Interlude 11: A day in court

  The fucking bitch had decided to go at it on her own, and now she wanted his son? Fuck that. The sniper was in position, ready to fire at the first sign of that cunt! Kevin Richard wasn’t going to lose a fucking penny because of that damn contract breaker!

  She was his! He’d do whatever the fuck he wanted with her! His toy wanted to rebel? She’d see what happened to rebellious toys…

  The day was cold as hell, even the security force with him didn’t look any warmer in their advanced body armor and mechanized suits. His chief of security looked warmer, but with this many augs, who could tell, really?

  They were waiting for that fucking bitch when an armored convoy appeared. His chief pushed him behind as tanks tracked the vehicles, who in turn tracked the tanks with roof and door mounted guns. It was a tense standoff, soon broken by an odd looking troop transport landing on the front steps. Out came a line of mechanized infantry.

  “We have incoming troops, do not engage, no hostile actions taken, shielding is up, principal is in the line of fire, I repeat, do not engage.” In comms, the man subvocalized and was a lot more detailed. His explanations were fast and clipped.

  ‘I see armed personnel, mechanically assisted heavy armor, SMGs, shotguns and what looks like an LMG, extremely advanced, possibly samurai tech. I see at least one explosive launcher. Those door guns scan oddly, potential railguns. Engagement success estimation is low, principal in danger if things turn hostile. Can defeat but not without tank engagement and not without the principal being in danger. Diplomacy suggested.’

  One man in a heavy, warm coat that was clearly of high quality but not fashionable came forward. “Hi! You must be the chief of security for mister Kevin Richard, correct?” His guardian nodded and the man smiled.

  “Good, sorry to startle you, I am chief of security for the Red, White and Black corporate security firm. I’m here to ensure the safety of the woman you knew as Irene Richard. She has legally changed her name to Lila and I will be referring to her as such for these proceedings.”

  His security detail relaxed significantly which made no fucking sense! He’d hired another firm for the assassination… actually, his assistant had hired a few others, just to be sure. Even if they didn’t know about them for deniability’s sake, the idiots should at the very fucking list imagine he’d hire them! Incompetent…

  They shook hands with a relieved smile on each of their faces. “I understand the need, of course. We’ve secured the premises but I assume you’ll wish to do the same?” The weirdo smiled back. The sides of his head were covered in metal, right under a red faux-hawk. High-end augs? Whatever, just some servant.

  “Yes, thank you, and thank you for understanding. Do you mind if we move inside? I’m freezing my balls off out here.” They both chuckled and everyone did.

  He wouldn’t get to see that bitch’s head blow up. Shame.

  Those apparently well equipped interlopers scoured the place with various scanners and found nothing. Made sense, those assassins wouldn’t put the one paying them in danger. The small private courthouse’s door led directly into the indoor garage.

  When they were finally done, it was time for that bitch to come and die! “Are you ready to bring in the client?” His chief asked, pleasant and polite.

  That guy… who hadn’t given his name yet now that he thought about it but he didn’t matter, nodded and said “Of course, let’s get to court, she’ll be right there.” Shareholder Richard had never learned to respect underlings. Attachments made disposal so much harder, better not to form any.

  They all moved to the right room and Kevin kept waiting for the fucking shot! It… didn’t come.

  When they entered the chambers, one of those meaningless goons next to the meaningless guy moved forward, covered in full-plate armor that looked ready to take on a fucking tank!

  Right there, just inside the courthouse, Irene stepped out of the back of the armor! He was speechless. Cole laughed. “Clever.”

  The man smiled. “Thank you!”

  There she was! Irene, just as beautiful but… different. Less skinny, bigger tits, more muscled. She was less pretty and more… sexy. He preferred the old version. He didn’t want her back in his toy box. She looked at him and smiled.

  That… that was his smile! A predator’s smile! What the fuck could make her think she had the upper hand!? He was Kevin fucking Richard! He was the predator! “Irene, you’ve changed.” He said derisively with a snarl. It was a shitty first strike and he knew it, but whatever.

  “Thank you, you’re still the same piece of shit. Where’s my son?” His eyes widened. No one talked to him that way!

  “None of your business you little cunt! He’s mine, I decide where he goes. I didn’t want him to come, so he didn’t.” He said, glaring daggers. She shrugged. It looked fake.

  “I’ll see him soon enough. Let’s fucking do this.”

  The tiny courtroom had more security forces than people, most of the free space where no one was allowed. They went to sit, his lawyer already there and Cole stayed up, watching over everything. “Where’s your lawyer, going to represent yourself?”

