The next day came and Adam had a plan on what he was going to do. He was going to get Buddy.
Buddy had been waiting at Renaissance since he had left Second Life. Truthfully it's possible he didn't make it, or perhaps the residents of the town stripped him for parts. He would be saddened to lose Buddy like that, but it was still the right choice for the time. But now that he was at The Pier, which was very close to the settlement, it was time to bring him home.
Adam left his room and grabbed breakfast, paying 27 caps for food and drink. However as he was wrapping up his meal one of the jean jacketed men approached him.
"The Madam has requested your presence." He said in a nonchalant way. They didn't have the presence or intimidation of the men in black suits of the guild so it felt less like he had no choice. However she was still the leader here so he didn't want to say no. Even if she seemed to be a snake of some kind.
"Alright, lead the way." Adam said before he shoved the last of his food into his mouth and then stood up to follow. They arrived in Madam Aquamarine's 'office' shortly after. Just like last time she was lounging around like she didn't have a care in the world. Did she ever do work?
"Ah, Adam, wonderful~" She said with an almost sultry tone as Adam walked in.
"You asked to see me?" Adam said back.
"Yes, please, sit." She smiled dangerously again, it was clear she was not asking, she was telling him. Of course if her words alone weren't enough the two heavily armored super mutants behind her were enough of a motivation for him to listen. So he took a seat on one of the pillows on the ground.
"Now…." She slowly grabbed her pipe and sat up in a long exaggerated motion, perhaps letting Adam scan her body as she showed off her skin. She was lucky she was indeed beautiful, it was easy to look at her. Shame she seemed less than upright though. "I heard recently you went out and scavenged your way through a whole building full of mirelurk kings. Is that right?" She asked, though her tone and mannerisms said she already knew the answer. Adam just nodded.
"Yes, Madam. Though encountering and fighting the kings was not a part of my plan, as I only went out to scavenge, but I'm not going to complain about collecting a bounty."
"Wonderful~" She smiled as she gave Adam another sultry look. "I love a man who gets things done." She took a slow hit of her pipe and breathed the smoke out in a heavy cloud, though not towards Adam.
"You see, I'm in need of a go-getter. And I believe you might be the man for the job." She smiled.
Oh? She was asking to hire Adam? This was unexpected, but welcome.
"I would need to hear the details of the job."
"Naturally." She smiled. "You see, there have been some upstarts, nobodies who have been cutting into my turf, trying to undercut my product~" She grinned.
"What sort of product?" Adam asked, though he had a strong suspicion what she was talking about he was not jumping to conclusions.
"Chems." She said with a dangerous smile.
"I see."
"I want you to go downtown and… remove the competition for me."
"I'm sorry." Adam began, politely. "But I am not a contract killer or hitman, I do not take on these kinds of jobs." She looked genuinely surprised at Adams' words.
"Well that's certainly a surprise to hear, considering you are working for The Guild, and all."
"All I'm doing is trying to ensure the caravans can make it to Midway safely." She looked at Adam for a moment, studying his face, seeing if he understood the implications of what he was saying and once she was satisfied he didn't, she laughed.
"Well color me surprised, the old bastard has a genuine man working for him at the moment." She laughed.
"Technically I'm only a contract worker, I don't work for the Guild." Adam informed.
"Do you know what those caravans contain that 'Mr. Cantelli' is so desperate for you to ensure arrive on time?" Adam looked at her confused.
"I was under the impression it was much needed food; fish, crab, and whatnot. Afterall Midway doesn't sustain itself through farming, I think." Madam Aquamarine laughed softly into the back of her hand.
"Oh, how adorable, you truly are naive." She shot Adam another sultry look, sizing him up. "I could use a man for my bedchambers tonight, if you are interested~" She said as she knowingly dragged one of her feet along the length of her other leg in a tantalizing way. Adam however didn't budge.
"No thank you, I would like to keep our relationship strictly professional."
"Shame." She shrugged. "Well to answer the question, the thing he is so desperate to get a hold of is chems." She smiled.
