Chapter 22
Twenty-Two
“Look, Red,” you say, “if you want to learn to hunt, it’s going to be the hard way. By the time I’m done with you, you’ll be able to put a bullet in the left eye of a fly on the branch of an oak tree two miles away.”
“That sounds fun,” she says.
“It may well be, but it’s also going to take time, and effort, and a whole lot of work on your part.”
“Okay.”
“Red, it’s not going to be easy.”
“Yes, I know that, and I’m agreeing to it anyway,” she says. “That’s why I said ‘Okay.’”
You glance at Granny, rocking in her chair, knitting you a scarf because she decided you need one. She doesn’t look at you.
“Well, it’s frigid today,” you say, “so we can start another—”
“The cold doesn’t bother me,” she says. “And it’s easier to see things when there aren’t any leaves on the trees. I’ll grab my cape and we can go now!”