Phyllis burst into tears. It‘s his, it really is, and now what am I going to do? My mother—

This is such bullshit! the redhead said, leaping to his feet and in the process knocking Phyllis off hers. She fell backward with a cry that Kate judged to be more startled than angry.

Her champion leaped to his feet to go to her aid. Mistaking this for aggression, the redhead pulled a knife.

Kate was on her feet and in between the two combatants before he was able to use it.

Always been quick as a snake, Dan said.

Is there blood yet? Jim said.

Kate blocked the knife wielder‘s right hand with her left one, reached up under his right arm with her right hand, grabbed his right wrist, stepped in closer to him, turning left and stepping to the side as she did so, and brought the hand holding the knife down smartly. The redhead let out a startled squawk and dropped the knife before he stabbed himself in the thigh.

Aren‘t you going to do something? Dan said.

Not feeling the need to, Jim said, sloshing more vinegar on his remaining fries. Just for the hell of it, just because she could, Kate grabbed the redhead‘s wrist and kept going, bending her knees and using his own momentum to roll him forward. She was so much shorter than he was that he was forced to bend forward, over her back, to remain attached to his arm, which he had discovered was now in an iron grip. In the split second between the moment when he lost his balance and the moment when he fell on her she straightened her legs with a jerk, shoving her back into his torso. He performed a half gainer with a midair twist, to land flat on his back on the table in front of Dan and Jim.

The table held but the impact jarred the entire room. Dan was pretty sure he saw some dust shake out of the join where the wall met the ceiling.

Jim, who had moved his glass and plate out of the way in the very nick of time, said in a stern voice, Son, you brought that on yourself.

Dan assisted the redhead back to his feet with a vigorous shove, but he fell forward on both knees with a double crack that made everyone in earshot wince. Meantime, Kate heard a rustle of feet and turned to see that Phyllis‘s champion had switched sides, and in addition was making a gross error in judgment by charging in her direction with vengeance written all over his face. This was a mistake often made by non–Park rats. When you didn‘t know her, Kate Shugak seemed on first sight like such a tiny little thing, and she was a woman at that. It was easy to underestimate her, and that, as his redheaded friend had already discovered, was one of her biggest assets.

However, in this instance it was another woman who confounded his intent. From the counter, Haynes stuck out her foot. He tripped and went sprawling on the floor, pancaking on his face and skidding almost to the door across Laurel‘s well-waxed linoleum. In three quick steps Kate was on him, one hand on his collar, the other on the seat of his pants.