Free Under His Domain by Kelly Favor Page A

now I know.”
    “Just try not to take him too
seriously.   That’s what I do, when
I’m able.”  
    As they turned to approach the two men
and the table, the man who must’ve been Easton’s father placed his gun into a
case and then started walking towards them.   He put his arms out wide and
smiled.   “Look at this kid!” he
shouted excitedly.
    Easton’s father was thin, with long
graying hair strung back in a ponytail.   He was taller than Easton, but much less muscular.   The muscle he did possess looked tight
and strong, like a wire.   He wore a
ratty t-shirt and jeans, work boots, and round wire framed glasses.  
    Easton and his father embraced for a long
moment, and his dad’s enthusiasm and joy in seeing his son was actually quite
touching for Kennedy.
    She found herself unexpectedly tearing
up.
    Then, they broke off from their hug and
the older man turned his beady blue eyes toward her.   “So this is the beautiful young gal
everyone’s buzzing about.”   He
smiled and showed teeth that were haphazard, with a few missing, but he was
unselfconscious about it, seemingly.
    “Everyone’s buzzing?” Kennedy asked,
afraid of him somehow.
    “Come here, give old Billy a hug,” he
said, stretching those long arms wide once more.
    She allowed herself to be enfolded in his
arms, which proved to be strong and also somewhat repellent to her.   He smelled like smoke and aftershave.
    “Hi Billy, I’m Kennedy,” she said,
stepping back and offering him her hand.
    He laughed and shook.   “Well aunt she cute,” he said, winking
at his son.
    Easton nodded his head, looking
uncomfortable.   “How long you been
shooting, Dad?”
    “Not long,” Billy said, placing his hands
on his hips and glancing from Kennedy to Easton and back again.   “Sid brought a couple of surprises,
though.   Wait’ll you get a look at
the artillery.   Have you been
practicing at all?”
    “Nope,” Easton replied, walking towards
the table.
    “Of course not, you’re too busy playing
businessman,” Billy cackled.   He
turned back to glance at Kennedy, who was following them uncertainly.   “You ever shoot anything, darling?”
    “No, never,” she admitted.
    “Aw, that’s fine.   We’ll teach you.   I’ll show you how it’s done.”
    “Great,” she said, trying to smile, and
finding it didn’t fit right.
    They walked up to the table.   Nearby were a host of black cases and
bags, all of them seeming to contain either a weapon or the ammunition.   Not far from the table were various and
sundry objects, which these men apparently used as targets.
    There was a large screen television that
had had the screen blown out, a few chairs, a couch, a very old car, and some
other old pieces of junk.   As well,
there were various bottles and cans set up on various flat surfaces, whether the
top of the TV, the hood of the car.   And besides that, there were trees and bushes that had clearly been shot
up as well.
    This
can’t be legal , Kennedy
thought, but decided not to ask.
    As Easton and his father looked over the
merchandise, Billy’s friend Sid stared at Kennedy like he was undressing her
mentally.   He smiled as she grew
uncomfortable and tried to ignore him; a short, fat man with a green vest and
camouflage pants.  
    “Heard you got into it with some friends
of Dean’s,” Sid mentioned, as he finally broke away from ogling Kennedy,
spitting what looked like tobacco juice into the dirt at his feet.
    “Friends of Dean’s?” Easton said, holding
a pistol and checking it for bullets.   “Not exactly friends.   More
like guys who wanted to kill him.”
    “That’s fully loaded,” Sid informed him.  
    “Dean says you took care of them,” Billy
added, walking to the table and picking up a rifle, peering down the sight, and
then shooting a beer can off the top of the broken TV.   The beer can exploded in a shower of spray, and the two older men whooped and hollered.
    Easton pointed his pistol