Edgerunners2077

V: 10

[ Yorinobu Arasaka is a member of the Arasaka family who has long since decided to take the mafia approach to business by becoming the founder of the Steel Dragons, a Japanese gang comprised of nomads who found their way to Night City]

District: Northside, Watson

"Judy.... HEY JUDE!" I knock on the door in increments of three loud taps with my knuckles. It was our signal, our secret knock. Paranoid, maybe. Too careful? Sure. But being cautious was a must! You never know who or what could be at your door.

No answer.

"Fuck! Judy.... Judy, please, I know you're in there. I spotted your van outside. I need help, and I know I can count on you, please."

David stood beside me, elbows practically brushing my own while Lucy was on the stairwell, giving the two of them some much needed space. With as much space we 'shared' on the ride here I'm surprised Lucy didn't opt out to wait outside.

The doorbell speaker vibrates with Judy's returning message. It was sassy to say the least. "Who's with you? I don't remember you ever mentioning you had....friends."

"Ouch. Shade much?" Lone wolf or not I did have the occasional friend or two. Although I would hardly call David and Lucy, friends. They had a score to settle and somehow, I feel as if I only have myself to blame. Recuse missions however have a chokehold on my psyche.

David quirks a brow at me less attitude than normal but you could tell he was growing impatient. I sigh aloud then put my face close to Judy's door and answer her. "They are the reason I'm here. They both have a friend who was taken tonight, with luck and your help we can find her before--- it's too late." I breathe slowly, my own heart thumping in my ears. My voice cracked. For reasons I'd rather not discuss I was getting emotional. "I know we ended things rough Jude, but I can't leave them hanging. You know that. If there's a chance of saving this girl I gotta take it."

The electric sound of a lock clicked on the other side of the door, and through the crack peeks Judy's brown eyes wide and sad. Evelyn, I thought to myself. I must have reminded her of our search for Evelyn Parker, her friend who not too long after her rescue committed suicide in Judy's bathtub.

She eyeballs David first then Lucy, her glassy eyes grow cold as they flicker back to me. "No funny business, got it? I don't need NCPD knocking on my door. Whatever you guys need, we do it and we do it quick."

*****

Inside the apartment looks the exact same, as if I never left. Open kitchen with a half bar and living room area with a huge fish tank harboring only a few aquatic life. Old tech decorated the tabletops, old model braindance wreaths dismembered down to the wires and bolts.

"Grab a seat but don't get too comfy," she says to The Edgerunners. Same Judy I remember. SUPER welcoming, with her guard up and an attitude to match. "V, give me the rundown. The quick gonk'd down version so we're not dancing in circles, and your friends aren't waiting around with their thumbs up their asses longer than necessary."

Hunched over the kitchen counter, I fill Judy in with tonight's events in Santo Domingo. The shootout in the market, the cyberpsycho, the run-in with the Animal goons, Rebecca's disappearance. All of it. I do however leave out David's huge slip of the tongue with Sasquatch. Judy would have given him an earful if she heard about that!

She gives a low short and sweet whistle. "Damn, and I thought my night at Lizze's was rough. The Mox had a run in with a couple of Scavs tryna to rough up some dancers." She shrugs towards the table by the window, which was covered in tech scraps, a busted datachip and a Scavvy mask. A trophy table. My guess, the Scavs got quite the beat down at Lizzie's and even though Judy isn't officially running with The Moxes anymore, that isn't going to stop her from getting revenge on the group who tortured her friend.