“TMI. You’re right. I’ll just get the popcorn.” Tiffany’s face turned beet red before she leaped off the couch and ran to the pantry, returning with two bags of popcorn, promptly stuffing her face to avoid any further discussion.
He has six?
Holy fuck.
Threebottlesofwineand two family-sized bags of popcorn later, Tiffany and I had crashed on the living room sofa, the TV shutting off from lack of use, and the fireplace was nothing but crackling embers.
“Hey, Wildcat.” Rhylan’s whisper broke through my dreams, and I opened my eyes to find him hovering over me, his palm pressed to my shoulder, and another figure seated across the room.
It took a moment for my eyes to adjust, vision still slightly blurry from sleep, but after a few more blinks, I recognized the stranger to be Trent.What time was it?
Peering over Rhylan’s shoulder, it was still dark, dawn just barely breaking over the horizon.
“Wh-what’s going on?” Tilting my head, I found my sister still sound asleep, a smile on her face as she snuggled under the fluffy blanket I’d given her.
“We got your test.” The hairs on the back of my neck perked upright. “Trent and I figured it’d be beneficial to take you two out for target practice before your assignment begins.”
“We have roughly twelve hours to make sure you're ready, and while every target is different, the one thing that’ll always work in your favor is a swift bullet to the head,” Trent noted, standing from his seat and moving to sit beside my sister. “It’s not about flair or making a statement. Your only responsibility is ending their miserable life.”
“Mmm… Trent, is that you?” Tiffany groaned, stretching her arms up and rolling her wrists before she turned toward his voice, her eyes still shut.
“I’m here, sweet pea. You ready to earn your buckle?”
In any other context, the idea of murdering someone to earn the title of a buckle-branded would seem utterly ridiculous and stupid. But here, it was a romantic gesture, and a rite of passage, and I was swooning over the way Trent expressed his affection toward her.
They may not have been in love yet, but I could clearly see there was something ready to spark between them, slowly but surely.
“We’ll get breakfast started while you finish waking. Can’t shoot a gun on an empty stomach.” Rhylan bent down, pressing a kiss to my forehead before moving from the living room to the kitchen. Suddenly, the thought of food turned my stomach upside down.
Holy shit. Today was the day.
Chapter 32
Rhylan
Wedidn’twanttowake the girls this early on the day of their test, but we needed to get them out to the range. I assumed that neither of them had ever handled a gun before, and for some, it can be a little scary and overwhelming at first.
Shortly after we’d finished breakfast, Trent and I loaded everything we’d need into the back of my truck, including a cooler packed with sandwiches and snacks to see us through ‘til dinner. Unless absolutely necessary, we didn’t plan on returning to the house until Dakota and Tiffany were certain they were well prepared.
“Alright, now stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Slightly lean forward at the hips. That’s it. Soft knees, don’t go locking ‘em up or hyperextending them.”
“Maybe you should be a dance instructor with the way you cue.Relax your shoulders, square up those hips, keep the spine in a neutralposition to the target.” Dakota playfully mocked, leaning into me as I stood close behind to assist in lining up her next shot.
“Keep that up, and I’ll show you a few new cues when we get home.” I loved bantering back and forth with her; now that it wasn’t being used as a means to push me away, but to reel me in with affection.
“Ew, get a room. Jesus.” Tiffany took the gun from Dakota and lined herself up, pulling the trigger like it was second nature. The bottle on the fence shattered into a million pieces when the bullet struck its mark, and we all stared at her in surprise.
“Holy shit,” Dakota uttered. I even found myself speechless.
“Holy shit’s right. Where’d you learn to shoot like that?”
Tiffany shrugged before placing the handle in her sister’s palm while stepping aside. Dakota just continued to stare at her, completely taken aback by what she’d just witnessed, a hand raised to cover her gasp.
“He didn’t…”
“No. Tae taught me in her free time, and I practiced on my own the nights I couldn’t sleep—after a hard shift at work.” Tiffany looked exhausted, more than usual, exhaling a lengthy sigh that seemed as though it had gradually lifted a pressing weight off her shoulders. “I knew he’d come back, and I wanted to be the one to take back our freedom... The gun in his possession that night wasn’t his… It was mine.”
“I-I don’t understand. I thought he—” Dakota took a step toward Tiffany, and she instinctively recoiled, ashamed of what she’d been hiding.
