James Vernon, 75, is a chess club coach and retired IT professional. Fortunately for the children and parents with him in a Morton, Il library last week, Vernon is also an Army veteran with experience in knife-fighting.

While Vernon was coaching members of the chess club, aged from 7 to 13, troubled local Dustin Brown burst into the room with two hunting knives. “I’m going to kill some people!” he screamed.

Children dived under desks to find cover from the knife-wielding man. Meanwhile, Vernon put himself direction between the would-be murderer and his students and used his military training to disarm Brown.

Blood was spilled, but only Vernon’s. The altercation with Brown resulted in a cut tendon and two punctured arteries in Vernon’s left hand. “I should have hit his wrist,” Vernon said. “That’s how you’re trained, but it’s been half a century.”

While Vernon told the press that he “won the battle but lost the war” due to his hand injury, the fact remains that he saved more than a dozen children from a dangerous man.

“Sometimes old guys aren’t as easy of a target as you may think,” Vernon said.

At the time of the attack, Brown was out on bail after being arrested on child pornography charges. After he was arrested for charging the library, he told the police, “I failed my mission to kill everyone.”