Hi guys! Hope that everybody is having a fantastic day! Here is chapter 21. I know that some people will have some objections to young people shooting weapons, but this was something that my grandfather and I did all the time when I was a kid, so hopefully it is okay. I hope that you enjoy the chapter and please review! Thanks!
The day was cool, but the sun was beating down harshly, reflecting off the light terrain around them. Filip was feeling beyond glad that he had remembered his trusty sunglasses, otherwise it would have been brutal. There were bullets flying, one right after the other, hitting and destroying their targets with a precision that surprised him. With an eye like the shooter had, he couldn't help but feel glad that the bullets were flying in the opposite direction.
"Fantastic job, Sweetheart!" he shouted once the clip was empty.
"Thanks, Da!" Kerrianne replied, a huge smile on her face, before handing him the gun. "I like this gun a lot. Not as much as my revolver, but still, it's fun to shoot. More shots, too."
"Aye, it doesn't kick nearly as much as a revolver, but it's harder and more time consuming to load a clip," he explained to her.
It was two weeks after Christmas, and Filip had checked Kerrianne out of school early, barely an hour after it had started. It was a beautiful day, the sun making it unusually warm for a January day. They had ridden up to the Wahewa reservation to target shoot for a while. Really, it was yet another excuse to just spend time with his daughter. In just over a month, the baby would be here and things would get much, much busier for all of them. He wasn't sure when he was going to get the chance to do this again.
He was proud at what an excellent shot his daughter had become. She had a good eye and could be counted on to hit her target. He was also thrilled at how amazingly safe and sensible she was when dealing with a weapon. She was fifteen year old and handled her weapon better than any of the Prospects did, plus she could shoot better. He would have to make sure to point that fact out to all of them later today.
Kerrianne was thrilled to be out here with her father today. She had been surprised when she had been pulled out of second period and sent to the office. She saw her father there, and for a moment was terrified that something was wrong with her Ma or the baby. Her Da never knew about her panic; she managed to keep her cool long enough for her Da to tell her that they would be going out today, just the two of them, for some practice. Her poker face was getting better every day, but she no longer knew if that was a good thing, or a bad thing.
Kerrianne's life was…complicated. California was very, very different than Ireland, but for all the differences, things were very much the same. The kids here were more or less the same. The main different was that instead of fighting each other over the fate of a free, Catholic Ireland, they were fighting about, well, mostly sex. That, and in California, not nearly as many kids ended up dead. The differences had been jarring and confusing at first for Kerrianne, but now that she was settled, she had found a sort of freedom. Here, she could make mistakes. Here, a bit of rebellion would end with a stern talking too and being grounded for a few weeks. Here, she could be friends with whoever she wanted, and never had to ask them about their parents' affiliations. Here, she could even talk to boys.
Not that her Da, or her Ma for that matter, had any idea that she did that. No, she was enjoying the freedom that Charming had offered her far too much to let her parents know about it. She liked pretending to stay out late studying, but really staying out late doing whatever she and her friends wished. She liked skipping class every so often and meeting up with her friends in the field house. She liked the easygoing nature of her new friends, especially the male ones. Most of all, she liked knowing that getting caught wouldn't result in anybody being taken out and beaten halfway to death.
More than anything about America, she liked having her Da. There had been nothing easy about this move. It had been sudden and the transition had been rough. Finding out that there would be a new baby, on top of that, had incited such a wide array of emotions in her, from joy to jealousy. Her Da, however, had been there for her, no matter what. He gave her everything she needed and made sure that she was never alone in anything. He made her feel loved, beyond belief, and while she could pretend all she wanted that the way her parents acted together grossed her out, she could be more thrilled that he Ma finally had the husband she deserved.
She picked up the empty clips at her feet and made her way over to the only tree anywhere near them. Taking a seat underneath it, on the blanket that they had spread out, she picked up her soda and took a long pull from it. This was another thing she loved about California; literally nobody cared what she ate or drank. Her Da came to join her on the blanket, placing the guns down in front of them and collecting the empty shells.
