“You show up here with her, half naked and you expect me to let it go?”

  “No. I am telling you to let it go because it’s none of your goddamn business.”

  “You’re not going to bully me into submission, Cam. She arrived in your shirt, no pants wrapped in a damn blanket. If you’re sleeping with her, it affects all of us.”

  “Like hell it does.”

  “It does, Cam, because we both know you’d get bored with her and ruin what we’re trying to build here. We’re a team. We can’t be one if you two can’t work together.”

  Huh? That sounded like the same line Cam had been spewing at me for weeks. We’re a team. Perhaps my head was playing tricks on me. Derek’s voice was speaking Cam’s words.

  “You should be more concerned with her gift and less about what she does with her body. She killed them, but it wasn’t her gift she used.”

  “What do you mean?” Derek asked sounding suddenly intrigued.

  “It was mine.”

  Silence swarmed around me as I swam in the obscurity.

  Bright light pierced my eyes. It took me a moment to realize I had opened them. My head pounded as I held it between my hands.

  “You took quite a spill,” Derek’s voice rang out.

  “Am I on concussion detail again?”

  “If that’s what you want to call it.” He handed me some pills. I didn’t even look at them before popping them in my mouth. My head hurt too bad to care. “Cam will be along in a minute. He wants to talk to you about what happened.” I nodded understanding then instantly regretting the movement.

  “How long was I out?”

  “I honestly don’t know. He got you here a little before lunch and it’s eight now.”

  “So about twelve hours then.”

  “You remember when it happened?” Derek asked.

  “Yeah,” I said refusing to nod anymore.

  Derek was preparing to open his mouth to speak, when the door opened, revealing Cam.

  “I’ll give you two a minute,” Derek announced. “I’ll go tell Ty Evie’s awake.”

  “Thanks,” Cam muttered. In that one word, hostility rang heavy in his voice, not to mention the tension between the two of them. I wondered what caused it.

  Cam came to sit beside me on the bed the moment Derek left. I wanted to move closer, but I told myself it was a bad idea. With how carried away things became at the shack, I definitely needed to keep some space between us before I wound up hurting worse than I already was.

  “Do you remember what happened?”

  “I killed three wolves,” I stated remembering the events before I passed out.

  He nodded. “You did.”

  “The seal?” I wondered.

  “No sign of it breaking yet. Maybe I was wrong about the number of kills.”

  “Is it bad that I feel more pissed than upset about taking their lives? Am I becoming jaded?”

  “No,” he sighed. “To both. But we need to talk about what happened, how you killed those wolves.”

  I wanted to shrug, but thought better of it. “I don’t know, Cam. It’s only ever happened one other time.”

  “When you thought I was hurt,” he finished.

  I nodded, then winced from the movement, praying the drugs Derek gave me would kick in soon. “Yeah, but that’s not what happened this time. I knew you were fine.”

  “When you did it the first time, were you touching me?”

  My brow scrunched as I struggled to remember what he was asking. I could visualize my hands on his face as I wished vengeance on the wolves.

  “Yeah, I was.”

  “You sure?” he asked and I nodded. Derek had made me relive that scene so many times trying to tap into my gift that I could probably tell you what everyone was wearing. Cam let out a long breath. “Okay.” He reached over grabbing my hand giving it a gentle squeeze. “I’ll go get the guys. Tyler got something off of those pictures on your phone.”

  I was confused by the interaction with Cam. He seemed kinder than what he had been recently. When I told him that I had been touching him, he didn’t ask any more questions.

  The other three horsemen sat around my room. I had offered to have the meeting downstairs, but none of them wanted me to move since my head was still threatening to split. I managed to slip into some pajama pants before they arrived, not wanting to think who all saw my underwear when I’d been brought home.

