Joanna asked with a change of tone, "But I don't quite understand... Is this your carriage? Are you the boss?"
"That's right." Ma said. "Originally, I was the one who did the hard work. No matter the wind or rain, I was the one who ran around with this car on my back. I was also the one who knew the way, and I was familiar with the streets and alleys of Night City. , even the shortcuts that are not on the map are clear. As long as you can say it, I can take you there, and it is guaranteed to be faster than any taxi."
"What about... the man on the roof?" Joanna asked.
"You mean old Henry? He's only responsible for collecting money, changing money, and holding guns. No one dares to mess with us, unless they are impatient. To be honest, it's really convenient to have hands. After the bank's debts are repaid , I'm thinking about investing in a biochemical arm. I'll be able to scratch my own itch with a prosthetic hand. Are we going to talk all night here? There will be an extra charge for that. Where are you going?"
"Know the fort?" I said.
"Oh, of course, no problem. But I want to drop you off at the corner, God knows when those crazy people will shoot again."
Old Henry grunted in agreement, and waved the trumpet gun in his hand.I opened the door, got into the car after Joanna, and set off as soon as the door closed.The seats on the car are made of red leather and are very comfortable to sit on.Although the space is not large, it is quite elegantly furnished.The anti-shock system is really good, and you don't feel any bumps along the way.
"I don't like taxis." I found a topic for small talk. "You can't be sure who they're working for, or who they're paying back to, and the drivers are always talking politics. The horse-drawn carriages in Nightside are different. The horse-drawn carriages work absolutely independently, because the horses are stubborn and quite insistent about it." .Notice that old Henry doesn't even have a rein? Partly because it's up to the horse to go where it goes, and partly because the big gun needs two hands to use it."
"What is he doing with the gun?" Joanna's voice had returned to normal.
"Prevent traffic. Not everything that looks like a car is really a car, and there's no guarantee a giant will not jump out and hijack the car."
"I want to skip the subject," Joanna said. "Let's talk about this Suzy Huett you might run into at the Fort. Sounds like she's a... charming woman."
"Oh, she's so charming. Suzie," I said with a smile. "She is a master hunter who specializes in hunting down wanted criminals. No matter how dangerous the other's hiding place is, she dares to break into it; no matter how powerful the opponent's firepower is, she dares to fight. Susie can't be called a careful person, but she She has a fortitude that is unmatched. If the price is right, she will not turn down any job, nor will she be deterred by any danger. Suzie has all the guns in the world, including some homemade ones, but her favorite Still a straightforward shotgun. Wherever Suzie goes, there is a sea of fire everywhere. To find her, just follow the scattered screams, kicked through broken doors, and blood on the wall. Her appearance is usually not a trigger A dispute is an end to a dispute, and it's a really scary woman."
"Have you ever...been in close contact? You said you had a past with her..."
"We've worked together on a few cases, but she doesn't like getting too close to people. I don't think she knows how to get along with people. She has had a lot of men come and go in her life, but they all run away."
"Razor Eddie, Shotgun Suzy...everyone you know is interesting, John. Don't you make friends with normal people?"
"Normal people can't live long in the Nightside."
"Will she help or hinder us?"
"It's hard to say." I answered truthfully. "Susie isn't the best partner, especially when you're trying to capture a target alive. Susie is a killer by nature, and she's a bounty hunter purely because of the legal opportunities the industry offers."
"But you like her, don't you? I can hear it."
"She has experienced strong winds and waves, and endured hardships. I admire her very much."
"Do you trust her?"
I smiled. "You can't trust anyone here, you should already know."
She nods. "Razor Eddie."
"And he's still my friend."
No one said anything for the rest of the drive because we both had a lot to think about.Joanna looks out of the window most of the time, but I don't because I've already seen it.After a while the carriage stopped, and the horse turned back to tell us that we had arrived at our destination.After getting off the car, I went to pay first, while Joanna kept staring at the fortress in front of me. (I tipped old Henry a good deal to make sure he didn't forget us, since a car might be needed at any moment here.) Old Henry made sure everything was right and nodded to the horse, and they were on their way again.I walked up to Joanna and found her still staring at the fort.The fort is indeed a wonderful place to see and hasn't changed a bit in five years.
