Guns for Hire - Script Fifty One

Uzzit Farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 7.34am 19/07/17

It was now a little over three months since known AAAL activists had attempted to put T-Bird in a body bag in reprisal for the incarceration of Patricia Roseboro, the guru & spokesperson of the AAAL.

T-Bird was, well, still a little sore if he was honest but physically back in one piece thanks to the initial emergency care of the medical staff of the Mariposa County Hospital followed by Skinpin ensuring he got the best available cyber surgery Night City could offer. As T-Bird lay in his pit he listened for signs the girls were awake & thinking about recent events.

After some considerable time in a regrowth tank, the fitting of a replacement optics implanted unit in his right eye & a couple of weeks of physiotherapy he was now back at the ranch recuperating & generally helping out as well as mending fences with the Ortega's.

Mentally, & unbeknown to Alex & Vrasten, he was in pretty bad shape.

At the time he'd happily, & near did, have given his life to safeguard the lives of the Ortega's young daughters, every time he now watched them laugh, cry & play he couldn't get the imagined bloody image of their discarded corpses out of his thoughts, the pills Skinpin had given him helped, they took away most of the pain, real & imaginary, but it was the night terrors that were the worst. During the day he found he now always needed to know where the girls were, he'd find any excuse to pick them up from school to save Elodia having to but he was now starting to struggle leaving the sanctuary on his own, constantly feeling as if there was somebody following him, paranoid delusions, that's what Skinpin had talked to him about.

But then you never really new if there really was somebody hiding around the corner just waiting an opportunity to creep up on you & . . . . . . .

Uzzitt farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 7.41am, 19/07/17

With a glance out of the window at the clear blue sky Alex quickly dressed & tiptoed down stairs to grab a coffee from the seemingly bottomless pot the Elodia kept topped up on the stove. She'd promised herself a day alone by the riverside today in the peace she'd discovered fly fishing the sparkling watercourses running down from Yosemite for trout, she'd decided that the sanctuary was actually somewhere she could call home, maybe put some roots down, somewhere to invest the money gained from the slaughtering of innocents, well, not so much innocents these days, but slaughtering at least, besides, it meant she didn't have to listen, again, T-Bird & those pesky kids watching bloody Sesame Street or secretly planning for upcoming birthdays before heading of to school in Mariposa.

Thinking of birthdays she reminded herself to make sure she didn't reveal her true birth date as being late December & to stick to the storey of it being the first of April, after all, who wants a birthday near Christmas, just an opportunity for bloody skinflints to combined presents.

Uzzitt farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 8.09am, 19/07/17

Vrasten was already sat on the verandah when Alex crept out of the door rod & tackle in hand, like Alex he to was quite happy with the life they were carving out in Mariposa. True, he'd still prefer to be behind a badge & it still rattled his cage that he'd been forced out of the Night City PD but then you couldn't deal with that shit forever could you & it was actually quite enjoyable to watch the sun rise over the paddock.

The only thing he guessed he'd really change here on the ranch if he got chance was the donkey shit. He couldn't believe how much they managed to manufacture or why he seemed to be in charge in arranging for it shifted, particularly with the increasing number of donkeys & horses they were now housing on the ranch. When Deustch, sorry Mr. Deustch, had visited the previous week to run the accounts ready for audit by the Federal Trade Commission the sanctuary was actually holding it's own & it was providing a perfect receptacle for money earned on less charitable enterprises elsewhere so donkey shit aside it was all looking pretty good, as incidentally thought Vrasten was Alex's rear end as she mounted one the ranches own working horses to sneak of for a mornings fishing.

Uzzitt farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 7.48pm, 19/07/17

With the Ortega girls propelled towards bath tub, Alex, T-Bird & Vrasten were sat around the table trying not to eat another helping of cabrito & listening to Hercaclio run them through what he needed to spend before autumn to ensure the ongoing safe running & expansion of the stabling facility as this was becoming the primary revenue for the sanctuary, he was interrupted as Vrasten's mobile chirped into life.

Vrasten listened for a couple of minutes grunting an acknowledgment occasionally, ringing off he sighed & suggested that he, Alex & T-Bird should step outside for a few minutes.

Uzzitt farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 7.55pm, 19/07/17

Out of earshot of Hercaclio, who tried not to listen to conversations concerning the trio's outside interests, Vrasten filled T-Bird & Alex in on the telephone call,

"That was John Freeman on the phone, it seems somebody's been asking questions about us in the Hope. Freeman told me that a week or so back some suit, middle eastern probably, accompanied by a couple of he thinks, Malay's, one male, one female, turned up looking for us, seems the spook did most of the asking but despite being easy with his money got short shift & disappeared pretty dam quick. John said they turned up again however a day or two later apparently still keen to make contact, as it happened Skinpin had dropped by the Hope so gave them the once over before they cleared out."

