Part Two
Gally stretched out his paws and then lolled over on his side. He was perched precariously on a narrow window ledge, the late morning sun streaming through the window and warming his back. He narrowed his eyes and peered down at the little girl sleeping soundly in the bed beneath the window.
When the big man had first brought the girl home two months ago Gally had hid in the basement. His experiences with children had been mostly unpleasent ones and he knew how cruel children could be. They threw water at him or pelted him with stones, but this one was different. When she spoke to him it was soft and reassuring, never once had she made a threatening gesture. After a week he had come to accept the presence of another living soul in the house and had even allowed her to serve him his food. He had also found that the girl was an excellent scratcher and he enjoyed the way she rubbed him behind the ears. Yes, she could stay. The house had been too big for two people anyway, and Gally enjoyed having the girl for company when the big man was out at night.
Gally jumped from the window sill and landed at the foot of the bed. He padded his way up toward the girl and settled down next to her, resting his chin on her chest. He tucked his tail around him and closed his eyes. He could feel the gentle rise of her body as the girl breathed and he could hear the beat of her heart. Life was good, he knew. An old house full of mice, a man that catered to his every need, and the girl to keep him company. What more could a cat ask for?
Gonzu was fast asleep in an old rocking chair downstairs. His head was thrown back and he snored loudly. The chair was tilted so far back it threatened to tip over at any moment.
Suddenly Gonzu was torn away from a pleasant dream that involved a beautiful girl massaging oil into his shoulders. He pried his eyes open and saw Ido standing over him, holding two paper bags.
"Oh, you're back," said Gonzu letting out a huge yawn. "It took you long enough."
"Just had to pick up some things," replied Ido cheerfully. "You know I appreciate your keeping an eye on Karen."
"Not a problem," said Gonzu.
"By the way, where is she?" asked Ido.
"The kid's upstairs sleeping, I think you've been letting her stay up late at night watching all those old movies. You really ought to send her to bed earlier, too much TV isn't good for kids."
Ido pursed his lips and thought a moment.
"Hm, perhaps you're right Gonzu. I should act more responsibly. It's just that Karen really loves those old movies, especially the ones that have that old time actor, what's his name?"
"Stallone," chided Gonzu.
"Right," said Ido. "It's just that Karen never had a television set in her old home, she's fascinated by anything new and that pleases me. I've found that she has a natural curiosity about the world around her and she's very bright. Who knows, maybe someday she'll become a great doctor."
Gonzu folded his arms and leaned back in the chair, again it threatened to topple over.
"Yeah, right," said Gonzu. "By the way, have you found out anything about Karen's mother?"
Ido set the bags on a table and turned back to Gonzu.
"Yes," he replied. "I canvassed the neighbourhood last night and found that some of the street people knew her. She was a single mother, and a prostitute. People that knew her said that she wasn't an addict and that she took good care of Karen."
"That's a circumstance that's all too commom in the Scrapyard," said Gonzu wistfully. "I just wish more women would think before they climbed into bed with some barfly."
Ido's voice rose and he stared hard at Gonzu.
"That's uncalled for," he said angrily. "I didn't know Mara and neither did you. Who are you to pass judgement on somebody you've never met?"
Gonzu was surprised at Ido's sudden burst of anger. Maybe he had spoken out of turn, judging someone without being fully aware of the circumstances that might have pushed her into such a life.
"You're right," said Gonzu apologetically. "I forgot that you were with her when she died."
Anyway, Karen's life is different now," said Ido, his voice returning to normal. "She has a real home now, and as far as I'm concerned she can stay as long as she wants."
"Well," began Gonzu. "She certainly has had a positive effect on you."
"You think so?" beamed Ido.
"Why sure she has, I've never seen you look happier. Kind of nice having someone to care for, isn't it?"
"Yeah," Ido replied. "It is."
Ido reached into one of the paper bags and started pulling out various items. A bag of rice, a box of powdered milk, and several cans of soup. The final item was a plastic bag full of chocolate candy.
Gonzu's eyes widened when he saw it.
"Hey, is that what I think it is?" he said with a grin.
"Yeah," replied Ido. "Fangamounds, I found a bag at Tereel's market. Pretty hard to come by."
"Those are the ones with the vanilla center in them, I love those!" exclaimed Gonzu. "Do you think I could have one?"
"Certainly not!" retorted Ido, clutching the bag to his chest. "These are all for Karen, you can buy your own."
"Well," said Gonzu dejectedly. "I'm sure the kid will let her uncle Gonzu have a few."
"That's up to her," said Ido as he set the bag on the table.
"What is?"
Both men turned and saw Karen standing in the doorway. He hair was messed and she was wearing blue cotton pants and a yellow t-shirt. Her feet were fit into a pair of pink fuzzy slippers that Ido had bought for her. She had never had slippers before, and Ido knew that the floors of the house became cold at night.