When it first opened, Fortress was a discount store with a wide range of products and cheap prices, but no refunds.Back then the fort sold mostly weapons, from all ages and origins, and no one asked any questions.It's a pity that they hoarded so much that the market couldn't afford it, because even in Night City, not everyone has the need to kill at any time.So the people in the store secretly instigated several gang wars in an attempt to stimulate buying momentum, which resulted in the intervention of those in power.
The property in the store was auctioned off the next day.The anti-alien abduction group bought it, put a bunch of locks in it, put in a lot of supplies, and took an untold number of guns.
The fortress is a square building several stories high. All the doors and windows on it are equipped with reinforced iron bars, and the roof is covered with heavy machine gun positions and electronic instruments, with the muzzles facing in all directions.Anyone attempting to enter the fort is subject to strict interrogation.The words "Fortress" were painted in large letters on the wall of the main entrance, in every language in the world, some of which were only spoken in Nightside.These people didn't come here to take refuge, they were very proud of their status.The fort is still home to anti-alien abduction groups to this day, but they welcome anyone in need of help for short-term stays.They counsel, show the way, and do everything in their power to arm others to fill others with a sense of security.Bastion has an old philosophy: "Kill them all and let God decide what's right." If you've been abducted by aliens since you were ten years old, there's nothing wrong with that.Anyone foolish enough to cause trouble in the fort has no chance of living to tell their story.
On either side of the fort are a voodoo school and an army store.These two stores are quite unique, and Joanna couldn't help but stop and take a look.The windows of the voodoo school currently display St. John's Conqueror Root capsules, mandala roots with grievous faces, and various amulets.There is also an area in the display cabinet deliberately arranged in the shape of a cemetery, in which stands a voodoo doll of Barong Samedee, the god of the dead, which can only be described as vulgar.
The windows of the military store display all the military uniforms of all time, medals from countries that no longer exist, and a high-end briefcase with a tag that reads, "Pocket Nuke, Bid."Joanna stood in front of the briefcase and looked at it for a long time, then turned around.
"Are you kidding? That can't really be a nuclear bomb, can it?"
"There must be something wrong," I said. "Otherwise, it would have been bought by the people of the fortress. Maybe you have to find the plutonium yourself."
"Jesus should have wept for this," Joanna said.
"He's already gone," I said. "But for something worse than that."
As soon as we got to the front door of the fort, things started to go wrong.The monitor on the door was destroyed, and the reinforced steel door was not closed tightly.I frowned, I never saw this door closed properly, never in my memory.I lightly grabbed Joanna's arm, motioning for her to follow quietly.Then I cautiously pushed the door open a little, and then I heard gunfire and screams in the distance.I laughed.
"Looks like Suzie is really here. Stay with me, Joanna, and try to look okay."
I open all the doors.After confirming that there was no one in the hall, he tiptoed in and carefully studied the situation in front of him.
The lobby is designed to let passengers relax, it should be comfortable, but now it is chaotic.All the furniture was overturned on the ground, the paintings on the walls were crooked and full of bullet holes, and the plastic plants in the corners were devastated by the extremely unfriendly firepower.Normally, one would have to go through a heavy metal detection door to enter the hall, but now that door has been rolled aside to cool off.There was a smell of gunpowder and gunpowder in the air. It was obvious that someone had fired a lot of bullets here, and it was not long ago.
But no bodies were found.
