Chapter 7 #2
“You insert the ammo one at a time, with the rounded side forward until the magazine is full. You-insert it by pushing upward into the handgrip until you hear a clicking noise indicating the magazine has locked in place.”
He hands me the gun.
“Now, you try it.”
I repeat the steps he showed me.
Then he steps behind me, lifting my arms toward the target and whispering the rest of the instructions in my ear. I can’t help but be affected by his body pressing against my back.
“Disengage the safety,” he murmurs, showing me.
“Has Keno ever brought you coffee in bed?” Shack asks. “Women love when you do that.”
Bam. Bam. Bam. He fires at his target in rapid succession.
“Except they always spoil it,” he adds.
Bam. Bam. Bam.
“Asking questions like who are you and what are you doing in my house.”
Bam. Bam. Bam.
I try to hold back the laughter, my body shaking. “He’s a good shot, isn’t he?”
Keno snorts. “His greatest talent is avoiding work.”
“Why you gotta be the fly in my taco?”
“Ignore him. He ain’t right upstairs,” Keno insists.
Shack lowers his gun, taking offense at that last comment and objecting. “My mind is like a whip.”
“Yeah, one crack and it unravels.”
Shack turns, leans toward me and whispers in a low, conspiratorial voice. “He loves my ass. Don’t let him fool you.”
“For the love of God, shut up,” Keno barks.
I’m giggling so hard, I can barely keep the gun on the target.
Keno lifts my arms. “There’s gonna be plenty of distractions when you’re shooting; you can’t let them get to you. Pay attention.”
I attempt to pull it together.
“Chamber a round.”
“Do what?”
“Pull back on the slide on top of the barrel to load a bullet into the firing chamber.”
“Okay.”
“Now aim down the sight at the target.”
I focus on a bottle.
“Place your index finger on the trigger when you’re sure you have a target and are ready to shoot.”
“Okay.”
“You pull the trigger one time for each shot you fire.”
“Got it.”
“Breathe in, exhale and squeeze the trigger, darlin’.”
I do and am not ready for either the deafening sound or the recoil the gun makes when it discharges. Luckily, Keno is there, still at my back, steadying me. When I see the bottle is still there, my shoulders slump.
“I missed.”
“It’s the first time you’ve ever held a gun. Did you think you’d be Annie Oakley with the first shot?”
“I hate to fail. In anything.”
“I’m aware. You were high and to the right. Try again.”
I aim at the target, breathe in, exhale, and fire.
All the bottles stand, mocking me.
“Again,” Keno breathes in my ear.
I repeat the steps.
And miss.
“Again.”
I miss again.
“Focus, babe. We’ll be here all day if we have to, ‘til you hit the damn thing.”
Keno knows exactly what buttons to push to get to me, and I’m determined to make the shot.
I steady my arm, breathe in, exhale, and squeeze the trigger.
This time the bottle explodes.
Keno grabs the gun from my hand as I swing around.
“I hit it!”
“Yep, Six. You sure did.”
I jump up and down.
“Now shoot the shit out of the rest.” He hands the gun back to me.
I take aim and fire.
Bam. Bam. Bam. Bam. Bam.
When the gun is empty, Keno takes it from me.
“Well, thank you for this. Now what?”
He nods toward the targets. “Now you practice until it comes natural and easy. Never know when trouble might come callin’, Maggie. And you need to be able to defend yourself. Just never point this at someone unless you’re prepared to kill them.”
“Kill them?”
“I hope it doesn’t come down to that. But these guys who robbed you were armed. That makes them dangerous. If it’s your life or theirs, you do not hesitate. Understand?”
I nod, letting his words sink in.
It means a lot that he cares enough to take his time with me like this, preparing me like he was.
“Why are you doing this?” I blurt.
He studies me for a long moment and then reloads his gun.
“I’ve got your back. I’m not going to let anything happen to you. So, wise up and quit giving me grief. Deal?”
I stare at the horizon, contemplating his words. Back in Chalmette, Keno had always had my back, until he left town.
“Trust is hard-won and easily lost, Keno.”
He studies me, then looks at the gun he’s reloading. “I let you down. I get that. I never meant to hurt you, Maggie.”
“But you did.”
He hands me the gun, his chin lifting toward the targets. “Keep practicing.”
The power of our connection is strong, and it’s sucking me under. I’d once been so infatuated with this man. I can try to deny it all I want, but I can’t dismiss the powerful feelings I still have for him.
With just a touch, the embers flared right back up to a burning fire.
But he’s got a complicated relationship with Derek and Remy, and I’ve kept the truth from him.
I’m afraid to tell him they’re here in town because I don’t know what will happen when I do.
Things ended so badly between them, and I know there were things I didn’t understand at the time. Still don’t.
And the fact remains, Keno did leave town, and he left me.
Nothing’s changed.
He could leave town again just as easily.
I need to guard my heart, because if I let him in and he leaves, it will destroy me.
And besides, I’m not even sure if Keno feels the same. Do I affect him the way he affects me? Or am I imagining the tension between us every time he gets close?