  Tyler laid sprawled out beside me on the right side of the bed. Derek sat by my feet. And Cam sat beside me on the edge to my left. I found myself gravitating towards him. It sounded weird, but just touching him calmed, not only my emotions, but also my pain. He scooted closer like he knew I needed to touch him. I didn’t protest. Soon enough we’d both go back to the way it was just the day before.

  “This is bigger than just the businesses Asher is involved with. Several companies are in New York, but most are spread across the country,” Tyler explained. “They’re using climate control as a means to hide what they’re doing. And that’s just for money. Several of these companies,” he held up the sheets I stole, “are doing similar things as Incendium as far as human trafficking.”

  “Do we know why demons are involved in human trafficking?” Cam asked.

  Tyler, looking grim, replied, “They’re hosts.”

  “As in demon hosts?” I asked.

  Ty nodded.

  “How many?” Derek questioned.

  “At least 150 give or take a dozen,” Tyler answered searching through the papers in his lap. “I also have a pretty good idea where they’re keeping them.”

  “Where?” We all asked simultaneously.

  “Salem.” The others all looked bleak. When Tyler saw I didn’t understand the direness of the situation he explained. “Salem is built over one of the seven Gates to Hell. It’s why the locals all went off in the 1600s, killing their neighbors, believing they were witches. Weird shit happens over the Hell Gates. Of course, they didn’t know when they built their town on it. They just felt the energy and thought it was a good spot.”

  “Do you have a pin point location?” Cam asked.

  “I do. Right before the disappearances began, a new building was erected over where we believe the gate is located.”

  “Makes sense,” Derek mumbled. “They’d have a straight shot to Hell. They could walk the humans right through the door using a million reasons. It’s a public building so no one would think anything. Then once they’re inside, lead them to the gate and bam instant demon host.”

  “Whoever’s breaking the seals is doing this for a reason,” Tyler went on. “Most likely cannon fodder for us so she can continue breaking the seals. We can’t kill that many demons.”

  “What about the human hosts?” I asked.

  The guys all shook their heads. “It’s not like TV, Evie,” Derek explained. “A body can only hold one soul at a time. When the demon possesses a human, they battle for the body and the stronger soul wins.”

  “Usually the demon,” Cam added. We were all quiet for a moment pondering the information before us. There had to be a way to get past all the people they had turned into demons. Like answering my thought, Cam spoke, “Evie can do it.”

  We all whipped our heads gawking at Cam. “What?” I asked. “No I can’t.”

  “Derek and I have both seen you do it.”

  I began shaking my head. I could see how he thought that. Derek and I had been working on trying to repeat the act for some time, with no success. I had no idea how I managed to kill the wolves when I had been attempting not to. “I don’t know how.”

  “Fortunately, I do.”

  I sat in the barn, my legs crossed and eyes closed, trying to calm my nerves.

  “I don’t understand how this is going to help,” I stated. “Both times I’ve done it I wasn’t anywhere close to being calm.”

  Cam huffed. I could hear him walking circles around me, which wasn’t adding to the calmness I was trying to evoke. Right now he was testing a theory. Tyler sat in front of me his hands in mine. Cam believed that I had tapped into his power to advance my gift. War could throw out a sphere of rage tagging anyone 360 degrees from him. I thought it was strange that my dream had gotten it right. It made me wonder if the rest of what I heard had really happened.

  I tried explaining that I had already tried this with Derek, but Cam believed that because Derek’s gift was the same as mine, by touch, that it wouldn’t work. Since we knew it worked with Cam, we were seeing if I could use Tyler’s gift to make death seep around like a virus. It would be more useful than Cam’s sphere. Tyler could choose whom he infected from a specific group, species or even individuals.

  “You need to control it, not let it control you. You couldn’t make it stop the other day.”

  Derek wasn’t too thrilled with having his lesson hijacked by Cam, especially since he hadn’t made any progress with me thus far. Cam seemed to have already figured out that touch was how I expanded my gift.

  “Alright, do you remember your emotions both times you tapped into my gift?”

  “Pretty pissed off.”

