A Motive with a Universal Adapter 01

"Rook opened fire first," Okami told us in no uncertain terms. "No one here will deny that. Did you get what you came for Ms. Rhoades?"

"Not really," she sighed. "I mean Rook confessed to the murder/robbery, but he didn't seem to have any idea how Arasaka was involved."

"Perhaps it's just a coincidence. His gang could be involved in something completely unrelated that drew Arasaka's ire. At least you have a satisfying conclusion to your story."

"Yeah, that shoot-out will make great TV," Abby agreed.

"Speaking of which, I'm afraid the police are on their way. Carl will deal with them, but if you don't want your footage taken as evidence I wouldn't recommend you be here when they arrive." He gestured politely toward the curtain, but there was an insistence in his manner that allowed for no discussion.

As we stepped out of the lounge into the coursing musical vibration, the crowd parted ahead of our path in a way that was less organic, more deliberate. Heads turned to watch us pass and our wake lingered after us.

In the foyer, Carl was waiting. He handed me my assault rifle and a business card.

"It's a nice, tight little piece you got there," he winked down at me. "I wouldn't mind loading it up for you. Give me a call some time."

It was tempting to drag the big man off to a broom closet—or, I don't know, maybe a small warehouse—for a quicky. But he had work to do, I still needed to talk to Okami about Lucidrine, and I still had to make myself scarce before the cops showed up.

"I'll do that," I smiled up at him. "By my count you owe me thirty rounds."

"Trust me, I'm good for it," he laughed and turned away, heading back into the club.

"Hey Rhoades," I called just as she and Owl were about to step outside. "You go on ahead. My work's done and I want to talk to Okami."

"Ritz..." she glared.

"Like it or not, I still need Lucidrine and he may be able to get it for me," I said in a hushed tone. "Better yet, he may let me work off the expense as a bouncer."

"Uh huh." She wasn't buying it.

"I'm not a teenager, Rhoades."

We stared at each other for a long moment.

"Do what you want," she conceded finally. "Here, take the hotrod. I'll ride back with Owl."

I took the keys from her. "Thanks. You can leave me a message at the warehouse if you need to get in touch again."

"Yeah, I'll let you know when I have a rough cut spliced together. I may need to shoot some pickups."

"Just let me know. I'm happy to help... And Rhoades... thanks... for everything."

She smiled back at me before she and Owl walked into the night.

As I rode the concealed elevator up to Okami's office, I cradled my Militech rifle in my arms like a security blanket and wondered if I was doing the right thing. Was I thinking with my head or my clit? Without Savage Joe in my life, I needed someone with connections; someone who knew who to call and how to solve problems without creating more. I'm not a people person. I can't network. I can't make small talk.

Oh but, damn, can I rationalize an excuse to be alone with a man when I'm feeling lonely.

This was stupid. Okami as much as told me to get lost. If things went south with the cops, he could easily hand me over to them. Telling him about my addiction was just inviting him to exploit me. I should have left. I should have grabbed the first cute guy out of the line outside the club and fucked him on the hood of the hotrod.

I was about to press the stop button and bail when the elevator doors opened.

Okami was there in his office standing by the glass wall with a drink in his hand. He looked out over his club like a wolf regarding a flock of sheep. As the elevator doors slipped open, he turned.

"Ms. Dennheritz," he took a sip of his drink. "You shouldn't be here."

"It's just 'Ritz'. It has been for a long time... I need a favor."

"You're a beautiful woman, Ritz," he turned back to the window overlooking his domain. "Selene got his money's worth with your sculpt job. You should have no trouble finding a man to do you 'a favor'."

"No, it's not that," I blushed. "It's... it's not just that. What you said earlier about combat drugs and your side business..."

I let the sentence trail off, afraid to finish it. I wanted him to like me, to respect me the way Joe had. I was dominant when I met Joe. I was afraid to be submissive in front of Okami now, afraid to confess my sins. I was afraid that once he knew the truth—once I peeled away the hard, sculpted exterior—he'd find me weak and worthless inside.

I stood there in the elevator, painfully aware of the ugly steel endoskeleton exposed though the gunpowder singed hole in my pants leg, ready to jab my finger on the door-close button, ready to turn and run.

He looked at me. He shook his head with a sigh and beckoned me into the room.

"Can I offer you a drink?" he asked. It seemed more perfunctory than polite.

