Sapphire Bones

Attainment

Updated: April 2, 2019

Corvo

Three days before the trial and I couldn't get my leg to stop bouncing. I sat on a barstool in the kitchen while Erin waited for the copper kettle to whistle. Steam whirred up through the hole on the guard, but it had yet to scream. She focused on the stove, but I knew her ears were always listening. Always aware of what went on around her. I sipped on a mug full of coffee. Mattias crept through the doorway. His hair amiss, he grabbed a white mug off an open shelf and poured the black liquid into his cup without a glance toward the stream. As the cup filled he slowed the jet until only a couple drips struggled to fall from the spout. Mattias shoved the carafe back into its place at the machine and made his way around the bar to where I sat. He slid up onto the seat next to me and settled with his arms crossed on the marble top.

"Sleep well?" I asked with a grin at the edge of my lips.

"You know I didn't," he grumbled. The skin around his eyes was dark and sullen from a night without rest. One of Matty's old girlfriends caught wind of his return and made sure he got the hospitable return he deserved. I glanced his way and proved my theory without a second thought. I reached up and ruffled the top of his head, my fingers catching in the tangled curls that naturally fell in random.

"How's Gina?" I chuckled and took another drink from the sandy colored coffee in front of me. Lip prints from nighttime saliva that I didn't wipe off when I woke up, glowered up at me as I replaced my mouth on the mug. Mattias grumbled something about how she was great and went back to the cup of onyx black coffee in front of him. His nose quivered every time he drank but he refused to add anything, noting his psyche didn't allow him. I mentally grumbled at his fragile masculinity when it came to morning beverages, but I didn't push the subject.

"Did you at least use a condom?" Ethel's voice carried into the kitchen faster than she did. Unlike Mattias and I, my little sister was an early riser. A mid-length skirt and a tight blouse decorated her torso, and a pair of oxford shoes, modernized by a familiar brand made my sweat pants and shirt I slept in look like I just walked out of a sewer. At her words, I growled and set down my cup with a loud thud. A sudden wave of insecurity washed over me.

"There's no reason for you to know what a condom is, Ethel," I growled. The older brother side of me rose from my stomach and reached out like an arm to pull my sister's innocence back into the room.

"Oh please," she laughed. "This isn't the eighteen-hundreds. Women aren't kept from their sexual prowess," Ethel took a seat at the breakfast nook and pulled her computer from her shoulder bag and opened it. She took a glance over the top and sent a wink my way but my throat rumbled in displeasure. Ethel flipped her hair over her shoulder and launched her attention onto what was on the brightly lit screen, that still made an effect on her face despite the bright natural sunlight that spilled into the kitchen from the windows behind her. The white floors and cabinets and countertops glittered in the sun. The kettle whistled. Erin flipped the stove off almost immediately and removed the pot from the red-hot burner. She poured it into a separate pot, a white porcelain teapot with several bags sticking out the top. Once full, she replaced the top on the teapot. Erin left to it sit and retreated from the kitchen without a parting goodbye. I watched her leave out the back door to the yard.

"You better not be doing anything related to your prowess," I swiveled in my seat to face Ethel but she buried her face into the screen and ignored my comment. She giggled but refused to peer up over her screen. Defeated, I sighed and swung back around.

A couple pack members, three fighters, came into the kitchen in a small pack. Ryan took a mug first followed by Victor and Marie. I didn't have many female fighters but those who made it through the trials were some of the strongest I had in my arsenal. They proved faster and more adept than any of the men in the ranks. Marie served as a scout from time to time. Watching over some of the rogue groups in the Appalachian proved difficult since the woods were so dense, but Marie had the agility and skills to climb and stay out of sight.