“Okay,” I answered her, observing her reaction. There was a barely noticeable wince, but otherwise, she was unmoving. I turned in the direction of one of the guards, switching to Russian. “Bring me a handgun. Glock 43.”
The guard went into secured storage where we kept our weapons then came over handing me the gun.
He turned to Anastasia. “Thank you for fixing up my brother. And checking up on him throughout the night.”
Her face changed into a soft smile. Saving people was her speciality, not handling a gun. But she’d still learn how to shoot, because one day it could save her life.
“You’re welcome,” she told the guard smiling. “I can see the resemblance.”
“Yes, I always tell him I’m the better looking one.”
A soft chuckle left her lips. “I’ll let you two figure that out.”
He smiled widely at her then went back to his position.
Taking her hand, I gently pulled her along. “Let’s go.” Hand in hand, we walked into the forest.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Anastasia
Walking through the forest with Dimitry, hand in hand, all my energy was focused on the warmth of his hand instead of the memories of my past.
I didn’t know what possessed me to ask him to teach me how to shoot. Worries over Scarlett and Olivia swarmed my mind, making me feel helpless. They were like sisters to me, always there for me, and now that they needed me the most, I wasn’t there for them.
“If I’m going to place a gun in your hand,” Dimitry’s voice interrupted my worrying, “you will need to make sure you are focused. No thinking, no emotions, no distractions. You stay focused on the target.”
“Yes.” I could do it, right? As long as I didn’t think how with the pull of the trigger I could end someone’s life. But if it came to our lives or their lives, I was left with no choice.
Right?
“Are you sure?” The question was simple, but it had me raising my eyes to his tall frame, meeting his gaze that burned with such intense passion when he was kissing me this morning.
His strong, beautiful features were such a dark, stark contrast to my personality and what I usually searched for in people. But maybe that was my problem all along. I wanted a simple, lighthearted, kind man to share my time with. Someone who never experienced darkness and fear brought on by evil in this world.
Dimitry’s darkness was pulling me in, and in the weirdest way, he was also bringing all my nightmares and fears back into the light. Unintentionally, he was forcing me to deal with them, make me accountable for my own safety. And he made me feel the safest I’ve ever felt.
“Yes.” I wanted my voice to sound strong but it came out in a whisper.
We both stopped and he turned me to face the target out in the distance. “See that,” he pointed to the circle target. “Aim to hit the paper. We’ll worry about hitting the target when we succeed.”
He got behind me, spreading my legs slightly into a stance. “Have a good standing position, so when it kicks back, you don’t lose balance.” He took both my hands into his and raised our arms, pointing forward and our bodies flushed. “Take a deep breath.”
I did as he asked, and then exhaled slowly, all my focus on the task at hand. The target was twenty feet away. I took archery in high school, and targets were further away so I had no problem with that. The part that worried me was pulling the trigger, the deathly, irrevocable act of firing a gun.
The gun felt cold and heavy in my hand, mirroring exactly what it symbolized to me. Cruelty, death, and heavy loss.
I let go of my past, my present, and my future. What mattered was staying alive, getting Olivia out of this fucked up shit of a situation, and saving Scarlett. Without another thought, I pulled the trigger, and the deafening shot flew through the air hitting the target dead in the center. The silence that followed was just as deafening as the explosions in Sergei’s home.
Then I fired another shot, and another. The kick that followed each shot of the gun sent jolts through my arms. Each pull of the trigger pushed my back slightly but Dimitry kept my body firm, ensuring I didn’t lose my balance.
All three bullets hit the target dead in the center. I didn’t like firing a gun. But I would do it if it meant saving people I love. I lowered my arms, gun still in my hand. Slowly, in a daze I took a step forward and turned around to face Dimitry. The expression on his face was unreadable. We stood in the woods, all the noises of the forest dulled out, just the two of us and the heartbeat that raced in my ears.
“Are you sure you’ve never fired a gun before?” he asked.
“Archery was my sport in high school.”
“Did archery class have a section on handling guns?” His eyes regarded me with interest, something else lingering there too.