I pretend to fall into the lever, gripping my hand over it. Pious is too busy laughing maniacally at me to even notice. I rise up on my toes and press my weight down on it. The door slides open instantly, and I hurl myself inside, slamming myself into the steel wall on the opposite side. There’s a bright red button on the top, and without thinking about what it is, I crash my fist into it and whirl around to face Pious. The sleeve swooshes shut and Pious is left outside in the small hallway.
I flip him the middle finger.
He bangs on the glass and pushes down on the lever, but I lock it back in place.
I flip him two middle fingers.
To my left, from the way he just came, a steel door slides closed. To my right the dark steel walls of the ship open and Pious’s expression goes slack, his face pale white. I wish I had a camera to capture what his horror really looks like. He fumbles with the helmet that’s strapped to the waist of his armor and attempts to lift it over his face.
Then he’s gone,just like that.
And it is almost just like he said: His body turns gaunt and colorless for a few seconds before he’s sucked completely out of the ship.
I wonder if he got his faceplate on.
God forgive me, but I hope he didn’t. I hope the life gets squeeze out of him and he floats forever in space, alone.
Behind me, the steel wall slides open and on the other side is a wide-eyed frenzied-looking Rune.
“He’s gone,” I say and lunge forward into his arms. “I don’t think he got his faceplate back on in time.”
Rune tilts his head away and murmurs to someone behind us to locate Pious and run a scan on his vitals from inside the ship.
I take a small step away and untangle myself from Rune’s embrace. He’s giving the orders to Jex, who stands ramrod straight in front of us like he didn’t just offer me up to Pious on a silver airlock platter.
Drawing back my hand, I slap Jex across the face with all the strength I can muster. The impact snaps his head away and leaves my bright red handprint to stain his cheek. “Go ahead, slit my throat or throw me out the isolation ward’s airlock. Either way, you don’t care. You’re not Rune, and I mean nothing to you.”
I slap him again, for effect.
Slowly he raises his hand to his cheek, his eyes gleaming maddeningly at mine. “You understood I was giving you clues to use the sleeve. I never doubted your ability to outsmart him, but strike me again and I will strike back.”
Losing all my temper, I sling my hand back again, this time with a closed fist, intending to punch him square in his face. Rune steps forward, catching my wrist and stopping my hand, easily and laughing. I struggle for a moment, but he’s wearing the armor I put on him and saved him with. I’m bare and weak without it. Just some powerless grounder to them, with no thought as to what emotions they just put me through.
I give up fighting back and step away. “Take me back down to Earth.Now.”
