When I wake up in the morning, I’m alone again. The number the salvagers did on me last night feels like hell this morning. Not that there’s any business to tend to. Another day without a client and I’m quickly running out of cash. 

There’s no hiding the deep purple hue on the left side of my face. My lip looks cartoonishly big with a split in the middle. I’m a wreck, but I’m not looking for a date. I’m looking for a business partner. 

Ludo’s isn’t too far from me, so I don’t get much time to mentally prepare myself when the cab stops in front of the club. I pay the cabbie and he gives me a look of concern, but knows better than to say anything. Normally I’d be upset about the unwanted attention, but the throbbing in my head makes it difficult to focus on more than one thing at a time. 

I get to the door and this time Ricky waves me right in, no questions asked. He does snicker when he sees the condition I’m in, but doesn’t make a show of it. Tasmin must have given Ludo the heads up that I would be by. I’m brought straight to his office in the back of the club. It’s still eerily empty in the daylight. 

“Whoa! Look at you,” Ludo says, getting up from behind his desk. He walks to me with his arms open. “Did you get in a brawl with one of your clients?”

“Salvagers jumped me last night.”

“Those savages. You know, there are more honest ways to make a buck.”

“Is that what you’re doing here?”

Ludo’s smile is wiped off his face. The look he gives me makes me feel like I may have screwed this up before we even got started. 

“What do you mean by that?”

“Nothing. I’m just kidding.”

“That’s a joke to you? Accusing me of being some kind of mobster?” 

“No, not a mobster.”

Ludo leans in real close. So close that I can smell the morning bourbon on his breath. “Well maybe I am.”

He bursts out laughing and slaps me on the shoulder, which sends a shot of pain right down my spine. Ludo sits down behind his desk and motions for me to take a seat in front. I do so, just happy to stop the room from spinning.  

“Well, what brings you here to meet with us low-lifes?”

“I’m looking for an arrangement.”

“Arrangement?”

“I have skills you can use. You saw what I was able to do with Tasmin. I can do the same for any of your guys. And not just that. I specialize in any kind of catalog augments. Hearing? Memory? Vision? I’m sure your guys could use those and more.”

“But you don’t do any mechanical augments.”

“No. I don’t recommend them.”

“Why not?”

I point to my face. “It would make your men a walking target. My work is invisible.” 

Ludo sits back in his chair, spinning his pen in his hand and puts his feet up. He lets me sit in the silence, but I don’t say any more. He continues after a few uncomfortable moments.

“What do I get out of this deal?”

“You get the augments.”

“Sure, but I can go to anyone to do that. Why would I do it with you?” 

“I’m discrete. I don’t like this tech stuff any more than you do. I know how to work with it all so that I know what I’m up against, but I don’t want it anywhere near me. I think you and I see eye to eye on that.”

Ludo gives it another few moments. 

“I don’t know. I’m still not convinced there’s any reason to go with you over anyone else. I mean, you won’t check-in to help us make sure you’re keeping up your end. How do I know you’re not ripping us off?” 

“We’d have to trust each other.” 

Ludo swings his feet back off the desk and leans over his desk to look at me with a big grin. 

“I tell you what. Just because I like the balls on you, we’ll do a trial. I’ll send you a handful of my guys. If I like what I see, we can talk about doing something more on the regular.” 

Without wanting to seem too eager, I put my hand out to shake on it. He takes a moment, making me wait again. He’s showing me that he controls the how and when, which is fine. I have no leverage. 

He gives me a firm shake before clutching it harder. “Don’t do anything to break our trust, Rhys. I wouldn’t recommend it.”

He lets go of my hand and I resist the urge to rub it with my other hand or shake it off. He’s got quite a grip. I smile back instead. 

“You can trust me. This is going to be a good partnership for both of us.” 

“Good,” Ludo goes back to looking at whatever he was working on before I arrived. “Vincent can see you out.” 

The big guy who was by the door, apparently named Vincent, is right behind me. He moves quietly like a cat. I didn’t even know he was there. He puts his hand on my shoulder and I take the invite to leave.