Page 160 of Simon Says

And then Barber and Michael were there, too, all of them surrounding Marvin and ensuring her safety.

Marvin brought up his arm, and Dakota saw the flash of his knife. “You think I’m afraid to cut her?” He laughed. “Keep pushing me and you’ll be sorry.”

He began dragging Dakota backward, and though the men all kept pace, she knew she had to do something.

They all expected her to.

Besides, with Simon close, the fear wasn’t as bad as she had imagined it might be. Seeing Marvin again, comparing him to the men all standing in front of her, made him seem small and weak, not quite a man, much less a monster.

“Dakota,” Simon said, “listen to me. He’s nothing. You can kick his ass, baby. I know it. I’ve seen you in action.”

That really got Marvin chuckling—and just that easy, the moves she’d learned came to her. For courage, Dakota looked at Simon, then acted.

Instead of struggling, she dropped her weight, throwing Marvin off balance. That was all the advantage she needed. With every ounce of strength she had, she brought her elbow back for a liver shot and at the same time, ducked away from the knife. She didn’t have the power that the fighters had, but she had enough for Marvin.

Now that she was free of his hold, she faced him. “Did you hear him, Marvin? Simon says I can take you.”

Marvin caught his breath and straightened, the knife clutched in his hand. “You’re fucking with me, aren’t you?”

“No. You took me by surprise, but not again.”

She heard Simon say, “That’s my girl.”

Marvin laughed. “This has to be a joke.”

Dakota circled him, and when he started to laugh again, she kicked away his knife. Marvin grabbed his wrist in pain. The knife flew to the side and Barber picked it up.

“I’m actually dead serious, Marvin.” She kicked again, landing her foot on his temple.

He fell on his ass with a grunt. Glaring at her with hatred, he said, “You’re going to regret that.”

“Stand up, Marvin.”

“Bitch.”He shot to his feet, lunging for her. Using his momentum against him, Dakota drove her knee into his groin. When he doubled over in pain, she caught the back of his head and brought her knee up again, this time into his chin, once, twice, a third time. When she released him, he fell to the side.

She could hear the smile in Simon’s tone when he asked, “Dakota, you done, honey?”

“No.”

“Take your time.”

Since Marvin wasn’t moving much, she spared a glance at Simon and saw his small, proud smile. For some reason, tears suddenly burned her eyes. “Thank you, Simon.”

“Anytime, sweetheart.”

Dakota walked a circle around Marvin. “You think you’re so big and bad. Get up and prove it.”

He curled into a ball and groaned.

“Get up, or I’ll kick in your ribs with you lying there.”

Slowly, Marvin struggled to his feet. Blood trickled from his grotesquely swollen nose and the side of his mouth. He bent forward like an old man, one hand still cupped over his jewels. “You’re insane.”

“No, I’m mad. There’s a difference.” For the first time in years, she felt truly free. As independent as she’d always tried to be. “Can you defend yourself at all, Marvin?”

“If I had my knife—”

“I’d take it from you and break it off in your kneecap.”

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