FIFTEEN YEARS AFTER THE FALL OF THE TYNE FAMILY
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Sharlo adored rocks. Any stone, mineral or piece of metal that caught his eye would find itself picked up and stuck in his pocket, where he would bring it home and add it to his collection. If he was lucky, he’d find a strange-looking speckled stone, or even a coin, if he was really lucky.
Sharlo waded through the water of the river behind his house in search of treasures. The river was his favourite spot to search for any trinkets that may have found their way to the shore. His eyes scanned the river bed, looking for anything shiny. From the corner of his eye, Sharlo caught a look at the sky, which was beginning to turn orange as the sun began setting.
“Wuh oh,” he said aloud to himself as he walked to the shore. He had to be home before dark.
He jumped onto the thick grass and jogged barefoot back to his house, without any new collectables. He stopped himself as he saw a small clump of violets growing near the base of a tree. He grabbed one to bring back to his mom, violets were her favourite flower because they matched the dark purple hue of Sharlo’s eyes. His eyes were the subject of a lot of curiosity, or disgust, depending on the person. Everyone Sharlo knew had grey eyes, even his mother. It made Sharlo feel unique, but his mother always reminded him not to be vain about it.
As Sharlo ran to his house, one of his neighbours, a man named Caleb gave him a friendly wave. Sharlo waved back before wiping his feet off on the grass and pushing the door open. The house Sharlo and his mother shared was on the very outside of Keyv, a small village that sat beside the Silent River. The house wasn’t much to look at; big enough for two people to live comfortably, with a floor made of wood instead of dirt, making it one of the more luxurious houses in Keyv. The other more modest houses only had one level, with a thatched roof, whereas Sharlo’s house had wooden tiles, sealed with tar.
When Sharlo entered, he saw his mother sitting at their dinner table, talking quietly with Kailith Ratoh, who had been a close friend of Sharlo and his mother since Sharlo was born.
Kailith turned to greet Sharlo with a smile, but his mother sat with her chin in her hands silently.
“Find anything?” Kailith asked.
“Nope, nothing.”
“Well, everyone has their bad days, I suppose.” Kailith stood and stretched his arms.
“I’d better be heading home, it’s almost dusk.” Kailith gently placed his hand on Sharlo’s mother’s head before leaving. “Get some rest, Marta,” he said before ruffling Sharlo’s long black hair and exiting the house. Marta gave no response, but sat in silence at the table, her chin still resting on her hands.
Sharlo looked at his mother with concern. She was more pale than usual and her eyes were almost closed. She had a slight blackness around her eyes, as if she had been bruised.
“You alright mom?” Sharlo asked.
“Yeah, of course,” she mumbled. “Just tired, that's all.”
“Do you feel sick?”
She paused before answering, “Yeah, a little. I think I’ll just go to bed.”
“Do you want anything to eat? I can get you something.”
“No,” she shook her head slightly. “There’s some bread and butter left, you can have that if you’re hungry.” Marta laid her hands on the table and groaned as she pushed herself up. Sharlo took her arm to help her stand, as she looked like getting up took all the strength she had.
Sharlo’s mom shuffled over to the stairs and walked herself up.
“Do you want help?” Sharlo asked.
“No, I’m alright,” she replied. “I just really need some sleep.”
“Okay,” Sharlo said, watching her climb the steps, making sure she didn’t fall backwards or injure herself any other way.
Marta went into her room and closed the door behind her.
Sharlo went back into the kitchen, and opened up the bread cupboard, where there was still a loaf of bread. He tore off a chunk and chewed it slowly.
Mom’s definitely sick, He thought to himself. Sick as a dog.
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