“Oh, that hurts. That’s cold,” I laughed.
“Well, am I wrong?”
“No, you aren’t wrong in general, but you are definitely wrong in this.”
“I agree. I’ve seen the error of my ways and I’m doing my best to turn things around. How’s that?”
She looked at me sarcastically. “Yeah, that’s good. Keep working on that.”
I laughed and looked over at her. “I’ll do my best. But yeah, I think we have a real shot at something amazing now that we are getting things out in the clear. I really love you. I know you love me. And I will do everything in my power to make sure you know how much you are loved by me every single day.”
She wiped a tear from her eye and she smiled at me. “I love you, too.”
I leaned in and kissed her. Then I held her close to me tightly.
Chapter 13
Zion
The next day we were out on the range bright and early. My aim was getting much better and I really felt like I was making great strides towards being a great marksman. And I was shocked to see how much I loved shooting a gun. It was so empowering. And it made me feel safe. It made me feel that I could protect myself if I had to.
And I was glad to have it over with. I knew it was all going to come to a head and the showdown was going to happen. I was ready for it. Well, I wasn’t but I knew I would never be and I was just ready to get it over already. I wanted to be done with it and move on with my life.
Even if that meant killing these assholes. They’d killed Tyler, tried to kill me several times, and were most likely going to kill Chelsea. Not to mention that rich guy they killed to get the money in the first place. I couldn’t believe that Tyler was part of that. Was he? Was he really a murderer? I couldn’t be sure. And he was not alive to ask.
There had to be more to that story and one day I hope I had all the answers.
I finished off a round of target practice with the glock this time. I liked the feel of it. This was a bigger, heavier weapon and it delivered a nice punch, but I kept going back to that little .38. I was probably going to stick with that. It would blow a nice hole in someone.
Would I be able to do it, though? That was the question that kept going through my mind. It was one thing to get prepared to do it, to be psyched up to do it, and it was another thing entirely to actually be able to do it when you were in the moment. Looking someone in the eye ready to pull the trigger knowing that you were going to end their life forever, that was a huge load to bear. I wasn’t sure what I would do. If I froze then they would kill me.
I had to do it. In that moment everything would change. I knew it.
I set the nine down and grabbed the .38. I loaded it and fired off several shots. I was hitting very close to center, but because I was aiming at the center of the body as Bill had taught me I was still hitting good shots. If I was defending myself against someone they would now be in super trouble.
“Good job,” Bill said. “Very good indeed. I like how you are firing quickly without hesitating. Your confidence is growing by leaps and bounds. Those fuckers won’t know what hit them. And that is what we like to see. Is it feeling more natural to you?”
I nodded. “Yeah, it is. I didn’t think it would but it’s becoming a big part of me.”
“Good. And this isn’t to say you have to fall in love with guns and shooting and do it forever in your regular life, but when you want that skill, or you need that functional mastery of that weapon then it will be there for you. It doesn’t go away.”
“Like riding a bike?” I teased.
“Hell knows. I haven’t ridden a bicycle in about twenty-five years and I probably couldn’t do it now.”
I laughed hard right then. “You are ridiculous, you know that?”
He nodded and then he smirked. Then he pulled out his gun and fired seven shots at the target hitting it bullseye with every single shot. I watched in amazement. The man knew his guns. It was fun to watch him. I also loved watching him fight that bastard. Bill held his own against a bigger guy and actually was cleaning the guy’s clock until that last move. Just thinking about it got me all hot and bothered. I wished it didn’t but I couldn’t deny what I felt.