The Groznyj Grad Living Novel

Andrei felt the Captain's hands leave him.

He took a breath and his eyes swept open. He sighted quickly and instinctively.

Don't deliberate, Irinarhov had said.

He caressed the trigger slowly and squeezed with a slide of his finger.

He heard the hammer strike, the report, but didn't even try to gauge where it struck.

"That felt good," he said, quietly, rubbing the muzzle absently. "Natural."

There had been no second-guessing, no re-sighting.

He pulled off his beret and hung it on a freestanding nail. The wind ruffled his hair, and it felt liberating, for a moment.