"Smelling greenbacks, Dolarhyde, you remember, Freeman's broker, took an interest & kept their number just in case we wanted to talk to them about whatever they were offering."

"After they'd cleared out Skinpin asked Freeman to give us a call as he was on route out of town & didn't have time to stop by here & see us. Anyway Dolarhyde did a bit of digging & it appears they've been asking quite a few questions in all the right places & have splashed quite a few dollars around in the process, oh & Skinpin said for John to say high as he was heading out of town for a day or two & he'll give us a shout when he's back in NC."

Initially there wasn't a great deal of enthusiasm to make the call, after all life was good on the ranch, but then, with thoughts of expanding waist lines, donkey shit & nightmares, all three agreed that maybe it was worth listening to what was on offer.

Uzzitt farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 8.11pm, 19/07/17

Dialing the number it took nearly a minute for somebody to answer, the voice on the other end of the phone was slightly out of breath, polite & as expected heavily accented, definitely Arabic in origin. With the speaker phone on so all could hear there was a difficult exchange as both parties tried to establish who was calling & why without giving anything away, eventually however the voice introduced himself as Saleh Asef Kazmi, a Jordanian business consultant, who represented a small private group of entrepreneurs who had a proposition that they'd like to discuss with the trio.

Impatient, Alex suggested meeting at the Forlorn Hope, with hardly a pause Saleh politely but firmly refused the offer suggesting a more private & comfortable meeting could be held in friendlier surroundings at his associates hotel, the Mariott, covering the mouth piece Saleh consulted with a third person & then suggested 8.00pm on the following Sunday, the twenty-third, with this agreed, they were about to ring off when Alex asked how Saleh & his associates had come to search out them for whatever this particular project was, clearly unwilling to discuss matters further on a unsecured line Saleh made ambiguous reference to a recommendation from a mutual friend however he declined to expand further until they could speak face to face, slightly frustrated but intrigued to know more the three returned to the table to talk more with Hercaclio about his plans for expansion.

As they spoke Vrasten realised he'd just agreed to meet their potential patron on his birthday.

Uzzitt farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 6.22am, 21/07/17

T-Bird, sweaty & bleary eyed from another restless nights sleep could here Paloma & Letica on the landing, today was his thirty-sixth birthday, the girls had, with Elodia's assistance, been planning birthday breakfast for the last couple of days, ignoring their tapping at the door he pretended to be asleep, finally to impatient to wait any longer they burst into the room screaming happy birthday at the top of their little voices, from the bedroom next door Alex could loudly be heard grumpily stomping about as she prepared to go fishing again to avoid any celebrations.

Vrasten, an only child, in the room to the right of T-Bird, sadly wondered who'd celebrate his birthday his birthday in two days time, both his parents having died in a checkpoint explosion back in '97.

Uzzitt farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 7.01am, 23/07/17

Vrasten woke to a thumping on the door, startled he called out to see who it was, the only answer was a fit of giggles, secretly delighted he pulled the duvet up to his neck to cover the scars & shouted that it was OK for the girls to come in, life wasn't bad after all thought Vrasten.

Uzzitt farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 1.27pm, 23/07/17

Telling Hercaclio that they may be away for a couple of days Alex, T-Bird & Vrasten headed for NC in the RV, all were dressed appropriately for a meeting at the Mariott, including Alex who'd for once dressed modestly.

On route for their meeting Vrasten decided to tell Alex & T-Bird about the last time he'd been to the Mariott with Mariusz, Gonzales & Skinpin &the origin of Mariusz's penchant for no witnesses.

The Strip, Mariott Hotel, Pacifica Central 7.51pm 23/07/17

Unable to get the RV into the Mariott's underground car park Alex had parked it in a secure lot around ten minutes walk from the hotel, knowing that security would be reasonably tight all three carried small arms only as could be reasonably expected for personnel protection, passing through the magnificent glazed entrance into the hotel lobby all three were checked out body armoured & armed security grunts, weapons identified, tagged & logged they were allowed to continue to the main reception under the watchful gaze of auto tracking camera's dotted around the lobby, under his breath Vrasten commented that security had certainly been improved since his last visit.

The receptionist politely listened to Alex as she explained they had a meeting arranged with Mr. Kazmi at 8.00pm, efficiently Julianna, as her tag stated her name was, checked the screen in front of her & then put a call through presumably to Saleh's room, satisfied that all was in order she told Alex that Mr. Kazim was waiting for them in room 1605.

