22

The attack happened so fast—and so unexpectedly—that for a split second Connor failed to react . . .

Then his bodyguard training took over. Seizing Emily’s shoulder with his left hand, he wrenched her away from the threat and stepped forward to shield her with his body.

The Rollerblader was a blur as he barreled into Connor. The man grabbed Emily’s Gucci bag and attempted to rip it from her shoulder. His forward momentum spun Connor and Emily around, almost pulling them off their feet.

In an effort to break the Rollerblader’s fierce grip, Connor drove his knuckled fist into the tendons of the man’s wrist. The man, a bare-chested brute with a roaring lion tattoo on his right bicep, grunted in pain but hung on tenaciously. Spinning them around again, he caught Connor across the jaw with his elbow. Connor’s head rocked back, and he tasted blood. The Rollerblader yanked at the bag, and the strap snapped. Emily tumbled to the ground, Connor sprawling on top of her.

“Are you . . . all right?” Connor gasped as he watched the mugger skate away, his loot in tow.

She nodded, then stuttered, “M-my bag . . .”

But the high-speed thief didn’t get far.

Ling, who’d witnessed the attack from a distance, snatched a board from a passing surfer and swung it hard at the escaping thief. The edge slammed with full force into the man’s gut. A pained exhalation burst from his lungs, and he lost his grip on the bag. Nose-diving into the concrete, the skater careered across the path and into a nearby tree trunk.

But no sooner had Ling dealt with this attacker than a second Rollerblader charged in Chloe’s direction.

“Watch out!” Connor bawled at the top of his lungs. But Chloe just stood there, wide-eyed, like a rabbit caught in the headlights.

The Rollerblader, a dome-headed black man with wraparound sunglasses, sped toward her with the force of a battering ram. With only seconds to react, Ling discarded the surfboard and launched herself into his path. Small as she was, she collided hard enough to knock him off course. They both struck the concrete sea wall and toppled over the side. Pile-driving into the sand below and crushing a child’s sand castle, Ling and the Rollerblader fought to disentangle themselves.

Meanwhile, Connor rushed over with Emily to her sister in readiness to protect them both if he had to.

“Stay close to me,” he ordered the girls as Ling and the second Rollerblader battled it out on the beach.

Wrestling in his grip, Ling flipped her head back, catching the skater under the chin. His teeth rattled in his skull, and he roared in fury. Shoving a large hand into Ling’s face, he pushed her away, rolled on top and used his weight to crush her. Ling was pinned, but Connor couldn’t go to her rescue. If he did, he’d be leaving both their Principals unprotected.

He shouldn’t have worried, though. As the man attempted to subdue her, Ling reached down and pinched a nerve point in the middle of his inner thigh. He yelped like a kicked dog and leaped off Ling as if he’d been electrocuted.

“Leave me alone, you wildcat!” he shouted, shocked by her combat abilities.

As Ling flipped to her feet and advanced on him, he snatched in desperation at a handful of sand and threw it into her face. Too close to avoid the attack, Ling staggered away, half blinded. By the time she’d wiped the grit from her eyes, the Rollerblader had stumbled along the beach and up the steps to the boulevard.

Stunned beachgoers stared at the four teenagers, trying to make sense of what had just happened.

“Are you okay?” Connor called to Ling.

“Yes,” she replied, still spitting sand. “Are the twins safe?”

Still buzzing with adrenaline, Connor scanned the area for further threats. Just because they’d fended off this attack didn’t mean the danger was over.

“Yes, it seems all clear.”

The lifeguard was sprinting over, calling the police on his walkie-talkie. A group of beach bums were applauding Ling’s fighting skills as she made her way up the steps. The blond surfer near Chloe was kneeling beside his board, checking it for damage.

But the two Rollerbladers had vanished.

So too had the white pickup truck.