The cards were smoking vigorously now. Sadie was far more worried about her brother’s temper than the playing cards in hand. Ethans blood ran hot, and Brennan was the worst of all of them. Sadie drew in a deep breath. Already she could feel her ears reddening, her own teeth grinding as she tried to keep her irritation under control. 

“You’re a prat,” she informed her brother with a hiss, “Get out of my compartment.”

“Shut it you little shit,” Brennan was surlier than usual—he must [i]really[/i] hate Theo, she surmised. She knew him well enough to know he was simply lashing out, emotionally crippled as he was. Still, her lips pursed into a thin line at his poor manners. Instinctively, she chucked her cards at him. Several of them exploded along the way, and it filled her with a vicious sort of pleasure to see her idiot brother flinch back. For a moment she thought he might tackle her; their childhood had been half spent in cahoots and half spent trying to maim each other. She jut out her chin, sitting up as tall as she could.

He made an irritated huff that sounded something like ‘brat’, but he stalked out nonetheless. Sadie tutted, sticking her tongue out at his disappearing back. After a long moment (and a quick set of deep breaths), she shot George an apologetic look. Sadie had the good grace to blush.

“So,” she said after a beat, “My brother’s kind of a jerk. A lot a jerk,” she amended thoughtfully, scrambling to pick up the cards she’d chucked at him. “He kind of turned into a rampaging git a few years back. He used to be pleasant, I swear.”

She sighed there, before bouncing back brightly.

“I’m sorry about all that!”