He reached out, took hold of her wrists, binding the two of them together by wrapping one hand solidly around them. They looked small compared to his large, muscular hands.
“Duct tape or zip ties—not the kind police officers use, but the hardware type—you can break through either of those things by simply lifting your hands up and away from your body, then slamming them back down against your hip.”
She nodded, lifted both of her arms up and brought them gently back down to bump her hip. Blayze released his grip. “That simple move will break either of those things.”
“How do I do that if they’re behind me?”
Blayze shuffled around to stand behind her. “Easy,” he said, his breath hot against the back of her neck. She hoped he didn’t notice the goosebumps that rose over her skin in response.
He took hold of her wrists once more, this time from behind. “Lift them away from you. It feels odd, but you just pull back as far as you can, then ram them against your back.”
She did as he said, slowly at first, and Blayze removed his hand once more. She practiced the action a few times without his help. “I guess I can see how that’d work.”
“Okay, now for a few more… physical ones,” he said.
Sophia took a deep breath and smoothed a hand down the front of her tank top. “Okay then. But I warn you, I’m an overachiever, so don’t underestimate me.”
Blayze chuckled under his breath. “Underestimate you?” He shook his head, leveled a look at her. “Never.”
Her heart galloped like a horse in pursuit; another point in the Blayze-had-legitimate-feelings-for-her camp.
“In the case of an attack,” he continued, “the most important thing to remember is this: Even if someone is physically stronger than you are, you can immobilize them by targeting weak spots on the body. Do you know what they are?”
She shrugged. “Everybody knows, don’t they? You knee a guy in the crotch if you’re in trouble.”
He grinned. “That’s definitely a very effective area, yes. But depending on how the attacker comes at you, that might not be an option. The main target points are eyes, nose, neck, groin, knees, and shins. We’ll just go through some quick scenarios. Step back until you’re against the house.” He motioned to the side logs of the cabin wall.
Sophia traded places with Blayze, taking a few steps back until she was flush against it.
Blayze stepped toward her and rolled his shoulders back a few times, looking bothered suddenly. “Okay, let’s say an attacker comes at you straight-on and pins you against a wall like this…” He straightened his arms toward her, wrapped his hands around her neck, then froze.
She gulped. “Okay…”
But he didn’t continue, only shook his head. “If anyone hurts you, Sophia, I swear…” His hands went limp. The color drained from his face. “Maybe I should let Roman teach you this. I don’t think I can handle it.” His thumb traced the hollow of her neck. Sophia could already see the wheels in his head turning. If he didn’t feel confident about their position, he’d try preventing her from speaking at the final event. She couldn’t have that.
She took hold of his hands, lifted them from her throat and gave them a shake. “Sure, you can. Maybe this will help…” Sophia hoisted her knee up with a loudhi-yah, coming dangerously close to striking him in the groin.
“Whoa!” Blayze jerked back with a grunt. “Okay, okay, I’ll do it.”
“That’s the spirit,” she cheered, raising a fist. “Hooyah!”
He seemed to snap further from his brooding. Enough to go over a series of useful tips. Ways to dig her thumbs into an attacker’s eyes, hit the nose for maximum impact, and several other moves she could use to temporarily disable an attacker.
“One way to really get ‘em—if you’re face to face like this—is to dip your head down just enough to get under the attacker’s chin, then jump and ram it with your head. You’ll have the force of your weight behind it, and it should stun them enough for you to run away.”
Next, Blayze moved to a different scenario—dealing with an armed attacker. “If someone puts a gun at your head, you’re going to want to grab it from them. But just know that it willdefinitelygo off the moment you touch it. It’s pretty much guaranteed. So, you have to duck out of the line of fire first, and fast.” He gave her a nod. “Pretend to put a gun to my forehead.”
Sophia clasped her hands together to make a gun shape and nudged the makeshift barrel between his eyes. She resisted the voice that told her how likely it was that Blayze had had guns aimed at him in such a manner.
“You’re going to duck, grab, and kick.” Blayze ducked his head, grabbed the gun, and extended a leg to feign kicking her. “The grab and kick can be simultaneous, but youhave toget your head out of the line of fire first. Understand?”
“Yes,” Sophia said.
“One last thing,” Blayze said. “The grab is kind of a two-part move, because you need to point the gun up as you grab it. Let’s try it a few times.”
He made a gun shape with his hands and rested the makeshift pistol against her forehead.
Sophia grabbed it with both hands, moved to point it upward but was startled when Blayze hollered, “Bang!”
