XII.
Hope concentrated on her computer when she heard Riddick swearing, followed by clashing and banging. "Riddick, what are you doing? We still need the ship. Get it started and don't destroy it."
"This ship is a fucking mess. How are you able to work in here? Just got it cleaned up a little."
Hope listened closely but Riddick didn't throw out any more. From the sounds she could hear through the earpiece she could tell that Riddick had dropped himself in the pilot's seat. She heard him tapping in commands when it suddenly got quiet.
"Hope?"
"Mhm?"
"Didn't you forget something?"
Hope thought it over for a moment. "Nope. What do you mean?"
"The code, Hope." Riddick's voice sounded a little bit impatient.
She gave herself a mental smack in the forehead. Of course! "'Defiant'. The code is 'Defiant'."
After a long moment of utter silence she heard him laugh. "You are not really telling me that 'Defiant' is the best you could come up with? Whom did you want to confuse - Winnie the Pooh?"
"Oh, come on, Riddick. It's just temporary. Everybody had to remember it and you have no clue how dumb some of the workers are. We'll change it on our way. And how the hell do you know Winnie the Pooh?" she snapped at him.
She unplugged her computer and stepped inside the hangar. In a few minutes they would be safe. Nobody would be able to open the door within the next 24 hours without heavy tools. She went to the console from where the dome was controlled. The door had nearly slid down when the sirens started to howl. The sirens where followed by footsteps that approached the door. Hope nearly panicked.
"Riddick, they are here and the door is too slow. It won't be shut in time."
"Just stay down and hide. I'm on my way."
Hope took cover and frantically put in the last sequence that would open the dome.
"I said STAY DOWN!" she heard Riddick and tried to make herself invisible. 'Just concentrate on the task. Riddick will take care of them. All you have to do is open the dome. That's your job.'
The first shot startled her but she continued with her work. Her fingers flew over the keyboard and soon the dome started to open. She secured her computer and got ready to go to the ship. "I'm ready" she whispered.
"Stay down until I say otherwise. When I give you the command you run to the ship as fast as you can. And keep your head down."
Hope's heart beat fast and her mouth was dry but to her surprise the fear kept within limits. She knew Riddick would keep her safe. 'Be honest, Hope, you are turning into an adrenaline junkie' she grinned. 'Well-behaved, boring, adapted, can have no fun with Hope running havoc. Who would have thought of that?' She tried to control her breathing. She was caught in the crossfire between Riddick and the guards. A quick glance backwards showed her that the door was nearly closed. Just a half meter separated it from the floor. In the last possible moment three of the guards rolled in under the door and positioned themselves behind several containers.
Suddenly Hope realized that Riddick had stopped shooting. The only shooting she could hear was from behind.
'Riddick is Ok, Riddick is Ok' she started to say like a mantra.
Her feet started to feel numb from kneeling when she heard a suppressed cry and a body dropping to the floor. Riddick must have gotten rid of one of the guards. The silence that fell over the hangar when the guards also stopped shooting was alarming. Hope bit her bottom lip. It was working on her nerves not to know what was happening when she heard one of the guards:
"Miss Hope, do you hear me? We know that he has forced you to help him."
It was chief Jorgeson. He has always been friendly and often had escorted her to the door when she worked late to avoid Fred's advances.
"Miss Hope, we can help you. Just tell us where he is. Help us get him and then everything will be all right. He is dangerous and he will kill you like he killed all the others."
And then silence again. And another body dropping to the floor.
'Not Riddick, not Riddick!'
Hope didn't even hear him breath over the headset, he was like a ghost. She risked a blink to find out what was going on. If only he would tell her what to do. She heard the chief again.
"Miss Hope, we've got him. It's safe now, you can come out!"
'No, that can't be true!'
She didn't believe it. Jorgeson's voice came out of the direction she had expected Riddick to be. It must be true. Riddick would have said something by now, wouldn't he? Without Riddick she could as well capitulate. She sighed and slowly struggled to her feet.
And then she heard Riddick yell "STAY DOWN". But it was too late already. Jorgeson had seen her. The shot that hit her threw her back against a container. She broke down at the bottom of it and with her eyes closed she waited for the second shot that surprisingly never came. Instead she heard an unbelievable cry of pain from Jorgeson and she could hear Riddick growl. "Today must be your lucky day coz if I'd have time I'd really hurt you."
Hope opened her eyes and saw Riddick dropping Jorgeson's dead body. From the outer side of the door they could hear shouting. Somebody was trying to open the door with a welding torch.
Riddick kneeled beside Hope. A pool of blood was piling up beneath her.
"I told you to stay down."
