Meredith smirked at Kat. “Are you saying people can do whatever they want and shouldn’t be afraid of being attacked? Next, you’ll be telling us we should leave our cars and houses unlocked. How old are you anyway?”
Kat took a big breath. “I don’t think people should be afraid to run on a running track in their local area. I doubt you’d tell Damon he needs to run with a friend.”
“Are you comparing young women with Damon Knightly, Kat? You didn’t tell us how old you are.”
“I’m sixteen, and I believe I have as much right as Damon to run on this track without worrying about being attacked.”
Meredith smiled too sweetly. “Coming from the mouths of babes. Besides calling the ambulance today, what have you ever done to help someone? What do you know about being attacked?”
“I’ve helped a few people who’ve been attacked, and I teach self-defence classes.”
“What gives you the right to teach self-defence?”
“I’m a black belt in Knightly Karate.”
“And what could a sixteen-year-old know about being attacked?”
Kat glared at Meredith and turned to the camera. “Plenty. I was known as Emily Jones, the girl in the coma. I was attacked by eight men and not only survived, I now help people who’ve been attacked, and I teach self-defence. You don’t need to let one terrible experience ruin the rest of your life. Just because you’re a victim once, it doesn’t make you one for life.”
Meredith gained her composure. “If you’re so good at karate, why couldn’t you save Courtney?”
Damon stepped in between them before Kat could answer. “Because eight males with the youngest being seventeen is too much to ask two fourteen-year-old girls to defend themselves against. The men, if you can call them that, should never have attacked them in the first place! This interview is over.” He turned to the cameraman, “Turn off your camera before I smash it.”
The cameraman took one look at Damon’s black eyes blazing at him and turned his camera off.
Damon pointed at Meredith and the cameraman. “You two leave - now.”
Meredith and her cameraman hurried to the van. “We’re putting this up before anyone can stop us. Forget Mal fucking Joiner. Emily Jones just made this the story of the fucking century!”
The glass shattered on the wall next to the flat screen TV “We need to do something about that girl. Victims stay victims! We can’t let her convince the world otherwise. Wolves and sheep! The natural order. Sheep never stand up to wolves. She’s not going to change that!”
Chaos chuckled. “It’s not like you to lose your cool, Alpha. This could be interesting. Give us a challenge for a change.”
Alpha shook his head. “She’s been a pest before, but going public. We need to do something more than kill a poor excuse for a rapist, my friend.”
Siren ran her hand down Alpha’s leg. “We need to break her, not kill her.”
Alpha pulled Siren into him. “I’m listening, my pet.”
“We know she’s snooping around the hooker killer and the sister rapists. She needs to lose someone else. Someone she’s not coming back from. We’ll show the world she’s an eternal victim.”
Alpha kissed her, stood and threw her over his shoulder. He pushed her skirt up so Chaos could see her bare bottom and pushed two fingers inside her. “Coming, Chaos?”
36
Kat was running along the parkrun track with Damon and saw two men wearing fluoro singlets running towards them. Kat moved closer to Damon as she noticed their faces.
“So you think you’re a hero?” Tommy said, stopping directly in front of Kat.
Michael ran to the other side of her and grabbed her left wrist. “I think she does.”
Kat took a step closer to Damon, but he wasn’t Damon anymore. Brandon Underhill grabbed her right wrist and shoulder.
Kat gasped and jumped out of bed. She looked at the clock, ten minutes to four. Ten minutes before her alarm was due to go off. “If you’re awake, Day, ten minutes early would be good.”
Connor’s message tone sounded just before Damon’s. “I’m listening too. A little early is good. We need to run the jitters out. Today will be huge. See you at your place.”
“I’ll be there. I’ll check with Connor. He may join us earlier. We’ll pick up Chelsea on the run as planned.”
“Connor texted first. He’s meeting us here,” Kat said just before Dominique knocked on her door.
“Are you okay, baby?”
“Yeah, Mum. Come in,” Kat said as she pulled her Knightly Karate singlet over her crop top and sports bra.
