Bosses and Butterflies

THIRTY-FIVE

THIRTY-FIVE
Everest

Her smile always made the room light up. Very rarely would I see Callie in a bad mood, she was always happy and cheerful and that's why I came up with the nickname sunshine — because she would be that ray of sunshine that brightens up my day.

But that's gone now. The clouds have covered up that ray of sunshine, leaving me cold and alone. Again.

I wipe the tears aggressively from my face and look up at the night sky. There are no stars tonight painted across the black sky, no star to point me in the direction of where my sunshine is.

The sound of the balcony door opening has me turning my head to see River stepping outside. She has stitches just above her left eyebrow and a light bruise painted across her cheek. A look of sorrow is etched onto her face, and I watch her lip begin to tremble.

"C'mere." I open my arms up for my younger sister, and she doesn't hesitate to wrap her arms around me.

"I'm sorry." She cries out painfully, and my eyes begin to fill with tears for probably about the tenth time tonight. "I didn't know any of that was going to happen!"

"Shh, it's not your fault, okay. It's Penelope, she's done this." I rub her back and after a few minutes, I pull back to wipe the tears from her face. "You look like shit." I try to joke, and she releases a small laugh and pushes me away.

"How can I look Callie's best friend in the eye after all this?" River croaks, taking a seat on the chair I was previously sat on. She looks up at the sky and then turns her head to look at me. "When I get my hands on Penelope, it's not going to be pretty." She cracks her neck twice and exhales a deep breath. 

"We think Callie is still alive." Her head whips in my direction and her eyes widen. "When Miller was looking for her, she was no longer there. Someone has taken her, River." I run a hand stressfully over my five o'clock shadow.

"Shit." River stares at me in disbelief and adjusts the hood that was over her head, pulling at the drawstrings.

As I stare at my sister, I can tell that something is playing on her mind. She's on edge.

"What is it, Riv?" I say, getting straight to the point, grabbing the chair next to her, scraping it along the floor. I take a seat in front of her and look at her with a hard stare. "I'm not fucking about right now, River, when my girl is out there in trouble. So whatever you need to say, do it now."

"I don't want you to hate me, Ev, for keeping it from you." She releases a shaky breath and avoids all eye contact with me. She rubs the palm of her hands together, trying to distract herself from telling me what's bothering her. "Luca is our brother."

My face falls.

Then a laugh escapes my lips, but my face has anything but humour engraved on it.

"Very funny, River." I clap my hands and shake my head in annoyance. "Stop fucking around!" I throw my hands up in frustration, but my whole world comes crumbling down when her eyes begin to water.

"Mum at the time didn't want him. That time she left us for over a year, she was pregnant with Luca, when she came back, she didn't bring him with her. She abandoned him." River sniffles and my face twitches and I try to blink away the tears. "She was drugged up. Luca was a drug baby when she gave birth to him, he was dropped off at a church and was raised there his whole life."

My jaw clenches and I stand up, grabbing the chair, throwing it against the wall. The wooden chair smashes to pieces and a painful cry leaves my mouth as I sink to my knees, burying my face in my hands.