"No, thank you." I set the rifle next to the elevator door and crossed the room to stand next to him at the window. Down on the club floor, Carl stood watch over the Black Queens' curtained off mausoleum waiting for the first badges to arrive. The party continued around him unabated.

The fragrance of Okami's aftershave filled my nostrils. I secretly wished that I could have showered before I came up here, that I could have changed into something with fewer bullet holes, that I didn't smell like death and destruction. Instinctively, I tried to smooth out my hair.

"What is it you're looking for? Black Lace? Paracaine?"

"Lucidrine," I said a bit too abruptly. I wanted it said and out there. He arched an eyebrow—the most surprise I had seen on his face yet. "Can you get it?"

"Lucidrine is dangerous, Ritz. Neurological degeneration is a certainty, not a risk. Is your intrepid reporter really in so much peril that you'd subject yourself to that?" he probed. I had his attention at last and it suddenly felt like the whole of his awareness was focused on me. My heart raced at the accusatory tone in his voice.

"Too late to worry about that now." I looked up to meet his eyes. "The only treatment is more Lucidrine, and Uncle Sam's prescription has expired."

"Ah, you were in the war," he nodded as comprehension dawned on his face, and then disinterest. He turned away and my heart sank.

"I've fought in a couple of wars," I defended myself, "and Lucidrine got me through them. Now I'm just... paying the piper. Can you get it or not?"

He took another sip of his drink and gazed out the window, his curiosity having waned. "The war was a long time ago. You must have a regular supplier by now. Go see them before the police arrive," he dismissed me.

"Joe's dead," I told him, feeling like an absolute trog. With a virtual harem parading past on the other side of the window, I was a fool to think he would have given me a second look. "Rook creased him this afternoon."

That piqued his interest. He turned back to me, both eyebrows raised.

"You knew one of the victims." It wasn't a question.

"Yes," I confirmed anyway. "Joe and I went way back. He was... more than a friend."

"Ah. I see." He set his drink down on the table and crossed his arms, his full attention once again on me. "You're not actually Ms. Rhoades' bodyguard are you? You're part of her story."

"Yes."

"And you didn't come here tonight for an interview. You came for revenge."

"Yes."

"How long had you known him?"

"Long enough."

"And now that you've got your revenge, what will you do?" There was something sympathetic in his voice and the way he looked at me with such unwavering focus made me feel vindicated and secure.

"I don't know exactly," I admitted. "Savage Joe was more than just my supplier. When I was on the street with nothing, he got me back on my feet. When Selene was killed and I lost everything, I still had Joe. He helped me put the pieces back together and he never gave up on me."

"I am very sorry for your loss," Okami told me with tenderness in his eyes. He reached up as if to brush away a tear that I couldn't cry and his touch on my cheek sent a jolt of exhilaration across my brain. "I can try to find you Lucidrine, if that's what you need."

"That's not all I need," I whispered.

"Ritz..."

He put his hands on my shoulders. They were strong and confident and my discipline collapsed. I had been holding it together for too long, fighting back against the mounting need for human contact. I couldn't fight it anymore.

I didn't want his pity or his comfort, I wanted his cock and I wanted it now.

Pushing forward, I took his face in my hands and I kissed him hard. I didn't know what would happen next and I didn't care. I just had to have him, to take him if I must, and I couldn't hold back any longer.

To my delight he kissed me back.

His lips devoured mine and our tongues wrestled back and forth. I twisted my fingers in his shaggy mane and I held his face to mine, eager to be devoured. His hands pawed at my back, one climbing under my jacket between my shoulders, and the other burrowing under my belt to grope my ass.

I released his face with my hands but not my lips and shook my arms out of my jacket sleeves. He tangled his fingers in my hair as I tossed the jacket away and shrugged out of my holster rig, tossing it after the jacket.

He moved from my lips to my jaw, and I threw back my head with a groan giving him my throat. But I needed more than teasing nibbles. My body was on fire and my skin cried out for his touch. The high collar of my tank top stalled his downward progress.

I found the strength to push him away.

"Don't fucking tease me!" I growled. My fingers clawed at the bullet hole at my shoulder and I rent the fabric open until the hems gave way and my top hung in tatters.

Okami grinned with a hunger in his eyes. He stretched out his fingers and seized the top of my sports bra, yanking the spandex down. My tits popped free and the cool air on my hot skin sent shivers down my spine. His synthetic nails pierced the spandex and he ripped my bra to shreds before plunging his face into my bare chest.

