Free Fight to the Finish by Shannon Greenland Page B

band of her shorts and tied it around her eyes. She lifted her hands and waved them on with her fingers. “Hit me.”
    70
Mystic and Jonathan exchanged a glance. TL and David exchanged a glance. Chapling and I exchanged a glance.
    Was she serious?
    Bruiser waggled her fingers again. “Come on. What are you waiting for?”
    “B—” Mystic almost looked pained. “But you’re so small.”
    She smirked and waved them on again. “Let’s go. No holding back.”
    TL lunged first, bringing the pole back and swinging it at her. I knew TL’s power, and clearly, he was holding back.
    Bruiser dodged the swing, grabbed his pole from behind, twisted it free, and tossed it across the gym. “I. Said. Don’t. Hold. Back.”
    All the guys smiled at her irritable tone. All the guys, but TL.
    In fact, I hadn’t seen any expression on his face over the last couple of days but that of focus and concentration.
    He looked stressed to the max.
    David went next, stealthily slipping to the left and coming at her from below. She slammed her foot down on the pole, flipped it up with the toe of her running shoe, and jabbed the end into David’s side.
    With a grunt, he fell to his knees and grabbed his side. “Man, Bruiser.”
    Jonathan attacked next, not giving her a chance to respond to David, and whipped his pole toward the back of her knees. She leapt straight up and flipped backwards over Jonathan, snatched the pole from his grasp, and swept him off his feet.
    With a thud, he landed on his butt. “Lord, girl,” he chuckled. “You’re something else.”
    Blindfold still on, she turned to Mystic. “Come on, dude, be a man”
    71
Mystic swallowed. “I think I’m afraid of you.”
    Bruiser smiled. “As you should be.” And then she sprinted toward him.
    His eyes widened as he held up the pole and backed away. She came to a stop right in front of him, reached out, and bopped him in the side of the head.
    Mystic
    jerked.
    “Hey!”
    She bopped him in the other side of the head. “You’re a sissy. How do you expect to compete in less than two weeks? I’m just a little girl and I’m about to beat you up.” She shoved him in the chest. “You’re going to be up against guys twice your size. And they’re going to laugh in your face if you back away from them.”
    Standing on her tiptoes, Bruiser leaned in closer until their faces were mere inches away from each other. “They’re going to laugh, and then they’ll beat you to a bloody pulp. Now,” she butted her forehead into his face, “hit me, you girl.”
    Mystic narrowed his eyes, and I swore it was the first time I ever saw him look irritated.
    He slid his pole up between them and shoved her away.
    She took a few steps back. “Good. Come on.”
    He lifted the pole, holding it like a spear, and slung it at her.
    Bruiser didn’t move, just lifted her hand and caught it. “Didn’t expect you to do that. Not bad.” She tossed the pole back to him.
    Looking a little proud of himself, Mystic caught the pole.
    Very quietly TL signaled the guys, and they all moved at once, coming at her from opposite directions.
    They swatted and jabbed and rushed at her. She dodged and kicked and flipped.
    They swung and struck. She punched and blocked.
    72
They lunged and poked. She disarmed and tossed their weapons.
    They reached for her, and Bruiser, looking a bit ‘done with it’, whirled and touched Jonathan in the back of the neck. Spun and flicked David in the hip. Whipped around and poked the tip of her elbow to Mystic’s shoulder. And shot straight up in a split and tapped TL in the chest with her toes.
    All four guys fell to the floor, moaning and heaving for breaths.
    Bruiser took her blindfold off. “I think I broke a nail.” And then she giggled at her own silly humor.
    Chapling and I just sat there, staring at the remnants of the Jackie Chan scene we’d just seen.
    I realized then he and I were gripping each other’s hands, and I let go. “Sorry.”
    “Wow.”