I laughed. "Are you threatening me for Naomi's honor?"
"Maybe I am." Belle's eyes sparked with something that might have been amusement. "Someone should."
Before I could respond, she pivoted again, holding the crossbow up. "Help me with this. I want to try shooting at the target dummies, but I can't figure out the safety."
The conversational whiplash was dizzying. One minute she was threatening me with the crossbow, the next she wanted help using it? Belle operated on her own frequency.
"Sure," I said, setting my spear aside. "Let me see it."
She handed over the compact crossbow, our fingers brushing during the transfer. The weapon was lighter than I expected, made of some composite material that felt almost like plastic but had the rigidity of metal.
"Safety's here," I said, pointing to a small switch near the trigger guard. "And the cocking mechanism is this lever underneath. Pull it back until it clicks."
