Joshua Gayou - Commune - The Complete Series - A Post-Apocalyptic Survival Box Set (Books 1-4)

“I… don’t know…”

Gibs sighed. “The point is that parents aren’t perfect. Allowing that my brothers and I needed the occasional ass-whooping—they screw up; make mistakes. They do it all the time. And it’s even harder for a single parent because they don’t have anyone around to help. There’s no one there to help them carry that responsibility. Or the guilt, when they inevitably do screw up. And for some people, that guilt is so powerful, so raw, that the simple act of uttering those words—“ I’m sorry ” or “ I screwed up ”—is crippling. They seek other means of remedy such as going out for ice cream…”

“…Or letting their kid learn how to shoot,” Lizzy concluded.

“Exactly.”

She looked down range at the target, considering the bullet holes spread out over the field of black paint.

“Do you think she’ll ever make up with Rebecca?”

Gibs exhaled loudly. “That’s a tough damned call, kid. You and Rebecca both screwed up pretty hard when you set that business up; Rebecca more so. You don’t ever transgress into a mother’s domain like that. Amanda has forgiven you… mostly because she has no choice but to do so. She’s under no such compulsion with Rebecca. I think you’re best off letting time heal that one if it can and stay the hell out of the subject’s path in the meantime.”

Lizzy looked down at her feet, suddenly miserable. Gibs considered her a moment, trying to decide how hard he wanted to drive the lesson and decided it was important enough to err on the side of a heavy hand rather than a soft touch. He said, “You’re right to feel shitty over it. That was a thing you created. Maybe not the initial condition between them, but certainly the situation that brought them to a head, because you were so focused on what you wanted. Your actions have consequences, Lizzy. You don’t get to go storming through people’s lives, setting everything to disarray, just because you want . Can you understand that? That’s the kind of thing that assholes do. And I don’t believe you’re an asshole.”

Still looking down, she wiped at an eye and nodded silently. Gibs grimaced, cursing himself. He reached out to tap her shoulder and said, “Okay, come on, kid. You’re not an asshole—”

She threw her arms around his waist without warning, burying her face into the hollow just beneath his ribs. It took him completely by surprise; it was the first time she’d ever done such a thing. He’d seen her grab onto Jake like this a few times in the past, certainly, but he had only ever seen her do this to Jake. The intensity of the hug threw him off a little; he wrapped one arm around her shoulders and began to pat her head awkwardly with the other hand.

“I’m sorry, guys, am I interrupting something?” asked Jake. Gibs didn’t even jump when he heard the man’s voice, he’d become so used to him popping up out of nowhere like a goddamned gorilla ninja. Elizabeth pulled away abruptly and began to wipe at her eyes, obviously self-conscious.

Jake noted her behavior and said, “You needn’t feel bad, Lizzy. When it comes down to people worthy of such affection, you could do far worse than your last recipient.”

“What can I do for you, Jake, if your intent wasn’t just to come out here and embarrass the hell out of everyone?” Gibs asked.

“I was hoping I could borrow Elizabeth… if you’re finished, that is.”

“Yeah, I suppose we are,” Gibs said, glancing down at the girl. “I guess she should be allowed to absorb today’s lesson, anyway. You, uh, got it hung, then?”

Jake nodded. “Late last night, actually.”

“I told you I would have helped. Any trouble getting it up?”

“No, it was fairly easy. It only weighs a hundred pounds.”

“You cocky bastard,” Gibs muttered.

Jake cocked his head slightly, and Gibs couldn’t tell if the man was confused or amused. Shaking his head, he said, “Go on with Jake, Lizzy. I’ll collect everything and take it back home. But…” he pointed a serious finger at her chest, “…I want to see you back at Casa de Redneck later today, got it? These need to be cleaned.”

She nodded, just as seriously, and in her little voice said, “Understood.”

“Go on with that damned gorilla, then. I guess you’ll like what he has waiting for you…” Gibs waited for Lizzy to turn away before he winked at Jake, who nodded and waved back. He went to the table and began placing pistols and boxes of bullets back into his old, black satchel.

“It seems as though things have improved somewhat between you and your mother,” Jake began. He lifted the garage door high enough for them to pass through the opening unimpeded before locking the chain in place. “I’ll suspect that this is due, in part, to her relaxing a bit… allowing you out on the range with Gibs.”

Still bothered by the things she’d discussed with Gibs only moments before, Lizzy remained silent. She felt somehow spoiled by the statement, as though the easing of her relationship with her mother somehow highlighted her childish behavior. It occurred to her that she’d persisted in a bratty attitude, more or less, until her mother had given her what she wanted; and wasn’t this the very definition of a spoiled brat, after all? The thought made her angry and nauseous by turns.

Jake turned on the cascade of LED lights that were strung throughout the wide-open space and continued to speak as he walked towards the rear of the building. “This is obviously a good thing, but it will not last. You have a temper inside of you, Elizabeth; a rage. And this is not necessarily a bad thing. It’s to be expected, I should think, given the circumstances.” He stopped and looked directly at her, eyes unblinking. “Anger is not a terrible thing; it is not evil. Very few things are truly evil, in fact. What you choose to do with it could very well be, but the anger itself isn’t a result. It is only a condition. The trick is to seek a healthy means of expression. Do you understand?”

She nodded.

“Good. One of those means of expression awaits you in the back of the shop, even now. Come, I’ll show you…”

In the rear corner of the building, under the balcony where it was most dark, she could just make out a long, dark, vertical mass. Jake moved out ahead of her and threw a switch, activating a separate set of dedicated lights that illuminated the area fairly well. The mass turned out to be a large heavy bag, exact in nature to the ones she used to see people attacking in gym commercials and fighting movies.

“I wanted to get this for you much earlier, but the pass into town had only recently become safe enough to drive again. It took me a while to find it as well, so…”

“It’s big,” she said, and so it was. She saw that the bottom hung over the concrete floor only about as high as her mid-shin and the top of the bag was higher than Jake’s head, though it was hard for her to tell by how much. Four thick chains ran from the top of it to some sort of bolt buried into the balcony’s support beam.

“Yes,” agreed Jake, “I made it a point to get one that you could kick as well as punch. I’m not much of a kicker myself—unless a man’s already on the ground, I guess—but I understand it can be a nice way to change things up. Go ahead and give it a wallop, if you like.”

Tentatively, she balled up her fist and gave it a thump just to take its measure. The thing felt as solid as a rock and didn’t even move in response. She felt the impact all the way up to her shoulder. She looked back at Jake with a doubtful expression.