Page 31 of The Diamond in the Rough

It was my turn to blush. “Sorry.”

Mason blinked a couple times. “You actually threw up?” he asked me, surprised.

“Y-yes?” I’d assumed that was why he’d said that.

“I took it out,” Raj said quietly. “Since I was the one who asked him to try reading the necklace again.”

Ward sucked in a breath, but then let it out again without actually saying anything.

Mason smiled a little. “Wouldn’t be the first time we had somebody puke in a trash can,” he remarked mildly. “I’m sure it won’t be the last.”

Ward huffed out a sigh and rolled his eyes. “It’s beenyears,” he muttered.

“Yeah, what happened?” Hart asked him, his tone teasing. “Maza says you haven’t splattered a crime scene in ages.”

“Fuck all of you,” Ward grumbled.

Hart grinned over at me, and I realized that both he and Mason had done this on purpose—to make me feel better. My face heated.

“Like it or not, Campion, the kid’s our best shot here,” Hart pointed out. “And he’s not doing anything dumber than you ever did.”

“Arguably less dumb, in fact,” Mason put in. “Given that he’s doing so here, where we can help him if he needs it.” He paused a moment. “And he hasn’t even set anything on fire yet.”

Ward glared at him.

A votive on the table suddenly caught fire.

“Hah!” Mason said, pointing at Sylvia, who had been staring intensely at the candle. “Fire. I knew it!”

She looked over at him primly, then gave herself substance so that he, Hart, and Raj would be able to see and hear her.“Did you now?”she asked mildly.

“Ward isn’t a fire-witch,” Mason replied smugly. “And your little experiments catch on fire an awful lot.”

“Would someone care to explain what this has to do with Rayn using his psychic abilities to help us with this case?” Raj interrupted.

“Not a thing, my swarthy darling,”Sylvia cooed.

“God, Sylvia, not okay,” Ward snapped. “You can’tsayshit like that.”

Raj did look rather nonplussed by her remark.

Sylvia rolled her eyes.“Should I usesahib, then?”

“NO!” Literally everyone except me and Archie answered that question at the same time with various degrees of horror. Archie cackled. I just gaped at her.

“Sylvia,” Ward said, his voice and expression pained. “Youcannotuse racist terms from the height of the fucking British Empire.”

The Victorian ghost pouted.“None of you are any fun. Especially you, Nancy.”

“Sylvia, so help me God, Iwillbanish you if you don’t cut that shit out,” Ward threatened, although I knew he wouldn’t do it.

So did she.“Pah. You will not. You adore me.”

I could practically hear him grinding his teeth. “But I can take away your ability to speak, and if that’s the shit that comes out of your insubstantial mouth, I absolutely will.”

Sylvia let out a dramatic sigh—made even more melodramatic because she didn’t need to breathe.“Oh, verywell.”She looked over at Raj.“I beg your pardon, Agent Parikh. It was all meant in good fun.”

Raj stared at her for a moment. “Apology accepted,” he said, finally. “And you may call me Raj, if you wish.”