Gina tries to convince Mr. Pereria to give the injured woman a room

Heedless to the disapproving gaze of the secretary, Gina laid sideways on a couch in dire need of re-upholstery and kicked her feet up one of the arms, leaving smudges of ashes that had been zasarians an hour ago. There she waited, and waited. The painkillers soon wore off, leaving her with an uncomfortable itch, but fortunately the regenerative bandages had done their job and she barely felt any pain. "Hey, I'm falling asleep in here," Gina groused to the bleach-blonde sitting behind the computer terminal desk. "C'mon, it's not like I cooked anybody who didn't deserve it. You know those guys - no, those things were bad news. All those shopkeepers looked pretty damn nervous seeing somebody about to get dragged off by those bugs for whatever nauseating purpose. You sure that Mr. Pereria doesn't want to see me so he can give me a raise or a bonus?" The secretary sniffed dismissively, refusing to dignify the cheeky psychic's comments with a response.

"Yeah," Gina said suavely, sitting up, spreading her arms wide and crossing her legs. "It's probably a bonus."

"Send her in." a bass voice crackles from a speaker on the secretary's terminal. Pushing a button, the door to the slumlord's office slides open with a series of clanks, and Gina hopped to her feet, strolling in casually. "Hey, hand-job," Gina said as she walked past, "don't let anybody walk off with my flamer. R' else next time it might be you getting kidnapped by freaks and me having nothing to spew burning phosphorus on them with." She just shakes her head and gives a disgusted grunt.

Walking into the tackily decorated office, Velasquez saw Carl Pereria with his back to her, leaning against the opposite wall, with his elbow resting on the wall and his head bent forward in a weary posture. A sunburned man in his 40s with a steeply receding hairline and a goatee that he thought gave him a more impressive frown, Mr. Pereria had already called her into his office four times, and she hadn't even been living here that many months. He'd threatened to fire her before but knew that a ****, unemployed psionic reaver under his roof was even worse than a loose cannon of a woman working security. He had a rather sloppy style of dress for someone with so much self importance, usually wearing slacks and a wifebeater in his office, showing off both the paunch that he'd let himself build up and the still-formidable bulk of muscle in his arms. Many of the employees here found him naturally imposing - and knowing that Gina could kill him with her mind made him constantly bite his tongue around her. But his patience had gradually worn out over the months, and now he didn't hesitate to talk harshly to her.

With a heavy sigh, Mr. Pereria turned around and put his hand on the desk next to him, though he kept his gaze on the floor - probably so he didn't have to risk having his mood softened by looking too hard at the eye candy Gina always had on offer. There was an awkward silence.

"So who was she to you, Velasquez?" he finally asked. "You go to school together with her? Part of your football club? Your girlfriend? OR, were you just looking for any excuse you could get to destroy a little more of my building?"

"I have no damn idea who she is." Gina said flippantly. She did a little pose, leaning back against the wall and propping one foot up against it with her knee out, glancing at the man sideways, exposing a maximum of bare thigh skin. "Whaaat, you're not pissy that I had her put up in a room, are you, Carl?"

"This isn't a halfway house and besides that, you didn't have to-"

Gina interrupted him, giving him a limp-wristed, dismissive wave. "Come on, get real! You saw the holographs of her, right? She's a fine looking goz. You're seriously disappointed I saved her? She'll easily bring in enough to rent one of your cheap-ass little rooms, turning tricks."

"You're such a financial genius yet when it's time to pay your own damn way all I ever get is excuses! God knows where you spend what I pay you - and what I pay you for, Gina, is keeping the people who've paid for security safe. Not destroying their livelihoods and setting fires that consume half the roof market!" He turned his computer terminal's screen around so Gina could see. "Since you're playing good samaritan now, I'll give the cat a week to pull her own weight. But you're out of here, Velasquez. And with that level of damage, you're dreaming if you think you're getting your deposit back."

There was another tense silence. Mr. Pereria slapped his hand down on the desk. "What, you can't read the termination notice? What're you still standing here for? Walk that ass of yours out the door and back onto the street." he said condescendingly, making a little 'walking' gesture with his fore and middle fingers. Gina's facade slipped and she frowned. This was one of the last places around not owned by lackeys of one of the three syndicates - another safehouse wouldn't be easy to find at all. She needed more time here. She played the card she had.

"Ohhhhhhww... Come ON! Mr. Pereria... Carl... don't do this to me." she said, taking a few steps closer. "My finger's on the security button, Velasquez." he said, his jaw tightening.

"Mmmm, but you haven't heard my proposal," Gina said with a husky, sing-song tone. "Don't you think that I can provide a few hundred credits worth of, ahh, services rendered to provide for repairs? I'll listen closely to how you want me to handle things up on the roof from now on. Veeeery closely." she murmured.

Mr. Pereria looked surprised and stood up straight. Gina saw a flash of lust in his eyes and knew he's taking the proverbial bait. He took one hand up to his chin and thought for a moment, nodding to himself. "Is this for real, Velasquez?" he asked in a skeptical voice. "I figured this wasn't your style. This had better not be just you playing mind games before you threaten to throw me out a window or something."

"Ohhhh, kinky." Gina said with a mischievous grin. She started to walk over to his desk slowly, swaying her hips and putting a finger up to her lips, teasing the tip of her tongue over it. "I can be as rough... or as soft and squeezable as you want. And besides, don't you think the most appropriate punishment for bad girls who start fires and break things is a good hard spanking?"

She could see his breathing deepen. It was working... but was it really worth it? Gina thought perhaps she should just threaten him after all - he was a coward and there was nobody else on security half as dangerous as her. Although she'd been with less-appealing men, he was kind of a sleaze, and Gina hated hated having to beg anyone for anything on principle. She had to decide fast, he was coming closer and looked like he was getting ready to grab two big handfuls of her butt.