Across the lobby were two pairs of lifts as well as the entrance to the stairwell, suspicious as ever T-Bird took a lift alone with afresh faced bellhop whilst Vrasten & Alex shared a lift with a couple heading back to their room. Alex stepped out on level fifteen & took the stairs up wanting to have a scout around, Vrasten continued to level sixteen, the couple having got out several floors below. As he waited for the others to join him he made use of his inbuilt audio enhancements to to scan the floor, happy that there was nothing other than muffled background noise he was joined by T-Bird & Alex, when Alex commented that there was only the penthouse suits above Vrasten realised that this was also the same floor on which the earlier related visit events had occurred, in fact the more he thought about it he realised that in fact tonight's meeting was in the adjacent suite.

The Strip, Mariott Hotel, Pacifica Central 8.02pm 23/07/17

Knocking on the door it was swiftly opened by am immaculately dressed gentleman who immediately welcomed them in & introduced first himself as Sahel Asef Kazmi & his two associates as Tabilla Lim & Dacudau Mitra, both bowed politely & offered a greeting in English however it sounded as if this was definitely a second little practiced language, gesturing to the ample seating Saleh offered drinks before beginning.

Again thanking them for agreeing to meet Saleh explained the matter in question,

"My associates represent a number of people who have, to their dismay, for several years been living in exile from their homeland, Palawan Island, just off the coast of the Philippine mainland. The principle city, Puerta Princesa, if not the whole of the island itself, is currently held in thrall by a family cartel lead by Kuratong Balelang. Balelang was actually elected in 2002 however, & you can verify this with the UN if you require, it is now universally accepted that the election procedures were significantly manipulated in order to provide a result that at the time suited the needs of republican Joseph "Ejercito Estrada's party on the mainland."

"You must understand that at that time there was a move in popularity towards the Muslim faith & those in power lead by Estrada had declared war on the Moro Islamic Liberation Front & wanted to ensure that Palawan as principle amongst the many islands littering the waters around the Philippines was not swayed towards the Muslim brotherhood. Since that time however Balelang, who cares for little other than his own absolute power has effectively removed himself from the rule of his former masters & now treats Puerta Princesa as his own personnel playground with absolute intolerance of any who speak against him."

"In 2013 under international pressure elections were held, as you can imagine this was not popular with Balelang or his supporters but it allowed him to be seen as magnanimously democratic, it would be no suprise to you to hear then that when the vote was overwhelmingly in his favour, what followed can only be described as a blood bath as any public opposition was violently stamped out, there were many disappearances, politically targeted arrests & not least numerous nighttime executions."

"Under the back drop of this regime one voice continued to oppose the Balelang junta, that of Iska Diwata Lakan, a native of Palawan who stood against Balelang in the 2013 elections, Mrs. Lakan was placed under house arrest in the aftermath of the elections where she remained until March 2015 at which time her loyal supporters managed to smuggle her off the island to Malaysia where she continues to campaign against Balelang's oppressive regime."

"In the eyes of my associates it is now however time for action to be taken to allow Mrs. Lakan to return to her homeland & for Palawan's people to return to the right of free speech."

As the trio considered Saleh's words he went on at great length to explain that it must be understood that Mrs. Lakan was not part of this action & could not be seen to in anyway be associated with any operation, now matter its ideals, that used force as a means to an end, he concluded by suggesting that should Kuratong Balelang be removed in some way his absence would throw the cartel into chaos & the ensuing vacuum of power would allow Iska Diwata Lakan to return to Palawan & declare a time for truth & reconciliation.

During the whole of the time that Saleh had spoken little had been said by Tabilla Lim & Dacudau Mitra however there had been much nodding of heads & gesturing in support of what he had said apart from the occasional comment between the two in their own tongue.

Having concluded the background to the requirements of the contract on offer Saleh allowed Alex, Vrasten & T-Bird some time to discuss matters & refreshed their as well as his coconspirators drinks.

Initially their enthusiasm for what they had heard was curbed by the thought that again they were being asked to simply be an executioner, something they had generally tried to resist as had been the case when approached by Idwal Knox back in December the previous year. The more they talked they however they agreed that the offer wasn't specifically for an assassination, only Balelang's removal, & maybe, in view of his own actions the end did justify the means, with such in mind they at least considered it worthwhile talking further.

For the next hour or so Saleh expanded upon matters, the withdrawal & ineffectualness of the islands military force, the closing of all international air traffic other than those considered acceptable to the cartel, Balelang's enforces Mapang-api Lalaki & most important the local support that would need to be provided those who opposed Balelang's regime.

