Vadumverse series/Blood Money

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One of LEGION's top guys known as Alex Felix was walking out of a diner. In Alex's day job, he managed a corporation that specialized in small arms deals with other corporations outsourced by the Russian Criminal Syndicate.

When he was younger Alex was a sidekick of Mark Cain. That ended when Cain threw one of his famous wobblers and Alex woke up in an ambulance on the way to the hospital. He cut his ties to Reid and wasn’t around when some other associates of the LEGION had him put down.

Since then, being a trusted kind of person, Alex had offers from several of the major operators in the outer colonies. He did enough to make a good living and maintain the goodwill due an experienced neutral.

He was coming up to the roundabout at The Bright Model Store and Alex swung round, turned left into a fast food drive-thru lane and just before the squawk box he took a right and parked where the car couldn’t be seen from the road.

David King waited under the streetlight. It was dark. He was wearing a black leather jacket and boots. He had brown hair which he was always running his fingers through. He had a scar on his cheek which brought with it a painful memory from his past.

"Someone’s looking to hire. A once-off," Alex said. "You free?"

"Depends."

"It pays well."

David looked away for a second, flicking the cigarette out of his hand. The glowing ember of the cigarette hit the pavement and was immediately ground into the tarmac by the sole of his boot. Opening the door and seating himself inside, he waited for further instruction to be given to him by his superior.

"What do we got?"

Alex reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a photo of a man wearing a jacket and taper haircut. David gazed at the picture and instantly recognized the man, before reaching out and eagerly grabbing the photo.

"Jack Reacher."

Jack Reacher had been the alias of Kyle Craig, but the man was very much out there somewhere and alive. David felt an instantaneous sense of satisfaction coursing through his veins. The thrill of the hunt.

"And what orders do you want?"

"I know nothing - except Powell needs someone reliable in a hurry. Bonus for short notice." He paused a beat, then he said, "What Powell says - kind of job it is, it needs a steady hand."

"Ah, shit."

"Yeah. It won’t be petty theft."

"Did he give any figures?"

"He said it’s top rate."

"Damn. Serious shit, right?"

"Yeah."

They sat a minute in silence, then Alex said, "I gave him two-three names, people I rate - yours was top of the list. Powell recognized the name, said you’re solid."

A thing like this, it could take a big enough bite out of Davids debts to take him back to the bright side. Beyond that, do a good job for someone like Powell, they know you’re dependable, maybe it turns regular. That kind of work, a man could soon pay off a mortgage.

What went against it - when someone like Powell hire at top rates it’s a serious job and the risk and the possible comebacks will be on the same scale.

"He’s a tidy worker, Powell. No loose ends. If I weren't down for this cardiac shit, I would have jump at it. On the other hand, the bigger the job - you know, like they say - the value of your investment can go down as well as up."

After a while David said, "OK, things like this, there's no telling where it might lead, right?"

Alex took out his chatter and sent a text message. Half a minute later he got a reply. It said, IOU.

David said, "Ask them where I got to be, and what time."