Nature of the beast (book 1 of the Beasties)

Krav maga

Still in shock, I mechanically make it to the basement where Liam has an in-home gym. According to Trudy, there are wild wolves on Liam's property and I just so happened to of encountered one. I thought wolves were shy animals unless they felt threatened or hungry. I should thank my lucky stars that I'm pathetically non-threatening and that the wolf must of been full because I could of ended up like little red ridding hoods grandma.

I make it to the basement door from Liam's directions. It takes all my will power to force myself down the steps. I don't like basements. I reach the door at the bottom and plunge through like a child cannonballing into a pool. The phrase 'it's like a band aid, just rip it off' plays over and over in my mind. My first initial reaction is to find all possible escape routs. There are two basement windows and a cellar door. I calm down. The basement it's self is gorgeous. If it wasn't for the cellar door you would never know that it wasn't a high class gym. It's as big as a YMCA!

Liam is next to a gym bag full of equipment. He is methodically wrapping his hands with hand wraps. His nose twitches and his head jerks up. Our eyes clash. His mouth sets in a stern line.

"Come over here" he orders. I cautiously walk over to him. He grabs my hand, I jump from the suddenness of it. "You're going to have to get over that nasty habit of flinching. It shows your opponent that you're weak." Easier said than done, I think to myself. He starts wrapping my hands. Liam is gentle yet firm with his touch. "I'm going to teach you five moves a day for the next five days. Each day we will review the moves in sparing and rolling. On the sixth day we review all the moves in sparing. The seventh day we rest. Any questions?" I shake my head no. "I will be teaching you krav maga. It's the dirty side of martial arts, which is gorilla war fare." He finishes wrapping up my hands, than directs me to the matts.

"I want you to stand in front of me with your back facing me." I do as he says. His arm comes across my collar bone against my neck. "Most attackers are cowards. The cowards will usually grab you from behind. This is a classic grab. The second you feel the arm around you like this, I want you to pull down with both your hands and slip your head out by bending your knees when you feel the arm give, than explode into a sprint. No matter how much it hurts to get your head out, just do it because the alternative could mean your life." We practice the move five times before the next one.

"Lets say the attacker grabs your wrist as you slip away from him." Liam grabs my wrist. "I want you to turn your wrist sideways till your thumb faces the ground and yank. I don't care if the guy is built like Godzilla, he won't be able to hold onto your wrist like that. It makes it so there is nothing to grip like trying to hold on to a fish. He would than need two hands to hold your one." Again we practice in fives.

"Let's say the assailant dose hold onto your wrist with both hands, than you come at his face with your claws, I mean your nails." Liam looks a bit disgruntled for a moment, than continues. "Aim specifically for his eyes. This kills two birds with one stone. He'll let go and he'll be blind, so you'll have a better chance of escape." I got a little too into practicing this move, but Liam had a lopsided smirk when we finished practicing it.

"Now these next two moves, I don't want you to use unless you absolutly have to." He positions us in the same stance as the first move I learned. "When you slip out this time, I want you to keep hold of my arm with the hand closest to my wrist as you slip out under and to the side. You want to pretend that my are is like a pin wheel. Since arms can't bend backwards, this move would snap it in either the rotary cuff or elbow. Key factor here is speed. You have to do it fast before your attacker knows what your doing." It took my fifth try before I had the move down.

"Lastly this move is similar to the last, only you are going to allow your assailant enough time to bend his own arm, than you'll palm his elbow and wrench his arm behind him. You'll want to do this with enough force and speed to break his rotary cuff and possibly his wrist." I manage the move after my fourth attempt. My speed sucks, but I'm sure with practice I'll get it down. "Now we spar." Liam's face was as solemn as a funeral directors. "This will be different from learning moves. Now you have to actually put use to what you've learned. I nod understanding.

He comes at me with out a warning. His arm roughly grabs around my collar bone. A flash in my mind transports me back to HIM. My body starts shaking, I grab the arm, slip out, cuff the elbow, right as I wrench it, we fall to the ground. I let go, winded. Vices pin my arms to the ground. I'm hollering, wiggling and screaming by now. "Calm down!!!" A voice booms. It isn't HIS voice. Calming my self, my vision clears and Liam's stoney face appears. "You have to control your flash backs."

"I can't!" My voice sounds watery to my ears.

"If you don't. Than don't bother coming back down here."

"It's not possible Liam. It says so in phycology books."

"Those books only create excuses for allowing unacceptable behavior. It is possible to reign in your responses. Flash backs aren't real. Quit allowing your past to rule you." I take a deeper look into his granite expression. My eyes start to follow the scars on his face like connect the dots. The light bulb goes off in my head. Liam has been to hell and back too. He has risen above his demons, maybe I should try harder to fight mine. "Tomorrow morning I expect a better attitude or don't both showing." His words were final.