The Kelpie's Curse (book #1 in the Kelpie's Entrapment trilogy)

Day 20 pt. 2

Shanairra dribbled the basketball a couple of times both feeling and hearing the vibrations of the freshly inflated ball before she shot and with a soft 'whoosh' sunk it into the basket.

"Oh, beat that boys!" She shouted happily as she turned around to see the look on her brothers faces. Unfortunately the strong feeling of pride she was currently experiencing didn't match the look of boredom that both Adrius and Carrin were sporting. "Oh come on, that was a good shot." Actually it was the best shot she'd made all day, not that she was keeping track or anything.

"It's Horse, Shani, only babies get excited to play Horse." Adrius teased in a bored tone

Shani's eyes narrowed and her lips pursed as she stared at her older brother. Once upon a time she used to wonder why Renestrae and Adrius never got along, however the more time she spent with her brother the clearer it became. They fought all of the time because Adrius was stupid and didn't know when to keep his mouth shut.

"So says the one that's closest to losing" Carrin commented, raising a blonde eyebrow at his brunette brother as he did so.

Shani was just about to open her mouth to deliver what she felt was going to be a rather brutal jab to his ego when she noticed his brow furrowing and his eyes narrowing as if he was confused, then recognition as he walked past her and towards the rock filled driveway. Of course it wasn't until she began to turn around that she heard the crunch sound of car tires rolling across the driveway.

The sight that met Shani's eyes as she turned around was that of her cousin Sebastian climbing out of his black and white patrol car, still in uniform. As the sound the car door closing seemed to echo around her Shanairra felt the cold sensation of dread sink deep into her bones. While Sebastian coming over for a visit wasn't unheard of she could count on one hand the number of times she had seen her cousin in uniform.

Her eyes grew wide as she felt a feeling of panic begin to overwhelm her as tears began to gather in her eyes. She watched as Adrius moved to hug Sebastian but was met with a firm shake of his head. She took a couple steps forward and listened closely just barely able to make out what they were saying.

"Sebastian, what's the deal? You look like someone died."

Shanairra heard the laugh in Adrius' voice but what truly disturbed her and caused her breath to still in her lungs was the way Sebastian didn't laugh or smile but remained serious.

"I'm going to need you and the twins to get inside. I'm afraid I have some bad news and it would be best if you all heard it at once."

"Most of us are already out here I'll just get mom and dad to come out here." Adrius turned to run into the house but Sebastian grabbed his arm, stopping him before he could get far.

"Trust me, this is not something you want an audience for."

Shanairra gasped as her knees gave out beneath her. Thankfully Carrin was next to her and caught her before she could hit the pavement. It suddenly became only too obvious why Sebastian was still wearing his uniform. He wasn't there as their cousin for a visit, he was there as the police officer that was going to tell her something horrible had happened to her sister.

"No." The word was barely a whisper but to Shanairra it sounded like the loudest thing she had ever heard.

"Shani? Are you alright?"

Shanairra felt almost cold as she gathered her barrings and stood up right again. "We need to get inside." Shanairra walked towards the house glancing once at Sebastian and Adrius as she passed the two them.

She hoped that she was wrong, that she was just misreading Sebastian's actions but she had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach that told her she was right. She had known Sebastian her entire life and, except for the time Renestrae had almost drowned in the river, she had never known him to be this serious.