"Hi," said Ido cheerfully. "How are you feeling Karen?"
"I feel fine Mr Ido, but I am kind of hungry."
"Well, we'll take care of that," said Ido.
He picked up the food and moved to the kitchen. After several minutes Ido could be heard humming to himself and the smell of pancakes in a hot skillet drifted into the outer room.
Gonzu braced his hands against the arms of the chair and pushed his heavy frame to a standing position. He turned in the direction of the kitchen and shouted above the bad singing of his friend.
"I'll be going now!" He said. "I have to open the shop and make some money. You'd be wise to do the same."
Ido came out of the kitchen holding a sizzling pan in his right hand. His glasses had slid down his nose and threatened to fall off.
"Not today Gonzu," Ido replied. "I'm taking Karen for a walk. We don't get many sunny days in the Scrapyard and I'm not about to let one go to waste by staying cooped up in this dark house."
Gonzu shrugged and started for the door.
"Suit yourself," he said. "But you have to earn a living Ido, and several patients dropped by while you were gone, asking to see you."
"Yes, I know," said Ido. "But they'll have to wait, one day more isn't going to kill them."
Gonzu looked at Ido for a moment and then turned away.
"Are you sure?" he said over his shoulder.
Gonzu walked toward Karen and ran his fingers through her hair as he passed by.
"Be seeing you kid," he said to her.
"Bye Mr Gonzu," said Karen.
She watched him leave and then turned and looked at Ido.
"Are we really going out?" asked Karen.
"Sure we are," said Ido putting on a huge grin. "There's a lot for you to see in the Scrapyard, not all of it is bad you know, and it's about time that you saw the city and the people in it."
Ido walked back into the kitchen and resumed singing. Karen shuffled over to the big rocking chair and climbed in. It was still warm from it's previous occupant and smelled like cheap aftershave. Karen smiled and started to rock the chair back and forth.
Excluding her mother, Ido was the kindest adult she had ever met, not at all like the crude men that her mother had brought home on occasion. In the short time that she had lived here she had come to realize that she loved this gentle man. She felt safe with him, and he never scolded her or slapped her. Even her mother had done those things sometimes.
Karen turned her head and looked out the window at the busy street. She wanted nothing more than to stay here forever.
***
"Look, look!" shouted Karen. She grabbed Ido by the hand and pulled him toward a stall displaying fake jewellery and rusted antiques.
Karen pushed him forward and Ido found himself face to face with an old waman smoking a pipe and idly scratching the underside of her left arm. Ido stared past the woman, searching for the item that had caught Karen's eye. It was hopeless, they all looked the same to him. Just gold plated junk waiting to be unloaded onto unsuspecting buyers or people like himself with a child to placate.
Ido turned to Karen and shrugged his shoulders.
"I'm sorry," he said to her. "I don't know which one you want."
Karen pointed to a rack of gold necklaces. There was one that stood out. It was simple, gold plated, and the price tag indicated that it cost five hundred chips.
Ido hung his head and turned away, it was too much.
"I'm sorry," he said to Karen. "I can't afford it, maybe some other time."
Karen nodded her head and squeezed Ido's hand. She was a practical girl and knew that such things were a luxury. She was just glad to have a roof over her head and someone to take care of her. It was no big deal to her, but Ido seemed to be taking it harder than she was.
The two started to walk away when they heard someone whistle from behind them. They turned and saw the old woman waving them over.
"Yes?" inquired Ido as he stepped up to the stall with Karen in tow.
"I saw you lookin' at that necklace," said the old woman pointing it out. "Kinda expensive for you, isn't it?"
"Well, yes," said Ido politely.
The old woman pulled the pipe from her mouth and blew a plume of smoke into Ido's face. He tried not to act offended.
"The price is always negotiable," she said. "And I think I can cut you some slack for the little one there, seeing as she's so cute and all."
***
Karen beamed with pride at the gold chain around her neck. She couldn't stop playing with it and rolling it between her fingers. And because of this it was taking her forever to finish her sandwich. Ido had already eaten his and was nursing a cup of cold coffee. He was glad that Karen was happy. After much haggling over price the old woman had finally agreed to let it go for three hundred and fifty chips. Not a bad deal, he told himself.
After buying the necklace Ido had taken Karen for a stroll through the Western Sector. Her mother had apparently kept her inside most of the time and Karen was amazed at the variety of people on the streets. She had so many questions Ido was at a loss to answer all of them. Eventually they ended up at a small restaurant several blocks away from the clinic. Since it was a sunny day the owner had decided to conduct business outdoors, setting up several tables just off the street.
Ido put his cup down and leaned forward. He had something to say to Karen and it was the kind of thing that he didn't want people to overhear.
