There was major confusion among the delinquents over what had just happened.
They had always operated as a unit, one voice, one leader, and that leader was Ko. They followed his orders without question. So seeing one of their own suddenly break ranks? It threw everything off.
That brief moment of hesitation was all Max needed.
He drove his knee straight into the face of the student holding him, then grabbed the other by the collar and hurled him in Joe's direction.
The flying student tried to sidestep, not out of fear of being hit, but because he assumed Joe was still an ally, on the same side, like always.
He was wrong.
Joe brought his knee up hard, smashing it into the boy's face, then tossed him like a ragdoll against the classroom wall.
With the immediate threat cleared, Max stepped forward, catching his breath as he wiped a bit of spit from the corner of his mouth.
"Nice one," Max said. "Looks like you're earning your keep. I'll throw in a bonus when this is all over."
