Consciousness came back slowly to Rowan...
His sight caught the ceiling first, normal white but unfamiliar then he felt the weight of a mattress beneath him that wasn't his own, sheets that smelled like... Just something particularly about his father's mansion.
He lay still for a moment, trying to regain his ability. His head ached at the base of his skull, a deep, settled thing that felt like it had been there for hours. His ribs were sore and his mouth was dry.
He turned his head and he saw Doctor Joshua, their family doctor standing with his back to the bed, speaking in a low, careful voice to two people near the window.
His parents.
Gwendolyn sat upright with her hands folded in her lap, the posture of a woman holding herself together through sheer structure. Richard sat beside her, arms crossed, his face sealed shut, devoid of any visible expression.
Rowan didn't announce that he was awake.
