At that moment, Victoria saw movement at the main entrance—someone had gone to get the Duty Officer. She had about sixty seconds. Rock snapped, his ego finally overriding his common sense. “Enough talk. You want it? You got it.”
He lunged forward, swinging a massive fist. Victoria didn’t move until the last possible second. “Stop, you idiot!” Snake yelled, but it was too late. Rock put everything he had into a right cross that would have shattered a normal person’s jaw. It was aimed right at Victoria’s face.
She didn’t jump back. She stepped *into* the strike, slipping the punch by a fraction of an inch and entering his blind spot. Her movements were fluid and precise. Before Rock realized he’d missed, Victoria’s elbow slammed into his solar plexus with the force of a sledgehammer. The air left his lungs in a wheeze, and he doubled over. But she wasn’t done.
She grabbed his arm, used his own momentum against him, and executed a perfect hip throw. The 220-pound man flew through the air and crashed onto a nearby table, sending trays and food flying. The entire sequence took less than two seconds. The room gasped. The remaining four stood frozen, looking at their friend groaning in a pile of mashed potatoes. Victoria straightened her uniform. “Next?” she asked calmly.
Tank’s face was a mask of rage and terror. “Who the hell are you?!” he choked out. “Just a clerk,” she replied. Spider was faster. He tried to flank her while Tank moved in from the right. Victoria tracked them both without effort. “Two on one? How brave,” she mocked. “You just broke our brother!” Tank screamed. “I gave him a physics lesson,” she countered.
Spider lunged for her legs, trying for a takedown. He was fast, but Victoria was a ghost. She stepped aside, caught his momentum, and drove his face into the floor. The sound of his nose breaking echoed in the silence. He was out cold. Tank charged like a wounded bear. Victoria didn’t use finesse this time. She slipped under his reach, ended up behind him, and locked in a rear-naked choke. Tank thrashed, but her grip was iron. Within seconds, his eyes rolled back, and he slumped to the floor.
Diesel and Snake stood paralyzed. “This isn’t possible,” Diesel stammered. “You’re too small.” Victoria brushed a speck of dust off her sleeve. “Small, yes,” she agreed. “But I’ve had some very good training.” “Training from where?” Snake asked, his voice trembling. The Duty Officer finally burst into the room, stopping dead at the sight of the carnage. Victoria snapped to attention. “Special Operations, Navy SEALs,” she stated coldly.
The room exhaled as one. Snake looked like he’d been shot. “Oh, God…” he whispered. “We tried to jump a SEAL.” “Exactly,” she confirmed. “And you did it in a public place with witnesses.” She looked down at Tank. “Lesson learned?” The revelation of her status hit the room like a bomb. The bullies were no longer “alphas”; they were just criminals.
