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The man was headed straight for Varnok, who stood up straighter against the wall, like he knew that even though this mesh-covered person in front of him was half his size, the soldier wasn’t someone to fuck with.

They spoke, Varnok looked around and shook his head.

The soldier must’ve said something else, because Varnok’s hands tensed and he took a step toward the male.

“This isn’t good,” I said.

“No, it isn’t,” Zephyr murmured. “If he scares Var— I mean, that fighter off then…Well…shit.”

She huffed in frustration and I chuckled, thoroughly enjoying her discomfort.

If she said what she was thinking straight out then she revealed her target to me, not that I wasn’t already aware of him.

If she didn’t come clean, then I couldn’t help her and Zephyr was smart enough to know she couldn’t take that soldier on alone and save Varnok.

“Decisions, decisions,” I said with a smirk.

“I don’t trust you.”

“Ouch, seriously, I’m wounded.”

“You poisoned me,” she said through gritted teeth.

“No, I didn’t. I planted a bug inside your optic nerve in two steps,” I shot back. “There was no poison, just a concoction that would fuck with your equilibrium and temperature controls for a few minutes to make you think you were poisoned. Not my fault you bought it.”

Her cheek flushed and a look of pure murder crossed her face before she relaxed, remembering her cover.

“That makes me feel so much better, now I trust you implicitly,” she oozed sarcasm.

Varnok and the soldier’s conversation was turning heated as we stood here flirting or whatever it was.

“Tick, tock,” I whispered.

“Shut up,” she snapped back and then grunted. “Fine, I’ll let you in on this detail but only because I need my guy alive not pummeled.”

“Your trust in me is overwhelming.”

Zephyr grit her teeth, and I could see how close she was to telling me to fuck off.

“I need that fighter—”

“Varnok,” I supplied.

She gaped at me and I shrugged.

“I have my sources. Go on.”

“Yes,” she hissed, “Varnok. I need to speak to him about something so can you help me get him away from—.”

The high pitch of a woman screaming and shouts cut her off.

We were both too well trained not to spring into action and before I could stop her, Zephyr was halfway to where Varnok and the Krynn soldier were fighting.

The soldier was half Varnok’s size but his mesh armor apparently made up for that because as I sprinted after Zephyr, the soldier delivered a punch to Varnok’s stomach that sent large male back onto his ass.

“Hey!” yelled the Valtoshan that Varnok was supposed to fight. “This isn’t what we discussed, you promised!”

That had me skittering to a stop and I redirected toward the Valtoshan.

“Are you working with Lady Seraph?” I demanded.

He huffed and waved me away.

“Do I know you?”

I laughed and then he laughed. Until I pressed the tip of my laz dagger to his middle, that is.

“Not so funny now,” I growled. “Do I need to spell the question out with your entrails or are you going to answer?”

The Valtoshan’s lips pursed as he glared at me. I pressed the tip harder into him, breaking the skin. The laz charge was turned all the way up so in addition to being stabbed just a little, he was getting an electric jolt too.

“Fuck, alright!” he hissed, glancing at where the soldier and Varnok were making a mess of the party. “I was supposed to drug him in the first round and take him out, beat him up so that he was easier for the Lady to kidnap. That’s all I fucking know!”

I withdrew the blade, slid on my brass knuckles and punched him in the gut then the face. He was a professional fighter, he took the hit very well, but I yanked him down to me all the same, hoping it looked like he was doubled over from the blows.

“Anything else?”

“No, now back off rich boy.”

A crash behind me had me spinning around to find Zephyr tossing glasses at the Krynn soldier.

She was running across the bar and jumped onto a nearby table, tossing shit all the while the soldier chased her.

She was incredible, and even though I knew Zephyr could take care of herself, that wasn’t the point.

I was here, and I wasn’t about to let her fight this on her own.

I let the whiny Valtoshan fighter go and jumped into the fray.

Varnok didn’t seem to be anywhere around, and I assumed he’d slipped out while Zephyr had the soldier distracted.

We had to tidy this up fast because I had a feeling Varnok was about to leave in a hurry.

And if that happened, Zephyr would pursue him.

I didn’t feel like chasing this woman half way across the galaxy and back so I hoped letting her speak to him might end things here and I could go on my merry way, duty discharged.

I ran straight for the soldier, intending to tackle him from the back when he turned around at the last minute and raised his arm.

