Chapter 11 - More Than Competent

It was a quiet day at the Garage, no cases from Homeland or natural disasters appeared imminent. Cabe looked up as Nathan walked past him and poured a cup of coffee, joining the older Homeland agent in the Garage's kitchen on the main floor. "Hey, kid, you want to hit the firing range today? It looks like your assignment with Homeland has been extended by a few weeks, and you're going to need to pass the firearms proficiency test soon if you want to stay with Homeland and Scorpion. With your background that shouldn't be a problem–"

Nathan nearly spilled hot coffee he'd been pouring all over himself, causing Toby and Sylvester to look up curiously from the projects they were working on. Nathan laughed off the spill, mopping furiously at the liquid that had splashed across the counter. "I can't believe how klutzy I am this morning. Must have been all that late-night partying last night with Walter."

Sylvester looked confused for a moment before returning to his daily reorganization of his personal desk supplies and Toby quickly lost interest as well. Toby knew what partying with Walter looked like: differential equations and theoretical physics deep enough to make Einstein's head swim. No thanks.

Tossing the wet paper towel in the trash, Nathan managed to fill his nearly empty coffee cup this time. "Oh, sure, of course. I'll do my best, Cabe."

"Do your best? You're kidding, right? The Homeland proficiency test should be easy for a trained marksman like y–"

Nathan interrupted forcefully. "I will try not to embarrass myself or you. I haven't handled a firearm since Officer Candidate School. Not much call for weapons on a submarine as a general rule, strangely enough." Nathan managed a weak smile that didn't reach his eyes.

Cabe could see the unease on the younger man's face and decided not to push it, at least not in front of the bunch of nosey nellies in the Garage. Toby's ears had perked up again. Cabe nodded his understanding of Nathan's discomfort, though his stern gaze perfectly communicated that he expected an explanation and soon. "I'll hold you to that. I'm used to doing a lot with a little," He jerked a thumb over his shoulder, "I spend my days with this bunch of genius knuckleheads trying to kick some semblance of order and discipline into them after all. I think I can teach you how to hit a paper target with little trouble," He patted his service weapon. "Now finish your coffee and let's get moving before trouble comes knocking," He turned, "Paige, you're in charge of keeping the chaos to a minimum while I'm gone."

Paige looked up from the pile of paperwork she was working on and gave him a wave. "You got it, Cabe. Good luck, Nathan. We'd hate to lose you as part of the team over something as trivial as not passing a weapons proficiency test."

Nathan's cheeks flamed with Paige's attention as Cabe steered him toward the door. "Don't worry, I'll make sure he passes."

Paige smiled, noticing Nathan's discomfort, with a flutter in the stomach of her own. "I'm sure you will."

As they drove toward the Homeland field office, Nathan opened his mouth to explain his hesitation to the older Homeland agent.

Cabe put up a hand. "Not yet. Let's wait until we get to the range."

Nathan immediately understood. Cabe wanted him to stew a little bit. He likely would have done the same for a Seaman under his command if he'd been on a sub. They rode in relative silence until they reached the Homeland field office where Cabe procured a service weapon for Nathan for the range. Cabe signed the paperwork giving Nathan provisional access while on duty under his direct supervision. Then they crossed the Homeland campus to the firing range.

Once there, Cabe handed Nathan the required ear protection and a clip. "Before you explain that little show at the Garage, let's just see what you've got and we'll go from there. You've already gone above and beyond with everything Scorpion and Homeland have thrown at you so far. I'm sure you're more than competent with a weapon."

As Nathan slid the clip in and thumbed the weapon's safety off, Cabe placed protection over his ears. Nathan took a careful stance and raised the weapon, eyes on the target at the far end of the firing range. He took a deep breath to quiet his mind and squeezed the trigger. A few seconds later three well-placed bullets dotted the center of the paper target's torso. Nathan checked that the weapon's chamber was empty, thumbed the safety on once more, and then carefully set the weapon down. He hooked the hearing protection around his neck and looked at the senior Homeland Agent. "How'd I do?"

