Chapter 355: Eavesdropping
"Here is our list of carpets in the colors you specified. We have a range of sizes and designs. Then this tap is for the other thing you requested, it only has general items. If you want something a bit more specific then you will have to special order it. I will inform you if it is possible." The vampire handed him a digital tablet and he started scrolling through it.
"I will keep that in mind. Is it okay if I browse through the list over here so I am not in your way?" Jace asked, nodding at an area to the side where some of his carpets were on display.
"Certainly, take your time. Just do not go too far." The vampire warned as Jace stepped away and started absentmindedly browsing through the list. While he focused his ears to pick up some more distant conversations.
Nearby at a glass jar display stand was another interesting conversation. "When is the delivery?" One man asked with a gruff voice.
"It arrives tomorrow night." A raspy voice answered. "But what about the new guards? The Victorium is not easy to pay off. In fact it might not even be possible."
"That is why they should not be using the main docks in the first place." There was a moment of silence before the gruff voice continued. "There are a few places we can avoid the new guards. They do not check the emergency airlocks, the abandoned maintenance docks, nor the worker docks. I do not think anyone told the Victorium about them. Not to mention the traffic controllers are mostly still human. So far they have been able to direct the smugglers to those yet unchecked areas of the ship. That will work until we can start paying off Victorium guards."
"Then the shipment of Brown Gruff will arrive tomorrow." The raspy man responded. "Tell me the dock location an hour before it arrives."
They were talking about drugs. Brown Gruff was a form of powder that was damaging enough that the system could not repair the damage done in the less powerful members of the nanohumans. It was ingested orally and went to the lungs. It then stimulated the lungs to make the user hallucinate. Ingesting too much at once can cause a person to suffocate on air. While the hallucinations are said to bring an immense amount of joy to the user because the nanosystem stimulates those parts of the brain to avoid traumatizing the user.
It was an example of exploitation of the nanosystem for pleasure. But it was also not Jace’s current focus. Although that bit about the docks and traffic controllers was useful information.
He picked a carpet that he liked and then switched to the weapons tab as he listened for another conversation. It took him a second but eventually he could pick up the conversation behind a set of glass windows. Where a number of people had gathered.
"Those officers are a bit too obvious." One voice suggested and it was followed by a series of clicks which was distinctive of only the accer species.
"That is the point. We need to look for the watchers. People who are keeping an eye on them. Those are our criminals. But remember our main focus is the people who are kidnapping people. They have not only been grabbing humans but also a few of the Victorian traders who passed through the area." A more throaty voice explained, definitely a mar’talic.
"I still do not see why we are not tossing over the entire district to find them." Another voice spoke. This one he could not quite place. But it was reverberated like it was going through a shriveled tube.
"Because they know this place better than we do. Not to mention the other locals will see us as a bunch of invaders. It is a balancing act between doing our job and keeping the human civilians happy. Did you even read the pamphlet on humans?" The throaty voice asked in clear exasperation.
"Whatever." The reverberating voice responded.
It seemed like a group of Victorium Military Police were here as well. They were using the normal police as a shield to keep the culprits from finding them. The Victorium would also be able to spot someone watching the cops more easily.
But it sounded like these kidnappers had taken it a step too far when they kidnapped Victorium citizens. Fortunately Jace should be able to track them down first. So Mistress White could extract whatever pound of flesh she needed.
Jace found a few different weapons he could use. Not for their actual use but because they had some rare wiring or materials used in their creation. He picked them and looked a bit more as he listened for another conversation.
After a few minutes he finally found the type of talking he was looking for. "How about that one?" It was a pair of men on the third floor of a building where an open balcony cafe was located. They were near the balcony looking down at the market place.
"Too fat."
"The blonde?"
"Maybe. But we only need a few more for this last shipment and we have to be extra careful. The police are onto us, look down there at that cafe. There is also that person Mistress White replaced Haunson with. If he manages to track us down we are going to have to go on the run or die. The only reason she has not caught on is because Haunson has been covering for us." One of the voices declared.
"Yeah, I know. Maybe we should grab something exotic again?" The other voice suggested.
There was a few minutes of silence. "You are right. But we are not going to get it here. Let’s head to the next site early. Fortunately tomorrow is the pickup so we still have some time. Not to mention the other groups have been bringing in exotic merchandise as well." That definitely sounded like a pair of people smugglers.
Jace walked to the window and handed the vampire carpet seller the tablet. "I put my address down. You can send them there." He told the vampire before paying.
"Thank you for your patronage, have a good day." The vampire grinned and waved him off. Then turned to his next customer that was approaching the window.
Technically he had just over paid for a single carpet. But in reality the payment was for the carpet and the weapon he had picked.