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as good car karma?” Jade asked, but she seemed resigned to her fate of being without wheels for a while. Good.
    Until recently, Jade had been a stellar student. She had a high IQ and had had a keen interest in school; in fact, she had breezed through any number of accelerated classes. Then, about a year ago, she’d discovered boys, and her grades had begun to slip. Now, despite the fact that it might be a bit passé, Jade was into all things Goth and wildly in love with her boyfriend, an older kid who’d barely graduated from high school and didn’t seem to give a damn about anything but music, marijuana, and, most likely, sex. A pseudo-intellectual, he’d dropped out of college and loved to argue politics.
    Jade thought the sun rose and set on Cody Russell.
    Sarah was pretty sure it didn’t.
    â€œCome on, let’s go,” she told her daughters.
    Jade wasn’t budging. She dragged her cell phone from her purse. “Do I have to?”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œShe’s such a pain,” Gracie said in a whisper. At twelve, she was only starting to show some interest in boys, and still preferred animals, books, and all things paranormal to the opposite sex, so far at least. Blessed with an overactive imagination and, again, keen intelligence, Gracie too was out of step with her peers.
    â€œI heard that.” Jade messed with her phone.
    â€œIt is kinda creepy, though,” Gracie admitted, leaning forward as the first drops of rain splashed against the windshield.
    â€œBeyond creepy!” Jade wasn’t one to hold back. “And . . . Oh, God, don’t tell me we don’t get cell service here.” Her face registered complete mortification.
    â€œIt’s spotty,” Sarah said.
    â€œGod, Mom, what is this? The Dark Ages? This place is . . . it’s horrible . Blue Peacock Manor, my ass.”
    â€œHey!” Sarah reprimanded sharply. “No swearing. Remember? Zero.”
    â€œBut, Jesus, Mom—”
    â€œAgain?” Sarah snapped. “I just said no.”
    â€œOkay!” Jade flung back, then added, a little more calmly, “Come on, Mom. Admit it. Blue Peacock is a dumb name. It even sounds kind of dirty.”
    â€œWhere is this coming from?” Sarah demanded.
    â€œJust sayin’.” Jade dropped her phone into her bag. “And Becky told me the house is haunted.”
    â€œSo now you’re listening to Becky?” Sarah set the parking brake and reached for the handle of the door. The day was quickly going from bad to worse. “I didn’t think you liked her.”
    â€œI don’t.” Jade sighed theatrically. “I’m just telling you what she said.” Becky was Jade’s cousin, the daughter of Sarah’s older sister, Dee Linn. “But it’s not like I have a zillion friends here, is it?”
    â€œOkay. Got it.” In Sarah’s opinion, Becky wasn’t to be trusted; she was one of those teenaged girls who loved to gossip and stir things up a bit, gleeful to cause a little trouble, especially for someone else. Becky cut a wide swath through everyone else’s social life. Just like her mother. No doubt Becky’d heard from Dee Linn the tales that Blue Peacock Manor harbored its own special ghosts. That kind of gossip, swirling so close to home, just barely touching her life but not ruining it, was right up Dee Linn’s alley.
    Gracie said, “I think the house looks kinda cool. Creepy cool.”
    Jade snorted. “What would you know about cool?”
    â€œHey . . . ,” Sarah warned her oldest.
    Used to her older sister’s barbs, Gracie pulled the passive-aggressive card and acted as if she hadn’t heard the nasty ring to her sister’s question. She changed the conversation back to her favorite topic. “Can we get a dog, Mom?” Before Sarah could respond, she added quickly. “You said we could. Remember? Once we moved here, you