I walked slowly down the hall with Joanna clinging to me so tightly that she almost climbed onto my back.I looked at the monitors in the corners of the ceiling, and the red lights on them showed that they were still functioning normally.Someone must have known what happened to the hall, but there was no sign of reinforcements.This means that things are not over yet, and that the fire is still going on somewhere inside the fort.I'm starting to get a little worried. The door on the other side of the hall leading to the interior of the fort was also not closed tightly. All the locks and bolts on it were completely broken, and the hinges were also torn off.I carefully opened the door and looked, and found that the corridor behind the door was also full of bullet holes, but there were still no dead bodies.Gunshots and roars came faintly from the other side of the corridor. "Should we go to the military supply store next door and get some guns first?" Joanna said. "If you had a gun, would you use it?" "meeting." I looked at her. "You're full of surprises. But I don't like guns because they're too easy to make irreparable mistakes. Besides, I don't need guns." "Even if you face the pain messenger?" "They can't be dealt with with a gun." Joanna pointed to the monitor on the ceiling and asked, "Why are there so many cameras?" "Anti-kidnappers' theory. They have monitors in all rooms, corridors, corners, and crevices, and there are countless hidden organs. They have a team of people who are responsible for monitoring these monitors in shifts. Everyone here I'm afraid of being kidnapped again by aliens. Since no one knows how those little gray guys come and go, the monitors here have to be running at all times. If no one can find the aliens, at least there are monitors. Take a picture of them. My guess is that as soon as anyone spots aliens they'll hit the nearest siren, grab whatever weapon they have, and blast anything that's even remotely human-looking into hell. Just in case One, even the toilets and bathrooms are equipped with cameras. No one here will be easily kidnapped again." Joanna couldn't hear it: "No privacy? It's just a bunch of paranoid people." "It wouldn't be considered paranoid if there were aliens trying to catch them. It's just that...the situation now makes me more and more worried. Every sign shows that someone broke into the hall, and the people in the fortress fired back, but it didn't help at all .Although it sounds like the battle is still going on, the people in the fortress are obviously fighting and walking, and they are being forced to retreat on their own territory. But why are there no corpses along the way? Could it be... Could it be that foreigners Are the stars coming to recover the escaped experiment?" "Are you serious?" Joanna said. "Alien?" I looked at the empty hallway and considered the possibility. "There's everyone in Nightside, from the past, present, and future. Aliens aren't that big of a deal compared to what I've seen here." "Maybe we should come back another day," Joanna said. "No. They're good people, and I can't walk away when they need help. It's just a matter of character. Besides, Suzie might be here too. . . I want to go in and have a look, if you don't want to follow, you can wait for me outside." "No, it's safer with you, my hero." We smiled at each other and walked down the corridor.The further you go inside, the louder the gunshots and shouts become.Along the way, there were more and more bullet marks around the walls, but there were no corpses to be seen, not even bloodstains.From the sound of gunshots going on and on, the situation was disturbing...the end of the corridor was a right-hand corner, and the shootout was just beyond the corner.I pushed Joanna behind me and poked my head out quickly.With this look, all doubts suddenly became clear.I sighed, walked into the corridor where the battle was taking place, stood where both sides could see it, raised the volume, and spoke in a cold and commanding tone. "Everything ceases fire, stop immediately!" The gunfire stopped suddenly, and the corridor fell silent for an instant.Gunpowder smoke filled the air, and the atmosphere was extremely dignified.At the other end of the corridor, a group of people took shelter behind a makeshift shelter of furniture.At least twenty guns of different shapes protruded from the gaps in the bunker, most of which were fully automatic weapons.There was also a simple bunker on my side, behind which was a blond woman in black leather and holding a shotgun.She glanced back at me and said hello with a cheerful expression. "John, I heard you're back. I'll tell you later, I'll deal with these masochists first." "Put the gun down, Suzy," I said sternly. "I'm serious, no one is allowed to shoot anymore, otherwise when I get angry, the scene will not be good." "Oh, my God," said someone behind the opposite bunker. "Isn't it bad enough? Even John Tyler? Damn, what idiot messed with him again?" Suzy