Shoving off the bastard, he tried to pull completely free, but he wasn’t ready for the punch that came at him. He lifted one arm to block, but the man’s heavy arm came at him too hard and fast. It slammed his cheek and he staggered back, frantically trying to remember all the self-defense classes Rowe had forced on him as pain exploded through his face.
He blinked the stars from his vision. Swinging blindly, his fist clipped the man’s jaw; pain lanced through his knuckles.
“Stupid little fucker,” the guy growled. “I’m supposed to bring you to him. Fuck that.” Big hands wrapped around his neck, closing off the air passage.
Ian froze. This man was going to kill him. Right there, in the street. His fingers tightened, pulling him farther into the shadows. Breaking free of the blinding terror, Ian let instinct take over. All of Rowe’s classes kicked in, directing his movements.
He brought around his left hand and slammed it down over the guy’s elbow while at the same time, he stabbed two fingers hard into the notch at the bottom of his neck. The combination of pain and force broke his attacker’s hold on his throat.
Swearing loudly, the thug swung again, but Ian was better prepared. He ducked under his arm, swimming in close. Tucking his right arm to his body, he delivered a brutal shovel hook to the man’s floating rib. As he bent forward, sucking in harsh, pained gasps of air, Ian caught the back of the man’s head, forcing him down as he brought his knee up, slamming it into his nose. Ian’s stomach twisted at the feel of crunching bone.
The guy went down with a grunt. Ian hesitated for a breath, shocked that the same moves that Rowe and Andrei had been pounding into his head for months had actually worked. Feeling a hysterical laugh bubble, Ian turned to escape the dark alley, but he was too slow.
A big hand came out and grabbed his ankle, tripping him. Ian hit the cold cement hard, his knee cracking painfully, but he rolled to his feet and stood, adrenaline and fear keeping the worst of the pain at bay.
One look at Jagger’s bodyguard and he knew it had gone too far. Fury filled beady, dark eyes, and blood poured down his splotchy face from his broken nose.
“Hey! What’s going on back here?” Called an unknown male voice as approaching footfalls grew louder.
Ian didn’t hesitate. He slammed his free foot down on the man’s hand, smashing it against the broken pavement, getting him to release his hold on Ian’s ankle.
“Whoa. The smaller dude took him down!”
He looked up to find two men standing a couple of feet away. He didn’t stay to see if the bodyguard would get up or not. For now, he lay there, moaning and bleeding. “Just leave him,” Ian croaked as he backed away fast. “He has a gun.”
“Shit!” They took off and so did Ian. He ran down the street and didn’t stop. He sped past the sushi bar and hoofed it down Vine until he spotted lights from a grocery store. He ducked inside and quickly walked through aisles until he got to the back of the store. He was breathing hard when he called Andrei. And before he could get a word out, the adrenaline crash that hit brought all his fear to the surface. The room narrowed around him, tunneling into a small spot of light. All he could do was stand there, stare out into the store, and try to catch his breath.
“Ian?” Andrei said into the phone. “I thought you were close when you called. Your two minutes and mine are really fucking different measurements of time.”
“I was,” Ian choked out. His throat hurt.
“Something’s wrong.” It wasn’t a question and from the sounds in the background, Andrei was now on the move. He heard him talking to someone about the bill, but he could hardly focus as he strained to right his vision. The asshole could have followed him.
“Tell me where you are.” Andrei’s voice was calm yet demanding as the noises around him increased. “I’m outside. Are you close by?”
“I’m okay,” he finally got out.
“You’re not okay. You sound like Bea Arthur after gargling glass.”
“You know who Bea Arthur is?” Ian felt the band of shock ease from around his neck. He took a deep breath and straightened. “I’m okay. I’m really okay.” Realization began to set in. “I took down a guy twice my size. Holy shit, I owe Rowe a huge thank-you. It worked. I took him down.”
“What guy?” Andrei was breathing harder now and obviously running. “Dammit, Ian, where are you?”
“I’m close. Grocery store on Vine, south of the sushi place.”
“Shit, I was running the wrong direction.” He panted into the phone, a horn sounding in the background.