“Okay…” Joel says slowly, after Thompson and Rachel explain the situation. “There’s only so much I can do. We already tried searching people’s stuff. That just ended up pissing everyone off.”
“Right, they have to be hiding the guns off-site. Maybe they have someone tailing your people, keeping in contact until they are ready to bust them out. My guys can track them. We just need a list of suspects to start with.”
Joel looks to his right-hand man, then to Thompson, smiling.
“Now, where have I heard this before? Listen, I’m too busy looking out for over a hundred mouths to feed. Half my guys could be the ones out doing this shit. I just don’t know. I don’t have the time or the people to keep a close eye on them all.
Talk to Shrike. She’s been after these guys for a week or two. She figured out that these guys must be sticking close to us, and’s been on the warpath ever since. She’s our chief bounty hunter. If she can’t catch ‘em, don’t know how you can help, but best of luck. Thanks for keeping me informed, and for negotiating such a lucrative deal with the mayor. It’s a nice win-win, my guy’s will give you whatever you need.”
---
“My bet, it’s some of the Bums, or the Roadies.” Shrike says, leaning back in her chair, jutting her chin at different sections of the camp.
“Bums, Roadies?” Touchstone says, leaning over his spot on the table.
“Yeah, this place isn’t exactly one big happy family. Everyone splits off into whatever job they do. Roadies stick with Roadies, hook each other up with jobs acting as stage hands for festivals and concerts. They pool their money, live together, hang out together, have their own little way of running things and teach each other the ropes.
Same with the Work-horses, the guys who do metal working, repairs, tooling, plumbing, electrical. The Mules who do all the shit labor, janitors, maids, field workers, construction. Hippies, all the bleeding hearts that sell arts and crafts, practice energy healing and herbal remedies, even got a few writers and poets and musicians.
The Bums are the lowest of the low. Bunch of losers who keep to themselves and don’t really seem to do anything, but they somehow scrape up enough that Joel lets them tag along.
The smallest and most tight-knit are IT who give us secure internet, even out here. Joel’s guys who keep everyone in line and make sure we get what we need. Then there’s me and my bounty hunters.”
Touchstone can’t stop himself from suddenly looking away.
“Don’t give me that. It’s exactly what you’re doing now.”
“I know. But we only go after the violent ones.”
“So do I. Everyone’s a fucking criminal now-a-days, it only makes sense to go after the dangerous ones. The pay’s better, and if they’re hurting innocent people, then you know you don’t have to feel sorry about tossing them in a corporate gulag.”
“If I drank, I’d drink to that.”
“Shit, I forgot, because of you I let my tea go cold, it’s the good Hippie shit. Follow me, let’s keep talking.”
---
“Feel anything?” Rachel keeps her voice low when Thompson goes up ahead.
“Nothing useful. There’s almost no one here. But if we wait until everyone’s back, it’ll get overwhelming again. I need a list. So far, everyone’s being honest with us.”
“Alright. Hopefully Touch got something useful.”
“I don’t know. I’ve never seen him so nervous. I don’t get how a girl can do that to him.”
“Neither do I. Can you find him?” Rachel asks when they reach the spot where they left the two.
“Over there. But how do we…” She motions at Thompson.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
“Should we interrupt them?” Rachel asks.
“I don’t think so. Let’s wait.”
“Show us around. Maybe we’ll find them.” Rachel calls to Thompson.
---
“So why do you stick with these guys? They seem like a pain in the ass, with the rep they got.” Touchstone says after taking a seat at the fold-up table. The tent smelt very strongly of her; Cloves, cinnamon, pine, a general sweet and earthy floral undertone mixing with the grass and dirt.
“Are you kidding? I couldn’t do my job without them. These guys are my eyes and ears for everything that happens on the West Coast. These guys see it all, or know someone who has. Me and my guys can’t buy better guides and informants. They know these places like the backs of their hands.”