Huett stood up, not seeming too pleased with me.She's in her late thirties, but she's still pretty, as long as you don't mind being bitten back.Her shape is still the same as before, with a black motorcycle leather jacket, all kinds of iron chains and nails, two elastic belts hanging from her magnificent chest, and knee-length boots on her feet, with the toes partially covered with iron.She'd watched "Motor Girl" and "Easy Rider" a lot, and was obsessed with Roger Corman's "Hell's Angels" films. She had a beautiful face, with sharp lines and a defined jaw, and her hair was combed back and held in place by a leather headband.Legend has it that the headband was made from the skin of the first man she killed when she was only twelve years old.Her eyes were dark blue, showing a cold and determined expression.Her lips are sexy, but she rarely smiles except when she is violent.She can't stand stupid people, spending money is like drinking water, and her favorite pastime is flat people.She always said that she had no friends, and all enemies were dead.But no matter what she said, people knew that there were a few people in her life, and I was one of them. Standing proudly amidst the swinging lights and scattered gunpowder smoke, she looks like a female warrior from hell. "Let me guess." I said a little tiredly. "You break into the fort and demand that they hand over the wanted man. If they won't, you open fire. Right?" "The man I'm going to catch has a solid record," Suzie said. "But these guys are very rude." I consider the situation. "I think they're all sorry. In that case, try not to kill them all, Suzie. Let me ask some questions." "Hey! Don't mess around!" yelled a voice from behind the bunker. "We might... maybe be a little too reckless. Nobody here wants to take on Suzie Shotgun and John Taylor. Can't we talk?" I looked at Suzy and she shrugged. "As long as they are willing to hand over, I will leave." "If you hand him over to you, he will die," said the voice. "People come to the fort to seek refuge." "He's right," I said to Suzy. "You do like to catch dead wanted criminals and go back to work." "You can save a lot of paperwork if you die," Susie said. I said to the twenty or so guns across the corridor: "If Susie was serious, you would have died long ago. She has shown mercy, you shouldn't continue to resist." "We must protect everyone who comes here." The voice said stubbornly. "This is our principle and the reason for the existence of the fortress. We are willing to negotiate terms, but it does not mean that we will give up the principle." I looked at Suzie and asked, "Which wretch are you trying to catch this time?" "Not a big shot, just a bastard lawyer who stole the settlement money and ran away. Five million pounds, plus change. I'll get 10% of the money back." "Lawyer?" said the voice. "Oh, my God, why didn't you say it earlier? If you said it was a lawyer, we'd just hand it over to you." I smiled at Suzy. "Another example of basic common sense and negotiating skills. You see, things are usually not difficult to solve as long as you reason with them first." Suzy put down her gun and said displeasedly, "I hate reasoning, it's bad for my reputation." I turned to cover the opposite side so she wouldn't see me giggling. "I'm here for a runaway girl named Cathy Barrett. The girl has no idea what trouble she's gotten into. Has anyone heard her name?" "As long as Susie is still there, I will never come out." The voice behind the bunker said. "No one asked you to come out," I said patiently. "As long as you answer the questions. You don't want to make me angry?" "Cathy has been here," said the voice quickly. "Leaving about a week ago. She said something was calling her, something wonderful. We tried to persuade her, but she wouldn't listen. The fort is not a prison, and we can't force her to stay... …I just know she mentioned Braston Street, and that's all." "Thank you." I said. "You have been a great help." "We have no choice," said the voice. "What you did outside the Stranger's Tavern has spread, and the scene has not been cleaned up yet." I nodded and said nothing.It's also not the first time people have blamed me for things I didn't do. This rumor was probably spread by Eddie specifically as an apology.One good thing about being a ruthless character is that people will easily believe any rumors about you. "I'll leave the rest for you and Suzie to figure it out," I said. "In order not to cause more trouble, it's best to give her what she wants." "Thank you." The voice smiled wryly. "I think I'd rather face aliens again." I motioned for Suzy to retreat to a corner for a private talk, and introduce her to Joanna by the way.The two women smiled politely, and it was clear from that smile that they could not be friends. "I see," Suzie said. "You've got another lost lamb to take care of, haven't you, John?" "Business." I said. "Long time no see, Suzy." "Five years and three months. I knew you'd crawl back to