shadowrun 40 The Burning Time by Stephen Kenson

metahumans, who got into the elevator he’d taken to the third floor. They certainly had no business in a place like Arlington Park, and he looked at them curiously. He walked down the hall to Dan Otabi’s apartment, then stopped short when he saw that the door was ajar. The LEDs above the maglock were flashing back and forth between red and green, indicating that the lock was scrambled, probably by some sort of passkey.
    Roy glanced back toward the elevators. It looked like somebody had beat him to it. He’d been planning to talk to the neighbors as well as toss Otabi’s flat, but the open door changed his plans. He couldn’t risk being implicated in the break-in because it would tip off Otabi. He turned back toward the elevators.
    He was leaving without getting the proof he’d hoped to find, yet he was more suspicious than ever. Someone else had wanted to get into Dan Otabi’s doss bad enough to break in. Otabi was hiding something, and Roy Kilaro was going to find out what it was.

CHAPTER EIGHT

    As Trouble and Talon drove away from Dan Otabi’s apartment, Troublenoticed that the sky had cleared and was alight with stars and the waxing moon.
    "So now we wait and see if Otabi contacts you?" Trouble asked.
    Talon nodded. "Um-hmm. Without his simsense toys, he’s going to be desperate for a fix, and the only dealer he knows is me. I think his habit will cancel out what happened at the Avalon the other night."
    "Maybe he’ll just go down to the local Warez, Etc. and pick up a new simdeck."
    "I don’t think so. He’s had a taste of the good stuff. He won’t be satisfied with anything less. The regular sims just won’t do it for him anymore. Even if he does decide to get another deck and some chips, there are still some things we can do."
    "So that leaves the next move up to him," Trouble said. "Val will be keeping an eye on Otabi, but we can’t do much more until he takes the bait. Want to go grab a bite?"
    Talon shook his head. "I think I’d better go back home and try to catch up on some sleep."
    "Want me to drive you back to your place, then?"
    Talon shrugged. "I could take Aracos. . ."
    "You’re dead on your feet, Tal. Let me take you home. It’s no big deal."
    "Okay," he said, settling back against the seat. There was a moment of silence as Trouble shifted lanes, navigating through the maze of Boston streets with ease.
    "Can I ask you something?" she said.
    Talon over at her from under hooded eyes. "Sure."
    "Has there. . .have you been involved with anyone else since Jase?"
    "You mean romantically?"
    "Yeah."
    Talon took a deep breath and let it out with a long sigh. "Yes. No. Not really—I mean, yes, I’ve been involved with other guys since Jase died. I hooked up from time to time in college, and there are a lot more available guys in the shadows than most people think." He gave a wry smile. "But it was mostly brief encounters or short flings. I never met anyone like Jase, somebody I was really, truly in love with. I think I managed to convince myself it was love a few times, but those never panned out. I guess when it comes to romance I’m as hopeless as our buddy Otabi. I think I should stay away from simsense, though. I can see how plugging into a perfect fantasy life where you’ve got everything you ever wanted could be addictive."
    "Yeah," Trouble said.
    "How about you?" he asked. "Has there been anyone since Ian?"
    Trouble glanced over at Talon, then back to the road. Traffic had slowed through a series of lights, and now they’d came to a stop.
    "Not really. I guess we’re a lot alike in that respect. Ian was my first real love. Looking back on it, I was pretty naive at the time. I’ve dated here and there since then, but that’s about it."
    "Our business doesn’t exactly give us many opportunities to meet the right people, does it?" Talon said.
    "No. Besides, what are the chances of the right one coming along anyway? You don’t run into that kind of person every day."
    "Are you sorry