A bark of laugher explodes out of me. “Are you really arguing about this right now?”
Her lips twitch, but before she has a chance to say anything, we hear two high-pitched blasts. Seconds later, the last of the guards falls limply into the hallway.
“What the—” Pressing my back against Igid, I lift my blaster just as Volethos steps over the bodies and into the hallway.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake!” Igid grumbles under her breath, then louder for Volethos to hear, “I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised to find youhere.”
I don’t miss the hurt look that flashes across the Vesen’s feline face. Or the way one hand goes to the melted tip of his ear. I’d forgotten Igid was to blame for that.
“I see captivity hasn’t smoothed any of your sharp edges,” he mutters. Then to me, he says, “We need to get out of here right now. Kurrahstka has more guards coming for us.”
“Us?” Igid’s brows draw together in a deep frown. “You mean, he came here with you?”
“It’s a long story,” I tell her. “I’ll explain as soon as we’re safe.”
“Where did you leave theShade?” Volethos asks as he hurries past us, not slowing down or waiting for us to follow after. “I didn’t see it when we landed the shuttle.”
“I left her in Docking Bay B.” Igid starts to follow before her knees buckle, and she nearly falls.
“That’s on the other side of the station from where we left the shuttle,” I mutter, sweeping her back into my arms and striding after Volethos.
“Kurrahstka knows who I am, so he’ll probably have guards waiting for us. Maybe we should take your shuttle—”
“No. You’re hurt; you need to get to theShade,” Volethos insists, coming to a sudden stop. “Besides, stumbling through the whole station to get to the shuttle is asking to get us all killed. I know a shortcut that will take you almost right to theShade.”
“Walking straight into a trap is suicide,” Igid snaps back.
“So is fighting our way out of this blasted station! Or dying from internal bleeding because the shuttle doesn’t even have a medkit.”
“Both of you, shut up!” I struggle not to shout. “Right now, we need to get somewhere safe, and I don’t care where that place is.”
As if on cue, the stomping of boots starts to echo around us. Many boots. Volethos and Igid share a tense look but then nod.
“This way,” Volethos says. “I know the back way that the girls use. If there are guards posted, I’ll create a diversion so you two can get away.”
Volethos suddenly stops and kicks at the wall, where a hidden service door pops open. The stomping is growing closer and now comes peppered with voices. Pushing the small door wide, he steps back and lets us through first.
“Do I even want to ask?” I say as I duck into the doorway.
Volethos chuckles as he pulls the door shut behind us, and we’re blanketed in darkness. “I once thought myself in love with a female who worked here.”
“What happened?” Igid asks quietly.
“Nothing. One day she just…disappeared.” Volethos lets out a heavy sigh. “I’m not sure if Kurrahstka caught on that she was sneaking me in, or if he sold her off when her willingness to take customers started to wane. But one day, she was just gone.”
“Did you ever look for her?” Igid asks.
“No.” He shrugs and then says, “I guess that’s how I knew I wasn’t really in love with her after all. Anyway, then I discovered the females from Lux weren’t nearly as… infested.”
“Ugh! You are the very worst kind of male,” Igid grumbles. “You don’t deserve that worm you call a cock.”
“The females don’t complain,” Volethos volleys with an indifferent shrug.
Igid lets out another groan. “Let’s get out of here, before I’m sick.”
CHAPTER 26
IGID
