Chapter 35

• The initial assault—a few seconds and I was lying on my back. The shock had taken the wind out of my sails, and the earth seemed to have lifted up to receive me. He was swift, much swifter than I had supposed he would be. His actions were smooth, quick, and precise as though he had done this a hundred times. But he picked me up, with no hesitation, and asked me whether I was okay. His tone was quiet and tinged with no mockery. But I sent him back, and I was not going to have that end it.
• We had been at it now for three hours without intermission, and not once had I been able to repulse one of his attacks. No defense at all was successful. I was sweating, wet all over, my hair clinging to the sides of my face. I was gasping like a fish. He, however, had hardly worked up a perspiration. His chest went up and down with practiced ease, and I felt as though I had run a marathon in the midst of a desert.
• I was aching everywhere. My muscles were sore, stiff and crying out in agony with each step I took, yet I was still going. I could not allow myself to quit. Not yet.