28. Grant #2
“It’s not flashy, but it pays the bills. We’re going to open a second branch next year.”
“Uh huh.”
“How about you? What’s your business?”
“Nunya,” I say from behind him.
Brick stops and glares over his shoulder. “What’s that mean?”
“Nunya business,” I say. “You all right, Annabelle?”
“Yep. We’re almost there.”
We hustle to catch up to the group while Brick mumbles behind us, “Can’t take a joke. Can’t be friendly. What can you do?”
There’s an open field in front of us where we’ve set up four targets painted with glow paint.
Felix passes out bows and quivers of arrows with LED filaments in the shaft.
He lays a rope of LED lights on top of the snow twenty yards from the target and warns everyone to stand behind the line at all times.
The four of them don’t even pretend to listen to Felix’s instructions. They’re already notching arrows, pulling strings, and bragging on their skill.
Annabelle and I watch for a bit, then stand even farther back as these clowns try to outshine each other. It’s not going well.
“What do you think?” I ask her.
“I’m waiting for my moment,” she says.
“You’ll know when it is.”
We watch a bit longer. “I think Tim can shoot,” she says. “The rest of them are just playing.”
“Can you take him?”
“I can take him.”
“That’s my girl.”
I’m suddenly overheated. Maybe it’s from the fast walk here. Maybe it’s the repressed desire to slug Brick. Or maybe it’s the smile Annabelle gives me when I call her my girl. I have to unzip my jacket and fan the sides until I cool off.
After half an hour, when the guys have tired themselves out and are starting to lose interest, Felix invites Annabelle to join in. As soon as she touches a bow, the four of them fall over themselves trying to teach her how to shoot, even though they just learned a few minutes ago.
“Use this one,” Tim says. “It’s a beginner bow, so you should be able to pull it.”
“Hitting the target is harder than it looks,” Logan adds. “The darkness distorts depth perception.”
“Let me show you how to nock an arrow,” Brick says, putting his hand over hers.
I’m about to step in, but Annabelle backs him off with a glare. She stands behind the line, hesitating for a moment, then lets her arrow fly, missing the target completely.
“Don’t worry about it,” Logan tells her. “These bows are heavy.”
“You need a lot of upper body strength to shoot,” Lincoln says.
“Be sure you’re facing perpendicular to the target,” Tim tells her. “No, not like that. A little more. A little more.”
Annabelle shoots again. Misses again. Felix tells everyone to drop their bows and stay behind the line while he gathers arrows.
“Can I try one more time?” Annabelle asks sweetly when Felix returns.
“What do you think, guys?” Felix asks. “This is your trip, so…”
“Let her shoot,” Brick says. “I’ll help. Here, let me show you how.” He comes up behind Annabelle, presses his chest to her back, and reaches around her, trying to put his hands over hers.
She lets out a little yelp and steps out of his range, but before she can say a word, I’m shouldering him out of the way.
I keep moving forward, forcing Brick back. I stay on him, calmly and deliberately marching him away from the others. When we’re out of earshot, I pause, staring at him with a murder glare. I want to pound him into a pulp, but I can’t. This is my brother’s business. His reputation. His livelihood.
Brick seems to know how badly he’s screwed up, and wisely doesn’t say anything. I gather myself, wanting to be sure that when I speak, my voice is calm, as if I’m just stating facts. “I have three brothers,” I say.
Brick’s eyes dart left and right, as if he’s looking for help.
“We’re standing on land my youngest brother owns,” I continue. “It’s about a hundred acres, and it bumps right up against the Hiawatha National Forest, which is another eight hundred thousand acres. Big number, right?”
“Hey man,” Brick says. “I didn’t mean any—”
“Nobody comes here but us,” I tell him, my voice steady, as if we’re having a casual conversation. “We hunt up here all winter. Rifle season. Bow season. Follow me. Over here.”
I lead us back to the group. Brick is sweating now. Good.
I draw an arrow and roll it briefly between my fingers, letting the fletching brush against my palm.
The arrowhead gleams like a shard of ice.
I set the nock against the string with a snap that seems loud in the stillness.
The bow is a familiar weight in my hands.
Snow crunches under my boots as I shift my stance.
The target waits downrange, a bright circle against the winter woods. My breath slows. The cold fades. The world shrinks to the thin line between the arrow in my hand and the center of the target.
I release. The string snaps forward. The arrow flashes through the air, one brief streak of light racing toward the mark.
Bullseye.
Tim and his friends go nuts, cheering and whooping, while Brick looks like his guts just evacuated into his boots.
I hand the bow to Annabelle. “Your turn.”
Annabelle gives herself an exaggerated dope slap. “I know why my arrows weren’t connecting. I can’t shoot from this distance.”
“You want to get closer?” Tim asks. “Ladies can…” He trails off as we all watch Annabelle back off twenty more yards to the tree line.
“This will do. Watch out, lads.” She shoots three arrows in a row. They all hit the center of the target. Whump, whump, whump.
It’s the hottest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.
Strangely, I’m the only one cheering this time.
I put my arm around Annabelle and we watch the others shoot a few more rounds, but all the swagger has left them. Finally, Felix announces that it’s time to head back. We strap our snowshoes on and let the rest of the group go ahead.
“I guess they don’t find me interesting anymore,” Annabelle says.
“I find you more interesting.”
She bumps her shoulder against mine. “Do you think Felix can handle the rest of this evening on his own?”
“I’ll ask.”
I have a quick conversation with my brother at the campfire, and he assures me that he can chaperone four idiots from here to The Frostline, no problem. I promise to come back tomorrow to help him move the trailer and clear the site.
We’re wearing all our heavy snowmobile gear, but I’m going to rush Annabelle home and see how fast I can get her naked.