→ IN CHARACTER INFORMATION
Character Name: Piper Sinclair
Faceclaim Choice: Sarah Shahi
Gender and Pronouns: Female, She/Her
Occupation: Owner of Texas Hold ‘Em Shooting Range
Family: In favour of the Almeida cartel
Position: The Lieutenant for the Almeida Family
Born into the pitiless life of moving from one foster home to another in Detroit, Piper was a reckless girl whose resentment towards her birth parents left her getting into all kinds of trouble. She spent the majority of her childhood and teenage years in and out of a children’s home – by age 15 she had been fostered by five different families. Piper wasn’t solely to blame for her misplaced tendencies as all those who took her in only did so with the selfish intent of pilfering extra money from the government.
On the verge of being irremediable, Robert and Cathy Sinclair pulled a Hail Mary and adopted Piper at the age of 16. He was a Chaplain in the Army and she a simple housewife – unable to have children of their own, the Sinclair’s mission in life was to adopt troubled teenagers in hopes they could provide a second chance at life. Piper did not resist the adoption for living with the Sinclair’s in Colorado Springs surely would deliver a better quality of life.
Despite remaining incapable of opening herself up to them emotionally, life with the Sinclair’s was great. Piper had a roof over her head, a room that was her own and delicious food at every meal. Over the course of the three years Piper spent with the Sinclair’s they had adopted two other teenagers, a girl and boy. Piper stayed apathetic though grateful towards Cathy but connected with Robert as he relentlessly adapted until he could find a way to relate to her avoidance dispositions. He taught her discipline and gave her structure – a mutual respect grew between them in just two short years.
A few weeks before Piper’s 18th birthday, the Sinclair family received notice that there had been a training accident on base. Robert had taken time out of his day to visit the most recent basic training class on the gun range. All it took was one trainee who hadn’t paid attention and the bullet that discharged from the barrel of the rifle nicked Robert in the neck, severing his carotid artery. He died in the ambulance on his way to the hospital. After his funeral, Cathy started on a downward spiral – she began to drink heavily and her tender nature towards the teens ceased to exist. She stopped cleaning, cooking – caring. Piper came home one afternoon and found Cathy in the tub, water over flowing – the crimson color had stained the stark white tile. Almost too cool and collected, Piper called 911 and then locked herself in her bedroom. Three days later she turned 18 and enlisted in the U.S. Army. She had no other purpose in life and no one else to care for her – she did it to honor the only person that up to that point had mattered in her life.
After taking the ASVAB, Piper was selected to become an Explosive Ordinance Disposal Specialist. She soared through basic training and graduated top of her Advanced Individual Training class in Virginia. As Robert had been quick to observe, Piper always had affection for things that went BOOM. It was only fitting that Piper served in the U.S. Army as an EOD Specialist for 12 years – working her way up the enlisted ranks to become Sergeant First Class.
Logar Province, Eastern Afghanistan – August of 2011- Piper and her team were out on a mission to scout and diffuse a series of IED’s that popped up on the main convoy route. Charlotte Almeida was the civilian journalist that had been attached to her team for the last few weeks – always in tow everywhere they went. Piper appreciated that Charlotte could hold her own, but she still felt this particular mission was no place for the woman who had become somewhat of a friend. They were told the area had been cleared of insurgents – all was good to go. Piper disputed Charlotte’s attendance but the argument became more trouble than it was worth.
The mission went smoothly at first, four IED’s dismantled and carted off by a remote controlled robot as they moved cautiously down the road. The next one the group encountered was set up a short distance from the entrance of a village that had long been deemed friendly. They started the removal process with the robot but a malfunction caused it to break down halfway there. Something in the air suddenly felt off to Piper and she ushered Charlotte to the far side of the last armored vehicle in their convoy. They hadn’t taken more then two steps behind it when a string of explosions went off – sending the lead vehicle airborne. Shards of metal flew all around them and dust clouded the sky. Piper shoved Charlotte to the ground and rounded the back of the Humvee – running right into the thick of it to check on her team. Piper made it only a few feet before being blinded by a flash of light, her ears ringing – the wind knocked from her chest as she was blasted onto her back.
A week later Piper awoke in a hospital in Germany disoriented, cut up and now deaf in her right ear. Upon learning that she and Charlotte were the only survivor’s, Piper refused to see or speak with anyone for quite some time. Guilt was a foreign concept to Piper and to this day she still struggles with it. After a few weeks of physical therapy, Piper was eventually released from the hospital and the Army with an honorable discharge. First the Sinclair’s and now this – Piper once again found herself without a family – with no where to go and nothing to do. That was until she reconnected with Charlotte who presented her with an opportunity Piper would’ve been a fool to pass up.
It wasn’t long before Piper proved her worth and earned her ranking as the Almeida family’s Lieutenant. In an effort to bring in more cash, Piper and Charlotte went into business together and opened the Texas Hold 'Em Shooting Range. Piper’s only stipulation was that a plaque was to be hung over the main entrance in memoriam of Robert Sinclair.
Even after being with the Almeida family for 7 years now, Piper could give two shits about the drama between the four families– but when it comes to her guns and explosives, she harbors such a sense of pride that you better hope and pray you’re not on the other end of her barrel. If Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned… just imagine what it can do to a woman who believes she has nothing to lose.
To say that Piper is a shell of the woman she once was would imply that Piper encompassed the human nature to act in a way that society would deem “normal” in the first place. From when she was a child to present day, Piper has always been distant and more so, unsympathetic towards others. No longer responsible for the livelihood of her soldiers, Piper can count on one hand the number of people she would - without a second thought - lay down her life for. She is rough, tough and can out drink most in town. She’s temperamental, deranged, vulgar and always down to talk weapons and explosives. She has almost two decades of experience under her belt and has a zero tolerance policy for others that feel like they have something to prove. Piper isn’t a saint or a sinner - she’s a survivor. Get caught in her cross hairs and the only mercy you’ll find is by pulling the trigger yourself.
