Juliana’s veins heated with simmering energy. Her red blood cells pulsed with a raw need for release. A thin vapor of steam rose from the palms of her hands as she brought them from fists to flat. Her pajamas clung to her sweat soaked skin. Calm, she willed herself. Calm.

She stood in the middle of her bedroom on the polished stone floor. She’d awakened from a dream to find herself like this and jumped out of bed so that her sheets wouldn’t singe. Her bare feet rooted to the ground, drawing solid strength from it. There was a good reason she’d chosen not to have carpet or rugs in here.

She could sense all their pain. Not any one person in particular, but the culmination of the rage and anger that belonged to the people inside Dragonspark. One in particular. His emotion was the strongest and the reason now that her skin was smoldering.

A deep breath was key to control and she took one now so she could return to normal. Then another. She almost laughed thinking that she could ever return to normal. No, that wasn’t possible.

She turned on her heel, heading toward the bathroom. Her bathroom consisted only of a toilet, sink and shower stall. Walls covered in white tile. Grey tile on the floor. She turned the shower faucet on, adjusting the temperature until it was cool to the touch. Then she got underneath, not caring if her pajamas got wet. It was better if they did, then they wouldn’t smell like smoke.

Not that anyone would notice. They all had their own problems. Their own issues to deal with.

She’d come close to telling Mac about who she was so many times. She knew his secret, but this wasn’t the same. She wasn’t like them.

The water ran down over her face and she closed her eyes, feeling the droplets splashing off her cheeks. Her hair was soaked, hanging heavy behind her back, dragging her neck backward. She’d thought about cutting it off many times. She’d do that one day when she had more time and wasn’t burning herself up from the emotions of the others. One day when she had more control of her curse and there wasn’t a war brewing.

Control had always been the problem. She was able to keep it suppressed most of the time. But she knew the day would come that she would falter. It drew closer and closer. She could feel it as if she could reach out and touch it. The power always threatened to explode her and those around her. If Tessa Fuller only knew who the real danger was she wouldn’t care about Mac.

That was the difference. Mac Dragonspark and his brothers could control what they were. And now that Caran perfected the serum to help them transition back and forth between human and dragon with greater speed, they were no more dangerous than anyone else here at Dragonspark. Anyone else except for her, that was.

A final blast of cold, enough to cause gooseflesh to pucker on her skin, then she stepped out of the water. She undressed letting the sopping clothes fall to the tiled floor and stared at herself naked in the full length mirror.

The thick ugly scar grinned at the bottom of her stomach. She forced herself to look at it and remember what happened. She deserved this. It was her fault. The scar was a reminder.

Juliana grabbed the threadbare white towel. The corner was frayed from being washed too many times, but it dried well and was large enough to wrap around her body, covering her from breasts to mid thigh. She stepped out of the bathroom, leaving a wet footprint on the pale gray tile, and back into her bedroom.

Juliana’s bedroom was on the fourth floor of the Dragonspark facility, tucked at the far end of the corridor. There were six other bedrooms on this floor and only three of them had private bathrooms. The best one had a view outside. A large window that looked between two mountains onto a winding river, ending at a lake and waterfall. She’d been to that waterfall many times, but this room didn’t have a view of it.

Mac had wanted her to take the larger room over this one. But that room was right at the start of the corridor. People walked past that room whenever they were going up and down the stairs. It was too close to everyone. No. She needed to stay back here. The room furthest away from them. It was better that way.

She let the towel drop on the stone floor, willing her body to relax for just a bit longer. Just to be sure.

Her clothes were folded in a dresser, three high and three across, it looked like a big tic-tac-toe board set against one wall. She didn’t have a walk in closet like the others, but really, did she need one? All she wore these days were clothes suitable for fighting. Comfort was more important than fashion at Dragonspark. She opened the top right hand drawer and pulled out a black tank and matching shorts that she used as sleepwear. There was nothing sheer, pink, or lace here. Not like her former life.

She closed the drawer and got dressed. She was feeling better now. The shower had done its job. Still, feeling and knowing were two different things. She made her way over to her bed. King sized even though it was just her. White cotton sheets and a patterned crocheted blanket that she’d kept from when she was a child. Her mother had told her it had been in the family for over three generations, passed down from mother to child.

Juliana frowned as she folded down the blanket and got under the sheets into bed. What would happen to the blanket now? She was twenty four years old and there were no children in her future. No brothers or sisters to carry on her family’s legacy. Her fingers absently danced down to the front of her stomach again, feeling the tough knotted skin. No. She couldn’t have a child so the blanket stayed with her until she died. Then, did it matter what happened to it after that?

She reached underneath her pillow, feeling for the thin plastic tube. It had been pushed toward the back of the bedhead when she finally felt it. She dragged it out and opened the lid. Inside was a thermometer. She popped it into her mouth, positioning the silver tipped edge underneath her tongue. The metallic taste had become so familiar now. Once she was satisfied that she’d given it enough time to register her temperature correctly she pulled it out and read the result. 99.6. Good. It was still little on the high side, but as long as she kept herself under 100, everything was fine. No need to worry.

She let out a sigh of relief and placed the thermometer back into the plastic tube and pushed it back underneath her pillow. She fell back down onto the pillow, staring up at the ceiling. They’d come for her soon, ask her help in defeating Tessa. She couldn't think about that now though. Not until she was sure she was back in control.

She turned off the light and closed her eyes. Maybe she’d even get some sleep before she was called to help. Hopefully.