Chapter 3 - The Shot Before the Smile Faded
Harris was still smiling when Amanda fired.
No long setup.
No dramatic breath.
No need to make the moment bigger than it was.
The pistol cracked in the first beat, sharp and clean. The slide cycled. A casing spun into the light and pinged against the wooden table. Downrange, the paper target jerked backward and began swinging in the dry wind.
The echo rolled over the desert flats.
For half a second, Harris kept smiling because his pride had not yet received the information his ears had.
Then he heard Willis inhale.
That was when the smile began to fade.
Amanda kept the pistol safely downrange, finger off the trigger, breathing unchanged.
The soldiers behind them leaned forward.
Harris turned toward the target.
The paper still swung, but the hole was already visible.
One dark mark.
Dead center.
Amanda did not celebrate.
She did not look around to see who had changed their mind.
She only said, “Center hit.”
The range went quiet enough to hear the wind slap the paper.
Harris stepped closer to the spotting scope, jaw tightening.
“That was luck.”
Amanda lowered the pistol safely to the table, turned only her head toward him, and said, “Then double the bet.”
A few soldiers stopped smirking.
Willis froze behind the scope.
Not because of the shot.
Because of the way Amanda said it.
May you like
She was not challenging Harris.
She was documenting him.
