Page 14 of Rites of Passage

Alicia’s jaw set in a hard line. “You were in the building?”

A guilty look darted across the NYPD Lieutenant’s face. “Yeah.”

The Soul Reaper queen propped her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes, her pupils flashing crimson. “Then, why didn’t you come and help us, asshole?!”

“I was busy,” Jared retorted.

“Busy eating a sandwich?!” Alicia snarled.

Jared did a surprised double take. “How’d you know?”

“There.” Nikolai pointed helpfully at the corner his mouth. “You’ve got some mayo.”

Jared wiped away the evidence with an irritated swipe of his hand.

Major Bianca Schuman headed over to Nikolai and Alicia, her sharp-eyed gaze flitting to Agnes. She was General Cooke’s aide and had been left in charge during his absence, Cooke having gone to Washington to report to the White House and the Pentagon about the incident in New York.

“Mr. Stanisic, Ms. Calvarro.” She dipped her head at them curtly.

“Just call me Alicia.”

Schuman stiffened. “That would seem…disrespectful considering who you are.”

Alicia cocked a thumb at Jared. “That asshole disrespects me all the time.”

Jared made a face.

Schuman glanced uneasily at the NYPD Lieutenant. “Well, heisdescended from a you-know-what.”

Alicia’s expression darkened. “Uriel must be laughing his ass off wherever he is. I’m gonna have a word with that damn archangel some day.”

Schuman’s eyes glazed over slightly at the casual mention of the biblical figure that had given rise to the Immortal races that walked the Earth. She recovered her composure and leveled a hard stare at them.

“Would one of you care to explain what we just witnessed through the cameras? And that beam of white light that shot straight through this facility’s rooftop?”

Shit! It did go all the way through the building.Nikolai sagged.Bryony is gonna be so pissed.

Alastair let out a comforting croon.

“That light was Nikolai’s magic.” The Soul Reaper queen shrugged. “As for the other stuff, I haven’t got a clue. Well, apart from the ghoul. That’s one nasty creature.”

Nikolai grimaced and scratched the back of his head. “Same.”

Schuman’s mouth pressed into a thin line. Her gaze dropped to Nikolai’s hand. “Is that the object she coughed up?”

Nikolai curled his fingers over the key. “Yes. We’ll look into it.”

Schuman squared her shoulders. “Maybe you should give that to us.”

“It’s a magical item,” Alicia intervened. “I doubt your people would know what to do with it.”

The atmosphere in the room grew fractionally cooler.

“Still, it’s the property of the U.S. Special Affairs bureau,” Schuman countered with narrowed eyes.

“I’m afraid not,” Jared interjected. “The coven cut a deal with the U.S government. Anything magical is their domain.”

Schuman looked like she was about to say something when Rita spoke.

---