Page 187 of Star Bringer
All of a sudden, another whole influx of guards comes running across the Empress’s previously well-kept garden at us. “There’s too many!” I shout at Merrick. “We need to move, now!”
He nods his agreement as a whole slew of gunfire comes their way from theStarlight. Several guards go down, and the others dive for cover.
“Thanks,” I tell Max.
“Thank Beckett,” he answers. “That woman can shoot.”
“Let’s go, Princess! TheStarlightis waiting!”
“Where?” she yells again. “I can’t see her.”
“That’s because she’s cloaked,” Merrick tells her as he shoots a guard directly over my shoulder.
I return the favor by shooting the two bearing down on him.
And then we’re running straight toward the steady, nonstop blasts that are spraying the ground between the guards and us.
Out of nowhere, a guard jumps out and grabs onto Kali, wrapping one hand around her neck and another around her waist as he pulls her backward.
I level my laser pistol on him, but he’s using her as much as a shield as a hostage and I can’t get a bead on him. At least not one that won’t also get Kali. And I didn’t come this far just to lose her now.
Kali must feel the same way about dying, though, because she leans forward and then rears back as hard as she can, head-butting the guard straight in the nose. He screams as blood spurts everywhere, but the princess has no mercy in her. She stamps down on his foot as hard as she can, and when he loosens his grip, she spins away and then kicks him right in the balls.
“Found a few vulnerable bits,” she deadpans.
I grunt. But damn if I’m not proud of her.
“Looks like those lessons Ian gave you are really starting to pay off,” Merrick tells her as I grab onto her wrist and pull her toward me.
“I learned most of that just from watching him fight,” she answers. “He fights dirty.”
Only because I’ve spent my whole life having to level the playing field. The only good fight is one you get to walk away from.
I level my pistol at the soldier who had the nerve to touch Kali, but he looks so miserable I decide to leave him alone. A blast through the brain would put him out of that misery way too easily.
We’re almost at the ship now, and though the guards keep coming, my anxiety levels go way down. Because once we get on board, I know there’s no way they can touch us.
“Incoming!” I yell to Max as I whirl around and shoot a guy coming at us right between the eyes.
He falls down dead at our feet, and Kali jumps over him like an old pro. She’s gotten tougher since that first fight in Rangar. Much tougher.
“How much farther?” she asks.
I aim right above her shoulder and take out two more guards.
“Tell Gage to lower the ramp!” I tell Max.
“Already on it,” he says.
Without a sound, theStarlightuncloaks herself right in the middle of what I understand is the Empress’s prize garden. Looks like she’ll be needing some new Verbosnia bushes.
Merrick’s in the lead as we race up the ramp in a hail of laser fire. I grab Kali and push her in front of me so that I take any shots coming her way. The second I clear the top of the ramp, theStarlighttakes off, shooting straight into the sky before the ramp is even fully retracted.
“Way to go, Captain!” Beckett slaps me on the back.
“You okay?” I ask Kali, visually checking her over for any damage. Miraculously, short of a few bumps and bruises, she seems to have gotten through that whole debacle okay. We all have.
“Kali!” Rain shouts, running into the tiny loading bay and throwing her arms around the princess. “Don’t ever do that to us again! Sneaking away in the middle of the night is a really awful thing to do.”
