The voice sounded familiar. The three men immediately turned their attention to the person entering the alleyway.
It was a tall figure. His face was masked in the darkness, but his eyes shone like beautiful jade crystals. He calmly walked toward us as if he were just out for a stroll.
"Who are you?" the big bearded man asked, sticking his knife toward the figure.
"Let them go. I won't repeat myself," the figure said, stepping even closer.
The men holding us seemed threatened by this figure, so much so that they loosened their grips to face him.
He walked into view where the moonlight hit his face perfectly, revealing who he was. My eyes widened in realization when I saw him.
"Liam!!"
That idiot! What is he doing here?!
"You have to run! Go!"
I screamed at him, but he didn't even bother to address me. His eyes were locked on the men holding us hostage.
"Let my sister go," he demanded once again.
"It's just a kid," the man holding me from behind chuckled. "Shit, I thought it was a cop or something."
"Don't let him leave," the bearded man ordered, and the man who held the knife above Kei marched toward Liam.
"Run, Liam!"
It all happened so fast that I don't even know what occurred. One moment, the man was approaching Liam with a knife; the next, he was on the ground, holding his stomach.
"What happened?" the bearded man asked. It seemed he hadn't seen what had happened either.
The man on the ground roared at Liam and then swung his knife u[ at him as he got to his feet.
Liam danced around the blade like a skater on ice. The tears wouldn't stop flowing as I watched them with bated breath.
Where did my brother learn to fight like that? His appearance looked different too.
The blade whistled through the air as the man tried unsuccessfully to hit my brother. With every failed attempt, my brother followed up with a series of blows that left the man moaning in agony and frustration.
The man's movements dulled until my brother landed a punch to his stomach. The man's legs turned to jelly, and a loud thud could be heard as his head hit the concrete. Liam knocked him out cold.
"You fucker!"
The man holding me pushed me to the side and charged at Liam. He swung his fist, but my brother was behind him in an instant. Liam's sharp movement caused the man to trip over his own feet but Liam didn't give him the chance to get up. Instead, he struck him on the back of the head, knocking him out cold.
The big bearded man stood calmly and watched before moving toward Kei, who was still lying on the ground. He pulled her up by her hair and rested his knife against her throat.
"Is this bitch your sister?" he asked, smiling.
Just then, in the confusion of everything that was happening, Jake got to his feet and took off in a sprint. He didn't even spare us a second thought.
I saw the hurt in Kei's eyes as she watched the person who was supposed to protect her run away like a scared dog.
"Who are you?" the bearded man asked Liam. "You move like a pro boxer, but you're so young."
"Let her go, and we can talk then."
"I don't think so."
"Then we can wait until the police get here."
The bearded man smiled and, at the same time, dropped his knife and released Kei.
"You see, I'm also a boxer," the bearded man said, rolling up his sleeve.
He was taller than my brother and twice as big. At that moment, I rushed over to Kei, lying on the ground; I had to protect her.
I thought she would be shaken up by what happened, but instead, her eyes had a glow to them. I traced her gaze and realized she was staring at my brother, Liam. Her cheeks were burning red and strangely, she looked like she had forgotten that she was just in danger of getting killed. She looked hypnotized by him.
An uncomfortable thought crossed my mind, but I quickly pushed it aside and hugged her tightly, snapping her out of her trance.
…
[Liam's POV]
The other attackers had gone down easily, but this one looked like he would be a problem. The way he moved told me he had experience fighting.
A nasty grin lit up on his face as he crept closer to me. I wanted him to make the first move since. He seemed like the impatient type, so of course, he would.
He threw a straight punch aimed directly at my head. His massive fist pummeled through the air, leaving a thunderous clap in its wake. He followed up with a vicious combo, moving with a speed that was terrifying for a man of his size.
He left an opening, which I exploited, when I my fist hit his stomach his it like I was pounding on concrete. He shrugged off my punch as if it were nothing and attempted to catch me in a clinch but I sidestepped and kissed his cheek with my fist.
Again, it was like nothing to him. He pressed forward with a confident smile on his face, certain that a boy like me couldn't harm him.
It didn't matter how big he was. Human beings all have the same weaknesses. I only needed to target the right spots for him to fall like the Goliath he was. For that, I needed to give him what he wanted: a closer-range fight.
I waited until he pressed me again, reading his mind by observing the movements of his eyes and the twitch of his muscles. He started with a hook aimed at my midsection.
He was confident that I would dodge, and so I did. I purposely fell into his trap. The moment I dodged by leaning back to avoid his blow, he pressed me with a burst of power from his back leg.
As soon as he got in close, he wrapped the tree trunks he called arms around me in a clinch.
"Can't run now, can you?" he mocked.
His strength made it hard to move but not impossible. Normally, in a clinch, the stronger man would have the advantage, but this was anything but a normal boxing match.
For one, there were no rules; everything was legal. In one smooth motion, I targeted the back of his head, landing a direct blow at the base of his neck. His arms loosened from the impact, causing him to step back.
The punch I delivered was called a rabbit punch—an illegal blow in boxing. Right above the neck is what is called the brainstem. It is responsible for all major life functions, like breathing, heart rate, and even balance.
With enough force, a blow like that could end someone's career. He staggered backward, barely keeping his balance. His eyes looked like they were loose in their sockets, spinning in all directions.
I used the opportunity to deliver another blow, this time to his solar plexus. He released a loud yelp when my fist hit but then I followed up with a brutal uppercut to his chin, shutting him up for good.
With lifeless eyes, he fell face forward onto the concrete.