arius knelt down, bringing

himself perfectly to eye level with his terrified son.

"Leo, listen to me very carefully," Darius whispered,

his voice incredibly steady and comforting. "Do you

remember what we talked about? About when it is

actually okay to fight?" Leo nodded slowly, a tear

escaping down his cheek. "Only to protect yourself...

or someone else who can't."

"Exactly," Darius said, offering a warm,

reassuring smile. "These men are confused. They

17

unprotected head. The crowd gasped audibly as the

foot blurred through the air. But Darius simply

wasn't there. With a movement so fluid, economical,

and blazingly fast it defied belief, Darius slipped the

jab, parried the heavy cross, and stepped completely

inside the arc of the high kick.

He didn't bother blocking it; he simply moved

into the dead zone where the strike had absolutely

zero power. Before Thorne's foot even returned to

the mat, Darius executed a devastatingly precise

military leg sweep, simultaneously driving the

reinforced heel of his palm into Thorne's solar

plexus. The impact sounded like a muffled gunshot.

23

Thorne flew backward through the air, hitting