"Unsurprisingly excellent. I can hardly believe that you haven't handled a weapon since OCS. As a submarine officer, you would have only had minimal firearms training. But you weren't just a submarine officer, were you?"

Nathan shook his head, "But I'm certain you already knew that. I'm sure you read my entire file before requesting I join you at Scorpion. I'm sure you already know what I'm going to say."

"Probably, but I still want to hear it from you," Cabe folded his arms across his chest. "And I want to know why you don't want Walter and the others to know."

Nathan sighed. "I don't like to talk about my familiarity and proficiency with weapons around the team, I know Walter's stance on guns. When at all possible, I prefer to find a solution that doesn't involve the use of deadly force."

Cabe knew there was more to the story, so he waited a moment for Nathan to continue. When no further explanation was forthcoming, he spoke up. "I'm still waiting."

"You already know I was an officer in the San Diego PD for a few years right out of high school."

"Yes, I saw that in your file. I thought that was an interesting choice for a future naval officer."

Nathan stared off into the distance for a few moments as he thought about his past. "My grandfather was a career officer on the force. He only took retirement when my grandmother passed, when he needed to be the sole parent for both my little brother and I. He loved his job and it nearly broke him to leave it behind. I had always dreamed of joining the Navy, but it just didn't seem realistic. I couldn't leave Grandad and Corey. It didn't matter that I dreamed of life on a sub ever since reading Jules Verne when I was a kid. So after high school, as a way to honor him, I joined the SDPD. Grandad was so proud. I loved that job and in a lot of ways I think I could have been happy if that had been my life. But after a few years, he found a way to send me to the University of California at Berkeley. I left the force, got a degree in nuclear engineering, and joined the Navy. Something I never would have done if Grandad hadn't insisted."

"And you don't like to talk about your law enforcement past around the team? You think they would think less of you if they knew?"

Nathan shrugged. "I don't know, maybe. They are quite the bunch of nonconformists. I think they mostly don't mind my naval career because being a submarine officer is different than most military careers. 'When hundreds of feet below, the power goes to he who knows,' and all that. That thinking makes sense to them, and that works to my advantage with this group. But straight-up law enforcement? These are people who are comfortable breaking the law, the kind of people I would likely have tried to arrest in my previous life."

"They're okay with me and my law enforcement background."

"It's a different dynamic with you. You're older, like a father to them. They respect your authority based on your life experience. They see me as a peer. Not someone they'd ever listen to as an authority figure. I don't want them to know about that part of my past." Nathan sighed. "I have no doubt they all have parts of their past they don't share with me either."

"I get it," Cabe patted Nathan on the shoulder. "Your secret's safe with me. But I think they would be more understanding than you give them credit for."

Nathan laughed. "Oh, you mean the part where Toby was completely okay with the fact that Walter was secretly married to Happy for a green card and kept it from him, and when the truth came out it nearly tore the team apart?"

"You may have a point there, but that was more about the woman than anything else."

"Maybe, but I'm not willing to take the chance, at least not right now, and my career when I was eighteen doesn't have any bearing on the team today nearly twenty years later."

"Okay, kid, whatever you say," Cabe looked again at the holes Nathan's bullets had made in the paper target. "But you are still one helluva shot. No provisional permit to carry is necessary. You are a full-fledged Homeland intern going forward and someone I am more than happy to have as my partner for as long as the Navy lets me keep you."

"Thanks, Cabe. That means a lot."

"Do you want to shoot a few more rounds, just for fun?" Cabe grinned.

"Oh yeah, but let's make it interesting," Nathan chuckled.

"Loser buys lunch?"

"Loser buys lunch for a week."

"I hope you've been saving your Homeland intern wages. I could eat steak all week long!" Cabe patted his stomach.

With a smile, Cabe and Nathan both slipped their ear protection on, raised their weapons, and aimed at the targets at the end of the firing range.