“Bad dream?” Dominique asked.
“Yeah, I dreamt about Tommy, Michael and Brandon Underhill again. I’d really love to get some closure on those guys and get them out of my head. Damon and Connor are coming early. I guess Connor couldn’t sleep in either. I slept okay except for the dream. Do you want to come running with us?” Kat pulled on her shorts and started brushing her hair.
Dominique shook her head. “The four of you will be good as planned. Dad and I will meet you at the gym at a quarter to six. Tonight will be crazy, but I expect at least ten more people this morning. We’ll be there all day unless you need to go home. We’re staying with you.”
Kat secured the hair tie around her ponytail and threw her arms around Dominique. “I love you, Mum.”
Kat had just finished brushing her teeth when she heard the quiet knock on the front door.
Eric opened the front door and smiled. “We’re all up. Look after my princess. We’ll see you at the gym.”
Connor smiled. “Absolutely! See you at the gym, Eric.”
Damon looked at Eric seriously. “Kat’s a warrior princess, but we have her back. We’ll bring her to you safely.”
Eric nodded seriously. “I know you both will.”
Kat ran out of the bathroom and hugged Dominique before running to the door and hugging Eric. “I’ll see you both at the gym.” She smiled at Connor and Damon. “Let’s run.”
Damon beamed and started running down the drive with Kat and Connor. “I’ve got some great news. My cousin Violet is flying in at one and driving here. I offered to pick her up, but she thinks we’ll be too busy. We both think we’ll have at least fifty people more than usual tonight and some extras during the day. Vi will stay as long as we need her and wants to take our cause back to Sydney with her.”
“Oh my God! That’s fantastic! Can we help?” Kat replied before Connor could.
Damon’s smile lit up his face. “You truly are amazing, Kat. We’ll help in every way we can. Today will give us an indication of public opinion and how big this is already. You’ve also got your course starting back next week. We’ll all get together and work out the best plan.”
Connor put his hand on Kat’s shoulder as she bit her bottom lip. “It’ll be okay, Kat.”
“Everyone at my course will know I’m Emily Jones by the time we go back, won’t they? I called Georgina and Splash last night. I think they were a little hurt but understood why I hadn’t told them. Splash said I was a hero for going up against Brady after that. I’m not a hero. I just want people to stop attacking others.”
Damon smiled. “You’re certainly brave, Kat. We’ll do our best to stop people from attacking others. I doubt Brady will ever do it again. You scared the hell out of me. He would’ve been terrified. About your course starting, I’ll go in with you and stay until you’re comfortable.”
Connor grinned. “With Violet and Dereck here, the boss man may let me tag along.” His expression became serious, “You’ve told the people you’re close with and Laura talked with Trina. It will all be okay.” He grinned again. “I wish I could’ve seen the look on either Damon’s or Brady’s face.”
Damon chuckled and put his middle finger up behind Kat’s back so Connor could see it but Kat couldn’t. “We’ve got about thirty-five minutes till we meet Chelsea. Let’s pick up the pace.”
Chelsea ran out to meet them when they
turned into her street and threw her arms around Kat. “How are you?”
Kat hugged her. “I’m good. Let’s hope it stays that way. Maybe it won’t be as big as we thought, although getting more people involved in self-defence and helping others would be great. I’m torn.”
Chelsea started running next to Kat. “We’re all here for you, so whatever happens is hopefully the best.” They ran to the creek and along the track. “It’s so lucky you found them when you did yesterday. Imagine if they pushed all four girls like they were paid to. I can’t believe Mal Joiner did that. I remember watching him in the Olympic games before last. If he didn’t try to cheat, he’d probably still be the best in Australia. What is he like? Do you really think he can become a good guy?”
“I hope so,” Damon answered while they ran. “He’s fast. I had no hope of catching him. I was so lucky with the dead end and traffic.”
Chelsea checked her watch. “We’re doing a four fifty pace and you slowed down for me. Any idea what pace you were doing?”
