Two days passed before I dared show my face outside my room.

I couldn’t imagine what they must think of me. Not that it mattered, or so I told myself. I wasn’t trying to make friends with anybody, even Pierce.

Especially Pierce. My jailer.

Passing out in the kitchen made me look like a fool. I shuddered every time I thought about it. I came off as a spoiled brat who stomped her feet when she didn’t get her way, when nothing could be further from the truth—at least, that wasn’t how I saw myself. Not normally.

My situation brought it out in me.

Pierce brought it out in me.

He couldn’t be bothered to see my side of things. He would rather order, demand, drop bombshells in my lap about never being able to go home again as casually as he would tell me it was sunny outside. Like it was a fact. Something I had no say in.

Alina was no help.

I couldn’t even count on her to stand up for me.

She was too busy seeing things from Smoke’s perspective, which only left me feeling lonely. Betrayed. And that pissed me off.

On the second day, I walked the length of the room again and again, back and forth, chewing what little was left of my nails. A habit I thought I’d broken years earlier.

Then again, I thought I would spend the rest of my life in the real world. Where there was sunlight and moonlight and fresh, non-recycled air. I would’ve given just about anything to smell car exhaust. I was that desperate for something real.

There had to be a way to get out of there. I could hike down the mountain if I had to—it wouldn’t be my first hike, not even close. The boots I was wearing during the crash were in the closet, so I’d be in decent shape. There was plenty of bottled water in the kitchen, I had seen it just before losing consciousness like an idiot. I could take a bottle or two and start off whenever the mood struck.

But if you couldn’t handle making yourself something to eat, what makes you think you can handle a miles-long hike?

I couldn’t ignore that voice in my head. It made a good point, too, but two days had made a huge difference in my energy and strength. I could go half the day without even thinking about taking something for the pain and even then, I barely needed a few drops of one of Alina’s potions to manage it.

That wasn’t the same as a hike, though. It felt like miles as I paced back and forth for hours on end, but even that was nothing like what I might encounter in unknown territory.

I wish I knew where I was. What to expect when I left the cave. I didn’t even know how to leave the damn thing.

That realization was what planted an idea in my head. Only the tiniest seed, something which would have to develop, but I could give it time as long as there was an end in sight. Something to work toward.

If I could get him to trust me, maybe flirt with him a little…

It was enough to get my boots on and me out of my room.

Nothing had changed, either. I found the rest of the dragons in that game room of theirs. This time, the scruffy one was playing pinball while another one watched. Smoke sat in the corner with a book, his feet up on an ottoman. Another pair watched what could only be an action movie on the big-screen TV. I cringed when a building exploded, and several bodies flew through the air.

They were all too busy to notice me. That was fine. I walked past the open door and further down the hall, wondering where Pierce was. Not to mention Alina. Were they somewhere together? I frowned at the idea, then wondered why I was frowning. She had the right to spend time with them if she wanted to, and I couldn’t have cared less what he did. It’s because he’s holding us captive, I told myself. Once again, loneliness set in. If she could spend time with him, it meant she was all right with how they were treating us. I was on my own.

The kitchen was empty. Where could they be together? I took a bottle of water from the several cases stacked in one corner of the room before filching a banana from the counter. I could still hear the roar of the TV from the game room and the laughter of whoever was watching. I couldn’t hear my sister.

It was time for a little exploring. I polished off the banana in a few bites before continuing down the tunnel. It seemed to stretch on infinitely with no light at the end.

How did they get in and out? There were more closed doors on that end, plus a few open ones. What was behind them? What the hell did a half-dozen dragons do all day? How did they support themselves?

Alina and I lived off of what our parents gave us, which was more than enough. Did they have wealthy parents, too? Or was it like in the old legends Mama used to tell us while she tucked us into bed? Stories of dragons who guarded treasure with their lives. Did they use their treasure to supply themselves with every creature comfort imaginable?

I chuckled at the way my imagination was running away with me. I hadn’t thought about those old stories for as long as I could remember.

What would Mama think if she knew I was wandering around an underground compound, if she knew dragons wanted to keep me hostage for the rest of my life? Maybe it was better that she was gone. Papa, too.