  She sat down with her chief of security and no one else. That was… odd

  For some reason she smiled at him. “She’s there.”

  “All rise!” The bailiff in heavy riot gear asked. The judge came in, old and a bit decrepit. It was tradition to only start bribes after court started since so much happened before that it was sort of useless. Bribes before court just annoyed the judge since they wouldn’t receive them or, if they were paid in advance, often ended up as lost funds.

  “Sit, sit.” He said while taking a seat himself. “What’s the case and who’s present.” The bailiff started reading from his augs.

  “We have Kevin Richard and formerly Irene Richard, henceforth referred to as Lila. The case is on the matter of divorce.”

  The judge nodded, uninterested. “Alright, lawyers, are all present?”

  That weird guy spoke up. “Yes your honor, although one is mostly present digitally, I hope that is not a concern? We have a drone with projection capabilities she can inhabit for the duration of these proceedings.” The judge nodded, clearly not caring that much.

  “It is not a problem. I would prefer an avatar present, no matter how odd, if you wouldn’t mind.”

  “Of course your honor.”

  A small drone unstealthed out of nowhere. Good tech, where the fucking hell did that cunt find this kind of ally? Did the other shareholders want to weaken him? Maybe a power-grab… better watch out.

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  Then, a cyborg red panda appeared on the table! What the shit? “Greetings, I am Altany, I will be the legal representative for miz Lila. All documentation, forms and accreditations are being sent to you.” The judge nodded, checked his augs, then nodded again.

  “I am satisfied to proceed. I will have a private conference with both lawyers over direct communication channels.”

  Oh well, whatever, weird ass lawyer was still just a lawyer, he had armies of them. His own’s eyes went blank and he slumped slightly as the judge did the same. This is when the bribes should start. He could outbid anybody, especially that little…

  His lawyer straightened, startled. The judge did the same, suddenly much more energetic! “Yes, yes, let’s do this, I am satisfied with both parties' credit transfers to start and finish proceedings today. Some elements are apparently in contention. I understand that the question of possessions was settled via a pre-marital agreement?”

  Concerned, he subvocalized.

  ‘What’s wrong?’

  ‘We er… They somehow outbid us… It’s eh… We didn’t get a full win but from what I could gleam, it appears we’ll have to win this one fair and square, sir. They didn’t buy a full win either, but I’m not sure they asked for one…

  ‘Are we in trouble?’

  ‘No sir! We’ll be fine, we have that evidence, I’ll handle this, sir.’

  What kind of fucking offer did that bitch make? Time to play his next card. He sent a text message as some legal bullshit was said.

  Pretty soon after, two people entered the room. Irene’s parents! The contract they had would dissolve with the divorce! If she wanted to…

  “Madam, sir, I apologize but you are intruding on a private proceeding.” That weird guy said, having risen to his feet, as he blocked them both. He was fast! Clearly augmented to all hell. Subtly at that. High end mercs…

  Irene’s father balked. “I am her father! I can sit in if I wish! I have a right to witness…” He didn’t let him finish.

  “Sir, you are not. You’ve been legally disowned and as you are a potential risk to my client, I have been instructed to shoot the both of you if you approach any closer.”

  Irene’s mother didn’t believe him. “Who even are you? She is our daughter! We can…”

  “Fuck. Off.”

  The words came from Irene. She glared daggers without looking at them. Kevin had never heard her sound like that! That voice had steel in it, along with incredible rage. Not anywhere near as meek as before, that one. Her weird as shit lawyer decided to add something.

  “I should mention, any action in further violation of my client’s wishes will be classified as assault. Restraining orders are being filed as we speak. Also, further assault will classify you as a threat that can be handled using force by a registered corporate security firm.” Damn! That lawyer had some teeth, no matter how bizarre!

  Neither came any closer, not wanting to risk it, but when they refused to leave and the restraining order was filed, that guy turned to the judge. “My apologies, your honor, but would you mind if my people dealt with this interruption?”

  “Of course, deal with them and let’s get back on track.”

  Two of her security forces ejected them while being pretty fucking far from gentle, then exited to make sure they didn’t cause any more interruptions. Irene took a deep breath after that. He’d rattled her, good.

  The divorce was pretty cut and dry. Pre-marital arrangement was clear on who got what, AKA nothing for her, ha! The only thing of contention would be who got their son. His lawyer, even if he didn’t get to win just with their bribe, could at least make arguments in court!

