Lock In (Lock In, #1)(39)

“I work out of the second,” Trinh said. “I live here. I was having a drink at Henry’s when the report came in over the radio. Thought I’d come over and see how you were doing.”

“I’m fine now,” I said.

“And maybe to have a chat with you.”

“All right,” I said.

“Privately,” Trinh said, nodding to Tayla.

I looked over to Tayla. “You want me to get them to take you home?”

“We’re less than a hundred yards from where we live,” Tayla said. “I think I can make it on my own.”

“All right,” I said.

“See you there soon,” she said, and headed home.

“You live with her?” Trinh asked, as Tayla walked off.

“New housemate,” I said. “This is actually the first time I’ve met her.”

“Interesting way to meet your new housemate,” Trinh said. “She’s lucky you were around. We’ve been having a spike of Haden bashings today.”

“Why is that?” I asked.

“The walkout and the stunt with the trucks on the loop, but I’m sure you knew that,” Trinh said. “When you spend days making it difficult for other people to do their thing, they get pissy about it. And because so many of you are flooding into town for the march, there are lots of targets of opportunity, as it were. It’s open season on threeps. We had five attacks in the second district today.”

“And how do you feel about it?” I asked.

“I’ll be happy when the march is over and I can get back to busting college kids for peeing on the sidewalk.”

“Huh,” I said. “What can I help you with, Detective Trinh?”

“I was curious about what you think of your new partner,” Trinh said.

“We get along so far,” I said.

“You heard about her last partner.”

“What about her?”

“Did Vann tell you what happened with her?”

“I understand there was a mishap with a firearm,” I said.

“That’s one way of putting it,” Trinh said. “There are other interpretations.”

“Like what?”

“Like Vann’s partner decided putting a bullet in her gut was a better option than dealing with Vann anymore.”

“Seems drastic,” I said.

“Desperate times,” Trinh said. “Desperate measures.”

“I don’t know anything about that,” I said.

“No, I guess you wouldn’t,” Trinh said. “You also know Vann used to be an Integrator.”

“I’d heard that,” I said.

“Ever wonder why she quit?”

“I’ve known her for two days,” I said. “One of which I mostly spent in the mountain time zone. So we haven’t had time to exchange life stories.”

“Pretty sure she knows yours,” Trinh said.

“Everyone knows mine,” I said. “It’s not a big trick.”

“Let me catch you up on hers, then,” Trinh said. “She left because she couldn’t hack it. The government spent all that money making her an Integrator and she ended up being phobic about people using her body. You might want to get her to tell you about her last couple of integration sessions. The rumors about them are pretty dramatic.”

“I wouldn’t know about that either,” I said.

“It explains all the self-medicating,” Trinh said. “Unless you’ve missed the smoking and drinking and barhopping, looking for people to bang.”

“I’ve noticed it,” I said.

“She’s not hugely picky on that score.”

“Really,” I said. “Does that explain you, then?”

Trinh smiled at me. “I never f*cked Vann, if that’s what you’re asking. I’m not entirely sure about her and her old partner, though. I don’t suppose it will be an issue with you.”

“Do you have a problem with Hadens, Trinh?” I asked. “Because you don’t just punt in a crack like that last one right out of the blue.”

“I don’t think you understood me,” Trinh said. “I think it’s a good thing she won’t have an opportunity to f*ck with you that way. But I won’t be surprised if she finds another way to do it.”

“Right,” I said. “Look, Trinh. It’s late and I’ve had a really long day. So if you could get to the point of this little conversation, I’d appreciate it. I mean, aside from you taking a dump all over my new partner.”

“The point is that you should be thinking about your partner, Agent Shane,” Trinh said. “She’s smart but not as smart as she thinks she is. She’s good, but not as good as she thinks she is, either. She talks a good game about what other people should be doing but when it comes to her own shit, she gets sloppy. Maybe you’ve noticed that already and maybe you haven’t. But speaking as a voice of some experience on that matter, if you haven’t noticed it yet, it’s something you’ll notice soon.”

“So she’s a ticking time bomb ready to explode, and I don’t want to be anywhere near her when she goes off,” I said. “Straight from the cliché checklist. Got it.”