[DVFP] To Read That Letter (E 3.6)

Rich

Esco,
You head off to Diamond, walking stiffly, but most of the pain's gone (you healed 1 segment from medical care). When you come inside, you see Rufe and Ivy behind the bar serving up beer and food, a handful of miners and a half dozen crue, along with Last and her Zons. Sasha's keeping things running for now, and moments after you look around, JD comes out of his small closet-sized room. When he spots you, he heads back into his room for something, comes up to you.

"Hey Esco, the girls came in last night, some real winners." he says with complete sincerity. "We can meet their demands, but won't be cheap on short term. Hey Sierra, she asked me to give you this." He hands you a few pages of paper folded over. "I haven't read it."

What do you do?

Adam

I do my best to hide the limp once I get inside, but my stiffness has fekked up my gait, and the best I can hope for is to look like I took the beatin' like a champ. I take up a place at the bar, to keep stationary, and catch my breath. We exchange small nods in greeting, and I listen to his update.

The new girls are good finds, and they will be expensive. They always are. We'll manage. I look over to the note in his hand, though, from Sierra... I regard it warily. "So she bolted, did she?" I consider not taking the fekin' thing. Pride bein' one of the seven sins, after all...

I do, though. Take it, that is. Fekin' pisspot that I am.

Rich

JD nods. "I tried to talk her into staying for a bit." He heads to the bar, nodding to Ivy in a "go away now" way. He starts cleaning glasses, his normal morning routine. "You think the Fippers will stop coming around now that she's gone?"

Adam

I put the note down on the bar next to me, and pivot as JD "assumes the position". "Did you now?" I ask with a smirk, "here I thought you'd be glad to have me thinkin' clear headed again, given how quickly you wanted me to get the fek out of here after that little display..." I reach over for a bottle of swill, and pour myself a shot. Might as well self-medicate.

I motion for him to come close so I can whisper something to him, "those two blazebrain fippers that put the beat on us will be back; but they'll be partakin' in our services, if you catch my meanin'. A little quid-pro-quo." I lean back, and give him the business. "Could be... I guess we gotta see 'bout that."

Rich

JD huffs a laugh when you point out how he suggested you take a trip. "Alright, alright. No mas, hermano. She asked my advice, I told her she should go."
When you motion for him to lean in, he does. Your revelation about quid-pro-quo gets an impressed nod, like "oh yeah, sounds interesting". "Playing with fire, Esco. How can I back you up?"

Adam

Yeah, I figured as much... I ain't exactly been on my A-game since Sierra showed up. Killin' all Zig's folks was a fekin' stupid idea — as was pullin' the attention of a bunch of fippers. This might be a chance for things to get back to normal. I nod, and let the issue drop.

As for playin' with fire... "Keep the new guys on their toes. I got into a scrap with the United Front when I was topside... You see any of those fekkers, except that Mimi witch when she's with Gigg, you kick 'em the fek out." I take the shot I poured myself, and pour myself another. "Speaking of... If Cinch comes in askin' for a room, let her have it."

Rich

JD tilts his head, processing that info. "Mimi? The UFer with the robot arm? Why wouldn't I kick her arse out?" The mention of Cinch puts a smile on his face, though. "Sure, whatever Cinch needs."

Sasha's heading over your way.

Adam

Is JD sweet on Cinch? ... Good thing she didn't take Isle up on that offer.

"Mimi's out of the UF, and she's under Gigg's protection — we don't mess with Gigg." I spot Sash comin', and shift a bit to bring her into the conversation. "Mornin' Sash..."

Rich

JD nods, no argument from him about "we don't mess with Gigg".

"Morning Esco, welcome back." Sasha says with a nod. She moves up to the bar beside you. "The new girls are very interesting. I think they will work out. Thing is, we have lots of girls... not so many customers. Other than the crue, of course. But once they're gone, it's miners and nothing more. We need to drum up some business."

Adam

I pause a moment, considering my options. If Kettle makes good on his promise, I might be able to pitch this place as a discreet place for fippers to come off duty — get a little action without the prying eyes of the camera. Untill then, though...

Sash has been playin' this game of collection's information for a while, though. I'm curious to see how her mind thinks. "Got any ideas?"

Rich

Sasha puts her hands behind her back, rocking slightly back and forth, foot to foot. "If we had some folks to ferry customers from Bordertown and back, it would be easier for them to make time for a visit to the Diamond. Guarantee a little safety, too. We have your new gang, but then there's also Cinch, and Beckett, too. Lots of options. Maybe fix up Borax Bus? It's in rough shape, but it is, you know, a bus."

Adam

That puts a lot of attention on us... Makes the assumption we're lookin' to be taken seriously as a place to settle. Given that we ain't mining Borax no more, it does open things up a bit for new folks to come and set up shop, or stick around...

It's a pretty wide departure from me explicitly payin' road agents to make the roads unsafe... "Gotta make that pitch to folks in Bordertown... You know someone over there might have that kind of sway, to drum up interest?"

Rich

Sasha licks her lips, her sign that this is a work-in-progress for her. "I know a few traders, but Cinch. She knows lots of folks in Bordertown East. I could talk to her, see if I can convince her to help out." She looks for a sign of encouragement.

Adam

I nod. "Alright. Get me a name, and we'll see if we can get this started."

Rich

You can see Sasha weighing the idea of doing this all on her own versus handing it off to you and avoiding any blame if it fails. JD's watching her closely, too. She straightens, "I can go talk to Harridan, he knows some people, he was a regular for a while. Want me to ask Cinch?"

What's JD's opinion of Sasha in this partnership?