"Drugs?" Adam said back, shocked.
"Yes. I am Chicago's best and only provider of high grade chems. The old man might not like me but he needs me, without me the junkies he keeps hooked and under control would be let loose. It's just one of the many spokes of his control over that dirty place he calls home." She said with a dismissive wave of her hand.
"The Guild does that?"
"Oh yes.~" She said as she leaned in a bit with a conspiratorial grin. "That's only one of the many enterprises they take part in…" She then pulled out a Midway slip from under her cushion and waved it around.
"Do you know why The Guild issued all of these worthless pieces of paper for the merchants to use in the city?" She asked.
"I assumed because it's easier to do commerce with and easier to carry around, no?" She chuckled softly.
"I love how cute you are~" She winked at Adam. "But no, consider that a happy accident. The real reason he forced everyone to use the slips is because he who controls the money…" She ripped the paper in half without a second thought. "Controls the people." She smiled.
"While the merchants and people trade in worthless paper, backed only by his word. He sits on a vault full of hundreds of thousands, perhaps even tens of millions of caps. If he ever were to leave, he could take all that money and leave the entire city without a single cap to his name." She grinned. Adam went wide eyed, this was not the reason he had assumed. Sure she might hate Mr. Cantelli, but what she was saying made sense, and it did explain everyone's reactions to The Guild.
"So not only does he deal in chems, not only does he hoard wealth, but he controls the prostitution ring, runs a protection racket, bought out the mayor and guards, and even, at times, shuts down any competition that might crop up. What his 'Merchant's Guild' truly is, is nothing more than an old world Mafia. And he is… what do you call it? The kingpin? The Don? Whatever~" She smirked. Adam was still processing all this new information when she spoke up again.
"So while he plays pretend good samaritan for Midway, I make no attempts to hide what kind of woman I am~" She said with a sultry tone again, her eyes locked on Adam's. "I am a chem dealer, the finest in Chicago, but I am also the leader of this settlement~. Not some shadow king like he is." She stood up and then walked over to sit next to Adam, putting one hand tenderly on his shoulder. "I am a benevolent leader, do you see those people outside? How happy they are? Before I came along these people were on the verge of dying, attacks that never ended, boats in the process of sinking, riots, civil war… I alone, ended that all." She said as she gently dragged a finger down Adam's arm in a seductive way before disengaging with touching him.
"I use my funds to ensure this town thrives, I do not force my drugs onto anyone, and keep my people safe and happy. That is more than that old bastard can say he does~" She stood up again and walked over to her seat once more, laying down on her side once more. "We may be similar, but while I lead, he steals. He is a leach. So whatever noble act you think you are doing for the people of Midway, remember, you are actually doing it for the most selfish man in Chicago~." She smiled, knowing that she had just shattered whatever sort of impression Adam had of Mr. Cantelli.
Adam, of course, knew Mr. Cantelli was not on the up-and-up, he definitely was into something shady, even if not just the taxes, his men walked around like they owned the place, however he didn't realize it went this deep. That is rather loathsome. He was not a fan of working for him at all now.
"Of course, don't let this stop you from fixing this issue with the Caravans." She added. "If it makes you feel any better, neither he nor I would let this situation stand, so someone, if not you, would solve it eventually. And in the meantime while you weren't helping, people would be suffering severe withdrawal symptoms. Withdrawal symptoms that can be cured with addictol, which I also include in all my shipments." Adam let off a deep sigh.
"I see that things are more complicated than I assumed." He shook his head softly.
"Oh don't worry yourself over it, handsome.~ All you need to do is focus on the task, not the outcome. But unlike him, I wanted to help ensure you were fully understanding of the facts of the situation. After all, a man such as yourself deserves to know what he's fighting for."
Adam looked off to the side while he processed this information, unsure what to do about his thoughts now.
"I assume you have other things to do today, so I won't keep you for long. You may go~" She took another long hit of her pipe as she closed her eyes. Adam got up without another word and headed out the door, still uncertain of himself.