Noble Heights — Holland Residence
After the exhaustive search, the three STF officers regrouped in the front hall. Winter light slanted across the floor, dust motes drifting in the stillness.
Konstantin Wagner straightened his long coat.
"Report. Anything, Frieda? Lucy?"
Red-haired Frieda replied first. "Bedrooms, storage, cellar—nothing suspicious, sir."
Brown-haired Lucy Hayes shook her head. "Drawers and attic clean. No sign of contraband."
"Understood." Konstantin set his cap firmly on his head, the polished visor catching a dull gleam. He turned to Audrey, who waited with crossed arms and an arched brow.
"Mrs. Holland, we appreciate your cooperation. Please pardon any disturbance." His tone was impeccably formal.
Audrey's answering smile was razor-thin. "Oh, of course, Colonel. Have a great day."
As the officers stepped outside, Lucy glanced back once, guilt flickering in her eyes, then hurried after her superior.
Audrey watched them reach the gate, then muttered, " 'Hope you pardon us'—my ass." She stuck out her tongue for good measure.
Kite exhaled—relief and dread in equal measure. He turned—
Ryenne stood directly behind him.
She seized his wrist with a grip like iron. "Upstairs. Now."
"Ryenne—hey—"
She didn't answer. Her eyes were cold, her jaw set. She dragged him down the hall, heels clicking like a judge's gavel, and shoved him into his room.
The door shut with finality.
Ryenne thrust a familiar blue-and-gold tome toward him—The Tale of Mono and Azeo.
"Explain," she said, voice level but lethal.
Kite's shoulders sagged. "I… found it in the second level. It felt like it was calling to me—"
"So you stole it?" Her tone cracked like frost. "Those shelves are locked for a reason, blockhead. Curses. Eldritch horrors. Do you even think?"
"I—It wasn't like that. It was… pulling me."
She opened the cover—blank parchment, page after page. "What were you 'reading,' then? Invisible ink?"
Kite had no answer. The shame in his silence was louder than any excuse.
Ryenne pressed two fingers to her temple, exhaling slowly. "Audrey nearly went to war with STF for you. Remember that."
He stared at the floor. "I know."
She stepped toward the door, then paused. "You just gave Audrey a senseless headache, you realize."
Kite's voice was small. "Sorry."
"Pathetic. And you're supposed to be the sensible one between us?" The bite in her words stung—but a flicker of guilt crossed her face. "Once you're done grieving, get ready."
"Ready… for what?"
She reddened, coughed into her fist. "For shopping, genius. Jyotiksha. We had plans. And no, it isn't a—" she muttered something unintelligible—"date." She cleared her throat. "Be downstairs in ten."
She left, door closing more gently this time.