me one day." "Sorry, Suzie. I'm only here on a case. When I find the girl, I'll be back in the safe, rational world." She took a step forward, looked at me seriously, and said, "You don't fit in there, John. You belong in the Nightside, just like us monsters." I didn't know what to say, but Joanna broke the silence. "Ms. Huett, may I ask what is your relationship with John?" She snorted and said, "I shot him once, but he didn't die. I found out later that the arrest warrant for him was fake. We have cooperated on several cases one after another. He is a good man, always Take me deep into the tiger's den and run towards danger. In short, being with John will never be boring." "That's the only way to live your life?" Joanna asked. "Violence and killing?" "That's enough," Suzie said. Afraid of the consequences of letting them go on, I said to Joanna, "Breston Street is not far from here, but the surrounding area is very bad. If Cathy does go there, we'd better find her as soon as possible." " "Need help?" Suzy said. I looked at her and thought for a while, "If you want, of course. Are you busy later?" She shrugged: "I've been bored recently, and I hate boredom the most. I'll find you after I finish here and collect the bounty. Old price?" "Of course." I said. "My clients can afford it." Susie looked at Joanna: "She'd better not renege." Joanna still wanted to talk, but noticed that Susie was pointing her gun at her, so she decided not to mess with her.She deliberately turned her back on Suzy and said to me: "At least we've got an address. Is that a bad place?" "It's hard to say, because I don't know what drew her there. There shouldn't be anything attractive about Braston Street. There's no place in the world that's lower than that street, except the sewers. Only people who've fallen to the bottom." Will end up in Braston Street. Things haven't changed in the years I've been away, Susie?" She shook her head and said, "It's still a snake den. If that street is burned down, the whole Night City will become fragrant." "Don't worry," I said to Joanna. "She's your daughter. You said she could take care of herself. And we're almost there." "Don't be too sure." Joanna said with drooping corners of her mouth. "Cathy is very good at hiding, it's not easy to find her out." "That's because she has never met our kind of expert in finding people." I said confidently. "There are not many people like us." Susie Huett said. "Thank God," said the voice from behind the bunker.
I walked slowly down the hall with Joanna clinging to me so tightly that she almost climbed onto my back.I looked at the monitors in the corners of the ceiling, and the red lights on them showed that they were still functioning normally.Someone must have known what happened to the hall, but there was no sign of reinforcements.This means that things are not over yet, and that the fire is still going on somewhere inside the fort.I'm starting to get a little worried. The door on the other side of the hall leading to the interior of the fort was also not closed tightly. All the locks and bolts on it were completely broken, and the hinges were also torn off.I carefully opened the door and looked, and found that the corridor behind the door was also full of bullet holes, but there were still no dead bodies.Gunshots and roars came faintly from the other side of the corridor. "Should we go to the military supply store next door and get some guns first?" Joanna said. "If you had a gun, would you use it?" "meeting." I looked at her. "You're full of surprises. But I don't like guns because they're too easy to make irreparable mistakes. Besides, I don't need guns." "Even if you face the pain messenger?" "They can't be dealt with with a gun." Joanna pointed to the monitor on the ceiling and asked, "Why are there so many cameras?" "Anti-kidnappers' theory. They have monitors in all rooms, corridors, corners, and crevices, and there are countless hidden organs. They have a team of people who are responsible for monitoring these monitors in shifts. Everyone here I'm afraid of being kidnapped again by aliens. Since no one knows how those little gray guys come and go, the monitors here have to be running at all times. If no one can find the aliens, at least there are monitors. Take a picture of them. My guess is that as soon as anyone spots aliens they'll hit the nearest siren, grab whatever weapon they have, and blast anything that's even remotely human-looking into hell. Just in case One, even the toilets and bathrooms are equipped with cameras. No one here will be easily kidnapped again." Joanna couldn't hear it: "No privacy? It's just a bunch of paranoid people." "It wouldn't be considered paranoid if there were aliens trying to catch them. It's just that...the situation now makes me more and more worried. Every sign shows that someone broke into the hall, and the people in the fortress fired back, but it didn't help at all .Although it sounds like the battle is still