Page 61 of Resolution
Then I show her how to stand so she has a stable platform while she shoots. She laughs it off at first, but once she fires her first round, I’m sure she’ll be thanking me. I point out how to line up her sights, and the importance of breathing.
“Once you have your breathing under control, take a deep breath. When you’re halfway through your exhale, hold your breath, then pull the trigger slowly.” I demonstrate this a few times before firing a shot.
“Okay, got it.”
Finally, I gather the protection for our eyes and ears. I encourage her to use earplugs as well as the ear muffs, then we walk over to lane three and I show her how to set up. She walks me through each step I’ve taught her and when we’ve covered everything, she eagerly asks, “Can I shoot now?”
“Sure.” I can’t help but join in her enthusiasm. “Wait until I clear your lane, then you can fire at will.”
Once I’m in lane two, I see her nod in my direction to see if it’s okay. I give her the ‘all clear’ sign and she fires a round. She jerks slightly from the recoil, but she immediately adjusts her stance and takes aim again. Before I know it, she’s emptied the entire magazine.
I enter her lane and show her how to bring her target back. I notice she actually has a decent shot. Her shots are grouped tight in the bullseye, just above the center. “Impressive, Mads.” I whistle. “If you want to have them more centered, keep your wrist firm as you fire.”
She simply nods, then refills her magazine like a champ. Before I know it, she’s unloaded and getting another target. After a couple more rounds, I’m relieved to see a permanent smile that’s etched into her features. I’d do just about anything to keep it that way.
While Maddie’s target practicing, I shoot off a text to Samantha to let her know we’d be home in a while.
Enzo: I have Maddie. We’ll be home in a couple of hours.
Samantha: Everything okay?
Enzo: It is now.
Samantha: ???
Enzo: I’ll fill you in when we get home.
Samantha: You’d better. LOL
I give Samantha a thumb’s up in my reply and return my attention back to Maddie. By the time she’s finished, she’s unloaded quite a few magazines. She’s rubbing her shoulders. She’ll feel this in the morning. I show her how to clean up our area and put everything where it’s supposed to go.
As we walk out of the gun range, we meet Ira Michaels coming in. He’s met Maddie before, but quirks an eyebrow in the direction we came from. “Hey, man. How’s it going?” I ask, keeping things casual.
“Just here to keep sharp.” Michaels smiles. “What kind of trouble are you getting yourself into?”
“I brought Maddie to learn how to shoot and let off some steam. She seems to be a natural.”
I look to Maddie to show her how proud of her I am, as a blush colors her face. She mumbles, “It was fun.”
“I’m here to let off a bit of steam myself.” He smirks. “Did it do the trick for you?” he asks Maddie.
“It sure did. I just envisioned the bullseye as the center of my anger, and you wouldn’t believe how many times I hit it.” She chuckles.
Okay… Remind me to never get on her bad side.“Wanna grab some pizza on the way home?” I still want to get to the bottom of what was bothering her. Something serious had to make her cry like that.
“Sure.” She smiles like she hasn’t cried a drop today. I’ll count this as a win.
When each of us has a slice of pie in front of us, I choose this opportunity to find out what was wrong with Maddie. “So… What’s the deal with the tears earlier?”
Maddie finishes her bite of food before groaning. “Ugg… Sophia Jones was making fun of me at school.”
What the fuck could she tease Maddie about that had her that upset? “About what?” I grit out, picturing the worse-case scenario I could imagine.
“Well, Soren’s at an away match today, so he wasn’t able to drive me home from school.” She takes another bite of her pizza.
“Okay…” still not seeing the problem with this.
“Right before school got out, Sophia started teasing me about being such a young baby and not being able to drive… Since I’m only fifteen and she’s seventeen, like Soren.”