  “Sir, the woman is clearly a danger to any child, we’ve found evidence of her acting as a sex worker! Not only that, but also drug use! She has been absent from the child’s life for over eight years and, as such, has no business being anywhere near him!” The argument was strong, and that evidence had been hard to find! She’d covered her tracks well…

  “Your honor, it is not in contention that my client was kidnapped and enslaved, as well as drugged against her will on multiple occasions.” Fuck! Useless fucking intel team didn’t spot that! That got the judge’s attention! Kevin could see he was touched. Stupid touchy-feely bastard! “It is also not in contention that my client fled Kevin Richard to avoid abuse and sexual violence at his hand…”

  “Objection!” His lawyer finally said. That stupid little red panda showed a document.

  “The documentation will show that miz Lila has taken an advanced MRI backed polygraph test and has stated as such on the record. The evidence shows that it is the reason she took the actions she did, no matter the truth of the situation.”

  “Overruled.” The judge said, clearly picking a fucking side!

  “Thank you, your honor. As I was saying, it is not in contention that my client fled Kevin Richard to avoid abuse and sexual violence at his hand. The evidence also demonstrates that she took every action possible to amass the resources necessary to survive this day in court. She has risked her freedom and her life to receive this divorce and be able to see her son once more.” That fucker almost had a tear in his eye!

  “Also, there are two salient points that the evidence shows. First, miz Lila has acted as a carrier for a child and has been breastfeeding him. She has also been helping raise two young girls whose identity shall remain confidential for their safety from mister Kevin Rich…”

  “Objection!”

  “Sustained, please continue. There is no need to name the children, but the evidence is sufficient to convince me of the fact.”

  “Thank you, your honor. As I was saying, Miz Lila has been raising several orphans and bore a child for another couple. She has experience in child rearing. For the second salient point, I wish to submit footage into evidence. This has been recovered legally, including the metadata to prove its authenticity. I am sending the footage now, would you mind if I display it for the court?” The judge approved and…

  It was footage of him disciplining his son! Where the fuck had they gotten that!? It was from all over the place! They had to have combed millions of hours of footage to find this shit! God damn it! The judge was clearly on her side! That fucking cocksucker!

  He’d have all their careers down the fucking toilet! Heads would fucking role! Incompetents everywhere!

  What kind of fucking bribe did they fucking give?

  ***

  It wasn’t fucking over! If she died, his son would still be his again! Those assassins and PMCs would take her out, he didn’t care how advanced that armor was!

  They were almost out of the courthouse! Kevin was hanging back a bit, there was probably going to be some…

  “Wait!” The weird guy said, stopping them in their tracks. “Mister Cole, I have a sniper to eliminate, I don’t want your men to get jumpy…” His chief of security nodded and sent a few orders. After receiving a confirmation, the weird guy nodded again. “Take the shot.”

  A massive supersonic crack split the air! That had to be a high velocity weapon! Nearby, on the side of a sky scrapper, the wall below a window was turned to rubble! “Damn…” Cole said, confirming that it had been impressive.

  After a few seconds, the weird guy nodded. “Threat eliminated. Let’s go…” They went on their way, but Kevin had sent a picture of that armor Irene was wearing to his assistant. As they entered the parking garage, it happened again! Where the fuck did this guy get his intel!?

  “Incoming! Cole, get your principal inside, Lila, get behind Francis! I’ll deal with those fuckers…” Suddenly, armor flowed over him like a wave. That metal on the sides of his head became ears and even got a few layers. He got his coat off and a massive railgun assembled on his shoulder. His entire front was covered in armor and the face of his helmet looked like a red panda! It even had animated eyes…

  Upon approaching the landing, he took a knee and suddenly, a giant gun assembled in his hands! The railgun hummed and he fired.

  Armored vehicles that had been approaching at high speed fell from the sky in rubble! Some even split in half! He kept shooting and just like that, by himself, he repelled the entire PMC that had come for his principal. When they’d all fallen from the sky way down onto the street below, he nodded. Then, walked straight for him.

  He got very, very close, and his chief of security looked profoundly uncomfortable. “I do not believe I have introduced myself. My samurai name is Mad Panda. Lila carried my son, and I will help her take care of hers. You will deliver your son, in good health, or I will destroy or steal everything you own right before I kill you. I know you’ll try to kill me and honestly? I don’t care all that much. What matters to me is your son’s wellbeing, for which I will destroy or kill whatever and whoever I need to.”

  “I do not lie, mister Richard, and I do not make idle threats. Believe me when I say, if you harm your son, nothing in this world could ever keep you safe from me. Eventually, no matter how long or how many resources it might take, I will kill you if you harm him. Understood?” Kevin hated himself for the fear on his face as he nodded. He wasn’t supposed to feel fear anymore! Never!

  However, this was a samurai, one that was not stopped easily. He’d have to pay a high price for his head…