Wren kept his gaze forward as Cyrus opened the back door. “Time to go, troublemaker.”
“HEY! That’smynickname!” Black complained.
Wren ignored both of them.
“Why do we always have to do this the hard way?” Cyrus reached in, barely avoiding getting his hand bitten off by Sable while Blu told him off with defiant chirps. He cursed and jumped back. “Listen…I will drive this car through the side of the building into my office if I have to.”
Black continued to munch on his gummy worms, watching them in amusement. “Let’s do that plan!”
Wren rolled his eyes, catching Sable’s brooding gaze. It seemed to say “I can still eat him if you want.” He nudgedtheir faces together before pulling back. “Fine. Let’s get this over with.”
He motioned Sable out, then scooted over, following him.
“Thank you,” Cyrus sighed, leading them toward a nearby elevator.
They piled in, the metal bucket rocking under Sable’s weight. Cyrus pressed the button for the first floor and tucked his hands into his armpits while Black began to lick the gummy worms and stick them to the mirrored glass.
On floor two the elevator paused, the doors opening to reveal a normal officer who did a double take as soon as his brain registered what was in front of him. Sable growled, curling his lip, and the officer darted backward, nearly falling on his ass.
“What’s the holdup, Worther?” Cyrus snapped. “Stop messing around and get in here already.”
“Oh, uh…I forgot something in my car, sir. I’ll, uh…get the next one.” Worther’s eyes were as wide as dinner plates.
“Fine.” Cyrus hit the button and the doors shut. He shook his head. “They don’t make them like they used to.”
Wren gave him a sidelong look. “Black has warped your perception beyond recognition.”
Cyrus frowned down at him. “What do you mean?”
Wren looked at Black, who was now putting the finishing touches on the skull he had made out of worms. He shook his head. “Nothing.”
The doors opened and Cyrus led them through to the lobby of the precinct, making small talk and calling out greetings in the form of grunts here and there as they passed. Everything screamed of activity. Messy desks, doors leading to tiny offices and meeting rooms, people shouting, sparks of uncontrolled magic cropping up here and there.
Cyrus swiped a card to let them into the PUMA bullpen, leading them through the immediate chaos.
“Hey, boss!”
“Give me a second, Smith!” Cyrus yelled back. “I just got through the freaking door.”
“Smith, do you want some gummies?” Black asked, offering the bag.
Smith recoiled like they were on fire, running the other direction. Wren knew that a lot of the PUMA department were downright terrified of Black, but seeing it made him mad on his behalf. Especially the minute frown that flickered between his brows.
“Boss, there’s some Arcstead cursebreakers in your office,” someone else yelled.
“Wow, Kenedy,” Cyrus drawled. “I’m glad to see we promoted you to the unit based on your excellent deduction skills. Yes, there are cursebreakers in my office. I put them there, idiot.”
Kenedy received a slap around the back of his head from an older gentleman.
“Why is the cursebreaker cuffed?” the older guy asked. “Haven’t heard anything come down from Nexus.”
“It’s a long story. The feline is too. Just…keep these idiots occupied while I deal with this,” Cyrus asked.
“Can do.”
They rounded the bullpen to a corner office. Cyrus opened the door and motioned them in, Wren taking a deep breath before crossing the threshold.
His heart dropped when he saw an unfamiliar figure sitting in front of the desk. The crushing disappointment made it hard to breathe while his heart cried anotherwhere are you, why aren’t you here?