Adam

Didn't you know? JD and Sash had an exclusive thing for a while... I saw them sneakin' off from time to time, and JD comin' back a few minutes later, talkin' 'bout how smart Sash is, 'n how we should use her more 'round the bar. So I took a chance, and she stops snoggin' him — "it isn't appropriate for partners to snog," or some shite like that.

I had to laugh. Ain't that just the way?

JD's a tough cookie, though. Stoic and all that shite... I think he was bitter at first, but mostly he pours himself into his work. I ain't seen him get friendly with any of the girls since... I dunno how he'd take bringing Cinch into the fold, if he's indeed sweet on her. I trust that if he's got beef, he'll tell me.

I hem and haw for a bit, before nodding, "sure. Keep it clean this time, yeah?"

Rich

Pleased, Sasha heads off to try and find Cinch, a lift in her step as she does. I assume you head to your office, to finally read that letter from Sierra?

Adam

Yeah... The damn thing has been staring daggers at me ever since I put it on the bar. I inform JD that I'm headin' up to sleep off this stiffness, and that if Fleece comes lookin' for me to wake me.

I hobble up to my room, takin' special care to lock up after me, and take stock of the blood stain I never cleaned up after Kettle kicked the shite out of me... I sigh, and make my way over to my bed. The bottle I finished off is still sitting empty on my nightstand. I put my knife down next to it, and slowly lower myself onto my bed. After a moment of staring back at it, I unfold it, and start in on reading.

LadyAmalthea

In delicate handwriting:

Dearest Esco,

I wanted to do this in person and I am sorry I'm not there. I have left to search for a more permanent solution to Gloriana. I made my home in the Irons, but having just been unlocked from one cage, I don't want to voluntarily lock myself in another. And while I know, it would be a good life, it would still be a cage.

And I am so sorry for hurting you. I want you to know, I never intended to kill myself. I was only trying to protect you and protect Marigold and Sasha. I didn't want anymore suffering at my hands. You'll probably think me pampered and spoiled for saying this, but, I don't want to live in a world where I need to trade in blood. I don't know what that means for me yet, here in the DVFP, but I am going to look for it.

Lastly, thank you. Thank you for pushing me. Thank you for listening and being there for me. Thank you for caring for me. I only wish I realized how deeply you cared, sooner. You are an interesting man, Esco. Men, in the short time I have gotten to know them, seem fairly simple creatures - but not you. And I am sorry that I underestimated you.

I hope one day, I will be able to know you better. Keep my keys shiny.

Stay Safe,
Sierra

Adam

I read the letter one paragraph at a time, stopping to re-read sentences every now and then when I have trouble understanding. I don't have trouble reading, but I don't understand her. She really is from a different world... Considering how it's treated her, I'm not so sure why she'd be so interested in going back — and as for trading in blood, I sure as shite hope she doesn't get knocked over by a fekin' gang, or picked up by the Fat Man. The valley sees more blood than rain by a country mile...

A cage in the Irons... Clever. Those words about Fleece ring in my head, and I instantly feel like an arse — for many reasons. I toss the letter on top of my nightstand, next to the empty bottle, and whisper to myself, "be free then, lovely." Then I lie down in bed, and close my eyes.

I'm tired, but sleep doesn't come quickly. I lie there thinkin' 'bout this evil creature, Gloriana, and wotever the hell it is Sierra thinks she can do about her... I think the witch deserves to burn in hell...

But how would I get her here?

OOC: Everybody eats, even that guy... Roll+Hot.
(Rolled: 2d6+3. Rolls: 4, 4. Total: 11)

Adam

My questions:
• Who do they know, like and/or trust?
• How could I get to them, physically or emotionally?
• When next should I expect to see them?

Rich

Esco, how does this work for you? Are you somehow reaching out to The Feed for this information? Or is this gathering info through informants and customers? You get the info below, but I'm curious how.
- Gloriana likes/loves/craves control over Sierra. She also trusts Pellet because she sees her as a loyal underling.
- You can get to her emotionally through Sierra. Physically? Only if you get her here, which means a threat to Sierra. Also, she is a Sub-Warden, so problems with the Fippers means she's inconvenienced, but the level of problems would need to reach 1) death or 2) major public disgrace
- Until Sierra shows up at the Diamond again, you shouldn't expect to see her at all. If there's trouble with her work, you might see her at Bordertown East, but it would need to be quite a bit of trouble, she's almost never inside

Adam

My brain is fekked to begin with — but when it comes to recalling totally random shite at the drop of a hat from a conversation I gleaned from across the bar, and piecing together the missing bits from things JD, and Sash told me, I'm a fekin' savant.

A savant of useless fekin' gossip, most of the time; but I do, on occasion, impress myself.

I swear to shite — in another life, I might've been a fekin' feed junkie. Thank shite I'm relegated to this place, where I know the dirty fekin' details about every relationship, ailment, addiction, hook-up, pregnancy, visitor, and scandal this brothel has to offer, amirite? It just sits in there, takin' up space, until somethin' related comes up, and my brain's like "Hey, do you remember the time Sash mentioned she was out at Bordertown with Fleece, and she caught her sneakin' into that secret club? Funny how Norvell said he never understood why Fleece had a radio down in here, since they don't fekkin' work. Who was it said they swear they heard someone singin' some fekin' catchy as hell pop song at the top of their lungs while he was cleanin' out one of the air shafts in the mine? Why don't I ever see Fleece 'round sunset?"

That, ladies and gentleman, is how I found out Fleece goes on a "walk" every night, as an excuse to sing Beatles songs at the top of her lungs. I dug up a second tape for her. Gave it to her on her birthday — along with a bottle of scotch, and a pair of handcuffs.

Hold your applause. I know I'm amazin'.

I mull over that for a while as I wait for sleep to take me. It's been a long day.

Rich

End Scene