I pulled at his suit jacket and he flung it away as he suckled one achingly stiff nipple and then the other.

"Oh fuck, YESSS!" I cried out in searing joy as Okami's teeth clamped down on an overstimulated nub. Sobbing with desire I clutched his maw to my swollen teat.

His hands mauled my body, fingers grasping at flesh until I needed to have his taste on my tongue too.

"Did I hurt you?" he asked around my voracious mouth as I kissed him. In answer I bit his lower lip until he cried out. I didn't release him until I could taste blood. He touched his fingers to his lip, saw the red stain on them, and looked at me with the brash smile of a challenged champion.

Okami tucked a finger into his tie to pull it free, and I snatched at the silk of his shirt and sent buttons scattering across the room as I ripped it open. His bare chest crushed my tits as he took me in his arms to kiss me again. My hands roamed across his muscled back and if there was a seam between his skin and his RealSkynn, I couldn't find it.

"I told you not to tease me," I hissed. "I need you to fuck me like you fucking mean it!"

He locked an arm under mine, turned his hip, and threw me forward with a thud into the glass wall. My hot breasts pressed flat against the cold glass. Okami held me against the wall on display to the revelers below with a strong hand between my shoulder blades.

"Patience, Ritz," he whispered. "This is a marathon, not a sprint."

His free hand deftly opened my belt buckle and plunged down into my underwear caressing the junction of steel and flesh. I'd been hot and wet for so long that his palm easily found my aching clit and his fingers curled inside me as I moaned with need.

"Oh god yes... deeper... deeper, yes!... Right there, oh oh hgnnnnnnn..."

I pressed my hands to the window and let him work me into a froth.

The pounding music reverberating against the glass added a throbbing counterpoint to Okami's palpitating fingers. My heart was racing, my body absolutely trembling with the need for release. My hips writhed around his synthetic fingers, milking as much stimulation as I could.

By that point, I should have cum and recovered and been well on my way to a second orgasm. But I couldn't peak. I couldn't release all that pent-up lust. The tension just kept building and building with no outlet. I wanted to explode.

"God dammit, that's so fucking good... Oh! Ah! Ah! Unf... Please... Please don't stop... G'a-Ha! I need to cum... Make me fucking cum!"

I didn't care about the people on the floor below who were starting to point and stare or the band leering at my tits mashed against the window. I didn't care if they could hear my screams of rapture over the music. My whole being was consumed with a desperate, destructive desire to cum.

Jezie is a hell of a drug.

Below me, Carl opened the curtain for a pair of N.C.P.D. uniforms.

Behind me, Okami leaned his bare chest into my back, pinning me to the glass wall and grabbed a fistful of my hair, yanking hard. I could feel his sturdy erection against my ass. His tireless fingers buried in my cunt never faltered as he bit at the nape of my neck.

"How badly do you want to cum right now?" he murmured in my ear. "Would you throw away everything for an orgasm? Would you kill for it? Would you die?"

"Yesss! Yes, anything!"

If I had had anything left—money, dignity, love—in that moment I would have gladly sacrificed it all for one earth-shattering moment of release. I'd killed so many already and my life without Savage Joe seemed next to worthless; a small price to pay. But I had nothing to bargain with. If I wanted an orgasm, I would have to take it.

As he held me to the glass for the audience below, I reached down to my groin and grabbed his hand, pulling his fingers out of my body and out of my pants. He hissed with pain as I twisted his wrist into a lock. His weight against my back evaporated, and I turned to face him, forcing him back away from the window.

With my free hand I flung away the tattered rags that still hung from my shoulders.

Okami backed into the wooden table. His teeth were clenched, enduring the pressure I kept on his wrist, and with his free hand, he fumbled with his belt buckle. But I needed his body in mine too much to wait for such niceties.

I let go his wrist, shoved him backwards onto the table top, and set the heel of my cyber-leg on the edge of the table between his knees.

"Fuck me like a rutting sow," I demanded, grabbing the shotgun hole in my knee with both hands. I ripped open the sturdy fabric from ankle to gusset and my pants fell away, slipping down my meat leg to hang from one ankle.