Damon pointed at his watch. “Brent made me get it. As we’re training with him, he demands I use a gadget. I humoured him. I was running at a two fifty pace at my best. He was faster.”
Chelsea’s mouth dropped. “I knew you were fit, Sensei, but wow. Two fifty pace! Wow!”
“I certainly didn’t feel fit. Hopefully, he’ll train us all to be our best.” Damon smiled at Connor. “You’re certainly rubbing off on me, Angel. I sincerely hope we get him on our side. I’m not happy about what he did but neither is he.” Damon pointed at the bridge where Kat helped Monica, the injured girl. “You did well yesterday, Kat.”
Kat looked at her watch and bit her lip. “I hope you can still say that after today. We better head to the gym.”
Kat’s eyes widened as they approached the street to the gym and noticed Dominique and Eric running towards them. “This can’t be good.” Kat increased her pace and was matched by the others as they ran to meet her parents. “What’s happened?”
Eric tried one of his goofy expressions but couldn’t quite pull it off. “There are a few more people than we anticipated including Meredith Wright from Channel Seven News and news vans from Channel Nine and Channel Ten.”
“Oh. Three news teams?” Kat took a big breath. “At least no reporter can be worse than Meredith Wright. I really don’t like her. How many people are here?” Kat asked as two cars drove past them slowly and turned into the gym’s street and another car slowed down and parked just in front of them.
The front passenger door opened and a girl about seventeen squealed. “It’s her!” and ran towards Kat. She stopped about five metres away and seemed even more nervous than Kat. “You are amazing. What you said yesterday was so right. We should all be able to run on a running track without having to worry about being attacked.”
Kat smiled. “Absolutely. No one should need to worry about being attacked, unless of course they’re the attackers.” Kat looked at a few cars leave the gym’s street and park across the road from them. This can’t be good or can it?
“So true. I want to do your self-defence classes and maybe start karate too. Can I run into the gym with you, please?”
Kat smiled. “Sure.” She looked around at the six cars that were parked near them. “Come on. We can all run together.”
Dominique positioned herself behind Kat and anticipated Kat’s shock and sudden stop as they turned the corner. “It’s okay, baby. We’re here.”
Parked cars filled both sides of the street as swarms of people walked towards the gym. “It’s her! It’s Emily Jones! I mean Kat! Katerina Chase!”
Oh, fuck! Kat took a big breath. “Come run with us, everyone!” Kat turned to Damon. “I don’t think I’m teaching aerobics this morning. Should we call in Laura?”
Damon shook his head. “There won’t be room for aerobics. We’ll need to take down the dividing wall to fit everyone in. I’m guessing the car park’s even worse. It’s going to be a tight fit. You’ll teach. We’ll help.” He turned to Connor. “Can you ask Josh to either stay with you or his aunty for a while? I’ll ask Dad to come today. He should be able to give him a lift.”
“I think we should offer Josh a traineeship if he’s happy to move. He’s proven himself. I’ll ask him to stay with me. He’s been easy to live with so far.”
“That’s a great idea. If Mal Joiner proves himself, and he really needs to do that, I’d like to offer him a job too.” Damon lowered his voice to ensure none of the newcomers heard. “We’ll also need an aerobics instructor. Laura and Kat both have other responsibilities.”
Kat braced herself as they turned into the carpark. She did not expect this. People stood on both sides of the car park, leaving a clear path for Kat and her group, and clapped and cheered as they ran towards the gym. The newcomers running with them joined the crowd and cheered even louder than the others. “Oh my God. I just try to help people; I haven’t done anything that special.”
Damon stopped himself from touching her shoulder in front of the cameras. “Believe me, Kat, that’s special.”
37
Meredith stepped in front of Kat and her team as they were about to reach the front door. Damon stepped in between them before Meredith could shove her microphone in Kat’s face. “Kat has a self-defence class to teach.” He turned to the other two reporters, Jamie Sanders from Channel Nine and Annalise Maitland from Channel Ten and gave them his best forced smile. “You’re all welcome to stay for the class and interview us after.”