going on, the people in the fortress are obviously fighting and walking, and they are being forced to retreat on their own territory. But why are there no corpses along the way? Could it be... Could it be that foreigners Are the stars coming to recover the escaped experiment?" "Are you serious?" Joanna said. "Alien?" I looked at the empty hallway and considered the possibility. "There's everyone in Nightside, from the past, present, and future. Aliens aren't that big of a deal compared to what I've seen here." "Maybe we should come back another day," Joanna said. "No. They're good people, and I can't walk away when they need help. It's just a matter of character. Besides, Suzie might be here too. . . I want to go in and have a look, if you don't want to follow, you can wait for me outside." "No, it's safer with you, my hero." We smiled at each other and walked down the corridor.The further you go inside, the louder the gunshots and shouts become.Along the way, there were more and more bullet marks around the walls, but there were no corpses to be seen, not even bloodstains.From the sound of gunshots going on and on, the situation was disturbing...the end of the corridor was a right-hand corner, and the shootout was just beyond the corner.I pushed Joanna behind me and poked my head out quickly.With this look, all doubts suddenly became clear.I sighed, walked into the corridor where the battle was taking place, stood where both sides could see it, raised the volume, and spoke in a cold and commanding tone. "Everything ceases fire, stop immediately!" The gunfire stopped suddenly, and the corridor fell silent for an instant.Gunpowder smoke filled the air, and the atmosphere was extremely dignified.At the other end of the corridor, a group of people took shelter behind a makeshift shelter of furniture.At least twenty guns of different shapes protruded from the gaps in the bunker, most of which were fully automatic weapons.There was also a simple bunker on my side, behind which was a blond woman in black leather and holding a shotgun.She glanced back at me and said hello with a cheerful expression. "John, I heard you're back. I'll tell you later, I'll deal with these masochists first." "Put the gun down, Suzy," I said sternly. "I'm serious, no one is allowed to shoot anymore, otherwise when I get angry, the scene will not be good." "Oh, my God," said someone behind the opposite bunker. "Isn't it bad enough? Even John Tyler? Damn, what idiot messed with him again?" Suzy Huett stood up, not seeming too pleased with me.She's in her late thirties, but she's still pretty, as long as you don't mind being bitten back.Her shape is still the same as before, with a black motorcycle leather jacket, all kinds of iron chains and nails, two elastic belts hanging from her magnificent chest, and knee-length boots on her feet, with the toes partially covered with iron.She'd watched "Motor Girl" and "Easy Rider" a lot, and was obsessed with Roger Corman's "Hell's Angels" films. She had a beautiful face, with sharp lines and a defined jaw, and her hair was combed back and held in place by a leather headband.Legend has it that the headband was made from the skin of the first man she killed when she was only twelve years old.Her eyes were dark blue, showing a cold and determined expression.Her lips are sexy, but she rarely smiles except when she is violent.She can't stand stupid people, spending money is like drinking water, and her favorite pastime is flat people.She always said that she had no friends, and all enemies were dead.But no matter what she said, people knew that there were a few people in her life, and I was one of them. Standing proudly amidst the swinging lights and scattered gunpowder smoke, she looks like a female warrior from hell. "Let me guess." I said a little tiredly. "You break into the fort and demand that they hand over the wanted man. If they won't, you open fire. Right?" "The man I'm going to catch has a solid record," Suzie said. "But these guys are very rude." I consider the situation. "I think they're all sorry. In that case, try not to kill them all, Suzie. Let me ask some questions." "Hey! Don't mess around!" yelled a voice from behind the bunker. "We might... maybe be a little too reckless. Nobody here wants to take on Suzie Shotgun and John Taylor. Can't we talk?" I looked at Suzy and she shrugged. "As long as they are willing to hand over, I will leave." "If you hand him over to you, he will die," said the voice. "People come to the fort to seek refuge." "He's right," I said to Suzy. "You do like to catch dead wanted criminals and go back to work." "You can save a lot of paperwork if you die," Susie said. I said to the twenty or so guns across the corridor: "If Susie was serious, you would have died long ago. She has shown mercy, you shouldn't continue to resist." "We must protect everyone who comes here." The voice said stubbornly. "This is our principle and the reason for the existence of the fortress. We