"To Kill A Runner" Chapter Two "Bore Snakes & Hammer Bites" (Cyberpunk Fiction)

" Just give me the signal .. Adam " Jarome hid behind a wall with his new pistol ready keeping his finger out of the guard for now. a bead of sweat on his forehead from the stress of the situation.

Britney looked up with the look of anger toward Adam still sitting in the corner and pulling cords and unplugging the first stolen phone in her panic as if to say this is all your fault you junkie asshole. Even pulling the glowing neon VR goggles off of her head and letting down her brown coffee hair. Her complexion was pale and her eyes where a light hazel green. Skinny and frail she wasn't really trained to fight and these thugs trying to bust down the door made her nervous. It was really not a situation she wanted to endure. Her mind racing for solutions she opened a new terminal on her laptop and searched the local ip addresses login on the wifi connection and being assigned octets with new ending numerals.

" Just let us in guys we need to talk to you about money , Its nothing personal Kami, just wants his money " the thugs tried to reason slyly with Adam who had his hand on the door way. " If we wanted to shoot you this door wouldn't stop our slugs, so why don't you just open the door let us in and we will have a chat about your dividends "

"Uhh... ummm ok just wait a minute " Adam said as he fumbled with the doors couple of deadbolts and leaving the chain latched to attempt keep them at bay. As soon as the door pulled open a pair of bolt cutters intruded in and broke the brass chain with ease. Then the first man booted the door in and sent the cowardly Adam to the peeling cheep linoleum. They both stepped in both wearing grey rain slickers and three piece suits and each holding a sawed off 12 gauge easily concealed within there rain slickers.

Jamal got the slip on the first man pressing his glock to the back of his stubbly crew cut cranium and then the second thug pulled his shot gun and pointed it at Jamal's angry cold expressionless face.

HEY I said this was a friendly visit, Adam ! call off your bodyguard. We just want to ask you why you haven't contacted our employer and bought more of his product. "

"look guys I .......umm....... just don't have the funds right now. I promise I will have them by the end of the week "

"I just want to ask why all you chump-ass triggers dress like your from the cast of Reservoir Dogs" Jamal retorted still willing to defend Adam in a stand-off.

"Well we where told to take it from you in one form or another, think of it as asset forfeiture for that digital trip you took. normally our employer would not have given out a free sample like that if he didn't think you where going to contact him again. "

"I just needed to work on getting money together. "

"Well look at that girl with all that tech.. we could use that stuff and she is cute enouph for a job at our massage parlor in the red district. " One thug said as the other one chuckled at the thought of turning Britney into a prostitute.

Several awkward moments went by with the thugs holding shot guns on the two young men while Jarome seemed the only one standing up to them. then a cell phone suddenly buzzed in the dead silence of the stand-off. The second Triad member reaching into his slicker inner concealed breast pocket and pulled out a touch screen type smart phone to read a text message.

"Kami is telling us to drop everything and get back to the clinic A.S.A.P"

"Wow you marks are lucky, this could have gotten a lot more interesting for you slut " And with that they backed out of the door and ran back to the white van. peeling off the curb with a screech.

Jarome dead bolted the door and then drew his gifted glock on Adam " You stupid piece of shit, this is your fault . we both could have been shot dead and Brit would have been turned out to every fat diseased CEO that visited the red light district. " he pulled the slide of his gun so the chambered round fell out in the palm of his hand and then her wiped it at Adam still on his back on the floor with force but not deadly force. "I should have let them dust you "

Britney looked like she was packing up to leave as she stammered out " We got to ditch this place. they will be back for the money or my gear. "

Adam shook his head and said " No Im staying here and buying from them when they come back, those BTLs where great!"

"Are you already brain-burnt? they pointed a shotgun at you, I would have to say that they don't have your best interests in mind" Jarome punished him with the truth but it did not seem to change the junkie view on things.

"YOU GUYS DON'T UNDERSTAND WE GOT TO RUN !" Britney flipped down her VR goggles again and slung her packed up gear into her back pack turned on "help me with this" she pointed to her modified wheel chair base and Jerome and Britney dragged it out in the dark street with flickering street lamps overhead. Turning on her receiver and put the thoughtless robot into a fallow mode then the two took off down the cold street better to spend the night in the rain then in danger.

"They will be coming for Adams money again tonight but next time it probably will be his skin. the Triads didn't really get a text from there bosses at all. I spoofed the number and made it look like they where getting orders, If Adam wants to die tonight that is his business, I'm out.. I don't want to deal with any of his stupid decisions and i defiantly don't want to pool together what we do make through his drugs and contacts. We don't need that...... agreed? "

Jarome nodded as they continued to jog quickly from block to block, running the shadows.