“You Freedom’s baron, Morgan?” Ryan asked. The man turned to the left, to the right and then glanced behind himself. “I must be, or else I’m loitering in his office again,” he muttered before turning back to face Ryan. “No. Not hardly. Freedom has no baron or boss or lord. I’m merely the administrator.”
“Ah, is that what barons are calling themselves now?” Ryan said, keeping his hands out in the open, friendly, nonthreatening. “I’ve met all kinds, admirals, princes, bosses and commandersall the same. Barons. Still, you might be telling the truth. You’re not overweight enough to be the genuine article, and you don’t have any toadies or sluts kissing your ass and falling over your feet.”
“I like my privacy. And I’ve never claimed the title of baron in my life. The name is Beck Morgan. I never got into calling people by their last names,” Morgan said easily, sticking out a hand to shake.
Ryan looked at the offered hand as if it was covered in pus.
“No manners where you come from, outlander?” Morgan asked as he slid the offered hand back.
Ryan felt his face flush. The scar running down his left cheek from the injury that had taken his eye darkened. “I’ve got manners, Morgan. But if I took your hand right now I’m afraid I might try to keep it by ripping your damn arm clean off and beating you to death with it.”
The mall administrator chuckled. “Like you did to the sec droid in the pit? I watched the battle from here. Very impressive, and clever. You fought with courage and wit.”
“And fearnobody bothered telling me when going in I was supposed to be fighting hand-to-hand with an android,” Ryan snapped.
“You dealt with the unexpected quite well, Ryan. I hear you’re good at that,” Morgan said. “A talent for survival is a most useful ability.”
“Look, Morgan, you can save yourself some time and cut the diplomatic smile, the first-name calling, the compliments on my fighting abilities and the firm, dry handshake.” Ryan rubbed his forehead with his right hand. “Do us both a favor and spare me the lecture. I don’t plan on being here long enough to get on a first-name basis with you. I’m here for one reason. I want my son.”
The bearded man shook his head wearily. “It’s not that simple. Certain parties have been injured. Certain parties demand justice.”
“Don’t they always? My guess is, way things work in Deathlands we’re looking at Dean’s word and Jak’s against the man they chilled. Dead men can’t talk.”
“Not a man, a boy. And there are living, breathing witnesses. Well, a witness, anyway. No question your son and friend were minding their own business, and once they were provoked, they brought out the scythe and started mowing down the opposition,” Morgan said. “Are all your people as deadly as you those two and yourself, Ryan?”
“I hope for your future here as boss man of Freedom you never have to find out,” Ryan replied. “And don’t call me Ryan.”
“What should I call you?”
“I don’t give a damn,” Ryan said dismissively. “I’ll say it again. I want my son.”
“Fair enough. We’re not unfair here in Freedom. You’ll have himsoon as you make restitution to the arcade owners and pay his fines. Along with the albino’s.”
“How much?”
“The fines? Hell, not much. I’ll go ahead and waive them to show my good intentions. Consider them paid,” Morgan said, tearing up a sheet of paper with a flourish.
Ryan wasn’t buying the show. “What about the damages?”
“Nothing I can do to help you there, I’m afraid,” Morgan said as he pulled a stack of whisper-thin sheets out of a wire-mesh basket on his desk and flipped through them. Finding the one he wanted, he put down the rest and handed over the single damning piece of paper to Ryan.
“Fireblast!” Ryan spit as he saw the list of figures and the combined total at the bottom of the list. “That’s a lot of jack.”
“Some of those vid machines are damn near irreplaceable, Cawdor. Any good comp equipment is usually salvaged for something of more value than mere entertainment, and to find full units in working order takes time and lots of money. Lucky for your boy, the arcade owner is a forgiving sort once he feels that proper justice had been meted out.”