She sets down a steaming kettle and two small teacups. She pours the dark, leafy liquid through a tightly meshed strainer and into both cups. Touchstone grips the cup between two fingers and a thumb and waits for Shrike to take the first sip.
“Isn’t that hot?” she asks.
“Probably. Gloves.” He lets go of the cup and looks down at the thin black fabric around his hands.
“You can take all that off, you know.”
“Unfortunately, I can’t. Boss’s orders. Gotta cover our faces on the job.”
“Like I’ll tell.” The corners of her mouth tilt up a slight bit as she rolls her eyes.
Touchstone sits there for a solid second. Hoping the tea can inspire a lie.
“Sorry.” He says, “I can’t.”
“Whatever. Drink your tea.” Shrike looks away as she takes a sip.
“This is amazing.” Touchstone says.
“I know, right? It’s all just herbs and spices those guys get from the forest and markets. Supposedly it’s medicinal, and it’s doesn’t have caffeine, so I can drink as much as I want.”
“So why stick to petty theft? Why not monetize that knowledge for all it’s worth?” He asks as they continue sipping their earthy ichor.
“Don’t you think we thought of that? No one wants to deal with us, openly, anyway. We do make a little money like that, but we can’t exactly advertise. We’re basically pariahs, tolerated so long as we keep quiet and move on before we overstay our welcome, then someone always fucks it up anyway and we have to pack up early.”
“Forcing you to keep all your operations small and secretive.”
“Yeah. Joel finds us work a lot of the time. But he has to hand select you, so he knows you won’t pull some dumb shit and ruin his personal reputation.”
Shrike suddenly petrifies the stone man with those eyes again. Up close, he can spot shards of blue in them, not the fake shade of blue you get from contacts, the real deal. All three eye colors blended together in one.
“What about you?” She asks as she pours more tea. “I like to know who I’m working with.”
“Do you want the lie, or the answer with all the truth cut out?”
“I don’t like liars.”
“Okay, we made some enemies that won’t leave us alone. So we need money to keep moving, and the mayor to fabricate a cover to throw these assholes off our scent.”
“And you can’t tell me anymore than that?”
“No. It’s not that I don’t trust you. If it was just me, I’d tell you. But my friends… it’s no longer my secret to tell, no matter how much I want to.”
“I get it. I understand.” Her face falls to focus on some distant corner of the tent behind Touchstone. “Lets get back to catching these killers.”
“Right.”
---
“Shrike, you in there?” Thompson’s muffled voice calls from behind the tent flap, after all the tea’s been sipped.
“Yeah. Hold on.”
Shrike and Touch push aside the tent flap and mosquito curtain, one after the other, and rejoin the group. Everyone migrates to a nearby cluster of plastic lawn chairs and folding seats.
“So,” Rachel says. “Whatcha got?”
“Well,” Shrike says, “asking around won’t do much. I’ve already tried. These guys know we’re on to them. Soon word’ll spread that you’re on to them too, so we need to move quickly. I vote we go after the guns and the money. If we take those, it’ll be hard for them to bounce back. I don’t know how they got assault rifles in the first place, but they would be almost impossible to replace. Especially if we take their money. I’ve tried hunting for both before, but we’ve been bogged down with other jobs. With my guys coming back, and y’all nearly doubling our numbers, we stand a better chance of hitting their stash.”
“Much better.” Rachel states, “Our girl, Lizzy,” she waves a hand over to Anea, “is a div, a human bloodhound. She is actually how we found your camp, not a guy on the inside. If we take her around to your top suspects, then it’ll make finding the camp easier.”
“But,” Anea says, “my powers don’t work too well in large crowds. I need to see them in smaller numbers.”
“Alright,” Shrike rises from her chair. “I’ll work something out with Joel. Have them all assigned the same bullshit work tonight.”
“I’ll go with you,” Touch says. “I can think of a good way to explain away all the shit we’ve been up to, hopefully avoid spooking them.”