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"And you haven't already told him because…?"
His shoulders rose and fell, the movement all grace and faked nonchalance. "Big Bill's got this nasty habit of taking bad news out on the messenger. Just figured I might get a better deal from you."
She didn't have time for this.
"All right, fine. I have to…" Torin yanked him sideways as an unlaced boot slammed into the bulkhead. "… prove I'm invaluable right now, so go to the Star and wait for me there."
"Nice try, but I'm going to need the entry codes, trin."
"Nice try, but if you don't already have the entry codes, you're of no use to me." As his eyes darkened and he gri
The moment the door closed behind him, she tongued her implant, direct to the Star. "Ressk, Alamber's incoming. Take him out, stuff him in the head. I'll deal with him later." *Take him out? How?*
"You're an ex-Marine, his balls have barely dropped. Try not to hurt him." Breaking the co
Torin could have taken the path of least resistance to Big Bill's side, read the movement of the brawl and put herself where it wasn't, but she'd wanted to hurt someone, had wanted to rip Mackenzie Cho into pieces for so long now that she ducked under a wild blow, drove her shoulder into a beer-stained stomach, straightened, and threw the woman onto a pair of di'Taykan, all three of them kicking and flailing as they hit the deck. Close, but not quite. She blocked a piece of broken kiosk being used as a club, then jabbed stiffened fingers into a solar plexus. Spun and smashed her heel into the side of a knee. Cracked a nose with her elbow. Narrowly missed having a piece bitten out of her forearm, drove it instead in under the chin and stepped over the Krai now gasping for breath to stand at Big Bill's side.
The Grr brothers ensured a relative circle of calm, but the brawl was a mindless beast reputation would not affect. If they fought their way to a hatch, and Torin had to assume they could or they were shit bodyguards, they'd leave Big Bill undefended. No one would go after him deliberately, but in the heat of the moment, accidents happened. The space around them suggested a couple of accidents had already tried to happen. Given the amount of blood on the deck, an orange-haired di'Taykan would not be getting up.
One of the brothers licked his fingers clean. The other swallowed and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
"Enjoying yourself, Gu
Torin pulled her lips back over her teeth. "I was just heading out to find you. I've finished the designs for training facilities."
"So quickly?"
"Yes, well…" She swept a disdainful glance over the crowd, noted that Mashona had worked her way out of the fight and stood watching, drink in hand, with a group from one of the bars, Werst was happily dancing around a di'Taykan and two Humans directly in front of the decompression hatch leading toward the ore docks, and… Torin frowned as a vaguely familiar Human male caught her gaze. His expression lifted the hair off the back of her neck-it was recognition on a macro scale. Not of her personally, but of what he thought she was. What. Not who. When she turned toward him, he disappeared behind a clump of di'Taykan. Trained instincts said follow him, but the situation required her to remain where she was. "If this lot is any indication," she continued, the pause lost in the continuing chaos, "then the sooner they begin training the better."
"No argument," Big Bill sighed, arms folded. "Can you stop it?"
"It? This?" Good question. If they were Marines, or even Navy, then yes. She could stop the fight and temporarily stop a few hearts. No one made senior NCO without having learned to sound like a lifetime of authority figures all rolled into one-parents, teachers, jernil, bosses, sheshan. No problem being heard either as Torin would bet high that Big Bill could patch his slate into the Hub's screens. Unfortunately, this lot was not predominantly military.
However…
"Fights like this have a limited duration." Turning a gesture into a signal for Werst to break it off, Torin snorted. "With no actual goal…" She frowned. "I assume they're not fighting for something?"
One of the Grr brothers snorted.
The other one said, "Never are. Fighting for shits and giggles. Scoring points. An opportunity for cheap revenge. More assholes than usual, that's all."
Sounded like a definitive sitrep to Torin. "If that's the case, then it won't last much longer."
Areas of the Hub had already devolved to groaning and bleeding and, given the number of slates out among the spectators, payoffs had clearly begun. Without Werst's involvement, the Human and one of the di'Taykan had slumped down to the deck in front of the hatch, looking miserable. The second di'Taykan continued to yell something about family honor and, possibly, ducks, but no one paid any attention.
Torin could see two dead-besides the di'Taykan the Grr brothers had killed. There might be more among the sprawled bodies, but those three she was certain of. She'd given the order to start the fight they'd died in. Not the first time… but the first time she didn't give a H'san's ass.
"I think it's safe enough now for you to move on." She turned so that Big Bill got her full attention. In order to stop him from heading to the ore docks, she had to become his primary focus. "Do we go to your office or the smelter to discuss these plans?"
"I was on my way to the ore docks."
Past tense. She had him. "Success?"
He seemed amused by her oblique question. Not a problem. He could be amused by whatever the hell he wanted as long as he continued to focus on her. "No, not yet. But I thought it best, given the contents, to do what I could to remove foolish temptation."
"Because that kind of content changes things, and Cho might screw you over if you're not there when it opens?"
His brows rose. "I have every faith in Captain Cho to keep to our agreement."
Torin kept her tone matter-of-fact. "He's a thief and a murderer, and you assume he's not a liar?"
"Harsh words, Gu
"Thief and murderer," Torin repeated. "That's his business, but given his business, having you and the contents together in one isolated place might be more temptation than he could resist." Were she doing the job she signed on for, she'd be telling him exactly the same thing.
Big Bill indicated the two Krai, now looking speculatively at the closest body. "I won't be alone."
"You don't allow weapons on the station, but that's no guarantee Cho won't have weapons on his ship. If he takes out the three of you, who's left to go after him?"
"You?"
Torin shook her head. "I just got here. Cho won't assume I'm a sure thing."
"She's right, Boss."
Big Bill stared at the Grr brothers in surprise. "If you're taking her side because she owns your souls, remember who owns your asses."
"Not taking her side," said one.
"But she's right," said the other.
"All right, you two go down to the ore docks. The gu
Torin wouldn't have called the expressions the Grr brothers exchanged happy. Craig got slowly to his feet as the hatch from the station into the ore dock opened. With only a maximum of two hours and seven minutes remaining, he was expecting Torin. He got Doc.
"And the level of bugfuk crazy rises to code red," he muttered, watching the other man cross toward the ship. No way he could have been heard, but Doc paused, glanced over at the storage pod, then changed direction.
When he got close enough, Craig realized he looked weirdly peaceful.