Smack!
"Huh—?!"
Pilar shot awake from the slap, leaping to his feet and scanning the room in alarm.
"Quit flailing. I found what you wanted. Check it yourself. And wipe the drool off your mouth."
Falco rolled his eyes at him, threw on his jacket, and walked out.
Still groggy, Pilar slapped his cheeks a few times to wake up, then looked over the intel Falco had delivered.
After reading it, he came to one conclusion: This kid's worth working with!
Once he confirmed the details, Pilar headed out to look for Jackie—only for a thought to hit him.
Falco had said yesterday he'd "send it tomorrow." Which meant… Pilar had overslept again?
...
Back at Rebecca and Pilar's place, Rebecca was staring at her unanswered messages and missed comms with a steadily darkening expression. Her temper was hitting critical mass.
"Aaaargh! That bastard! He definitely went partying at some nightclub again! When he gets back, I'm cutting his balls off!"
Lucy hurried over and pulled the furious Rebecca onto the sofa, trying to calm her down, reminding her it wasn't worth losing it over Pilar of all people.
"Going out is one thing—but he didn't even take me with him?!"
Lucy sweated internally. Something told her that was half the reason Rebecca was angry.
But she also suspected that if Pilar heard that line, he'd probably just say—
"Then I'll get myself a bigger gun."
The thought made Lucy chuckle.
BANG!
The door burst open. Pilar stood there, hands on hips, grinning proudly.
"Ohoho! Come welcome your big bro home, Rebecca!"
"Drop dead!"
"Gah—!"
Rebecca's flying kick sent Pilar right back out the door. Jackie, standing behind him, reflexively stepped aside to avoid getting hit.
"Damn, Pilar, your sister's got a hell of a temper."
Jackie winced, then gave a slow thumbs-up.
"Yeah, I think so too."
Pilar wiped the blood from his nose, gave Jackie a thumbs-up back, and pushed himself off the ground.
Rebecca stormed out, grabbed Pilar by the ear, and dragged him forward.
"Talk! Where the hell were you messing around?! How could you forget something this important?!"
"Ow—! Take it easy! I'm your brother, not your husband! And hey, I recruited Jackie here, didn't I? I am working!"
"Huh? Then why didn't you answer my messages?!"
"Because I didn't want to get chewed out once over text and then again when I got home! Once was enough!"
Rebecca stared at him for a moment, then finally let go with a snort before looking over at Jackie.
Jackie lifted an eyebrow, a small smile tugging at his lips.
"Hola, chica. Name's Jackie Welles."
"Hi. I'm Rebecca. That's my bastard brother. And inside is our team's netrunner, my friend Lucy."
"Hola, chica."
Jackie nodded politely toward Lucy inside the room.
"Hello."
Lucy returned the gesture with a small nod.
After greetings and a bit of bickering, everyone headed inside to get down to business.
"A small Scav group in Heywood—Vista del Rey area… That's my old turf. I know that neighborhood like the back of my hand."
Jackie smiled after reviewing the brief.
"You're our guide, then."
"Relax, I've got it. And if something goes sideways, maybe I can hit up some old friends."
"Reliable!"
Pilar clapped Jackie on the shoulder, then slung an arm around him.
"I'll handle the surveillance and data extraction. Just cover me—I'm not built for direct combat."
"No problem. Leave it to us."
Rebecca stretched and let her legs sway lazily.
"You two handle the front line. I'll manage logistics. And I'll take the wheel too—for now, anyway. Combat's not really my thing."
Pilar waved casually and leaned back on the sofa.
"If you need anything, just say the word. I can usually get my hands on it."
...
"The target's inside here. How you handle it is your call."
"Which floor?"
"Let me see… Eighth. The four rooms at the back—they're all theirs. I'm guessing they tore the walls down to connect everything."
Pilar scratched his cheek as he spoke.
"And be quick. Don't make too much noise. Alerting the NCPD is whatever—but I'm not trying to get into a fight with PROJECT's security bots."
"Relax. If all goes well, they won't even know we were here."
Jackie flashed a confident look, cocked his Shotgun, and stepped out of the car. Rebecca and Lucy followed.
They reached the elevator soon after.
"Just realized—I barely know you two. How'd you end up doing this so young?"
"My old man's fault. Same for my brother. Not much else to say."
Rebecca blew a bubble, popped it, and kept chewing.
"Got it." Jackie nodded. He knew enough about their father to understand.
"And you, kid?"
"Me… no parents. Either living in other cities or drifting through the Badlands. When I came to Night City, I didn't have anywhere else to go, so I ended up becoming an edgerunner."
Lucy tweaked her backstory slightly and answered calmly.
"What a screwed-up world…"
Jackie sighed.
"It's all in the past now. Just focus on what's ahead."
Rebecca said casually, arms behind her head.
"True. I like your attitude!"
Ding!
"Oh, looks like we're here."
Jackie raised his brows and chambered his weapon. Rebecca and Lucy readied theirs as well.
Hearing the noise, residents peeked out from their doors.
Jackie waved them back. When they spotted the Valentinos tattoo on his arm, they immediately retreated—those marks held more authority in Vista del Rey than some corps did.
"I'm already inside their surveillance. No one's at the door. Move in—I'll open it."
"Damn, girl, you're fast! That's some skill!"
Jackie couldn't help but be impressed. Netrunning this advanced at her age explained a lot.
The two slipped toward the door. It eased open.
After a quick scan, they darted inside from opposite sides. Lucy closed the door behind them, drew the pistol at her waist, and took watch.
At the same time, she hacked into a gas tank near the entrance—just in case things went south.