[h2]Esme[/h2]
Esme sat quietly between Duke and Sarah on the tailgate of Duke’s truck, listening to the others argue. She sighed inwardly. She never cared for the term sacrificial lamb, especially in such situations. If she hadn’t made such a big deal about not being reckless to Duke, she would have readily volunteered herself, even with the feeling she had of something hiding in the shadows waiting to attack after they tired themselves out. Plus, she wouldn’t be going alone; Esme knew she would have Sarah at her side because she wouldn’t let her go alone. Hearing Duke, Esme looked away from the group, up at him, and nodded. “I wouldn’t be either if I was Natalia. You also can’t blame Sam after all the trouble he went through to get her back.” she said, keeping her voice low. “I’m tempted too, and you should know by now I wouldn't want you going on your own. And as good as we all are, four demons is a lot for one person to handle.” 

When Duke placed his hand on her thigh, she put her hand on top of his and squeezed it. “And hoping this would be a quick one was wishful thinking, Bright Eyes.” she added with a little laugh. With everything Esme had witnessed since becoming a hunter, she had learned never to be hopeful for a quick and easy job. So it was very welcomed whenever she got a fast and easy case. She was about to suggest possibly sending Sarah to clear their way, but Duke called out to the others, so she fell silent and listened. Much to her dislike, Esme also agreed with Mika, but it was their best option. Breaking into two teams would give them the best chance of taking out the demons and getting inside to figure out what was happening in there. Releasing Duke’s hand, Esme slid off the tailgate and looked at each group member. With this many, you would think they would have at least a little better luck than a group with two or three, right? 

It all depended on whether they could work together as a team, would watch each other's backs, and nothing unexpected reared its ugly head, which almost always happens. As much as she hated to be wishful or hopeful, she could only hope they could work together since there was a little tension between a couple of them in the group. Only time would tell if that tension would dissipate or not, but she saw it taking a lot of work and cooperation from all involved. Esme spoke, keeping her voice low but loud enough for the group to hear her. “Alright, now that that’s decided, let’s group up and move out.” Esme was ready to get to the bottom of this and get out as quickly as possible. She also didn’t like the feeling she got from this place either. The less time they spent here, the better it was for her.