Sapphire Bones

Manhattan

"Whoa there, big dog," Ethel cocked one of her brows, a smile hidden behind the wide-rimmed glass pressed to her lips. An outline of peachy orange lipstick stayed sedentary as her lips moved about the clear crystal. "I figured we'd grab a hotdog or something off one of the food carts around here," she said. "There were a couple a block or two down," Ethel shrugged and took another drink.

"So what are we doing here?" I asked. Curiosity and confusion hit me at the same time on either side of my head. As much as I didn't mind spending an evening away from the pack, I had worries at the back of my head that refused to budge no matter how many drinks I knocked back. Ethel wasn't the type to drive an hour away from home for a drink or two only to return to Emerald with a headache and buzzing eardrums boiling over from intense techno music played from speakers' inches away from us.

"To drink our problems away," Ethel answered with one final drink from her glass before she slammed it down on the table with a screech of excitement. "Damien over here has a girlfriend who refuses to open up about her yikes past with your," she turned to me, "mate who is goddess knows where running from the Council with Ruby's very own Alpha and Beta. If anyone's got some babe problems, it's us!" She tipped her empty glass toward both of us. "I think we all deserve a night off."

"Well that's very kind of you but forgetting about our problems isn't the best action right now," I sighed and set my bottle down, and stepped away from the table. "The longer L and the others are out there the better chance the Council has of finding them, or worse, their bodies are found." Before Ethel could open her mouth, I stopped her with a finger to her lips. "I don't want your opinions about L right now either," I swiveled my head in her direction, jaw dipping toward my chest just slightly as I looked her in the eyes. Ethel pursed her lips but otherwise stayed quiet.

"Fine, no babe talk but last time I checked we've got a suicidal mother and our father's old mistress out there with a kid on the way so we have other drama to talk about!" Ethel cheered and took my bottle before I could notice.

"I forgot about Claire," I muttered, shaking my head. "Purposefully, but still, I forgot about her." The sudden upbringing of the Claire situation brought a headache to the forefront of my brain. I clasped at the temples on the sides of my face and rubbed circles for a moment. "Any news on that or are we still in the dark?"

"Hey, maybe we shouldn't talk about this here?" Damien piped in with his own pop of his tongue. I looked away from my younger sister and turned to him. He finished off the bottle in his hand and nudged his head toward the door. "As much as I love these types of places, you know the ones where you go deaf and all, well as much as I like them I can't really hear you so maybe we should go get that hot dog and sit on a bench and talk there." The hunger deep in the endless pit that was his stomach spoke for him as he licked his teeth under his closed lips.

Ethel frowned but ultimately agreed with a hard nod. She pushed her loose curled hair behind her ears with one solid stroke of her fingers through her scalp. "Alright boys lets go," she sighed, defeated by her two brothers, and led us toward the exit. As much as I didn't mind washing my problems away with liquor, so much weighed on my shoulders I felt the slump in my spine. Too many problems knocking on my front door. Alcohol only made it worse. We left the bar quickly, unseen by the front door guards letting people in by pairs. Ethel led us out an exit off to the side of the building where she held the door open for a couple females desperately trying to find a way inside. Once clear, she let the door swing, then slam shut leaving us out in the warm evening air suffocated by New York heat and smog. Steam rose up from nearby grates. Drunken people stumbled along the sidewalks, heels in their hands while leaning on their partner's shoulders. Clambering chatter echoed through the streets. But the best of all? Amidst the foggy streets and people, the lights were much dimmer, softened by the misty air floating ten feet off the ground in gentle waves. Cars passed, their engines buzzing with soft purrs.