Blood In the Water

chapter six

"The Ethics Behind Sinning."

The outside of the house may have been beautiful, but the inside looked absolutely torn apart. All thanks to the three Callahan members and their filled satchels and pockets. For Octavius, thieving like this was nothing new— his preferred sin other than drinking and gambling. But this job seemed particularly good for him, almost too good... But there was no room for suspicions like that but in the back of his had. Octavius' main priority was to rob this place until it looked squeaky clean.

Octavius had done a good job of it so far. He'd found two small money clips, an antique watch, and a pearl necklace that looked anything but new. And all of that was only found just on the bottom floor, Octavius was almost sure that his two companions were having much more luck upstairs. After all, who knew what was hiding in those master bedroom chests? Something of value, or at least that's what he betted.

"...'Tavius," called out a voice from upstairs. And Octavius recognized it instantly as William— though he was far too quiet than he needed to be in this empty house.

"Yeah?" He said. Stepping away from the ill-lit living room and heading to the stairwell, which resided near the front of the house. Octavius' eyes befell William, who was standing at the top of the stairs, silhouetted by the darkness around him. Octavius was reminded of how much of a miracle it was that anyone could still see what they were doing in this pitch black. "What's goin' on up there, Billy?" Octavius asked.

But the new noise at the front door allowed no time for a response— The mumblings of a man that were just barely muffled by the wooden front door. Octavius didn't have a second thought before he ascended up the staircase, moving so fast that he tripped over his own feet. His arm moving out just quick enough to spare him of any injury, but it didn't help that he still wasn't upstairs by the time the front door opened.

Inside walked two figures, carrying in a lantern that illuminated the house much more than Octavius would have liked. He could practically feel the orange warmth creeping up the staircase and into his skin. It was a only a matter of time before they saw him. Crouched and frozen still, just a couple loud steps away from the top.

"What the hell?" Muttered a deep and gravelly voice, belonging to the second one that walked inside, as he began to realize the disaster that was taking place at his house. Octavius wasn't particularly cleanly during this type of debauchery per se, the left-opened drawers, thrown around belongings, it didn't take a scholar to know what had happened once you saw that.

Both figures disappeared as they walked past the stairs and to the other rooms. Octavius let out a sigh, and shifted his weight ever so slightly, almost drowning in his own pumping adrenaline. He had to get up these goddamned stairs quietly, he had to.

Octavius quickly shifted back to his toes, simultaneously lifting his arm off the stair, he could feel the wincing in his spine from the small little creaking sound that it gave off. He figured that the two downstairs couldn't hear it though, seeing as they took up yelling at each other over the crimes Octavius committed. The second man blaming the other, while the first one was merely trying to save his own skin.

"I told you! I told you to lock that damned door, didn't I Keaton?!"

"I-I did uncle Wyatt, I did!"

Tension, tension, and the way it kept twisting over Octavius' tongue as he finally reached the top, and he considered crawling hands and knees to the room where he could hear Eleanor and Williams whispers. It was hard to decide what to do under this new pressure, even though Octavius claimed he could think well through it.