Page 57 of Rites of Passage

Vlad grabbed Tarang’s scruff and backpedaled to a safe distance. Nikolai took Armand’s arm and did the same.

“What’s going on?” the secretary asked, perplexed.

“She’s about to blow a fuse.” Vlad made a face. “And it won’t be pretty.”

Armand swallowed nervously.

Mae started chuckling. Soon, her shoulders were shaking uncontrollably with her mirth. She threw her head back and laughed until she cried.

The crowd stared, unsure how to react.

“Has she gone mad?” Karin said to no one in particular.

Mae finally took a gulping breath and wiped the tears from her eyes. She looked over at Bryony. “I’m sorry. I know you and Armand told me to give them the benefit of the doubt, but it’s clear someone needs to do the magic community a favor and remove these people’s heads from their collective asses.”

Someone sniggered in the crowd. They were rapidly hushed.

“After the stunt they just tried to pull, I wouldn’t blame you.” Bryony narrowed her eyes at the High Council, her voice hard. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Gerard’s brows met. “What do you mean—?”

Mae’s pupils flashed crimson.

The air shivered. The chandeliers tinkled. A sconce fell off the wall. Alarmed cries ripped through the ballroom. They became choked with fear when Brimstone changed into his true form, his nine tails causing a harsh wind to erupt as they vibrated savagely. Hellreaver detached himself from Mae’s neck and morphed into the double-bladed dagger, his edges gleaming ominously as he exposed his fangs.

Redness blossomed around Mae, wrapping her in a scarlet aura. The gold and crystal piece holding her chignon fell as she rose amidst a storm of her own making, her hair fluttering wildly around her. Vlad lunged forward and caught the hairpiece before it landed on the floor.

“Who am I, you ask?” Mae’s voice chilled Nikolai to the bone as it reverberated around them. “I am the daughter of Ran Soyun, the first witch who ever walked this Earth, and Azazel, the demon whose magic runs in all your veins. I am your queen.” Her words rose to a roar. “And you will show me the respect my presence warrants!”

Nikolai’s skin prickled. He was certain he’d heard another voice beneath Mae’s.Is that Na Ri?!

Demonic magic blasted from Brimstone. The fox gnashed his teeth.

“It seems you have forgotten who your true master is.” He took a threatening step toward Karin, flecks of drool dripping from his jowls. The witch recoiled when his shadow fell upon her. “Shall we teach you how to bow?!”

Hellreaver opened his jaws and let loose the voices of a thousand demons.

A savage pressure descended upon the ballroom. Nikolai grunted and widened his stance to maintain his balance. He had to draw on his magic to stop it from crushing him.

The power of the Witch Queen drove everyone to their knees bar him, Vlad, and the strongest witches and sorcerers in the room. Even then, it was clear that those still left standing were struggling to keep their legs from buckling under them. Nikolai’s mouth went dry as he slowly lifted his head and stared at the woman hovering above them in all her resplendent fury, the tendons in his neck screaming.

She really is something else!

Vlad’s reverential expression reflected the emotions coursing through him.

Someone dropped to the ground, unconscious. Another person threw up. Mae retracted her magic as more followed.

Nikolai gasped, oxygen flooding his starving lungs.

The witch landed nimbly on the ground, ignored the dazed stares of the swaying High Council, and scanned the ballroom with a heavy frown.

“Here’s what we’re going to do,” she declared. “First, someone is going to bring these guys some steak before they eat some of your familiars.” She cocked her thumb at Brimstone and Hellreaver. “You people haveno ideawhat they’ve been saying about them.”

A shudder shook her.

Nikolai blinked. Vlad snorted.

“Come now, my witch. You exaggerate.” Brimstone bared his teeth. “I was only going to consumesomeof them.”

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