With nothing else to do, I tapped my fingers against the somewhat grimy tabletop and tried not to think about how badly I wanted to get out of this place. Or the fact that I'd given up an undoubtedly amazing night of sex to come here.
Tao returned with two glasses of beer, handing me one as he sat down. "At least it's cold," I said, licking the froth from my lips. In a place like this, that had to be a bonus. I nodded toward the doorway. "Looks like Handberry is in."
"Well, the light is on," Tao said. "That doesn't mean Handberry is home."
"True."
"Did you deliver the package?"
I nodded. "It scuttled in about five minutes ago."
"Then hopefully Stane is picking up the feed okay."
"With what that thing is probably worth, he'd be pissed off if he didn't."
Tao snorted. "Trust me, Stane wouldn't have paid for it. He would have done some sort of nefarious deal. He's got a nice sideline of black-market electronics."
I wasn't entirely surprised. "So the mess in the shop is a cover?"
"Would you think of looking for illegal components in all that grime?"
"Not when there are probably hundreds of spiders just waiting to pounce."
"The webs are fake. Stane hates spiders as much—" He paused, glancing toward the front of the bar as a commotion started up. Two men were going at it, the smack of flesh against flesh audible even above the rest of the noise. It didn't last for long—security moved in quickly and escorted them out of the venue.
But a reaper followed them out.
I shivered and took a quick sip of beer. It didn't help much. Nothing did—not when I knew death was so close.