The Last of the Twenty: The Setting of the Board

Chapter 13

The house was quiet when he walked in. Mark must have been called in for another double. Throwing his backpack onto the floor he walked over to the kitchen table and sure enough there was a note for him. He picked up the note and quickly read it.

Went in to work a double. Suppers ready whenever you make it. New pain killers if you’re still being a sissy about your foot. Try not to do anything else stupid and I’ll see ya tomorrow.

                                                                                                                                                -Me

Rolling his eyes Alex dropped the note back onto the table.  It was only 4:30 but this time of year it got too dark to shoot around seven, so dinner could wait. Walking quickly he opened the gun case in the living room and grabbed his .22 and a brick of ammo. Packing it all quickly away in his case he stopped briefly to grab a bottle of water and head out the door.

….

Alex was relieved to find the sand pit empty for once; in fact he was able to drive all the way in. Carefully driving around piles of broken glass and old targets, he made his way to the back and parked about 50 or so yards from the end.  Grabbing a few soda cans and beer bottles off the ground as he walked he lined them up on the steep bank and walked back to his car. He loaded up his gun quickly and stuck some ear plugs in. Working the lever almost as fast as he shot he destroyed all his targets in just a few seconds. Alex looked at the broken glass that used to be bottles and the shredded tin cans 50 yards away and sighed. He really needed to invest in some medal targets.

“Nice shooting” someone said from behind him.

Alex turned to see Nadia making her way across the pit, a rifle slung over her shoulder as well. “Thought I’d find you here,” she said, “mind if I join you?”

He looked at her and grinned, then gestured to his ruined cans.  “If you setup some more targets you can” he said.

Nadia rolled her eyes, handing Alex her rifle before heading over to setup for another round, “fine,” she said, “but I get the first shots before you go and show me up.”

While Nadia worked on setting up new targets Alex loaded their rifles. Nadia’s was the same lever style gun he owned. He had bought it for her for Christmas a couple years before so she would stop stealing his every time she went shooting with him and Mark. Alex had just put the last few rounds into Nadia’s rifle when she leaned against his car beside him. Alex handed the rifle over and stood up to shoot, but Nadia held her hand out to stop him and took a few steps forward herself.

“No, I told you I go first; I want something left standing down there before you knock everything down.” She winked and sent a few rounds downrange, she was a pretty good shot, not nearly as good as Alex, but she could hold her own against any of the usual guys that shot in the pit.

“I’m sorry about Ethan” she said between shots, “I called him after school to talk and he told me what happened, said to tell you sorry…” The expression on Alex’s face must have told Nadia exactly what he thought about Ethan’s apology because she shot him a look of genuine annoyance.

“And don’t look at me like that, I know he was just buttering up to me but at least he said it.” Nadia exclaimed.

Alex watched her shoot off a few more shots before walking up beside her. “I wasn’t even going to say anything about it. Dan came and gave them hell for me anyways. Now move over so I can show you how it’s done.” Alex gave Nadia a playful shove trying to lighten the mood.