are willing to negotiate terms, but it does not mean that we will give up the principle." I looked at Suzie and asked, "Which wretch are you trying to catch this time?" "Not a big shot, just a bastard lawyer who stole the settlement money and ran away. Five million pounds, plus change. I'll get 10% of the money back." "Lawyer?" said the voice. "Oh, my God, why didn't you say it earlier? If you said it was a lawyer, we'd just hand it over to you." I smiled at Suzy. "Another example of basic common sense and negotiating skills. You see, things are usually not difficult to solve as long as you reason with them first." Suzy put down her gun and said displeasedly, "I hate reasoning, it's bad for my reputation." I turned to cover the opposite side so she wouldn't see me giggling. "I'm here for a runaway girl named Cathy Barrett. The girl has no idea what trouble she's gotten into. Has anyone heard her name?" "As long as Susie is still there, I will never come out." The voice behind the bunker said. "No one asked you to come out," I said patiently. "As long as you answer the questions. You don't want to make me angry?" "Cathy has been here," said the voice quickly. "Leaving about a week ago. She said something was calling her, something wonderful. We tried to persuade her, but she wouldn't listen. The fort is not a prison, and we can't force her to stay... …I just know she mentioned Braston Street, and that's all." "Thank you." I said. "You have been a great help." "We have no choice," said the voice. "What you did outside the Stranger's Tavern has spread, and the scene has not been cleaned up yet." I nodded and said nothing.It's also not the first time people have blamed me for things I didn't do. This rumor was probably spread by Eddie specifically as an apology.One good thing about being a ruthless character is that people will easily believe any rumors about you. "I'll leave the rest for you and Suzie to figure it out," I said. "In order not to cause more trouble, it's best to give her what she wants." "Thank you." The voice smiled wryly. "I think I'd rather face aliens again." I motioned for Suzy to retreat to a corner for a private talk, and introduce her to Joanna by the way.The two women smiled politely, and it was clear from that smile that they could not be friends. "I see," Suzie said. "You've got another lost lamb to take care of, haven't you, John?" "Business." I said. "Long time no see, Suzy." "Five years and three months. I knew you'd crawl back to me one day." "Sorry, Suzie. I'm only here on a case. When I find the girl, I'll be back in the safe, rational world." She took a step forward, looked at me seriously, and said, "You don't fit in there, John. You belong in the Nightside, just like us monsters." I didn't know what to say, but Joanna broke the silence. "Ms. Huett, may I ask what is your relationship with John?" She snorted and said, "I shot him once, but he didn't die. I found out later that the arrest warrant for him was fake. We have cooperated on several cases one after another. He is a good man, always Take me deep into the tiger's den and run towards danger. In short, being with John will never be boring." "That's the only way to live your life?" Joanna asked. "Violence and killing?" "That's enough," Suzie said. Afraid of the consequences of letting them go on, I said to Joanna, "Breston Street is not far from here, but the surrounding area is very bad. If Cathy does go there, we'd better find her as soon as possible." " "Need help?" Suzy said. I looked at her and thought for a while, "If you want, of course. Are you busy later?" She shrugged: "I've been bored recently, and I hate boredom the most. I'll find you after I finish here and collect the bounty. Old price?" "Of course." I said. "My clients can afford it." Susie looked at Joanna: "She'd better not renege." Joanna still wanted to talk, but noticed that Susie was pointing her gun at her, so she decided not to mess with her.She deliberately turned her back on Suzy and said to me: "At least we've got an address. Is that a bad place?" "It's hard to say, because I don't know what drew her there. There shouldn't be anything attractive about Braston Street. There's no place in the world that's lower than that street, except the sewers. Only people who've fallen to the bottom." Will end up in Braston Street. Things haven't changed in the years I've been away, Susie?" She shook her head and said, "It's still a snake den. If that street is burned down, the whole Night City will become fragrant." "Don't worry," I said to Joanna. "She's your daughter. You said she could take care of herself. And we're almost there." "Don't be too sure." Joanna said with drooping corners of her mouth. "Cathy is very good at hiding, it's not easy to find her out." "That's because she has never met our kind of expert in finding people." I said confidently. "There are not many people like us." Susie Huett said. "Thank God," said the voice from behind the bunker.