Broken Nightmare

Chapter 16

  "Go ahead and grab a gun out of the shed over there," Nathan jabbed his chin towards a large shed, then he finished cleaning his own firearm on the back porch. I watched as his arms moved up and down the barrel, caressing it with his cloth in a hypnotizing manner.

The rest of the school day was pretty much uneventful. I avoided Ryan as much as I could and still get to class. I couldn't find my sixth period Spanish, though, so I walked in ten minutes after the bell.

Right as I got home, I was ordered to the backyard for my next training. I wasn't expecting guns, but I guess it's just as nonnegotiable as Liam's lessons were back at home.

I walked over to a large shed and pulled open the small double doors. The display of different size guns revealed itself in an overwhelming amount. I turned to the next door on the right side of the shed and swung it open to see more guns. Then the next door. Then the next. All the doors were covered in different guns, each different styles, sizes, and shapes.

Nathan came to my side and placed the gun he was previously cleaning back onto what I assumed was its usual hanger. Each gun was held up by a series of small hooks, securing them in place. "Just pick one, and we can start training with it."

I rounded another corner, marveling in the amount of guns. They must have every kind of model made. "How am I supposed to pick one?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper, either from the overwhelming choice or the fact that Nathan was so close.

"It's not that hard, just pick a gun," he said, sounding more irritated as I rounded another corner to look at more guns that looked nearly the same.

Nathan sighed in frustration and came to my side. "This side of the shed has Assault Rifles. They are mostly used for war and stuff like that. The military uses these for combat, some long distance, some short. They are pretty hard to get to use, but when you use it correctly, they are deadly and dangerous." I looked at the guns and imagined the amount of people that died from these weapons. Vivid images of war and combat raced through my mind and I tried to shake them free.

He moved over to the left side of the shed and I followed closely behind him, as if the guns would pop out and shoot me. "These are Pistols and required for personal use, really. Home protection, gang members, that kind of thing. Really easy to use, but they don't really work long distance as well."

I nodded and he moved onto the next side. "These are the Shotguns. Usually used for multiple targets, like flocks of birds. Not terribly hard to use, because of the wide range it hits when it goes off."

I looked at the guns and admired the body and shape of the weapon. The light wood on some of them against the dark metal made them seem less . . . evil for some reason.

I didn't realize Nathan had moved on until I heard him speaking again. Rushing to his side, I listened as he described the last set of guns. "These are rifles. Mainly used for killing woodland creatures like rabbit and deer. They are like the assault rifles, hard to learn with, but they might not pay off as much in the long run unless you are really into killing squirrels."

His comment jerked me from the images of killing in my mind. "Am I going to be killing anything?" My voice trembled mildly as I asked the one question I didn't know I really wanted the answer to.

"It's just my job to educate you. It's up to you to determine how you use it. Just don't go on a killing spree shooting whoever you want. That will get all of us in trouble."

As if I'm going to do that, I thought, but just nodded instead.

"Alright, so just go to one section that interested you and pick a gun you think you will like."