A small dart attached to a thin cable shot out, heading straight for me.

I fell to my knees and the dart flew right over me, impaling the poor bastard in silk robes behind me.

The man screamed bloody murder, his chest blooming with blue blood.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Zephyr jumped off the table she was standing on and landed on the soldier’s back. He tried to grab ahold of her to yank her off, but she’d managed to get her garrote around his neck.

Her legs were wrapped around his torso and she leaned back, putting all her strength into tightening the wire.

If he had a neck plate, the garrote would snap in seconds.

Not wanting to take the chance, I grabbed a nearby walking stick someone had abandoned and slammed it into the soldier’s legs.

While it didn’t break anything, it sent him down to the floor, right on top of Zephyr.

Her face was strained as she continued to strangle him.

The soldier raised his arm, intending to shoot at her blind with whatever weapon he had on his gauntlet.

I pulled out the small pistol on my waist and emptied three bolts into the small weak spot between his groin armor and his upper thigh.

He jerked, banging his head against Zephyr’s and she blinked in shock, blood now coming from her nose.

“I’m fine!” she shouted. “Finish it!”

Anyone else would bleed out in seconds, but Lady Seraph tended to load up her soldiers with all kinds of boosts and coagulating agents. If the relatively small puddle under this one was any indication, his wounds were already healing.

I emptied the remaining charge of the pistol into both legs, then, before he could recover, I jumped on him and let my arm implant open, the stiletto extending just above my wrist. With vicious strikes, I savaged him under his armpit, striking where more arteries carried his life’s blood and then angling downward in an attempt to hit his lung.

There had to be so many wounds, his internal mods couldn’t get to them in time.

It was what made these bastards so hard to kill.

My hand was slick with blood, splattered on my face and silk shirt, but finally, the soldier stopped moving, his blood flowed freely and spread fast under him.

I nodded at Zephyr and stood up. She disentangled herself fast from him and didn’t even spare me a glance before she was running to the exit.

One side of her outfit was covered in blood splatter, and her nose was bruising.

She was sweaty and her hair and makeup were in disarray.

Yet, I’d never seen a more beautiful, intoxicatingly sexy sight in my life.

What I would’ve given to be able to fuck her right then and there.

I knew exactly where she was headed and followed her out of the room, which was still in utter chaos as station security finally got there.

We managed to avoid them by using the staff hallways; I didn’t question how she knew where they were, and she didn’t ask me why I was running with her.

When we finally exited the busy corridors, we were near the quarters where the staff and fighters were housed.

“Are you alright?” I finally was able to ask.

“I’ve had worse,” she said, dabbing her nose with the back of her hand.

I placed a kerchief in her hand instead and she glanced at me in surprise before holding it to her nose.

“Thanks.”

I nodded and we ran down two sets of stairs before bursting out into an identical hall from the other one.

“How do you know it’s this one?” I asked.

“Ships AI has a scan of the station. It’s sending it to my optic implant.”

When she stopped at a door, it rolled open to reveal Varnok, and a Boethelian child just visible behind him. They were both carrying packs on their backs, fleeing like I’d thought.

He didn’t give us a warning before he drew his blade. At the same time, we raised our hands and said, “We’re here to help.”

Varnok’s eyes narrowed.

“Do you recognize me?” Zephyr asked. “I’m with the GUP. I was Prince Zireth’s contact.”

Varnok stared at her harder before slowly putting his knife away and nodding.

“We need your help,” she said. “And in return we’ll help you get out of here.”

He grunted and shook his head.

“It’s always something,” he muttered. “Come in, and make it fast.”

The room was small, with two cots smashed on opposite sides.

Drawers and cupboards were pulled open, papers and a few articles of clothing that didn’t make the cut were scattered around.

The Boethelian child backed up to one of the cots and stood against the wall with her arms crossed, a small cage at her feet.

Inside was a ball of fur with eyes and teeth that growled and screamed at us.

“What the fuck is that?” I asked, unable to stop myself.

“None of your business,” Varnok snapped. “Talk, you have four minutes.”

Zephyr glanced at me and I just met her gaze with a resolute set to my jaw. She could either talk in front of me or give this up, either way worked for me. And she knew it.

With an eye roll and a muttered curse, Zephyr said, “I need you tell me why an assassin by the name of Cypher would want to know where you are, and who Norris is.”