Page 43 of The Sound of Silence

“Okay, I’ll make sure to speak up this time. I won’t run out like I did yesterday.”

“I hope you don’t, but if you need to, there’s no judgment here. Our goal is to help you,” she reiterated. “If you’re ready, have a seat on one of the chairs against the wall. Derek and I will begin a basic demonstration.”

Following her instructions, I stood and headed to the line of chairs as Derek and Hana positioned themselves in the center of the mat. Derek began to pace in a circle while Hana stood motionless.

“Krav Maga, when translated, means contact combat,” he explained. “The technique has been proven to work in both military and in real-life situations. It also teaches you the psychological aspects of attacks, so you can be aware of threats and know how to defuse them before they happen.”

Without warning, he reached out and grabbed Hana’s neck from behind, but she was fast to react. She spun and was instantly free. I stared in awe, wishing I’d known how to do that so many times in the past.

“How did you do that?”

Derek smiled at my question.

“We’ll show you. Slow motion this time, Hana. Let’s walk it step-by-step.” She moved back into position, and just like before, Derek’s hands circled her neck. “With this particular attack, your defensive reaction needs to be quick. Hana, explain how you would get out of the choke.”

“Using my shoulder, I’m going to lift my arm to dislodge his wrists from my throat. From there, I spin around and use my other hand to strike him in the center of the face. Most likely, the attacker won’t be expecting it. That element of surprise dictates your next move. His natural body reactions will make him vulnerable to an attack to the groin or another attack to the face.”

Her movements were slow and calculated, never actually making contact or causing harm to Derek in any way. It was hard to imagine their demonstration playing out in real life. As I narrowed my eyes and tried to envision it, Derek seemed to have read my mind.

“Very good, Hana. Why don’t you go grab the protective gear, and we’ll do this for real?” While she collected items from a cabinet in the corner, Derek turned to me. “You still with me?” I simply nodded. I didn’t want to say more in case I chickened out when it was my turn. In reality, I was completely fascinated by what they were doing.

Derek and Hana sparred for the next twenty minutes, explaining everything they were doing for rest the of the training session. At times, I found it hard not to be distracted by Derek. The man was undeniably sexy but in an understated way, fit with well-defined muscles. As he stood in a fighting stance, it showed off his obvious physical prowess, which took up the entire room. He didn’t seem to hold back when attacking Hana—at all—yet her tiny body somehow managed to kick his ass each and every time. It gave me confidence. Maybe—just maybe—I could actually do this one day.

As we neared the end of class, Hana turned to me.

“What do you think, Val? You ready to give it a shot?”

Caught by surprise, I blinked. I wasn’t sure how to respond.

“Um, I suppose. Just no…no necks. I’m not ready for that.”

I saw a look of dawning on Derek’s face as if I’d given him some sort of insight. I couldn’t process what it meant, as I was too distracted by nerves. I moved onto the mat and swallowed the lump that formed in my throat. Derek met me at the center and stopped when we were toe-to-toe. I could feel the heat from his exertion radiating off his body. His nearness sent my heart racing, causing blood to thrum loudly in my ears.

“Ahhh, Sparky, I don’t think you’re ready just yet,” Derek said, snapping me back to reality. His voice was hushed—almost a whisper.

Did he just call me Sparky?

“Wh-what do you mean?” I stumbled, completely confused why I felt a blush creeping into my cheeks. I shook my head to clear it and focused on the lines of concern marring his features.

“I think the demonstration Hana and I gave you was enough for today. I promised you we’d go slow and I want to make sure I keep that promise. I don’t want to spook you again by pushing you before you’re truly ready.”

Perhaps it was just my imagination, but I couldn’t help but think there was a double meaning behind his words.

“Oh, I… I suppose.”

“Maybe you can give it a go during the next session,” he suggested and took a step back.

“Yeah, you’re probably right. When do you want to meet next?”

“I teach the main self-defense class on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Let’s meet on the off days—Monday, Wednesday, Friday. Same time work?”

I suppressed my disappointment at not seeing him for another forty-eight hours and gave myself a quick reprimand. Right now, I needed to focus on myself and learn how to stand on my own two feet. Getting all swoony over a man I barely knew was foolish and reckless.

“Yeah, that works. I’ll see you Friday.”

After collecting my things, I headed back to my apartment. On the way there, I thought of Natalia. I missed her more than I thought was imaginable. I wanted to talk to her and tell her about everything I was doing. I wanted to hear about the latest gossip from Teddy’s Tavern and listen to her whine about Teddy’s latest grumblings. And more than anything—I wanted a friend.

My chest felt heavy. I planned to wait and only call her when I was sure it was safe, but I wondered if that day would ever come. Ethan was a madman, and I had to make sure my location stayed a secret. For all I knew, he managed to put a tap on her phone just like he had on ours. Or maybe he was tracing the location of incoming calls to her cell. I had no idea how far his capabilities and connections within the police department went—legal or illegal. That kind of technology was well out of my wheelhouse. Perhaps I was just paranoid, but I had to be cautious.

---