Daniel Ganninger - Icarus Investigations 02 - Peeking Duck Read Online Free Page B

Galveston ran towards me and tackled me onto the grass, knocking me on my back.  He continued to say all sorts of expletives as we wrestled on the ground.  He had put on a few pounds and still had a good amount of strength.  I managed to push him off and got to my feet as we began to circle each other in a grappling hold.
    “ I’m sure that new hubby of hers enjoys looking at her great body just like you did,” I managed to say between breathes, fanning his rage.
    Galveston tried to hit me in the face, but flailed wildly, hitting me in the chest instead.  I countered with an elbow to his stomach, which temporarily knocked the wind out of him.  Galveston’s normally competent technique for self-defense was flawed due to his lack of practice.  Usually he could drop me in a few seconds, but he was so out of shape and balance that he milled about like a drunken frat guy. 
    Unbeknownst to him I had been training in many types of martial arts and self-defense for the past year.  I had never been in better shape.  I would have never attempted something like this if Galveston had been in his prime. 
    Galveston tried again to punch me in the face, and I countered this with an elbow to his back, throwing him forward.  This caused him to lose his balance, and he landed on the grass.  He got up quickly huffing for air, and as he did, I swept his legs out from under him with a kick, sending him falling hard on his back.  He got up slowly and began to charge me once again.  As he got close to landing a punch, I ducked, threw my shoulder into his ribs, and using my momentum, sent him flying in a somersault over and back onto the ground where he landed with a hard thud.
    By this time Galveston ‘s poor cardiovascular endurance was getting the better of him, and he got up even more slowly.  He was kind of befuddled as to why he kept landing on the ground.  Again he charged, and this time I gave a quick jab to his ribs.  As he lurched forward, I grabbed him around the neck and sent him over my leg.  He landed in a crumpled mess on his stomach, completely fatigued and out of breath.  I stood over him as he turned onto his back.  He had a few marks on his face where I had landed a few elbows and fists during our scuffle. 
    I peered down at him as he wheezed for air.  He was completely spent and had no energy left.  His rage subsided quickly, knowing this was a fight he could not win.  Galveston stared blankly up at me, but I could tell that something was different.  I saw some sanity creep in.
    “ Ouch,” he said first, squinting his eyes.  “Man, am I out of shape.”
    I looked at him seriously, with a twinge of remorse for doing this to a friend.
    “ I think you broke my spine,” Galveston said, and he gave me a small, pitiful smile.
    I sat down beside him and fell on my back, exhausted.
    “I think you’ll survive,” I responded as we both stared at the sky.
    “ Where and when did you learn that?”
    “ I’ve been doing a little training while you were out.  Rule 124, become a self-defense machine.”
    “ Oh, those silly rules,” he laughed.
    The rules were Galveston ‘s lessons in life.  He had used them to get many points across when we had started the business.  Most were crazy and useless, but some, like this one, were extremely useful.  There were hundreds of them.
    “ Man, I’m fat,” Galveston said to me, jiggling the excess at his gut.  He continued to try to catch his breath after our foray.
    “ I think the term now is excessively heavy,” I laughed, looking at him.
    “ I can’t believe I got this bad,” he said.  “You were good there.  I think you bruised my intestines.”
    “ Yeah, I’ve been working hard.”
    “ I’ll say.  Leg sweeps, counters with your elbows—you were a machine.”  Galveston lay quietly, and I could hear him give a couple of sighs.  “A tramp, huh?  That was a little extreme, don’t you think?”
    “ I had to get you riled up somehow.  It