Lullaby (The Fable Series, Book 2)

Chapter Thirty

Knock. Knock. Knock.

An insistent tapping against my door wakes me up from a dreamless sleep. The last thing I remember before passing out was staring at the book on my bed, page 63 ripped out by some mystery intruder while I was in Alastaire's room.

How long did I sleep for? Is it morning yet, or is it still the middle of the night?

The room is pitch black, so it must still be dark outside.

I reach for the lamp on my bedside table, knocking over a mason jar filled with fairy bells and lily-of-the-valley in the process. I swear under my breath, wishing that just for once I could actually get a decent night's sleep.

I tap my hand around blindly on the bedside table, but the lamp switch has probably fallen down behind the bed.

Damn.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

"Who's there?" I snap, still fumbling around looking for my bedside lamp switch.

"Cupcake! You need to get dressed immediately!" The voice is muffled by the door, but I can hear he's all hyped up and really excited about something.

Alastaire. As soon as I get this light on I am literally going to murder him.

"Whatever it is, count me out," I mumble. "I'm going back to sleep."

I feel tired, exhausted even. More tired and drained than I have in ages.

I flop back down on my bed, hoping Alastaire gets the hint and clears off.

"Did you forget what day it is today?" Alastaire calls through the door. "We've got something special planned."

That's right. It's Lyall's birthday. Darn.

"It's still the middle of the night though," I half say, half yawn. "Can't it wait until tomor-"

"It's already tomorrow," Alastaire says. "We've only got about half an hour until sunrise, and we need to make it to the car, so there's no time to lose."

"Okay, I'm getting up," I say, pulling myself reluctantly out of bed. I slide my hand into the space between the bed and the bedside table, and finally find the light switch.

My eyes hurt from the sudden flood of light that fills the room as I turn on the lamp.

"So what are we doing?" I ask, trying to sound enthusiastic despite the fact that I could definitely do with a few more hours' sleep. "Minigolf or something? Chuck E. Cheese?"

"No, thank god," Alastaire says. "The destination's a surprise. Just get ready as fast as you can. Wear something comfortable. Remember, less is more. I'll be waiting downstairs with the others."

"Sure, sure," I mutter, dragging myself over to my wardrobe.

My bed is calling me and my eyelids feel like they weigh a tonne, but I've got no choice. So I dab on some moisturizer and brush my hair before getting changed into black harem pants, sneakers, a white camisole and my trusty red hoodie. Can't get much more comfortable than that.

I brush my teeth as quickly as possible, before heading downstairs.

The lounge and kitchen are empty, so I head out to the porch.

As I expected, Lyall and Ben and Elliot are sitting on the steps that lead up to the front door, talking excitedly about something but going silent as soon as I step out of the cabin.

Alastaire and Kitty are looking at something on her phone – a map from the sounds of it, the way they're arguing about a turnoff and highway numbers.