to be dealt with before Cho remembered he wasn’t permanently attached to the armory.
Even injured, Craig could take the kid in a fight. He was bigger, stronger, and although he had little experience with the kind of up close and personal violence Torin excelled at, Nadayki had even less. Craig could take him down, tie him up with his own overalls, and when Ressk opened the outer doors, the kid would die. Sure, Nadayki was low on the list for di’Taykan of the year, his blood sure as fuk not worth bottling, but he had to give him a fair go.
When the gravity came back in, a moment later, he took his weight on his good foot then hopped over the lip into the pod, grabbing Nadayki’s upper arm. “Come on, kid, move!”
Eyes dark, the young di’Taykan struggled but couldn’t break Craig’s grip. “Let go of me, you senak!”
“No, like it or not, I’m pulling your head out of your ass!” Craig shook him hard, lime-green hair flicking back and forth against the motion. “They’ve already fukked with the zero G; what happens if they vent the atmosphere next? I’ve seen a di’Taykan sucking vacuum and it’s not pretty.”
Nadayki shoved his slate into Craig’s face. “Fuk you! I’m almost done!”
“Is getting this thing open worth dying for?” Craig demanded. “You think Cho would die for you? He’s locked himself in the Heart—all safe and warm—and he’s locked us—you and me—out here!”
“No way!” Twisting free, Nadayki pushed Craig aside, surged out the hatch, and stared toward the ship. Even with Human vision, the lockdown was obvious from the storage pod. “That ablin gon savit!”
“That’s what I’m trying to tell you!” Craig grabbed his arm again. “Come on, if we can’t get onto the ship, we go out into the station.”
Nadayki’s gaze flicked over to where Torin and the Grr brothers were fighting. “But they said you’re with her!”
“Right now, in the interest of not dying, I’m with you! Move!” He tightened his grip and hauled Nadayki around until he faced in the right direction. “We need to get the hell out of here before the crazy bastards finish with her and start on us!” Ignoring the fight, trusting Torin to survive, he hustled Nadayki across the ore dock to the hatch, cutting him off every time he tried to speak, finally shoving him through and slamming the hatch behind him.
Entry from the station to the ore docks had to be cleared through the station sysop. Craig doubted Big Bill felt much like opening doors right now.
He glanced at the big doubles, hoped Big Bill wasn’t willing to sacrifice the Grr brothers for the win, and headed at his top speed toward the storage lockers and the suits.
One of the Grr brothers couldn’t see out of his right eye, and the other . . .
Torin stomped down hard.
. . . had at least two broken toes.
He screamed.
She ducked under an attack and came up off the deck, driving her stiffened fingers into his throat. Not a move the Krai were familiar with as opponents tended to stay the hell away from their mouths. Clearly, they hadn’t been paying enough attention as she’d fought her way across the Hub. As his eyes widened and blood gushed out his mouth, he grabbed a handful of her hair.
Torin twisted under his grip, turned a little too slowly to meet the other Grr’s charge, raised her arm to block . . .
. . . and got sprayed with blood as Craig slammed him in the back of the head.
His teeth snapped shut
The impact took them both to the deck.
“Torin!”
“I’m okay.” They heaved the limp body off her together, and then Craig held out a hand. Torin didn’t need it, but she took it anyway and let him help her up to her feet.
“You’re bleeding.”
She was covered in blood. “This isn’t mine.”
“On your arm?” He gently bent her right arm up closer to her face, his fingers warm around her wrist.
Her sleeve flapped loose, about four square centimeters of cloth missing, a smaller piece bitten out of her forearm. Adrenaline still buzzing through her system, Torin could hardly feel the injury but, later, it was going to hurt. “Okay, this is mine. But it’s minor.” She could use the arm. Right now, that was all that mattered. “Your foot?”
“Old news.” He looked worried, relieved. And there. Right there. Right in front of her. When the corners of his mouth curved up, slowly, as though he wasn’t sure