Annalise smiled and tilted her head, her silky blonde hair falling just below her shoulders. “Thank you, Sensei Damon. I’d be honoured to stay for the class. I did martial arts in my teens.” She glanced at the crowd and then down at her designer sky blue suit. “I’ll get changed in the van.”
Jamie smiled warmly and bowed. “I’d like to purchase a gi, please, Sensei Damon, and become a member. I’d heard great things about Knightly Karate before we discovered Kat teaches here. This is a place I’d like to be.”
Annalise looked at Jamie. I wish I’d thought of that. I’ll join up after the class and ensure I say it’s because of this class.
Meredith smiled sweetly. Fucking vultures. This is my story! How dare they try to monopolise them by joining up. “That’s a great idea, Jamie. I’ll join up too and buy a uniform.”
Fuck no! Kat stepped forward. “You should do my class first to make sure you like it.”
Damon smiled and nodded. He raised his hand causing a hush to fall over the crowd. “Kat’s class will start at six-thirty and is ten dollars each. The cost of the class will be deducted from your membership if you choose to sign up after class. You will also be able to talk with Kat and our other staff members after class.”
Dereck and Laura with Hope strapped to her chest pushed past the long queue and joined Connor, Chelsea, Dominique and Eric at the front desk signing people in.
Dereck turned to Connor. “Are Sensei Damon and Sensei Kat downstairs, Sensei Connor?”
Connor smiled. “Yes, Sensei Dereck. We’ve taken out the wall already. They’re welcoming people and planning the class. Would you like to join them?”
Dereck shook his head. “You three make a great team. You should join them. I’ll help out here. Chelsea and I will join you five minutes before class for instructions, and Dominique and Eric two minutes before. Laura will look after the front desk during the class.”
Connor bowed. “That means a lot, Sensei,” especially you stepping back and doing the desk. Connor signed two more people in and bowed. “I’ll see you down there.”
Kat smiled at the crowd and turned to Damon, Connor, Dereck and Chelsea, “We can do this. Call them in please, Sensei Damon.”
Damon’s whistle quietened the crowd. He pointed to the ring where the five of them were standing in the centre of the huge dojo. “Sit on the floor around the ring. We’ll start with some demonstrations.”
The three cameramen, from different networks, started filming as th
e crowd sat around the ring.
Kat smiled at the cameras and moved into the centre of the ring. “We’ll start with something flashy that not many people could do and move onto basic self-defence most people could learn easily. It won’t look as good, but could save your life. In both cases, all four people are going to attack me. Many people say you should try to fight the weakest member of the group. I disagree. In my experience, the strongest attacker will always want in. This also applies when two or more people are defending themselves and each other, but we’ll go through that later.”
Damon, Connor, Dereck and Chelsea started charging Kat from their four corners. Kat jumped up in the air, did a backflip and landed on the other side of Damon with his back facing her. The crowd cheered. Kat attempted to sweep Damon’s legs, causing the crowd to gasp as he avoided it and turned around with a punch aimed at Kat’s head. Chelsea, Connor and Dereck ran behind Kat surrounding her. Kat trapped his punch and used his body weight to throw him to the ground towards the others, a move they practiced before this class. The crowd cheered.
Kat ran to the crowd, crouched down and smiled at a teenage girl in the front row, “Can I squish in here with you.” Everyone who heard burst out laughing. Kat stood up again and raised her voice. “Get out of there as soon as you possibly can and go for help. Most people won’t want to take on all of us.” Kat walked back to the centre of the ring. Damon, Connor, Chelsea and Dereck took their positions back in the corners. Kat gestured at them, “We can do aerials but not everyone can. This won’t look as good but is at least as effective. If this were a real life situation, they would be hurt but still alive. My attackers did not intend me to live. You need to think of that when defending yourself. If they were going to show you mercy, it’s unlikely they’d attack you in the first place.”
Our Cause (Let the Monsters Live in Fear Book 1) Page 29