As the discussion turned towards the practicalities of entering the island the idea was thrown up of visiting the island posing as tourists simply to scope things out before one hundred percent committing to going through with the contract Saleh lent forward a dropped a prepaid debit card on the table,

"Gentlemen, Miss Price, I understand your concerns & appreciate that what we ask is not easy, as I said earlier we envisage you recruiting others to assist in this operation & do not expect you to make an instant commitment to carry out this contract however my associates appreciate the time you have already given to us in this matter & to that end please accept this small token of our thanks."

With that Saleh laid a prepaid debit card on the table & gestured palms up that it was theirs to take ex-gratia, slightly taken aback Alex slipped the card into her pocket.

With the subject of money broached Alex tentatively skirted around the matter of how much was being offered for the service required.

Saleh glanced towards Lim & Mitra before sitting back in his chair,

"At this moment may I simply say that the funds required for this undertaking & as reward for its successful completion are significant, I do not want to pollute any goodwill we have established so far, I appreciate however that should you agree to this undertaking & your appointment is agreeable to those funding this project you wish to be satisfied that the rewards are worthwhile."

With that Saleh took pen & paper & quickly scribbled a figure down, folding the paper he offered it across the table & suggested they did not look at it here but later once they had departed the Mariott so it did not influence the remaining discussion but again suggested it would be sufficient to fund the contract & provide ample personnel reward.

By midnight it was agreed that both parties would consider what had been said & saleh would contact them again in two days if all was well, if his associates felt that others could better serve the cause he would let them know before the twenty-fifth, with talks concluded he firmly shook the trios hands whilst his colleagues graciously bowed.

Just as they were about to depart however T-Bird recalled Saleh's comment regarding the recommendation of their services by a third party, reminded of this they they all looked to Saleh & waited,

"Ah yes, our mutual friend, Yusuf Mohammed Siad Inda'ade, he sends his regards & thanks you for his life, when we spoke he placed great emphasis on your honour."

The Strip, Mariott Hotel, Pacifica Central 12.07pm 24/07/17

Waiting for the lift Vrasten popped the debit card into his reader & whistled,

"Shit, some fuckin' sweetener, $150K"

Alex not to be out done showed them the piece of paper, on it, written in neat & precise script was the figure of $25,000,000 plus disbursements, as the lift opened in the hotel lobby all three of them remembered to breath.

Uzzitt farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 4.33pm, 25/07/17

Back at the ranch Vrasten set to scouring the Internet for background information on visiting Palawan as a tourist, it seemed that it was still possible subject to visa application but it came with a US government warning advising US citizens that it did not recommend it as a holiday destination due to ongoing political unrest & that there was no longer a US staffed embassy on the island.

Having also amassed a catalogue of background data on Palawan geography, population centers, flora & fauna, demographics, military capability, power & water etc., etc. Vrasten investigated the difficulties of flying into Palawan's via its only listed operating international airport however as he looked he found that whilst it accepted international passengers they could not fly directly into Puerta Princessa but had to come via a once a week connecting flight from Manila, the good news was you could fly direct to Manila from San Francisco for around $1300 plus the cost of the connecting flight & visa's.

Several phone calls later Vrasten had secured visa application forms, maximum stay four weeks, they agreed however that two weeks posing as anglers, as they'd done on Suqatra, would be sufficient, with this in mind bookings were made with a number of big game fishing charter boats operating out of Albany & San Rafael figuring that a bit of practical tutoring would help.

Uzzitt farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 7.48pm, 26/07/17

Firmly committed to at least spending a couple of weeks in Palawan in order to assess the chances of completing the operation it wasn't until the evening of the second day since their meeting at the Mariott that Saleh phoned them to confirm his associates were happy to proceed with Alex, T-Bird & Vrasten heading up the operation, in turn the trio confirmed that they would be visiting Palawan in August purely for reconnaissance purposes but would welcome details of contacts who could assist on the ground in this process.

With the initial contract agreed Vrasten put a call into Skinpin suggesting he wrap up whatever he was up to & head out to the ranch, Skinpin promised to be there in three to four days.

Uzzitt farm (AKA Wildgoose Sanctuary) Mariposa 11.22am, 03/08/17

For around a week now the three of them had spent most of each day aboard one of a number of crewed charter boats fishing for Mako, Tuna & Billfish, early doors in the week T-Bird had realised he couldn't do it, whilst the ripperdoc's & cybertechs had stitched him back together & the nanosurgeons were enhancing his natural healing rate he was still physically not in the best of shape so trying to pull a 100lb plus fish on board wasn't really an option, instead he spent the week doing his best to learn about boats.

Back at the ranch Skinpin had turned up on the thirty-first ready for action, he was actually looking pretty good & ready for whatever they threw at him.

With visa applications approved they just needed to book the flights.

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