Page 110 of Grave Beginnings

“Yes,” Ezra said.

“No,” Angel said.

“We don’t keep SVs on our team, and we sure as fuck don’t bond with them,” Ezra snapped at him. “Am I supposed to ignore when he uses his magic to tug your corpse around like a puppet?”

“I would never!”

“Did you or did you not just raise five bodies without eventrying?” Ezra said, his voice raised enough to draw attention. Fuck. There was media too. I really didn’t need that on the evening news.

“Z, stop,” Wade said, his tone pleading and soft.

“I watched them slaughter my parents and use their bodies to throw themselves under tanks,” Ezra said. “I’m not going to let that happen to my best friend.”

So, this was personal for him. I got it. But his pain wasn’t my crime. I would never willingly hurt Angel. I’d never asked for this stupid power. Was there a way to de-escalate? He thought me the enemy. Okay, if I’d lived through the war, I might have similar hang-ups.

“What do you want me to do?” I asked. “We bonded. We can’t break it now, right?”

“Xavier could.”

“No,” Angel said.

“It’s only a partial bond anyway,” Ezra said.

“Partial, how?”

“It’s enough for now. He was injured.”

“And you shackled yourself to a spook for an injury? You’ve not been thinking clearly since the second he stepped into our office,” Ezra accused Angel.

“I think that’s the point,” Wade offered.

“Is there a problem, gentlemen?” Hanna appeared at our sides when I was certain she’d been across the field a minute ago.

“No, ma’am,” I said.

“We want Holt off our team,” Ezra demanded. My stomach churned with the thought of being stripped of the team, and worse, Angel.

She stared at Ezra, then turned to look at Angel. “Is that what you want?”

“No.”

“And you?” she asked Wade.

“No.”

“Request denied.”

“We can ask the rest of the team. Call a vote,” Ezra insisted.

“I’m not doing this,” I protested. “Whatever magic, or whatever you think this is. I’m new to all of this. Why is it all my fault?”

“Because you’re a spook,” Ezra raged, shoving me. Angel caught me and put himself between us.

“Take the day, Ezra. Get your head on straight,” Hanna commanded.

“I’mnot the problem.”

“Right now, you are.”