Chapter 5 - What Reardon Had Written
Medical personnel checked Brody and Ethan immediately.
Neither man had a broken leg.
Brody had a severe knee strain.
Ethan had a temporary joint lock and heavy bruising.
Both injuries came from momentum they created themselves.
Avery had released each control before structural damage occurred.
Reardon climbed down from the observation platform.
He opened his notebook to the page bearing Avery’s name.
The first sentence read:
Technique remains functional against superior size and multiple attackers.
The second read:
Instructor maintains restraint after deliberate provocation.
That was the real test.
Reardon had already seen Avery perform the movements in private demonstrations. He knew the system worked when everyone cooperated.
He needed to know what happened when ego entered the room.
Avery could have injured both men.
She had controlled Brody’s knee at an angle where one additional turn would have caused serious damage.
She stopped.
She could have forced Ethan’s leg beyond the safe range.
She released him as soon as his balance disappeared.
Brody had tried to prove she was too weak for the bay.
Instead, he proved her system could neutralize strength without becoming cruelty.
Reardon faced the crowd.
“This was not an exhibition.”
He looked down at the two men.
“It was an evaluation of whether technique and judgment survive pressure.”
May you like
Then he looked at Avery.
“They did.”
