Predator Code (Tales from Wildhearth #1)

Chapter 16 - You're Easier to Track When You're Dead

One good thing about Zanzihar being dead was that he couldn't run away. All Jett had to do was retrace his steps and piece together his last few days, the days where he'd abandoned his voting obligations to take on something evidently more pressing.

The record of his death remained the same—murdered by a felkin gang over unpaid debts, but no other information had crept its way onto the piecemeal news service. She would bet that Bronco and the vulkin guards barely got a glance at that body before the wolfkin enforcers spirited it away, leaving nothing to challenge the official narrative.

In order to do that tracking down, however, she needed some more specialist equipment than her rig currently supported, a level of invasive software that did not come standard and would certainly raise a few eyebrows among the local law enforcement. She just hoped that Fleur could supply what she needed.

Jett stood outside the silver cube of the shop, the crisp undercover attire of her foray into the Silk now replaced with the more comfortable, loose-fitting body wrap and kilt, pack resting against the small of her back. Her footpaw tapped agitatedly against the hard mud street as she mulled over the wisdom of returning here.

While Fleur's business stayed within the bounds of the law, she couldn't really afford the time to hunt out another tech dealer. She couldn't stop looking over her shoulder, acutely aware that this district would only be safe for so long. She needed to push the tempo of this game of cat and mouse. She just had to hope that Fleur could get her what she needed.

Rubbing her eyes with both hands, she let out a weary sigh and shrugged off her misgivings. She walked quickly up to the door before she had a chance to second guess herself and shoved it open.

The racks of computing rigs greeted her from all sides, the door letting out a gentle bong to announce her entry. Glancing around, she didn't see Fleur at the shop counter, but a melodic voice sounded from the backroom.

"Be with you in a second!"

A crash, followed by a curse, echoed through the shopfront before Fleur emerged, one paw smoothing down long the long fringe of her blue hair. Her eyes lit up with happy recognition, shoulders visibly relaxing.

"Jett! Fangs, where have you been?" she exclaimed, crossing the room in three languid strides and embracing her tightly. Then she stepped back, still holding Jett's shoulders at arm's length. "I thought you'd dropped off the world. I saw the newscasts in Palharr..." Her voice trailed off for a moment as she scrambled for the words before eventually shaking her head in confusion. "What happened?!"

"Fleur, it's a very long story," Jett replied apologetically. "And I wish I could tell you everything, but right now, I don't have time. I need your help."

"But the family that got killed...in Palharr district. I saw it on the citywide announcements!" Fleur shook her head disbelievingly. "Is that why you came out here? Are those gangs after you—"

"It wasn't any gang that killed them!" The words came out in a savage snarl, and Jett bared her teeth without even realising. Fleur released her as though scalded, stepping sharply backwards.

"Jett...what are you talking about?"

"I'm out here because wolfkin enforcers murdered my family and are trying to kill me," she spat. "There? Happy?"

"What?!"

"I stepped into something I shouldn't have, and a lot of people died because of it. I don't want you to join them." Jett took a steadying breath, trying to calm herself. She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment. "Fleur, don't ask me more questions about it, okay? It's better if you don't know. I'm here because I need to track someone down."