Silent Weapon by Debra Webb

gut. I broke away as his upper body jerked forward with the spasms the blow to his midsection had caused. I didn’t stop there. I twisted to face him, hooked my leg behind his and shoved him hard. He went down like a fallen oak against the floor.
    He was back on his feet in almost the same instant. He dusted himself off and presented me with a crooked grin. Well, there was a first. I definitely hadn’t seen that before.
    Good job.
    Pride swelled in my chest. What do you know? I’d impressed the iceman.
    From there we went through a number of scenarios, some I’d encountered before in my self-defense class, many more I hadn’t. In the end, I felt fairly confident I’d impressed him.
    Funny how that feat had become more and more important to me as the day had dragged on. I’d barely had any sleep and adrenaline was all that had kept me going.
    I didn’t realize how exhausted I was until after we’d shared spaghetti that Barlow had prepared himself. He didn’t say much, mostly talked about how important it was that I remembered the names and faces. I agreed and didn’t prompt any additional chitchat. Detective Barlow wasn’t very good at it. And I was too tired to keep up the sparring. Eventually I’d excused myself and showered. My legs felt like leaden clubs. I just wanted to lie down and drop into blissful unconsciousness.
    My eyes had just closed and my brain had started to shut down conscious processes when I felt the mattress shift. In that moment of denial before my brain and body got on the same sheet of music, I told myself I’d simply turned over and hadn’t realized it.
    Then I felt another shift. My eyes flew open but the room was black as pitch. I opened my mouth to scream but a punishing hand came down over it before I could expel the sound. The full weight of a body settled on top of mine. My hands went to a hard chest and pushed.
    The scream died in my throat. My heart threatened to burst…and then my olfactory sense kicked into high gear. I recognized his scent.
    Detective Barlow.
    Fury whipped through me. What the hell did he think he was doing? The fingers of his free hand closed around my throat. My eyes widened with new fear. What if I was wrong? What if it wasn’t Barlow? Could I trust my senses?
    My blood stung with the renewed rush of terror searing through my veins.
    I had to do something. Had to fight back. My knee jabbed toward his groin. He moved quickly, deflecting the blow. But I took advantage of that momentary distraction and slammed the heel of my hand into what I hoped would be his nose. He thrashed atop me. I flung my fists at his face. Kicked hard and twisted to roll him off me.
    We hit the floor in a tangled heap of flailing arms and legs. I scrambled loose. Managed to get to my feet and race to the door. I jerked it open and flew out into the hall. “Barlow! Barlow!” I wasn’t taking any chances as to whether or not my attacker was someone besides him.
    The overhead light came on. I blinked to adjust to the sudden brightness. I whirled around and came face-to-face with a rumpled-looking Barlow.
    My first instinct had been right…it was him. The mental pat on the back I owed myself was temporarily overridden by irritation. “What the hell was that about?” I demanded.
    He swiped at his bruised nose. He wasn’t bleeding, but obviously the sting from the blow was still there. I couldn’t help getting a little joy from that.
    Very good, Walters, he said as he combed his fingers through his hair, straightening it. But you should have realized it was me. It’s very important that you use your other senses. Since you can’t hear the enemy coming, you have to attempt to feel him coming. Pay attention to your instincts.
    I moved in close, nose to nose. “What makes you think I didn’t?”
    That crooked grin that he rarely allowed to make a public appearance did so just then. My pulse reacted and I wanted to kick myself.
    Good answer.
    I rolled my eyes and headed back to