Page 44 of Soliv Four
“We’ll do it together, baby,” Tomak said, hugging her with his good arm. “You were fantastic, me’ara. He would have killed me if you hadn’t stopped him.”
A scuffing sound in the dirt drew their attention. They both looked up as a second hybrid was trying unsuccessfully to sneak up on them. He stopped dead when he realized his failure. He dropped the knife in his hand when he saw the dead reptilian lying in a pool of his own blood.
“Please, I quit. I’m no match for you.” With that, he took off running and didn’t look back.
“That leaves only Frost. He’s not going to give up,” Tomak said.
“What are we going to do?”
“Let’s step into the jungle and take a break.” He stepped to the side of the path and used his right arm to part the foliage. Angie pushed back on the other side and took a giant step into the thick. Tomak did the same then turned around to see that the vegetation appeared to be undisturbed. They tramped further in as quietly as possible and stopped when a downed tree blocked their path.
There was just enough room for them both to sit. Angie shrugged off her pack and helped Tomak with his. They sat together on the log, took out their water bottles, and drank deeply.
“Can you find those pain killers in my pack?” Tomak asked. They were leftovers from previous injuries, and he’d thrown them in just in case. They were nonaddictive analgesics that didn’t slow his reactions. Angie dug out the packet and gave him two. He popped them into his mouth and swallowed them down with water. “I haven’t been body-slammed in a while. I forgot how much it hurt.”
“Do you have a plan?” Angie asked.
Tomak looked at her blankly for a moment, then she could see in his eyes that he had an idea. “I normally wouldn’t do it this way, but that hit did serious damage. This is what I need you to do.”
After resting for about half a span, Angie went back through the jungle and emerged onto the path a short distance from the dead reptilian. She started up the path, softly calling Tomak she parted the flora looking with her back to the path, furtively glancing from side to side.
Frost tried for a silent approach, but the soft scuff in the dirt alerted her. Fine hairs on her neck prickled just before Frost grabbed her from behind with a powerful arm around her waist and a big hand clamped over her mouth.
Angie screamed into his hand and struggled to kick him and elbow him with one arm. He took his hand from her mouth, wrapping both arms around her, pinning her arms at her sides.
“Let me go! Let me go!” she screamed while kicking at his legs with her plastic shoes that wouldn’t likely do much damage.
“Settle down,” he growled in her ear, “or I might have to hurt you.” He moved one hand to her breast and squeezed it hard enough to hurt.
“Ow! Ow!” she cried. “Let me go, just let me go, and maybe Tomak won’t kill you.”
Frost laughed but loosened his grip on her breast a little. “Not going to happen, I’ve got you now, and when I get you back to the barracks, I’m going to make you scream some more. Ugh, argh!”
His arms slid from around her, and he fell backward. Angie turned in time to see Tomak sidestep, so Frost didn’t fall on him. He looked up at the little drone cameras that had been following them around all day. “Was that bloody enough for you?”
Frost lay in the dirt, gasping as a pool of blood expanded from his back where Tomak had stabbed him multiple times while he was groping Angie.
She skirted the body and went into Tomak’s arms, pressing her face against his chest. He dropped the bloody knife and wrapped her in his arms.
“I’m so sorry you had to do that. We didn’t have that much to work with.”
“I don’t care,” she sobbed. “I’d do it again.” She hiccupped and sniffed. “No way was I going to stand and watch him kill you because you were too hurt to fight.”
“You were so brave, and I am so proud of you.” He kissed the top of her head and rubbed her back, just letting her cry it out. When she calmed and dried her tears, they ambled toward the finish, each with an arm around the other.
It didn’t matter how carefully he moved; nearly every step caused him pain. He hadn’t been merely knocked down; a big guy landed on top of him at high speed.
“You’re hurt worse than we thought.” Angie knew this by how heavily he leaned on her as they walked.
“Yeah, I’ll need some time in restoration.”
“I’ve got you. We’re almost there,” she encouraged him, but she could tell it was all Tomak could do to put one foot in front of the other.
Angie suspected he had some internal bleeding. When they emerged from the maze, she shouted, “Get my mate a stretcher!”
A medical android came onto the scene immediately with a hover stretcher, and Tomak literally fell upon it. Angie tried to follow, but the host grabbed her by the arm.
“Hold up, Ms. Tyler. I need you to tell our viewers about your experience out there today.”
