Protective
The man waved his knife threateningly, eliciting a gasp from Audrey. "I said give 'em," he snapped. "Wallets, watches, the lady's necklace. Right now!"
Fred could feel Audrey trembling as she pressed close to him; he shifted his weight slightly, trying to put himself between her and their attacker as much as he could without actually moving. The last thing he wanted to do was spur the guy into coming at them.
"Look," he said as calmly as he could, slowly spreading his hands out in a conciliatory gesture. "We don't want any trouble, so -- "
"You've got trouble unless you do what I say!" the man snarled, waving the knife again.
Audrey pulled on his sleeve with trembling hands. "Please, sweetie, let's just do it and then get out of here, okay? And we can just go home."
"I -- " Fred began. Then there was a loud clattering at the other end of the alley, startling them all, and the man with the knife reacted with a sudden lunge.
Not even thinking now, Fred grabbed the assailant's wrist as he came forward, bending it back and causing the knife to drop. In the next second he had the man pinned to the ground.
"Call the cops," he said over his shoulder to Audrey, then turned back to their would-be mugger. "Figured we'd be easy marks, huh?" he asked through gritted teeth, grinding one knee savagely into the man's back. "Just a big fat guy and his woman, no problem, right?" He uttered a humorless little chuckle. "Well, this big fat guy happens to be a bouncer with a black belt in judo. Bet you wish you'd known that five minutes ago, huh?"
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