"I swear, if I'm dying tonight because of you, I'm gonna haunt your ass so hard, Harrington!"
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah! I'm gonna go full Poltergeist and shit!"
"Then bring it, Graveswood."
"Challenge accepted."
***
In which after years of suppressing their...
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Chapter Eighty-Two: The Test
(pre-Suzie, Do You Copy?)
***
"Rowan, wake up! Rowan! ROWAN!"
Rowan groaned as her shoulder was roughly shaken and her name was screamed into her ear. Rolling over, she cracked her eyes open to see her cousin shaking her awake. Past him, she could see that the sun hadn't pierced through the thick curtains of the bedroom she shared with two of her other cousins, and that her roommates were conveniently gone, despite the obviously—and illegally—early hour of the morning.
Eyes narrowed into a glare, Rowan looked at her cousin, who was still shaking her like she was an angry-looking doll, and hissed, "Kieran, if you don't stop shaking me right now, I'm gonna fry you."
Kieran obeyed, taking several steps back like Rowan was going to fry him right then and there, hands raised to placate his still-glowering cousin, not meeting her eyes as if her gaze would be enough to electrocute him to dust.
"Sorry," he mumbled sheepishly. "I wasn't sure if you were awake! Ash and Sage say you're a deep sleeper."
"Well, I'm awake and my brain's thoroughly shaken like it's just gone through an earthquake," Rowan grumbled. "And why the hell are you waking me up so fucking early? It's not even fucking dawn yet."
"Gran wants you and Alistair," Kieran answered, like it explained everything. It did.
Rowan straightened, glare erased as she gave her cousin a now curious look. "She does? Why?"
Kieran shrugged. "Dunno. She didn't say anything except she wants you and Alistair downstairs and for me to wake you both up."
"Of course she didn't," Rowan muttered. Sighing, she pushed the sheets back and sat up, sleep-tangled hair falling around her face.
"Tell Vervain I'll be down there in a minute," Rowan told her cousin.
Kieran nodded, placing his fingers against his forehead and giving her a salute as he backpedaled to the doorway.
"Will do! See ya in a minute, cuz!" he farewelled before his body blurred and he was racing down the stairs. A crash came two seconds later.
"I'm okay!" her cousin shouted.
Rowan rolled her eyes, a fond smile on her face as she rolled out of bed and headed out of the room she shared with Sage and Ash and walked at a leisurely place to the stairs. Dawn light whispered in through the arched, leaded windows, the wood-panelled walls and carpeted foyer sucking it in. Rowan trailed her fingers across the walls, still unused to being in such a rich house. The doors of her family's bedrooms were cracked open and empty, except for two—two that would never be open and never be offered up to visiting guests. Downstairs, she could hear muffled voices, the noise of appliances. All her family was awake.