"Karen, I have something to ask you."
Karen stopped playing with her necklace and looked at him.
"Yes, what is it Mr Ido?"
"It's about your mother," he began. "How much did you know about her? I mean, when she went to work at night did you know what she was doing?"
Karen put her hands in her lap and looked at the street. She was talking to Ido, but her thoughts were somewhere else.
"You mean, did I know how mommy made money for us to live?" she asked.
"Yes, he replied, that's what I mean."
"I knew," said Karen. "Mommy told me she did what she had to, but she said that it meant nothing to her, it was all for me she would say. When you came to the door that night I was afraid to let you in. Not because I thought you were a bad man, but because I knew what had happened. I just didn't want you to tell me about it."
"And how do you feel now?" asked Ido.
"Mommy is gone, I know that. I still hear her voice sometimes, but it's like it's coming from another room. I don't think that I'll ever forget her."
"You shouldn't," said Ido reassuringly. "Your mother was a good person. I didn't know her, but I've met a lot of people and I can tell these things. The last thing that she said to me was that I should see that you were taken care of."
Karen looked at him and smiled.
"Thank you Mr Ido."
Suddenly the table at which they were sitting shook and the glass of sodapop Karen had been drinking fell over, splashing onto her sweater. A large hand was on the table between them. Ido looked up and recognized the face. A thin man with a patch on his right eye. He had short, black hair and was dressed in an expensive suit. Behind him on either side were two huge cyborgs. Each man had been augmented to the level of gladiators. They were an imposing sight and the passersby gave them a wide berth.
"Well, well. If it isn't Ido and the new lady in his life? Kind of young for you isn't she Doc?"
Ido could feel his anger rising to the surface. He struggled to keep his emotions in check, there was nothing he could do here, especially without the hammer. And there was the risk of Karen getting hurt.
"What do you want Zambaner?" said Ido calmly.
"What do you mean, what do I want?" he replied. "You're two days past due Doc. I want my money that's what I want. And it's forty thousand you owe me, interest included."
"I'll pay you," said Ido
"Damn right you'll pay me Doc, I lent you that money in good faith. Don't think that your status as a Hunter exempts you from paying me. Rules are rules and the rest of the Hunters won't help you if I come to collect. But you can prevent that from happening if you just pay me what you owe."
"I said you'll get it!" snapped Ido. "Business has been slow, there's nothing I can do about that."
Zambaner looked at Karen and made a wicked smile. He turned toward Ido and brought his face close to the angry man.
"If you ask me Doc it looks as if you've been keeping busy doing other things. If you don't want anything to happen to your girlfriend there you had better pay up, and soon."
Ido jumped from his seat and took a step toward Zambaner. The loanshark leaped behind his two bodyguards and laughed. Ido realized that he was outmatched and stood still. If he made any advance toward the men he was dead.
"Go ahead, try it!" laughed Zambaner. "Give me an excuse Ido, I'd just love to have the boys mess your face up, then I could have some fun with sweetcheeks there."
"Go to Hell!" shouted Ido. "If you come anywhere near the clinic I'll kill you, I swear it!"
"Big talk Doc, if you want to avoid any trouble you know what to do."
Zambaner walked away and a moment later the two bodyguards turned and followed.
Ido stared after them and frowned. He had to go out tonight. Zambaner was the kind of man to give a warning and then make good on it. If Ido didn't come up with the money in a few days there would be serious trouble.
Ido looked at Karen and saw that the front of her sweater was soaked and she was trembling. Ido was ashamed and looked away. Zambaner was a low life, one of the worst criminals still walking the Scrapyard without a bounty on his head. But the bastard was sneaky, he was careful never to break the law, or if he had he had never let anyone know it. Ido was angry with himself, not because he had let Zambaner get away with threatening Karen, but because he had allowed her to see him associating with the loanshark.
"I'm sorry," he began. "Are you all right?"
Karen began rubbing the front of her sweater to dry the spilled softdrink.
"Do you owe that man money?" she asked.
"Yes," he replied. "I had to borrow from him to buy some equipment for the clinic. It'll be all right though, I just have to go hunting for a couple of nights to make some money. You'll be okay by yourself for a few evenings, won't you?"
Karen stared at him for a moment and then continued drying her clothes.
"That's what mommy used to say."
Ido's heart sank. He looked at the sky and saw clouds gathering in the north. A storm was on it's way and they had better get home before the rain started.
"Come on," he said to her.
Ido put a fifty credit chip on the table as Karen rose from her chair. The two began walking in silence back to the clinic. Ido hung his head and stared at the ground.
She doesn't understand, he told himself. How can a child comprehend the affairs of adults? No one was pure, not in spirit or thought. But he was determined that Karen should remain that way for as long as possible.
He would have to be more careful from now on.
End of Part Two
Part Three