Seastead, Tahiti
weapon.” Janice laid the gun down on the counter. “Let’s see what you’ve learned.”
Bella picked it up and pushed the mag release and caught it as it dropped. Then she thumbed down the safety and racked the slide back and locked it into position. The round that had been chambered dropped out. “I didn’t expect that,” she said.
“That’s how you will carry this gun, cocked and locked. The belly band holster I had you put on in the ladies’ room has a very secure retaining mechanism and you won’t be disengaging the thumb safety until you’re on target. This gun, in that condition, will allow you to shoot with one hand, if you’re preoccupied with the other. Now, put it back together like I showed you. It’s mostly just like the Ruger, but this time I want you to tell me exactly what you’re doing and why.”
“I’m putting the magazine back into the pistol and releasing the slide which chambers a round. Now, I’m engaging the safety because it would be ready to fire without the safety on. And now, I’m pushing the release to drop the mag and fill it again.” She picked up the round that had ejected from the chamber and forced it into the magazine. “Wow, these 9mm rounds are so much bigger than the twenty-two. Next, I’m returning the mag into the mag well”—she shot a smile back at Janice—“with purpose. Finally, I’m inspecting that the weapon is cocked and locked. And done.”
“Very good. Here’s something new. You need to holster your weapon. Lift your shirt and fully expose the holster at four o’clock and slide it in. You’ll want to twist enough to see what you are doing for now, but after a thousand practice draws, you won’t need to look.” Janice checked to make sure the fit was secure. “How does that feel?”
“Not bad at all. It actually feels nice here in the air conditioning. But I bet it could get uncomfortable in the heat,” Bella said.
“Carrying concealed is always a compromise. Do your own research. You might have to play with different holster options, but never leave your gun at home because of style or comfort. Commit to always carry and then you’ll figure out how to make it work.
“Here’s two hundred rounds and two extra magazines. And my gift to your hands—a speed loader. Your job is to repeat the reloading process and re-holster between each mag and practice your draw. Smooth as it comes out and even smoother as you re-holster. Oh, and I have the laser covered with tape for now. As much as I love aiming with a laser, there are times, like broad daylight, that you’ll need to rely on iron sights.”
The targets were not like the traditional circular ones with the bullseye in the middle that they had used before lunch. These were life size silhouettes of a head and torso. There were intense emotions and a bit of nausea as she came to understand she was training to kill a person.
“Two into the torso, one into the head.” Janice said, as if overriding Bella’s thoughts.
Bang! The gun fired with a dreadful noise and strong recoil. Nothing from the morning prepared her for the effect of pulling the trigger on this weapon. Not only was it a much larger caliber, but the gun had no noise suppressor. It was clear to Bella that the receiving end of her bullets would be destroyed. The round struck within a quarter inch of the center-of-mass hash mark. She smiled, turned, and looked at Janice.
After receiving a slight nod, she returned to the practice that might, one day, save her life. The next shot was not as accurate yet still struck into the torso, but her first attempt at a headshot missed entirely. The seriousness of what she was doing took the fun out of target shooting, but once she came to grips with this new power and its responsibility, she improved her accuracy and increased her speed and efficiency. During the entire two hundred rounds, Janice stayed silent with her arms crossed and a satisfied look on her face. When all the ammo was fired, Bella put the gun down and said, “Done.”
Janice placed a hand on Bella’s shoulder and handed her a twenty-round box of defensive hollow-point cartridges. “Not quite. First, we clean it. Then, you get it ready to defend yourself.”
“My God, Bell, your hair looks adorable. Is that really shaved up the side?” Zoe said.
“It has been a big day.”
“I’m not really surprised at the whole warrior training. You probably have the shield-maiden gene from your mom and God knows you’ve always had the Amazon height. But the gun thing? You know they’re illegal in, like, ninety percent of the world. I can’t see how getting arrested and jailed is making you any safer.”
“I’m not coming back. My part of the world now is the open ocean. There are no police out here and hired security has a response time that guarantees stiff bodies.”
“You sure are morbid. Who’s the cute canine?”
“Isn’t he something?” she said. Moving the camera to include her new companion.
“Is he missing a front leg?” Zoe asked.
“Yes. He gets along fine without it. Anyway, so I also had a fifty-minute session with Dr. Shapiro. He’s a psychologist who specializes in PTSD. It was quite remarkable. He talked to me about the kidnapping and then gave me two little pills of a psilocybin-based drug to help ease me into therapy.”
“Wait, you took drugs?” Zoe exclaimed.
“He assured me that it was entirely natural and mushroom-based.”
“Okay… did it make you high?”
“No, actually it helped clear my head. I put on a pair of glasses and he had me do some eye exercises and by the time the session was over I felt so much better.”
“That’s good, but what’s that got to do with the dog?”
“His name is Kumar. And he only speaks Konkani,” Bella said.
“And?”
“Well, he curled up at my feet during the session and Dr. Shapiro said that was the first time he had seen Kumar relax. He took to me. What can I say? The doctor explained that nurturing others is important in healing from trauma.” She laughed. “Normally patients start with a plant or goldfish and work their way up to larger animals, but since I have a lifetime of experience growing plants and fish, he thought it would be helpful for me to adopt Kumar and take him home.”
“This guy sounds like he wanted to unload a stray dog. How much is that going to cost?”
“It’s free. Some charity does it. They love people who need help and dogs who need a home. It’s a win-win,” Bella laughed as Kumar nuzzled her.
“Well, he seems sweet on you. Maybe I should join you and your magic mushroom-eating, dog-loving, warrior cult. It seems like it’s working for you.”
“Yes, we’d love to have you, but you know our cult is abstinent?”
“Count me out,” Zoe said. “By the way, our new place is two blocks closer to the waterfront promenade. When the apartment manager reviewed the security footage from the night of the break-in, he decided he owed us big time for their failure to protect us. He hired movers and gave us a nicer place for the same rent. It’s even furnished. Oh, and I took the room with the queen. I figure you always sleep alone, anyway.”
“Zoe, I’m not coming back.”
“I know you said that, but I think it’s too early to decide. Take your time and think it through.”
“Oh, yeah, that is one of your strong suits, too.”
“Maybe I’m growing up,” Zoe said.
“Time will tell. Anyway, please get a new roommate. You cannot afford that on your own and I’m not on the lease, so no more funds are coming your way.”
“I got the message. I really miss you.”
“When I get settled at my dad’s, you can come for a visit. It will be fun.”
“Let’s see… no clubs, no men, endless saltwater. Hmm… other than the fact that we have our periods at the same time, I can’t figure why we’re friends.”
“You’ve got a point. Although recently I was reminded I don’t have good judgment when it comes to relationships. So, it might be me,” Bella said.
“Ouch. Call me from your drone tomorrow. I want to see you channeling Amelia Earhart, flying over the Pacific looking for a place to land.”
“I’m pretty excited about it.”
“You would be. Love ya! Bye.”
Bella ended the call and sat down on her bed. Her hands pushed up into the bristle of hair at the base of her head. She tried to grab clumps of hair as she worked her way up her scalp. It was only when she got to the very top that there was enough hair to hold in her hand, but even that was still too short to pull. She exhaled and fell backward, forgetting about the holstered pistol. It jabbed into her back until she rolled to the side. A tear fell across her cheek, and she said, “This too shall pass.”