"You did good today, Kid," he told her.
She smiled, before replying "I learned from the best."
"Yes, you did, and don't quickly forget it!" he winked at her. "So, what exciting class should you be in right now?"
"It's what, 12:45? I would be in physics. Have you ever heard the Catholic view on anything having to do with science? It is a little bit ridiculous," she informed him.
He quickly pointed out the bright side, "Yes, well, at least you know that, on exams, you can always answer with any member of the Holy Trinity and probably get the question correct."
She laughed for a moment, before turning and looking at him. "Thanks for bringing me out here today, Da. I like hanging out with you. I don't suppose we will be able to do this much once the baby come, will we?"
He sighed, before taking her hand and saying, "Darling, I don't care if there are ten new babies coming. If you want to spend time with me, or with your Ma, all you have to do is say the word. We're always going to be your parents, Kerri."
"I know, and I'm glad. I couldn't have picked better ones myself," she said, squeezing his hand. "Speaking of Ma, did you tell her that you and I were playing hookey today?"
"Nah, not yet. But I will. Do me a favor?" he asked.
"What favor is that?" Kerrianne inquired.
"Spend some time with your Ma soon? Do some girly shit or something. I wouldn't want to make her jealous by hogging you all the time," he smirked at her.
"Yeah, no problem. I've been meaning to anyway, I doubt she can even reach her own toenails to paint them anymore," Kerrianne said seriously. "Maybe I will see if she wants to hang with me on Friday night."
"Aye, about that," Filip said. "Maybe not this weekend. I wanted to ask you about something."
"What's up?" Kerrianne asked, her eyebrows knit together in confusion.
"Well, what are the chances you could stay with Tristen this weekend? Or maybe Tara?" he asked.
"I probably could, why?" she demanded, making it clear that she wanted more information before agreeing to anything.
"It's our anniversary, your Ma's and mine," he stated, simply.
"Really? I had no idea," she said, surprised.
"Aye, on Saturday," he nodded. "And don't worry about it. Last time we actually celebrated one, you were four years old. I don't hold it against you for not remembering."
"How long have you guys been married?" she wondered.
"Twenty three years, now," he told her, with a smile.
"Wow," was all she could come up with.
"Wow is right," he responded with no small amount of pride.
"What do you think you guys will do?" Kerri asked.
"Not sure, actually," he said with a shrug.
"You should take her to the cabin. It's really pretty there, she would really like the lake," Kerri suggested.
"You think so?" he asked, surprised by her idea.
"I know so," Kerrianne replied. "So…did you get her anything?"
"I did," he said, evasively.
"Are you going to tell me what it is?" she questioned, as if she was talking to a slow person.
"Not a chance. You would tell her in an instant!" he accused. "Besides, I expect that you will be hearing about it soon enough."
"Ah, so it's that good, is it?" she asked, raising her eyebrows at him.
"It's pretty good," he admitted, looking at her sideways. "So you're really okay with staying at a friend's this weekend?"
"It's fine, Da. I'll stay with Tristen, we'll get absolutely no sleep and watch movies and whatnot. You and Ma can do whatever terribly dirty things you two do. Maybe we can all have dinner together on Sunday or something," Kerrianne shrugged. "Hey! Next year, I can babysit on your anniversary if you want me to!"
"That would be good, on both counts," he said. "Now, are you going to shoot at some more things, or are we done?"
"Let's be done. I am starving; my lunch time should have been an hour ago. You can buy me lunch and then take me to a movie, if you'd like!" she said with a wide smile.
"I would like. Let's call Ma, see if she wants to go with us, yeah?" he asked, knowing that she wouldn't argue with him.
"Yeah, okay, I'll call her as soon as I have signal on my phone again," she said, picking up her backpack and making her way to the bike. She would never admit this to any of her friends, but spending the afternoon with her parents was exactly what she wanted to do.