Retraining

“Turn and face that old maple tree.”
“The one with the holes in it?”
“Yeah, that’s our target tree. Just hold on,” she walked over to

the tree and pulled out a piece of chalk from her pocket. She drew three circles within each other. “OK, that’s your target,” she walked back over to him. “First, I want you try to shoot with your right hand.”

She placed the .38 in his hand. “This is lighter than the nine. Now, feel it and grasp it. Put your finger on the trigger,” she stood behind him and held his arm. “Aim and gently squeeze the trigger,” she said.

He pulled the trigger and the bullet flew towards the tree and hit the edge of the largest circle that she drew.
“Damn,” he said. “See? I can’t do it.”
“Yes, you can. Use your left hand to steady your right,” she wrapped her arms around him and helped him grasp his right hand. “Now, steady. OK, go ahead,” she said, as he fired again. “See? Much better.”
“I can do this. I know I can,” he said, as he aimed again. “All I need is you always to have your arms wrapped around me and I can shoot,” he laughed.
“Very funny. Come on, try it a few more times.”
He fired off four more shots. “Not so bad, I guess.”
“Good. I’d keep the .38 in your ankle holster. Now, the nine is going to be much harder. I know you usually use .45s but lets try the nine first,” she took the .38 from his hand and handed him the ninemillimeter handgun.
“It’s really heavy,” he said.
“I know. Now, we’re just going to repeat what we did with the .38. Your hand will have to get used to the weight.”
“All right,” he said, as he followed her instructions and let off six shots in a row. “All over the place,” he shook his head as he aimed the gun at the ground.
She looked into his eyes. “You’re doing fine.”
“Sam, I haven’t fired a gun … I mean before this … in a year. I used my words or my fists to get out of a jam. I’m a useless agent and hit man. I can’t even do either job.”
“Listen to me, it’s not about the gun. It’s about you. You can do this. We’ll work at it together. Until I got with you, I haven’t been behind the rifle in ten years. I always had my sidearm, but it had been a while since I’ve used it other than to clean it. Can’t have a dirty gun.”
“I know. I’m sorry I’m like this. It’s just so frustrating.”
“Does your left hand hurt?”
“Not right now. It did steady the right pretty well.”
“Well, do you want to try to shoot with it?”
“I don’t know. It’s still stiff,” he said.
She took his left hand and started to massage it. She kissed the back of his and rubbed his palm lightly. “I’ll be right back,” she said, as she hurried to the cabin. She came back a few minutes later with a bottle. She gently squeezed the lotion on her fingers and slowly rubbed it on his scar on the palm of his hand.
“What is that?”
“It’s a special lotion. I mix it up myself,” she said. “Does it hurt?”
“No, it feels tingly,” he opened and closed his hand a few times. “It’s not so stiff,” he smiled.
“I know. I discovered that if I mix a few of my lotions, it helps relieve stiffness, and it does help scars fade and softens skin. Here, you can have it.”
“Thanks,” he kissed her cheek.
“So, are you ready to try again?”
“Yeah, I think I can do this,” he smiled, as she got behind him.
“I know you can do this,” she said, as she wrapped her arms around him.
He placed the gun in his left hand and used his right to steady the shot. He fired once, took a deep breath, and fired off six more shots. “Wow, I did it,” he laughed.
“Yes, you did. Bulls eye,” she hugged him tightly.
“Thanks, babe, you helped me more than you realize,” he kissed her cheek.
“You helped me, too. Now, I’ll step back and you continue to practice. If your hand starts to hurt, take a break. We don’t want you to overdo it on your first day.”
“I’ll be all right,” he said, as he aimed and fired.

They spent the morning practicing shooting the target on the tree. Parker couldn’t believe how much better his hand was starting to feel. He never thought his hand would be or even feel normal again, and thanks to Sam, it was. She saved part of him, and she’d never realize how much. He just was determined to save her. All his practice, he just pictured Jack Morrison’s face. He knew that was the ultimate target. The man who brutalized his lover. Yes, he loved her and she was the love of his life. He never knew what love was really about until he found himself with Sam and he was never going to let that go … even if she discovered all of his secrets … he was still going to keep her.