  “So rage?” I could hear the uncertainty in his voice. Rage was one of his gifts. It wasn’t meant to affect us, yet I touched him feeling rage and then used his gift.

  “Not exactly rage. Pissed off pretty much describes it. You know annoyed, but stronger. I didn’t want anyone dead. The first time, yeah, I wanted revenge, but not death. And the other night, I was aggravated that they were trying to end the world and were using me as a tool.”

  Cam took a deep breath. “Yeah, that sounds more like pissed than rage. Okay. So tap into those emotions. Let them fill you up. Think about what was happening either time you used my gift.”

  I did as he asked. I remembered how I felt, the thoughts that were flooding through my mind. I could feel my power begin to bubble to the surface. I thought about how I saw Pestilence spread through the wolves the other night. How it moved like a milky fog, but nothing happened. The power stayed simmering under my skin begging for an escape.

  “Shit!” Ty yipped yanking his hand free with such force I lost my balance and began tumbling backwards. Hands caught me around my arms. My power flared spreading out like a silver sphere. Without even looking I knew it was Cam touching me. “Shit,” Ty whispered for an entirely different reason.

  “Bring it back, Evie,” Cam whispered calmly from behind me. I tried tugging on it, but I only succeeded in slowing it down. He wasn’t worried about me hurting anyone. Our nearest neighbor was a few acres away. With the amount of land our house sat on, along with theirs, it put a great distance between us. Cam was trying to let me work the magic, otherwise he could just pull his hands from me and sever my use of his gift. “Try thinking calming thoughts.”

  “Like what?” I hissed, struggling with the power.

  “Think about the other night when you kissed me,” he whispered against my ear so only I could hear. Stunned from his words, the power instantly halted, like it was shocked too. “Good. Close your eyes. Do it,” he insisted when I didn’t. “Now think about my hands on your body. Fingertips along your arm.” Goose bumps appeared under his palms from his words like they were causing a ghost of a touch. “Grazing up your back. My lips on your neck. Kissing my way—”

  He stopped abruptly. I opened my eyes; unsure why he ceased the spell he’d been casting over me. When my lashes fluttered open, I remembered where I was along with who all was present. My cheeks flamed. Neither Ty nor Derek seemed to be paying attention to Cam’s words, but to the power I had just created. I turned to meet his eyes. Cam smiled reassuringly. Stepping back, he allowed the cool air to replace the warmth on my skin where his hands had just been. I was confused for a moment until I realized the sphere was gone.

  I shook my head clearing the fog in my brain. Somehow Cam’s words had distracted me enough to bring the power back to me. I felt a little light headed, but not nearly as bad as I had the past two times the power took over.

  “Why didn’t it work with me?” Tyler asked clutching his hand to his chest. I could see scorch marks similar to the ones I gave Derek, when he first tried to get me to do this task.

  “I don’t know,” Cam replied, but it didn’t sound completely truthful. “At least we know my theory was partially true. What happened, Evie, right before you zapped Ty?”

  “I could feel it, my power swelling. It wanted out.”

  “And now?” he asked.

  I shook my head. “It’s back to normal. It wanted out so bad. I think that’s why it burned Ty. He’s a horseman so I can’t kill him but it had no way out.”

  “And when I touched you, were you still trying to expel it?”

  “No, I was distracted with hurting Tyler. The moment you touched me, it just happened on it’s own. I’ve never knowingly tried to use your gift. It just happens.” I grasped my head feeling lightheaded.

  “Tired?” Cam asked. “Or can you try again?”

  “I think I need a few minutes.” I closed my eyes. Lying backwards on the pillows that were piled behind me incase I passed out; I decided to take a short nap.

  When my lashes fluttered open, I was looking into Cam’s ocean blue eyes.

  “Uh…” I groaned. “How many hours was I out this time?”

  He chuckled. “Just ten minutes.”

  “You’re fucking with me,” I stated.

