“Marcus said to trust my instincts.” He shrugged, all bashful modesty. “Saw an opening.”
Marcus was watching him with the look of a teacher whose student just aced an impossible test. “Hell of an instinct. We’ll work on control, but the talent’s there. And the speed.”
“Thanks.” Zane ducked his head. “I used to run when my life got shitty. So I ran a lot.”
“Hopefully it’s less shitty now,” I said, and he looked down at his shoes. I’d probably embarrassed the hell out of him.
I let myself exhale. The kid was good. Really good. Whatever training he’d had before us had given him skills most recruits would kill for.
“Sophie.” I crossed to where she was still sitting in the sand, Trevor hovering nearby.
“You okay?”
She nodded, but her hands were shaking. “I froze. I’m sorry. I saw it coming and I just?—”
“It happens.” I offered her a hand and pulled her up. “First time’s always the worst. What matters is you’re still here.”
“Because of him.” She looked at Trevor with something like wonder. “He saved me.”
Trevor shifted, clearly uncomfortable. “Just reacted. Whatever.”
“That’s exactly what you’re supposed to do,” I said. “Teammate in trouble, you help. The most important rule in the book.”
He met my eyes for just a second, then dipped his gaze down. Not surprising. Most teens didn’t like to be in the spotlight. Andthe ones who did want to be the center of attention tended to cause the most trouble.
“What do we do with...” Sophie gestured at the body, her face pale. “We can’t just leave him here, right?”
“We take him back,” Marcus said. “Eric handles disposal. We’ll talk more about the process in class. Right now, we should get gone before we get noticed.”
Sophie looked like she had more questions, but something in Marcus’s tone said the topic was closed.
I was grateful for that. Eric’s background as a chemistry teacher—or, rather, David Long’s background—came in handy in ways I tried not to think about too hard. Some things were better left unexamined.
“As Marcus and I got the body loaded, the new kids clustered together, processing. Sophie kept stealing glances at Trevor—grateful now, not scared. Maybe a little awed.
Trevor ignored the attention. But his shoulders had lost their permanent hunch, and when Zane said something to him, he actually responded with more than a grunt.
Progress.
Allie came up beside me. “That went well.”
“It did.” I kept my voice low. “Nice slide tackle, and bonus points for not taking the kill.”
“Wasn’t mine to take.” She shrugged. “And they needed it more. Well, Zane didn’t—kid’s a machine. But Trevor did.”
I looked at her—really looked—and felt that familiar swell of pride. “When did you get so wise?”
“I’ve been taking notes.” She bumped my shoulder. “I’ve had a pretty good teacher. When she’s not being annoying.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“You should,” she said as the others climbed into the Forza van. Marcus drove the students—and transported the body. Ifollowed in my Odyssey with Allie. The beach disappeared in the rearview, dark and peaceful again.
Tomorrow would be more analysis. Going over what everyone did right and wrong. But what mattered now was that tonight was a success. Demon dead, new kids initiated, nobody seriously hurt.
More than that—I’d learned quite a bit about the kids. Sophie needed her confidence built, but she had heart. Trevor hid some interesting layers under that sullen exterior, and when it mattered, he’d stepped up. And Zane was everything Marcus predicted. Natural talent, solid instincts. With training, he’d be truly formidable.
“You need to think louder,” Allie said. “I can’t hear you at all.”
