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other than Sam, the guys, or me. It was also odd that the anticipation of the assignment didn’t have him bouncing like a boxer getting ready for a fight the way it normally did – it was quite fitting that his gift was a psychic punch that could knock a person unconscious. The only person who got more of a rush from assignments than him was Butch. However, amusingly enough, Salem appeared to find tiny Ava a bit of a distraction.
    Sam’s voice blew through my mind like a warm breeze. Well, I wanted something to take my mind off the Coronation. Seems like this might just do that.
    The Coronation…Now that was something that I didn’t want to think about. Thinking about it meant thinking about the vision that I’d had through Luther a very long time ago, back when I’d first been made a commander within the legion. I knew that I’d have to tell Sam about it. Hell, I should have told her before we Bound. But I hadn’t because although I knew she was a practical enough person not to let one vision change everything, I’d panicked that it might make her walk away. That was something I wasn’t prepared to risk. I’d tell her soon, and if she did try to walk away…well, I’d tie her up and keep her captive.
    A whoosh of black molecules suddenly appeared, pulling me from my thoughts. A mere second later, Stuart was standing before us. As a Shredder, the squad member had the ability to reduce himself to molecules and reform again at will. “This whole thing is weird.”
    My words, his mouth. “What did you see?”
    “Nothing. I circled the entrance of the caves, but there are no guards anywhere.”
    Sam shot me a worried look before asking Stuart, “Could you hear any sounds coming from inside?”
    “There were noises, voices, coming from the rear of the caves, but I couldn’t make out any words. The tone was kind of…flat. Drone, even.”
    “So people are in there but they’re ignoring us.” Max pulled a face, clearly baffled. “You’re right; this whole thing’s weird.” Ordinarily, it would be Max who lingered around Sam the way Cristiano was doing. In Max’s case, it was simply to irritate me as, fortunately for him, he no longer lusted after her. That meant I could let him live, which was good for the squad since Max’s gift of causing temporary sensory paralysis made him a valuable member.
    “Could they be hiding, hoping we’ll leave?” the telekinetic Harvey asked Sam. I noticed that his stance wasn’t as cocky as usual – the guy might be a little slow on the uptake, but even he had the sense to be wary right now.
    Sam considered that for a moment. “If that was the case, they would be sure to make no sounds at all. Besides, why would they have any reason to hide?”
    A puddle of mush appeared beside Stuart and quickly returned to its normal form. One of Denny’s animal-mimic abilities was to reduce himself to a soft liquid just like the sea cucumber. “I couldn’t get in. The door’s sealed so tightly that there are no cracks for me to wiggle through.”
    “None of this makes any sense, and it’s severely pissing me off.” Sam turned to Cristiano. “Can you sense your vampires better now that you’re closer to them?”
    Looking grim, he shook his head. “The connection’s still fuzzy.”
    Chico released a long breath, stroking his Johnny Depp style moustache and goatee. “So I’m thinking w e ”
    “We’ll have to force our way inside,” interrupted Evan, glaring at the caves. I had the distinct feeling that he had insisted on coming along so he could blow off some steam and distract himself from thoughts of Alora and whatever the hell had happened between them. Or maybe the problem was what hadn’t happened between them.
    “If we do that, they’ll attack instantly,” David pointed out, fidgety and nervous.
    Butch nodded his agreement. “Considering we have no idea how many are in the caves, it would be a dangerous move.” Not that Butch sounded particularly moved by