The soft woolen fabric of his slacks gave way almost effortlessly as I tore his erection free. Climbing on top of him, I straddled his hips knocking away his glass to shatter on the floor. He grabbed at my arm, pulled me down to him, and then grabbed my hair and kissed me hard.

I kissed him back, grinding my dripping sex against the flexing pressure of his shaft through my damp underwear. The friction of the fabric rubbing between his flesh and my clit burned deliriously but I had a gaping void deep in my core that needed to be filled.

Breaking his kiss, I sat up, snapped away the waistband of my underwear and, groaning, filled my pussy with his throbbing flesh.

"Oh yeah... yeah... Mmmmmm... that feels... sooooo gooood" I sighed as I sank down and down and down, skewering my body deeper and deeper on his glorious cock. It almost seemed to be growing inside of me, reaching deeper, swelling wider, until it filled me completely.

I planted my hands on his chest and hung my head to focus all of my attention inward. His fingers dug into my flanks as I rolled my hips around, conforming my insides to his every contour.

I screamed in surprise as his cock curled forward within me and twisted in an impossible way my body wasn't prepared for.

"You've got one of those new implants!" I realized, as I slid up the throbbing shaft and back down. "Show me what it can do."

"I'm not sure you can handle everything it can do," he taunted with a smirk. "Human flesh is so frail."

"Try me," I dared him. "Take your best fucking shot."

"With pleasure." He grabbed my ass, pulled himself up to sit on the edge of the table and then hefted me off my knees onto my toes. Wrapping his arms around me, crushing my tits against his chest, Okami kissed me and I kissed him back with desperate fervor.

His nails clawed at my back raising red welts in my reinforced skin. My teeth gnawed at his shoulder, stifling my frenzied cries of rapture. His hands mauled my ass as I pounded his perfect cyber-cock with long, violent strokes.

Inside my body he kneaded and throbbed and wriggled like nothing I'd ever felt before. Every thrust was new and different and with every plunge my body wanted more and more and more. I was panting with effort. Sweat trickled down my back and between my breasts. My thigh muscles burned until my meat leg gave out and I wrapped myself around his waist.

I couldn't stop. My body wasn't paying attention to my brain. I was a grunting animal in heat and my every instinct drove me toward fulfilling that insatiable need.

Crunching my core, I humped furiously at his cock deep in my guts as the machine under his skin thrummed and pulsed. The pressure kept building. It felt as if I'd been on the edge of oblivion for hours. Every fiber of my being, every synapse in my brain, every circuit wired into my body screamed out for a release of this tension but it just coiled tighter and tighter.

"It's too much!" I cried. "I can't... I can't.... Oh god, why can't I cum?"

I slumped against his chest, sobbing. He held my weight in his arms as my hips continued to twitch involuntarily on his majestic, enervating shaft.

"I told you. It's a marathon, Ritz. Not a sprint," he whispered. One hand cradled my bare ass, and the other crept up between my shoulder blades under my hair to my neck.

There was an euphoric jolt as an interface plug jacked into my neural processor.

Suddenly I was holding myself in my arms wrapped around me with my cock throbbing deep in my pussy looking back at my reflection in the scratched surface of the Kiroshi and staring into my own wild eyes. There was a program running my genital implant, accessing feedback and varying the tactile output to keep me on edge and make me exhaust myself and I had, just as I planned.

I needed me weak and pliable. No loose ends.

But now I was newly energized and I was sapped of strength, desperate for animalistic release and too drained to resist. My hips were working again driving myself into myself in a steady, insistent rhythm as the genital program switched to maximum output and switched back to a slow simmer.

I had to find out what I knew. I had to keep fucking me. How long had I really known Joe? God, he was so fucking hot in bed. Did I know who he was before and why he had to die? Did Abby know how much I knew? Where the hell is Lee? Who the hell is Lee?

No, I wasn't supposed to know that. Shit, I'm a loose end now, either way.

My hot cunt clutched at my throbbing cock as I held my ass and I grabbed my shoulders and frantically fucked myself. I would have shot my load long ago if the implant hadn't stifled the impulse, but that was turned off now, turned back on, and off again.

This wasn't working.

I had to get the truth. I had to know what I knew. I had to cum. I was so desperate for an orgasm, desperate to please Roberston that I didn't care how I had to debase myself to do it. Who is Robertson? The job wasn't done until all the loose ends were cleaned up and I was screaming in ecstasy and I was dead. Arasaka had dropped the ball, but I took care of it.