Page 55 of A City of Smoke and Demons
‘To be honest, I’ve always thought you were a glutton for punishment,’ Ezra said, shrugging.
‘You’re right—I put up with your shit, don’t I?’ Jem shot back, then called Analise and Lira over. Ezra enjoyed watching the way Analise’s hips swayed as she walked. Her hair was tied back, a braid sneaking over her shoulder.
‘Tobias says we’re not sparring,’ she growled, gesturing at her clothes—ribbons of glimmering red wove around her hands. ‘I wore this for nothing?’
Ezra absolutely disagreed.
‘Later,’ Jem told her as she gave Ezra such a dark look, he wondered if she could read his thoughts. ‘I thought you might like to learn how to use a pistol.’
‘Great plan,’ Ezra muttered. ‘Teach the woman who can’t stand me to shoot things.’
The Order had another room for target practice, and Ezra followed the others underground, down the dark hallway and into a long room, whitewashed like the meeting room. At the far end were targets, shaped like a man, reminiscent of the sort they used in Gendarme training. On a table along one wall was an array of pistols.
Ezra picked one up, curious at the rush of comfort holding it brought. He hadn’t held a gun since running away from the Gendarme. His stomach rolled as a memory stirred, but he pushed it aside. He wouldn’t think about Agnes now, or any of the others.
He listened with half an ear as Jem explained the pistol to Analise. Tobias and Lira had already taken up their positions in front of the targets. Ezra soon realised Lira was even more competitive than her brother. She hit the target between the eyes every time, but so did Tobias, leading to them upping the stakes—who could shoot with their eyes closed, for instance. Lira’shead was clouded in smoke, the customary cigarette dangling from the corner of her mouth.
Jem guided Analise to a spot away from the others. ‘Don’t worry if you don’t hit the target,’ he said. ‘I want you to get a feel for the gun.’
‘Why? I can’t imagine I’m going hunting with you,’ Analise said.
‘No, probably not, but this is a precaution,’ Jem told her. ‘These are blanks you’re shooting—there is no lead in the bullets—and the Order doesn’t carry lead bullets anyway. We carry silver.’
‘You do?’ Ezra asked, looking at Jem curiously.
‘Demons, like other things, aren’t particularly fond of silver,’ Jem explained. ‘While it won’t kill a demon, or a werewolf, it will slow them down.’
Analise nodded. ‘Why can’t I go hunting? You’re letting him,’ she added, meaning Ezra. She didn’t look at him.
‘Order members train for years before they hunt a demon, or anything supernatural,’ Jem said. ‘Ezra already knows how to handle himself. You don’t, and I won’t be the one to send you out to get killed. There may come a time when we need you, but not yet.’
Analise’s gaze shifted to Ezra, then away again as she turned her attention back to Jem, who was showing her how to load the gun, then how to hold it and stand to shoot. When he was satisfied, Jem moved away, unofficially leaving Ezra to watch Analise.
‘Your stance is wrong,’ he told her after watching her lift the gun, then lower it, lift it again, shifting her weight around.
‘I don’t care.’
‘You will when you hurt yourself with that thing. It’s only small, but it kicks. If you’re not ready for it, it will flip back and hit you in the face. Can I show you?’
She gave him a withering look, then nodded, lowering the weapon. Ezra set his gun back on the table and approached her. The magic around her hands was dark red now. ‘Can you put that away or something, please? I don’t want to die today.’ He nodded at her fingers. She scowled and mumbled something under her breath, but did as he asked. When he could no longer see a halo around her hands, he checked her grip, adjusting her fingers, then told her to straighten her spine and bend her knees, placing her feet shoulder-width apart. He stood behind her, then pressed his fingers into her lower spine.
‘Straight,’ he mumbled.
‘I am straight.’
‘You’re not. And lock your knees,’ he ordered. When she hissed that she had, he dropped his knee into the back of her thigh gently; she gave a startled gasp as her leg collapsed beneath her. He slipped his arm around her waist, hauling her upright. Grumbling, she pulled away and corrected her stance. There was a small slice of skin visible between her hairline and the neck of her uniform. Ezra bit his lip, letting his eyes move down her body, telling himself he was checking that she was standing properly. He was not looking at how those fucking clothes clung to her. He wasn’t thinking how he’d like to peel them off with his teeth.
He cleared his throat. ‘Extend your arms and raise the gun to eye level. Now, you’re going to drop your dominant foot back about ten inches.’
Lira and Tobias were finishing up, and Jem had already left. The look Lira gave Ezra was somewhere between amusement and worry. He forced his attention back to Analise, who was holding her breath.
‘Are you alright?’ he asked.
‘I’ve never held a gun before. It’s cold, and heavier than it looks,’ she said, and he realised her shoulders were shaking. Hefollowed the line of her arms to her hands, where the pistol was huge in her fingers. Gently, Ezra reached around her, his fingers curling over her elbows to steady them. A tremor ripped through her arms, and then faded away.
‘You’re going to squeeze the trigger, Analise—gently,’ he whispered. ‘It will recoil, but hold your stance, and you’ll be fine.’
She let out a breath, and nodded. He let her arms go and stepped away as she shifted her right foot back, like he’d told her. When she fired, the bullet missed the target by a mile. Analise swore.
