Page 135 of Rugger: The Huntress

Silence pursued us both.

“Sonnie–” Rugger called out to me.

I hadn’t noticed she’d made her way to the head of the table.

“My sister-in-love, Egypt.”

She looked like she’d come from a beautiful village in Africa. Her skin was dark like the night and her features were offensively beautiful. I understood how she’d captured The Chemist. She’d surely have me fooled.

“Pleasure to meet you.”

“And, that’s Jru. The reason we’re here. My pride and joy.”

“Hello, Jru.”

The young child was uninterested in my presence. Rugger and I both understood that well and made our way around the table.

“She’s busy studying you,” Gazelle chuckled. “Come on.”

She pushed me along, stopping in front of her mother.

“This is my mother, Rhea.”

“Nice to meet you, Mrs. Childers.”

I leaned in, taking her into my arms for a gentle, brief hug.

“Nice to meet you.”

“And, this is Roaman, my oldest sister.”

“Hello.”

“What’s up? Pleasure to meet you, Roaman.”

“The feeling is mutual.”

She was soft. Sophisticated. Mild-natured. Feminine. Mature.

We made it to the next seat where the wildest of the bunch was waiting with a smirk on her face.

“Roulette,” Gazelle sighed, trying to push past her.

“Nice to–”

“Nah, hug me like that. Like you just did my Mom,” Roulette requested, pulling me toward her. Rugger snatched me in the other direction.

“Pops isn’t here, Roulette. If I shoot you, he wouldn’t be able to protest,” Rugger warned.

“Maybe when we bury you next to him from the bullet I put in your temple, y’all can talk about why he warned you not to fuc– not to play with me.”

With a roll of the eyes, Rugger pushed forward, stopping at the next seat.

“This is Royce.”

A fellow techie. I’d studied her well. She was one of the more intriguing siblings of the bunch. Her skills were impressive.

One after the other, she introduced me to her siblings until we reached the chairs that weren’t occupied. There were eight empty seats at the very end. Rugger took one. I took the other. However, our asses never touched the seats. She stood with both hands at her side as she tried piecing together her thoughts to speak.

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