Gearbound: Cyberpunk 2077-Chapter 215

"I went there, but they all said she doesn't work there anymore. I wanted to ask a few more questions, but the security threw me out and won't let me back in."

"Leo, I know Evelyn really screwed you over last time, and I'm not expecting you to forgive her, but... I'm asking you to help me find her, okay? Treat it as a job—I can pay."

"I'm a braindance editor. The Mox pays me decently, and if it's not enough, I can even take out a loan..."

Before Judy could finish, Leo stood up and said, "Judy, I'll help you, free of charge."

Judy's eyes lit up, her face full of joy and excitement. "Really, Leo?"

"Really, it's just..."

"Just?"

"I can help you look for Evelyn, but it's not just for you—I have a few questions I need to ask her myself."

Leo's willingness to help wasn't purely out of kindness. If his suspicions were right and Evelyn had been acting on someone's orders when she hired Dexter to steal the Relic, then Leo needed to know who was pulling the strings, what they were after, and more importantly, whether they posed a threat to them.

"Thank you, Leo. Really, thank you."

As Leo and the others were about to leave, Judy wiped her tears and called out, "Wait, Leo, one more thing."

"Before you go to Clouds, you can visit a private detective named Kendra Ryan. About a week ago, she was called to Clouds to handle a disturbance."

"I know this because I used to work at Clouds as a braindance editor, and some old friends there told me."

Kendra Ryan—the name stuck in Leo's mind. He turned to Judy. "You didn't go look for this detective yourself?"

Judy's reply was unexpected. "No."

Leo frowned. "Why not?"

"Because I was afraid of alerting the wrong people. Editing braindance is my skill, but... I have to admit, there's always someone better out there."

Kendra Ryan. Private detective. Visited Clouds a week ago. Leo repeated the key points in his mind to lock them in. This detective might really have some valuable information.

"Got it, Judy. Thanks for the tip. Do you know where she lives?"

Judy gave a regretful look. "Sorry, that's all I know. My friends didn't know her address either."

No address? That was fine. Leo had his ways.

Leaving the booth, Leo found Jackie at the bar in the main hall. The group left Lizzie's Bar and got back into the Delamain cab. Leo explained the situation to Jackie.

"So we're going to find this Kendra Ryan, but we don't know where she lives. Should we check with a fixer?"

"No, I have a better idea. Let me make a call first."

Leo had Delamain start driving and then called Linari. "Linari, can you help me pull a record from the NCPD database?"

The NCPD database stored the addresses and contact info of every Night City citizen, including the rich and powerful. Of course, the data on the elites was practically guaranteed to be fake—and accessing it required absurdly high clearance. But for ordinary people, it worked just fine.

Linari sighed. "The NCPD database isn't meant for you to go poking around in."

"This is important. I have a friend—an acquaintance—who's gone missing, and this person might have information on her."

"Missing? So why aren't you calling the NCPD?"

"With NCPD's efficiency? Come on, you know better. I'm better off handling it myself."

There was a brief silence.

"...Fine, you win. What's the name?"

Ten minutes later, Leo had Kendra Ryan's home address, contact details, and some additional info in hand.

...

Midnight. Northside Industrial District.

Compared to the bustling Japantown across the way, the Northside was dead quiet, like a graveyard. Only a few factories were still running, along with some half-decent apartment complexes.

In one of those apartment buildings, a light was still on. Not because someone was up watching movies or working late, but because they'd been dragged out of bed in the middle of the night.

"Wh-who are you people?"

A middle-aged couple, wrapped in a blanket, sat nervously on the bed, trembling like quail as they stared at the intruders in their room.

"No need to be afraid, Mr. Ryan. We just have a few questions for your wife."

The man mustered a flicker of courage and squeezed out a line that was probably the boldest thing he'd ever said. "You bastards, if you've got a problem, come at me if you're real men!"

Leo and Jackie exchanged an amused glance.

"If I were you, Mr. Ryan, I wouldn't raise my voice at people who can sneak into your home without you noticing," Leo said calmly. "If we wanted to harm you, do you really think you'd still be sitting there on that bed?"

The man's courage evaporated in an instant.

"W-what do you want with my wife? We're just honest folks, we don't mess with corps!"

"I know you're decent people. We just need to ask your wife a few questions. That's all."

"That's all?"

"Yes, that's all."

The man looked at his wife, then around the room, as if finally realizing how little power he had in this situation. He sighed heavily. "Alright, ask your questions."

"No, we need to talk to your wife alone. You shouldn't be here—it's not good for you to hear this."

"You want me to leave my wife alone with you? You're insane! No! I won't allow it! Over my dead body!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, the man felt a sharp pain at the back of his neck. His strength drained away like water down a sink. His body stiffened and then toppled backward. He clearly felt his nose smash against the cold floor, possibly breaking, with blood gushing out. Face pressed to the floor, he couldn't even lift a finger, frozen like a gutted fish. freewebnøvel.coɱ

The woman screamed. "Oh god! What did you do to him?!"

"Relax. He's just temporarily paralyzed."

Leo stopped her from yanking out the blocker attached to her husband's neural slot. "Jackie, take him out to the living room couch—and don't forget the blanket, we don't want him catching cold."

If they'd been willing to cooperate, Leo wouldn't have had to go this far. But the husband had been too stubborn—there was no helping that. At least he'd probably look brave to his wife now.

"Alright. Now, let's have a little chat."

Leo gently pressed the woman back onto the bed. Finally, she stopped struggling.

"What do you want from me?"

"I told you—we just want to ask you a few questions. Give us the answers we need, and we'll be out of here."

"Really?"