“Am I?” Victoria asked innocently. “And what exactly is going to happen?” Tank loomed over her, trying to use pure size to break her. “We’re gonna shut that mouth of yours so you think twice before talking to your betters.”
In that moment, Victoria looked up at him, and the “office worker” mask vanished. Her eyes became cold, black voids, radiating a level of lethality that made the big man instinctively flinch. The moment passed, and the pleasant smile returned. “I see,” she said quietly. “Your only argument is your fists. Typical schoolyard logic.”
Spider and Rock moved to her flanks, cutting off any escape. “You know your problem?” Spider sneered. “You thought because you’re a woman, we wouldn’t touch you. You thought you could hide behind your gender.” Victoria turned to him, looking genuinely curious. “Is that what you think? That this is about being a man or a woman?”
“That’s exactly what it is,” Rock growled. “Women don’t belong in the service. You’re nothing but a liability and a distraction.” “A liability,” the Lieutenant repeated. “That’s a bold claim. I hope you can back it up.” Diesel laughed mockingly. “You’re the proof! You’re five-foot-nothing. A stiff breeze would knock you over.”
“You’re only here to fill a quota, not because you can actually do the job.” The words were like a trigger. Victoria’s expression didn’t change, but the air in the room felt like it had suddenly dropped twenty degrees. Recruits at nearby tables pushed their chairs back, sensing the explosion. “A quota,” Bennett said slowly. “So you think I was given this rank out of pity?”
