After Dawn (Book 3 of the Into the Shadows Trilogy) by Karly Kirkpatrick

the crowd and made their way to where Paivi stood.
    "You can all move things with your minds? On command?" she asked.
    Heads bobbed up and down in agreement.
    "Each of you, pick something up right now and move it," Paivi ordered. She wondered how on earth the others were able to train people in Mexico. She had no idea what else to ask them to do.
    Eyes closed in concentration and all around them, bits of debris rose into the air. Some floated lightly and some shot up, hanging in the air as if waiting further instruction.
    "All right, if your stuff shot up there quick, come over here." She waved them forward. "Thanks everyone else, but I only need a small group with me, and the strongest ones will be the best. Stay near us as we move out of the camp though, I'll work with you to get stronger."
    Six people, four women and two men, lined up in front of Paivi. The women varied in age from twenty to fifty, if Paivi had to guess. The men were older than her, but not as old as some of the women.
    A tall guy standing behind them raised his hand. His tanned face was still youthful and being in the camp hadn't quite extinguished the spark in his eyes.
    "Hey, I may not be able to move stuff for you, but I can do this." The line parted to let him step forward. He held his hands out in front of him and flames danced across his fingers, appearing out of thin air.
    The group around him gasped.
    "And that's not all." He flicked his hands and the flames shot forward, past Peter and onto a small pile of wooden debris. He waved his hand and it roared higher, consuming every inch of the wood.
    "Hey man, someone might see that smoke in the distance." One of the men standing near him shook his shoulder. "We've got to put that out!"
    "No problem." He clapped his hands together and the fire immediately went out as if it had been deprived of oxygen. Only the charred bits of wood remained.
    "That is awesome." Paivi was stunned to meet someone that could make his own fire. She could take fire and use it as a weapon, but she couldn't create it out of nothing. Not yet, anyway. She wondered if it was something he could teach her. Either way, he was invaluable and together they could protect a lot of people. Or destroy everything in their path.
    The corner of her mouth raised in what could be considered the closest thing to a smile she had used in awhile.
    "You're in." She held out her hand to shake his. "I'm Paivi."
    "Xavier. Nice to meet you."
    His hand was warm to the touch.
    Peter and a few others located a working truck and shouted for them to head toward the gate. Paivi followed the group and picked her way over the debris. They crossed to the front gate, which hung perilously on its hinges.
    Paivi stood in front of them and rubbed her hands together. She had come to the camp of her own free will but no one else there had. She was finished watching humans harm each other over their differences.
    With a flick of her hands and a deafening crack, the metal hinges that clung to the gate shattered and both sides exploded out. They landed with a thud on the hard earth. A small cloud of dust rose and floated in front of Paivi as the others loaded into the back of the truck. She clambered behind the others and ran her hand through her short hair and shook some of the dust free.
    The mountain rose before them in the morning heat. The air wavered in front of it, as if it were nothing more than a mirage in the distance.
    But Paivi knew better.
    It was no mirage. It was a place of torture and death.
    She only hoped her dad would still be alive when they arrived.
    Peter pulled the truck up to the base of the mountain, near the entrance.
    "No guards," Paivi remarked as they climbed out of the back of the pickup truck.
    Peter snorted. "What a bunch of arrogant bastards. They really were convinced we'd never get free." He shook his head. "Still be on your guard, we have no idea what's inside."
    Paivi turned to face the group of bedraggled former EOS prisoners that