Murdock's Saga Continues

As promised, here's more to young Murdock's story.  Enjoy!

“Young man,” he shouted at Murdock, “how would you like to try and hit the bull’s eye?” The man motioned to three targets that rested a hundred feet away.

“I don’t have any money,” said the teen, barely making eye contact.
 “Not even one gold piece?” said the man. “I bet you have at least one coin in your pocket.”
“I don’t want to try!” said Murdock with agitation in his voice.

The man tried another tactic. “How about this?”

Seth tugged on his brother’s sleeve, getting him to stop. “Aren’t you going to listen to what he has to say?”

Murdock stopped and glared at the con artist. “What?”

“I’ll give you your first shot for free and, if you hit the target, you’ll win a prize.” The person pointed to a rickety bow that leaned against a table.

The teenager pointed at the prize. “That piece of junk?”

“Hey, I had to win that from a marksman! It’s a fine piece of weaponry!”

Murdock rolled his eyes.

“And if you miss, you give me that coin you’re trying not to lose.”

The young ranger instinctively touched the sack on his belt, jingling the coins it contained. Squinting, he said, “I won’t miss.”

“Then it’s a deal!” The man waved Murdock over and showed him where to stand. “Wait right here,” he said.

The teen did his best not to appear agitated, but he failed miserably. A second later, the man returned with a tattered bow and arrow.

“You want me to hit that target using this?”

“That’s right.” The man’s eyes narrowed to slits. “What’s the matter, are you afraid to lose?” The man held his stare on the teenager.

“Come on, Murdock, you can do it!” encouraged his brother.

With a scowl, the young ranger snatched the bow and arrow from the man. He raised the bow, positioned the feathered portion of the projectile, and readied his shot.

The con artist leaned closer to the bowman. “Take your time,” he said in a soft voice. “You wouldn’t want to miss.”