  He shook his head. “If it had been longer, I’d have at least taken you to your bed, like I’ve done every other time.”

  “You’ve taken me to bed both times when I passed out?” I wondered. He shrugged like it was no big deal. “Where’s everyone?” I glanced around realizing we were alone.

  “Just us. I’m going to take over your lesson for a while since we seem to work together.” His mouth tugged up in the corner like a nervous tick. We hadn’t really been working together and he knew it. I also realized that he meant our gifts worked together, not us. I wondered why his did and not the others. “After you get a handle on using my gift, we’ll see if you can work with Ty’s too.”

  “Sounds like a plan. Is Derek taking over your lesson then?”

  He shook his head. “Not unless you wish. I get spending that much time with me probably isn’t what you want, but I’m better with weapons than Derek.”

  Speaking of Derek reminded me of the change in his demeanor. “He’s mad. Why?”

  Cam sighed pinching the bridge of his nose looking exhausted. “We had words when I got back with you. He was upset we didn’t head to the check point or call.”

  “We were being chased by werewolves and our phones took a dunk in the water.”

  Cam smiled flatly. “I told him the same thing. He sometimes forgets that he’s not in charge.”

  “Who is?”

  Cam shrugged. “It all depends on the mission. This one was mine. You and I got the information. No offense, but you’re not ready to take charge since you’ve only been at this a few months so it would fall to me. Otherwise, we’d either both lead or one of us would have deferred to the other.”

  “I get it.” I waved him off from trying to spare my feelings over not being in charge. “Is it why you took it as your duty to protect me?” He was the leader so it made sense.

  “No. I do that because I’m the best person to and—” he stopped abruptly.

  “And—?” When he didn’t answer I replied for him. “And because I’m a valuable member of this team and the team comes first?”

  “Something like that,” he mumbled. “Ready?” he asked holding his hands out to me. I nodded, taking them and began concentrating as I had earlier.

  It didn’t take nearly as long to develop the sphere as last time, but I struggled with bringing it back into me.

  After Cam spoke to me similar to earlier, he smirked smugly after I succeeded in bringing the power back. “Does that really help or do you just enjoy me talking dirty to you.”

  “Both,” I beamed flirtatiously at him. Then I remembered why it wasn’t a good idea. “Sorry. I didn’t mean—”

  “Evie,” he stated firmly cutting me off. “I’m sorry too.”

  I opened my mouth to ask what he meant. What was he sorry for? But he beat me to it.

  “I think we’re done for today. You’re actually pulling my energy from me when you do this so I think we’ll try again in a few days.” He stood and left. My eyes followed his every step feeling more confused than I had since the night at the club.

  Remembering the club, I needed to know if we had enough information so I could stop pretending to date Asher.

  “Sorry,” Tyler replied when I asked. “Of course it’s a group vote and if you decide you don’t want to do it anymore, you can say no and that puts the vote fifty-fifty unless Derek changes his mind too. But split down the middle, since it’s your mission you get the swing vote to no.”

  “Why do I need to? Just tell me that much.”

  He sighed. “Because we need an in, just incase we need more information, and we shouldn’t just sever the bridge unless there’s a reason. He’s in to you.”

  I shook my head. “I think he’s using me as much as I am him.”

  Ty cocked is head to the side curiously. “Why do you say that?”

  I sighed rubbing a palm down my face. “The other night when Cam showed up, I felt like I was a fire hydrant.”

  “I—I don’t know what you mean.” His face contorted with confusion.

  “I was in the middle of a pissing contest. Asher seemed more into Cam’s reaction to kissing me than mine.”

  Tyler’s eyes widened. “Cam saw you kissing Asher?”

  I rolled my eyes. “It’s not that big of a deal. Asher caught me going through his files and I needed to distract him.”

  “That’s not what I mean. Of course I think you should do whatever you’re comfortable with to get information, but Cam seeing you doing it—that explains so much,” Tyler chuckled.