Heywood

  October 30th

  2069

  The journey to La Palma Street felt longer than it really was. Sophie took her time, winding through the streets of Heywood at a slow pace. The series of holo-calls had left her thoroughly annoyed and unsettled. She didn’t know these people and the way they were being cagey about their reasons for wanting to meet her just didn’t sit right. She turned the conversations she’d just had over in her head, trying to piece together some semblance of an explanation, but nothing added up.

  The more affluent part of the district felt…strange. Sophie had spent most of her time in Night City sticking to the grimy streets, rarely venturing into the wealthier areas. The affluence of the area was apparent in the clean sidewalks and neatly maintained fa?ades. Trees lined the streets here and there, their leaves rustling gently in the breeze. Her head swiveled around, trying to make sense of how part of the city could look so different compared to a street only a hundred metres away.

  Eventually, she got close to the address provided by ‘Ophelia’. Before she got any closer though, she wanted to do some scouting. If she had to meet them at a location of their choosing, she wasn’t going to do it without doing some surveillance first.

  Fortunately, the meeting location was nestled amongst a number of other buildings, which meant she had plenty of vantage points she could use for her observation. She climbed up the outside of a residential complex until she reached the roof. Making her way across to the other side, she looked over the edge.

  As she looked over the area, she froze. A few floors below her stood a massive, multi-story villa, almost absurd in its grandeur. Sophie quickly realised she was a little too high up to properly observe anything aside from the roof, not to mention she was looking at what seemed to be the back of the building.

  She looked around before spotting a set of buildings on the other side of the villa. Groaning, she clambered down the building she was currently on before looping around to the set of buildings she’d spotted.

  Once more, she climbed up and her new vantage point allowed her a much better view. Hmm. I feel a bit far away actually. Frowning, she zoomed her eyes in and while it helped, it wasn’t quite enough. Digging through her inventory, she came away with the scope on her Nekomata. “Yeah, this’ll do.”

  Lying flat on the roof, Sophie began examining the villa.

  The building was a sprawling piece of architecture, all sleek lines and cutting-edge design. Floor-to-ceiling glass windows dominated the front of the second floor, offering a tiny glimpse into an interior bathed in warm light.

  The walls were made of a polished white stone that gleamed faintly in the sun, accented with strips of black that ran like veins along the structure’s edges. A wide balcony wrapped around the third floor, adorned with fancy looking furniture. Surrounding the villa was a high, reinforced fence, topped with barbed wire and its surface was smooth, unmarred by the graffiti that covered most buildings in the city.

  Sophie frowned. It didn’t make sense. She’d been expecting some kind of hotel or shady looking building. Not someone’s home. Her eyes zeroed in on the villa’s security.

  From her elevated position, she saw a handful of robotic guards patrolling the perimeter, mechanical bodies clanking slightly with each step. It was the kind of security she expected a high-ranking corpo to possess but the location, in Heywood, felt odd.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  Oddly enough, she saw no sign of human guards. It felt like the kind of place that would have a contingent of human guards to accompany the robots but Sophie was confident in her ability to identify anyone that might have been hidden. Unless these people are way more important than I think they are. Surely people like that wouldn’t give a fuck about me though.

  Over the next couple of hours, she checked every accessible angle, noting the placement of cameras, the routes of the patrolling robots, and the apparent lack of any exterior vulnerabilities. She didn’t forget to check out the surrounding buildings and streets, though there didn’t seem to be anything aside from cameras. Whoever this was, they weren’t messing around when it came to security, even if they didn’t seem to have human personnel guarding them.

  The villa’s systems were tight, but nothing about them screamed ambush; at least not yet.

  Realising she wouldn’t get any more information out of her surveillance unless she wanted to spend days scoping the place out, she decided to begin her approach. Before she could leave her position though, she decided to try one final thing to get some additional info.

  Sophie: Hey. I’m nearby. You gonna meet me at the door?

  She fired off the message to the number Padre had passed and didn’t have to wait long for the reply.

  ‘Ophelia’: We know you’re already here! No need to be so scared! You can come through the front door!

  Sophie’s face turned ugly at the reply. They know I’m here? What the actual fuck.

  Sophie: On second thoughts, I think I’d prefer not to meet you. I accept your thanks for whatever it is I did and I’ll have to decline whatever your offer is.

  ‘Ophelia’: Oh come on honey. We don’t want to hurt you. Since you’re so paranoid, here’s a gesture of good will. But please, don’t make this any harder than it needs to be.

  The moment Sophie received the message, she watched all of the robot guards halt, then droop. They turned off? Is that the gesture of good will? Shit, I feel like I’m committed now. Dammit, I shouldn’t have come here. I knew this was a bad idea.

  Despite her frustration with the situation, she climbed down the building she’d been observing from. On her walk towards the front gate, she noted the robotic guards didn’t react to her presence at all. They were actually off.

  A fancy buzzer panel was embedded in the wall beside the entrance. She pressed it and after a brief moment, the same voice from the original call, belonging to the woman named Ophelia, spoke through a hidden speaker.

  “Hey, I’m glad you finally showed up! Really took your sweet time, huh? No matter! Come on in!”

  With a soft click, the gate unlocked and slid open. Sophie stared at it warily. It felt too easy. She hesitated for a moment, glancing around the street one last time before stepping through the gate. The path leading up to the villa was immaculate, flanked by meticulously trimmed hedges and softly glowing pathway lights. But she couldn’t shake the feeling it was…fake. Artificial.

  Sophie’s hand drifted to the grip of her pistol, her fingers curling around it and drawing it as she stepped closer to the main entrance. The large double doors were made of frosted glass, accented with subtle neon strips that pulsed faintly. They slid open automatically as she approached, revealing a short hallway that led into an expansive living space.

  The voice chimed again from hidden speakers. “Come on in! Don’t be shy!”

  Sophie clenched her jaw but stepped forward, keeping all her senses on high alert. The interior of the villa was even more extravagant than she’d expected. The living space was a wide-open layout, its floors made of polished black marble that reflected the warm yellow glow of recessed lighting overhead.

  The walls were lined with art pieces, abstract and colorful, each carefully lit to draw the eye. She suspected someone more involved in such interests would appreciate them but she had no art knowledge to call upon.

  A massive sectional couch dominated the center of the room, its soft white cushions looking soft enough to sink into. To one side, a sleek, modern kitchen sparkled as though it had never been used, while the other side housed a fully stocked bar with glowing shelves.

  It was the kind of place Sophie could only imagine seeing in movies or on the holo. The sheer wealth on display made her skin crawl, a reminder of just how far removed she was from this kind of life. Her grip on her pistol tightened as she scanned the room, her optics picking up a number of deactivated security turrets but no human threats.

  Relax, she thought to herself. Play it cool. They really don’t seem to want to hurt me. If they did, those turrets would have shredded me already.

  She maintained her focus, pistol ready in case of an ambush even as she stepped further into the living space. The doors slid shut behind her with a faint hiss, sealing her way out. Sophie took a deep breath, steadying herself before walking forwards, shoes softly falling against the marble floor.