Page 49 of Signs and Wonders

“Is he watching you?” Seth asked.

“I think so. He isn’t making it obvious, but he’s keeping an eye on me. I’m in the bathroom to call you, but I can’t stay long,” Tyler said.

“Sit tight,” Seth said. “We’ll come right over. It sounds like Cameron’s either under a spell or Swain swapped out a shapeshifter for him.”

“You’re serious?” Tyler sounded unsettled.

Seth remembered Drake’s vision and shuddered.

“We think Swain uses creatures who can look like other people in his blackmail schemes,” Travis put in. “Like the one you told Seth and Evan about, that you saw at the lodge. If Cameron’s been swapped, the creature who’s taken his place is dangerous. Don’t be alone with him, and try not to act suspicious.”

“Right. But where the fuck is Cam?” Tyler demanded.

Seth and Travis exchanged a look. “We think we know, and we’ll fill you in. But right now, keep your eyes open, and we’ll be right there.”

By the time he hung up, Travis had already grabbed his gear bag. “Come on, looks like our timeline just moved up.”

“Evan and Brent have only been gone a few hours. And up in the Quiet Zone, there’s no way to warn them or tell them about Cameron. I knew this was going to turn into a clusterfuck.” Seth followed Travis outside.

“Having them go to Summit made sense,” Travis reminded him. “We didn’t expect Swain to make his move so fast.”

“I know. But now it’s even more complicated,” Seth growled. “Just like always.”

When they pulled into the parking lot at Lacey’s, Seth drove his truck around to the back. Travis followed in the Crown Vic.

“Okay, Travis, go to the kitchen door. Get the workers out, ask if anything weird happened, and send them home. Pull the fire alarm,” Seth directed.

“I’ll go through the front and work with Tyler to get the patrons out. Whether it’s a shifter or Cameron’s under a spell, he’s not going to go easily.”

Seth jogged to the front of the bar and waited until he heard the fire alarm before opening the door.

“Everyone out!” Seth shouted. Cam seemed frozen as Seth took charge. Tyler urged the gamblers at the video machines to head outside, refusing to take no for an answer.

“Closed for the day for safety reasons,” Tyler told the patrons. “Come back tomorrow.” The customers grumbled but headed toward their cars.

Finally, they were all gone except for Cameron.

Travis came into the bar through the kitchen, cutting off his escape.

“What’s going on, guys?” Cameron stayed behind the bar, tense and twitchy.

“What did you do with Cam?” Tyler demanded.

The creature wearing Cameron’s face stared at Tyler as if he’d lost his mind. “What are you talking about? Did you hit your head?”

“You’re not him.”

Cameron’s doppelganger spread his arms. “Ty, I’m right here.”

Seth hadn’t known Cameron long, but even he could tell that there was something not quite right about the way this version spoke and held himself.Definitely a shifter.

“He’s not wearing the silver charm,” Tyler pointed out. “It’s not Cameron.”

Cameron jumped the bar and broke for the door. Tyler tackled him, pulling him to the floor and wrestling to keep hold. Travis began chanting, calling the ghosts for backup, and the temperature in the bar plummeted.

Under normal circumstances, Seth figured Cameron and Tyler would be evenly matched, except for Tyler’s combat training. This version of Cam was giving Tyler a thrashing.

Seth piled on and pulled Tyler and the doppelganger apart. Seth snapped a pair of silver handcuffs on the creature, who hissed as the metal reacted with his skin. He gave the man a thorough pat-down to make sure he had no weapons, phone, or tracking devices. Tyler snatched back the items he recognized as Cameron’s and pocketed them.

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