“Wow. Busy day.”
I pushed up to my tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “Trust me. I’m saving the best for last.”
The Oaks Cemeterywas quiet except for Francine’s muffled shrieks of joy.
“Blissful, I can’t tell you how happy I am for what you’ve done for me—getting me back in the cemetery where I belong. Playing the banshee was fun, but I’m ready to be here.”
I smiled at her. “If it wasn’t for you, I never would’ve discovered my parents weren’t really my parents.”
Francine wrapped me in a bosom-filled hug. “You’re so welcome.” She extended her hands to Roan. “Would you like a hug?”
He stepped back and raised his hands in a stop gesture. “I’m okay.”
Captain Blount drifted over to us. “Welcome, Francine. We’re most delighted to have you back.”
Granny Mildred spat. I shot her a dark glare that suggested I was on to her, which I was, given that she’d been at Jeffrey’s rally.
But I stayed silent about my findings.
“Darling.” Francine took my hands. “If you ever need anything, I’m here for you.”
“Thank you.”
Captain Blount nodded to me, and he escorted Francine through the headstones until they vanished from view. Granny Mildred vanished moments later.
Roan wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “So. What do we do now? I don’t have a teacher, but I still feel as if I need help, guidance.”
I sighed into him, letting Roan’s body keep me upright. “I guess we’ll have to start looking in the phone book.”
He glanced down at me. “Are you kidding?”
I shook my head. “No, I’m not.”
“And what about our supposed interaction?”
I tipped my chin up and studied him. “It was a lie that Owen and Tart made up to keep us separated. If we were together, they wouldn’t be able to coerce me into leaving with them.”
He frowned. “You sure about that?”
“Roan, in all my life I’d never heard of such a thing until they showed up. I believe our gifts are so different that we’ll each be affected by the other, but as for the world splitting open and spirits becoming more powerful, it’s baloney.”
Roan’s grip on me tightened. “Good. ’Cause I don’t think I could stand to be more separated from you than we have been lately.”
“Me neither.”
He scooped me up into a kiss. My feet left the ground, and I bent my knees, feeling small and safe in his arms.
When we parted, Roan gently dropped me to the ground and brushed a strand of violet hair from my eyes. “I love you, killer.”
“I love you, giant.”
He howled with laughter. My phone buzzed. I fished it from my pocket and answered.
“Blissful?” Ruth said.
“Yes?”
“I hope I’m not bothering you.”
