"Ichi, ni, san, shi, go!"
Steve smiled uncomfortably as they entered the mirror-walled dojo in McPhearson's basement, the scent of liniment mixed with leather and sweat filling the thick air. Two small windows were partially cracked, allowing for some oxygen to reach the room and keep it from overheating.
Flanked by his partner, the young Inspector approached the group of half a dozen women, lined up one next to the other, practicing a combination of kicks and punches as they made their way across the well-used floor mats.
Following the Japanese count, they performed their maneuvers, then fell still as the teacher, whom Steve presumed to be McPhearson, went up and down the row to make minor corrections to the ladies' stances or outstretched fists.
The ends of his worn-out black belt almost reached his knees, the pant legs of his starchy white uniform touching with each step.
When he noticed the trio of detectives enter the dojo, McPhearson bowed off to his students and approached them, his forehead wrinkled in confusion.
"Can I…can I help you?"
"I am sure you can. Are you Horus McPhearson?"
Mike's voice was kept intentionally neutral, a faint smile playing on his lips as he reached for the badge in his dress coat pocket.
In the meantime, Steve kept a close eye on the mid-forties' martial arts instructor, noticing his tense body language, the gray highlights in his short black hair, the two-day stubble that had turned silver a long time ago.
Aside from a small belly, the 5'7" man seemed to be in pristine shape, his hands strong as vices, his wrists as thick and unforgiving as metal pipes, the muscles on his neck and shoulders bigger than he'd ever seen on any human being.
Horus McPhearson definitely wasn't the kind of guy Steve hoped to encounter in a dark alley at night.
"I…I am. Is there something wrong?", the soft cadence of his voice didn't go along with the intimidating physique at all, and Steve glanced over at his partner, relieved to see that the Lieutenant felt the same way.
"That's what we're here to find out.", Mike answered matter-of-factly and flashed his badge at the instructor, "I am Lieutenant Michael Stone with San Francisco PD, this is my partner, Inspector Stephen Keller, as well as my associate Staff Sergeant Simone Kammers. We'd like to ask you a few questions about a lady that was part of your…your martial arts group."
Obviously startled, the man glanced back and forth between the trio, then shrugged insecurely.
"Lieutenant. I am in the middle of teaching a class. Couldn't I…couldn't I stop by your office later to discuss…matters?"
"I'm afraid not.", Mike return, never losing that uplifting tone in his voice, a slight glimmer in his intelligent eyes as he cleared his throat, "Unfortunately the matter is rather…pressing. But we'd be happy to sit down and wait here until you finish your class. You see, I've always been wanting to learn more about martial arts."
# # #
Forty-five minutes into the show, Steve had memorized the Japanese numbers well enough that he subconsciously counted along, as McPhearson motivated the ladies back and forth across the mats, his powerful yells loud enough that they echoed through the walls of his basement twice around.
As the room began to warm up from body heat, humidity and sweat, the young Inspector had opted to remove his dress coat, Kammers following suit with a faint sideways smile pointed in his direction.
Mike had remained unusually still, his keen eyes following every movement, every faintest facial expression, every unbalanced kick or punch. It seemed that the basement dojo McPhearson was running had pulled the Lieutenant into a very different state of mind, one that was far away from this town, possibly even halfway across the world.
"Alright, now that we are warmed up, let's change the pace a little bit.", the instructor ordered, causing the group of seven ladies to line up along a red stripe painted on one of the mats.
"Tonight, I want to revisit some of the most common types of attacks on women."
As McPhearson began his speech, Steve glanced over, meeting Mike's eyes and sharing the same thoughts.
"And since we have the pleasure of having of three police officers present with us today, one being a woman, perhaps we should take this opportunity and ask for their input."
Surprised to be put on the spot, Steve straightened his back, Kammers mimicking the reaction, while Mike remained stoically in place.
"Lieutenant Stone, would you mind telling us about some of the attacks on women you have witnessed during your career? Something you wish women would be able to defend themselves against?"
Steve couldn't hide a grin when Mike shifted a bit and ran a hand across his freshly shaven chin, clearly uncomfortable with a room full of people staring at him expectantly, the proverbial tables turning from his position as a silent observer to becoming the center of attention.
"Well…I suppose gunshot wounds and knife wounds are quite common…", he began, then hesitated when considering his audience, "To my defense, we do work homicide and do not come across physical assaults as often as…say, the Vice Squad or patrols. But beatings are a frequent occurrence, strikes to the face, the chest, the back, strangulation, rape…"
The somber tone in his voice seemed to trigger more than just McPhearson's students when Steve overheard Kammers inhaling sharply, then leaning against the cold brick wall, her hands to either side on the wooden bench.
The room fell silent for a fleeting moment, until the Instructor cleared his throat and glanced over at him.
"How about you, Inspector Keller? Are there any distinct common denominators when it comes to attacks on women? And have you seen an uptick on attacks on women since the recent women's liberation movement? Surely, I can see that several changes have been implemented in your department to that regard already. Have you seen more attacks on female police officers compared to male officers?"
The question that had started out innocently and quickly changed direction toward heated political territory threw him off guard for a moment and Steve clasped his hands in his lap, trying to buy some time.
"I can't speak for an uptick on attacks on female police officers, as recruiting women as part of the force is nothing new and has been implemented for quite some time. It's just that there have been some recent changes in the departmental structure."
His explanation, as politically correct as it seemed, earned him a warning sideways glance from Mike, and a quiet grunt from Kammers, so Steve decided to move on to the next topic of discussion.
"And as my partner explained, we see a wide array of sexual assaults in general, as well a rising number of domestic abuse cases. Women getting shoved, punched, kicked…thrown down a flight of stairs in the worst case. Many of these encounters end up fatal or leading to livelong effects on their health."
Clearly intrigued by his clumsy explanation, McPhearson nodded betrothed, then crossed his arms over his broad chest.
"What do you think is the driving force for assaults on women, Inspector? Sexual advances? Dominance?"
As the atmosphere in the room grew tenser by the second, Steve shrugged insecurely, somewhat disappointed at the lack of support from the other end of the bench.
"Well, I guess, from a male perspective, I'd have to say that many of these attacks might be provoked by a sexual motive. And…psychologically speaking, dominance is a strong motivation in itself. A male who is used to being…perhaps in a leadership role, a role of control, would find a lot of gratification in overpowering and dominating a woman. It certainly helps that they usually are smaller and weaker in statue compared to men."
Steve's innocent, off-the-cuff comment resulted in angry glares directed his way from McPhearson's group of Amazons, and he nervously kneaded the fabric of his dress pants, trying to think of a way to retract the misleading nature of his comment, but knowing it was far too late and the consequences could potentially be dire.