The Line of the Sol Empress

Chapter 19

A true family, in whatever form, is like an island of chaotic love within a vast sea of indifference.

- Writings of the Sol Empress, Words of Faith

[Hope]

Hope sat in one of the four chairs that surrounded the kitchen table, leaning back against a wall and balancing on only two of the chair legs. She tapped her fingernails on the chair arm, making rhythmic clicks on the gray plas-steel composite material, the substance which also made up the table, cabinets, and most of the structural elements in the apartment.

She sighed. Aegeus is so boring. I wish something interesting would happen in my life.

Still, Hope realized, the family had a good existence compared to many others, even if it was in a backwater spaceport circling a backwater planet in a backwater corner of the galaxy. Her father's successful business afforded them one of the better apartments in the port, although it seemed cramped at times, and a forested cabin on the planet below. Outside of her school studies, she, along with her sister and brother, helped with the business. While not yet as knowledgeable as her father, Hope knew her way around fusion power units and quantum drives.

Hope's brother staggered into the kitchen. With unruly wavy brown hair and a wrinkled long sleeve t-shirt, it looked as if he just got out of bed. Tall, trim, and muscular, when better groomed he would turn the eyes of most young women. And with a practiced engaging smile, sparkling green-hazel eyes, and infectious charm, he could keep their attention.

The insufferable part is that he knows it.

He swung open the chiller, gazed inside for a few moments, then pulled out a blue plastic container and snapped the lid off of it. After a tentative whiff, he popped a half cinnamon roll into his mouth. Wiping his lips on a sleeve, he tossed the empty container back into the chiller.

Hope furrowed her brow and fumed. "Gab, you knew that was mine! I was saving it for later."

He shrugged. "You know the rules. Anything unmarked is fair game. You snooze, you lose."

"You are such a heathen," she huffed. "And you don't just put the empty back in the chiller — put it in the washer!" By the stars, he is aggravating.

Gabriel snarled, "Who made you Empress?"

An outside image appearing on a wall-mounted viewer interrupted any further retort. Gabriel's eyes widened and he held his breath as a young woman approached the apartment front door from the outside. "Oh, crap! It's Annie."

Hope plopped her chair down, then stood up at her brother's side. "It looks like she is crying. What did you do to her?" she said, narrowing her eyes.

He pushed his fingers through his wavy brown hair. "We just broke up. I don't think she wanted to."

The door chime rang. Behind the door, Annie dipped her head and wiped her eyes. Hope studied the visitor's image on the viewer, although distorted by the wide-angle lens. She was a pretty petite blonde, seventeen years old or so, a couple of years younger than Gabriel.

Faith, the first born of the triplets, limped around the corner and sat down at the table that dominated the small kitchen. She lifted an eyebrow. "What's going on?"

Hope smirked. "Another breakup drama." She turned to her brother. "Gab, you need to stop leading these girls on."

The door chime sounded again. Annie chewed on her fingernails as she waited.

Their father called out from the living room. "Is anyone going to answer that?"

"We'll get it." Gabriel yelled in return. He threw up his hands, facing Hope. "I was honest from the start, really. We were just going out to have fun, no commitments. But after a couple dates she was, like, starting to plan our wedding." He grabbed his sister by the shoulders. "You gotta tell her I am not here. Tell her I am out on a long haul with Dad and won't be back, maybe forever."