"You have a new message."
Half-awake in the gray haze of early morning, Kai heard the smart home assistant's voice notification.
Yawning, he rubbed his eyes, put on his portable comm unit, got out of bed, and headed into the bathroom.
[Trauma Team Medical Center: Dear Platinum member...]
Standing in front of the smart mirror display, Kai brushed his teeth while checking the message.
It was an electronic bill sent by Trauma Team, detailing the hospitalization and treatment costs for Gloria and David.
Looks like they had already been discharged.
The total for emergency treatment and inpatient care had reached twelve thousand eddies, not exactly a small sum for people like them.
Then he noticed another message, one Gloria had left for him through Trauma Team.
Without the client's consent, a Platinum member's personal information would not be disclosed to outside parties. At least on the surface, they still followed the rules.
Gloria had blacked out immediately after the crash.
Kai had carried her into the Trauma Team AV himself, and after that he never showed his face again.
So Gloria did not know exactly who had saved her.
She only knew that the man who rescued her and David had been someone from Arasaka.
Which meant the only way she could send thanks was through Trauma Team.
"Dear sir, hello. This is Gloria."
"I truly appreciate you saving me and my son. David and I have both recovered and been discharged."
"I have already prepared the repayment for the hospital and treatment costs, as well as an additional amount to thank you."
"Please add my personal contact so we can arrange repayment and express our gratitude properly."
[Gloria Martinez ID]
Kai guessed, "She already has the money ready. That probably means she sold the implant. Wonder if the goods have been handed over yet."
But Kai did not care whether it had already been sold.
No matter who it had gone to, it would end up in his hands eventually.
As for Gloria and David's treatment costs, those did not need to come out of his own pocket either.
He could file them as Arasaka expenses later. With the electronic bill and supporting evidence, all it would take was running it through finance.
Using his Counterintel access, Kai pulled Gloria's personal financial transaction history through Arasaka's internal financial network.
It was the result of joint integration between Arasaka Finance and NetWatch-style internal network surveillance. Together, they could monitor the transaction details of most individuals and small to mid-sized businesses in Night City.
Only management at M-grade and above had clearance to pull records like this.
Night City residents had long since gotten used to the corps crossing every line of privacy imaginable.
After all, even the smallest cybernetic finger they used had probably been made by a corporation.
Trying to escape corporate surveillance was impossible.
Even death did not fully free you from it.
Gloria's account showed that the transaction had been completed the night before last, about three hours after the cyberpsycho had been killed by MaxTac.
"So she sold it for thirty thousand eddies. But between repaying her own treatment costs and compensating Arasaka Academy, she's still way short."
Kai approved the contact request, and the response was transmitted immediately.
Megabuilding H4, Santo Domingo.
Gloria had just tied up her red ponytail and was about to clean up the remaining mess in the apartment.
David was still in a half-conscious state, mumbling in his sleep from time to time.
He kept whispering for his mom.
That had already ruined Gloria's plan to go out and finish the delayed transaction, then continue searching for a new job.
The cyberware buyer had called many times while she was unconscious from the crash, and every call had gone unanswered.
She was still in poor shape herself.
To avoid adding more medical expenses, she had forced herself to leave the hospital early with David on her back and bring him home so she could take care of him herself.
Now her whole body felt utterly drained.
Just then, Gloria suddenly received a new message alert.
[Kai sent a contact request]
She quickly tucked away the loose strands by her ears and smoothed the hair behind them, then rubbed some color back into her pale cheeks.
Once she confirmed it, Kai's contact appeared in her interface.
Gloria knew Kai was with Arasaka.
He had a high-end corporate sedan and a Trauma Team Platinum membership.
That alone told her his status was anything but ordinary.
Whether it was because he had saved her life, or because of the awe she felt toward someone tied to Arasaka, as Gloria prepared to call him, her emotions began rising and falling in a way she could not control.
There was even a little color back in her cheeks now.
Without Kai, she and David would probably not be lying at home right now.
They would be in a municipal morgue.
Having worked in public medical services before, Gloria knew exactly what happened to ordinary people who died in the streets.
After taking several deep breaths in a row, she finally placed the call.
"Hello, this is Kai."
The moment Gloria heard his voice, she was startled.
He sounded far younger than she had expected.
Maybe that was because in her mind, someone like him, an Arasaka mid-to-high-level employee in a corporate sedan, should have been some mature man in his forties or fifties with slicked-back hair.
She froze for a few seconds, then realized how rude that silence must have seemed and hurried to respond.
"Hello, Mr. Kai. This is Gloria."
"You're the one who saved us on the highway. Thank you so much."
"I'll repay the treatment costs right away. Whenever it's convenient for you, David and I will come personally to thank you properly."
Kai ignored the thanks and asked instead, "Why were you discharged so quickly? Is David awake yet?"
Gloria hurried to explain.
"David's still a little weak and is resting right now. According to the doctor, he should recover by tomorrow."
Kai said, "I'll come see you in a little while."
The moment Gloria heard that Kai planned to come directly to them, she immediately replied,
"Th-that's really too much. Just give me a time, and I'll bring David to visit you myself."
Kai said, "There's something I need to discuss with you alone. Until then, stay home and take care of David. Put everything else aside. Understood?"
Gloria froze.
He wanted to speak with her alone.
But before the crash, they had never crossed paths.
Whatever this was, it clearly was not about money.
Almost instinctively, she reached toward the Sandevistan stuck beneath the back lining of her jacket.
Had he already discovered what she had stolen?
The heart that had only just settled after surviving the crash rose right back into her throat.
To avoid being investigated, she had already submitted her resignation to Night City's public emergency medical services, using the crash as the reason.
Was it the news footage?
Gloria suddenly remembered that morning, when David had excitedly pointed at the TV and said she had appeared in the news.
She had been on camera right in front of the cart carrying the cyberpsycho's body.
That was a deadly weakness.
Gloria grew visibly uneasy, but she did not dare ask Kai directly what he wanted.
She looked over at the weak David still lying on the bed and began thinking through her options.
Where could she run if a corporation had set its sights on her?
And if Kai really meant to take the implant by force, then if she had already taken the buyer's money but could not deliver the goods, offending that kind of edgerunner crowd could end just as badly.
Perhaps because she had been silent too long, Kai spoke again.
"Don't be nervous. I know you have it."
Gloria's heart lurched violently.
This was the deepest secret she had.
She had not even told David.
Kai continued, "But I don't want the implant. I want to make a deal with you. The dogs who really want that thing are already out there sniffing around. Just stay home and do as I say."
The tension in Gloria's chest did not ease.
All she could do was answer softly, "Understood, Mr. Kai."
After hanging up, Gloria pulled the implant from where she had hidden it behind her back and placed it on the table.
At this point, there was no reason to keep hiding it.
She could either hand it to Kai or hand it to the buyer.
And no matter which one she chose, she could not see a good ending for herself.
All she hoped for now was that David would not be dragged into any of it.
(End of Chapter)
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