He would’ve started a war against the entire species if either of his daughters had fallen victim to one of the shifters. Both of us? He would’ve brought down the entire mountain rather than see us held captive for all eternity. He had his principles.

Thinking about them wasn’t helping. I had to find my way around so I’d know how to get out when it came time to escape. And if I ran into Pierce, it was time to turn things around so he’d loosen up.

If he thought I was at least willing to be his friend, he might give me space—which would give me the chance to slip out and run as soon as my strength was back.

I needed to believe it. It was all I had to hold onto.

The tunnel went on and on, stretching out in front of me for what felt like miles. And there was still no light at the end. It had to curve, somehow, or slope gently enough upward that I wasn’t aware.

I uncapped the water and poured a little on the floor—sure enough, it trailed slowly behind me, so slowly that the angle couldn’t be very steep at all. I kept going.

Another few minutes later, a pinpoint of light appeared in front of me. I walked faster, desperate to feel sunlight on my face, to fill my lungs with fresh air. Was it really that easy to get out of there? Simply walking uphill until I reached the mouth of the cave? I couldn’t wait to find out.

Pretty soon, the recycled air gave way to something fresh. A scent I would always associate with the color green.

A forest. I jogged the rest of the way and didn’t stop until I was outside, in the open.

I closed my eyes and tilted my head back, relishing the warmth of the sun’s caress. I felt my energy improve almost instantly, along with my outlook.

There was no way I could consider living in a cave when being outside made me who I was. It was in my blood. I couldn’t help it any more than I could help the color of my eyes or the way my hair frizzed up in humid air.

I couldn’t stand around like this all day, of course. I had to learn more about my surroundings. Where was the road? Was there any other way out? A path, maybe. Even that would be better than climbing straight down the sheer face of the mountain.

The sound of a great deal of air moving around at once sparked a vague memory.

I knew that sound.

Like sheets billowing in the wind. Where else had I heard it before? There was no chance to give it much thought—almost as soon as I heard the sound, something blocked out the sun. Something big. Scaly. Breathing. Flying.

I had a flashback to that moment in the air, flying on the back of a dragon.

This dragon, the one who landed in front of me and leaned down until we were face-to-face.

I couldn’t breathe. It was too big, so much bigger than me. One of its massive feet—were they feet? I didn’t know—was bigger than half my body. It could’ve easily taken a swipe and sent me flying into the rock behind me, crushing me to a bloody pulp. Or it could’ve sent me off the mountain, hurtling through the air. Either way, I’d be dead.

My heart was in my throat, and I could hear it pounding even over the loud in-and-out of the dragon’s breathing.

Its breath was hot, and strong enough to stir my hair. It watched me closely, eyes moving back and forth, observing the way I would observe a ladybug walking across a leaf.

Except I didn’t think its interest was based on mere innocent curiosity.

The dragon was Pierce. I couldn’t make the image of his human form match up with what I saw in front of me, and I wondered how much of his consciousness remained. Did he even know who he was looking at?

Just then, he nodded his huge head. Like he could read my thoughts. It had to be coincidence—just me letting my imagination get the better of me again.

He didn’t want to hurt me. I could feel that much. His big, amber eyes peered straight into mine. Waiting for me to do something.

So, I did something. I reached out with a hand that shook a little more than I wanted it to and barely touched the tips of my fingers to the scales on the bridge of his snout.

They were smooth, warm. Tough as leather. He stayed still and allowed me to touch him, and I only let out a shaky breath after I lifted my hand away. I hadn’t realized I was holding it.

He snorted lightly. Laughing at my nerves?

I tilted my head to the side and shot him a withering look.

He snorted again.

“I want to see the rest of you,” I announced, even though my insides were watery and my knees knocked together.

Curiosity was practically killing me. Just what did a full-grown dragon look like? He was kind enough to stand still while I walked a slow, thoughtful circle around him. I had to crane my neck to catch sight of the ridges which ran from the base of his skull to the tip of his tail, where they turned into sharp spikes. He was way taller than me while he was sitting with his smooth belly touching the ground. His legs were thick with muscle under their scales, and the curved talons at the end of his feet were each as long as my legs. Maybe longer.

And his wings. I remembered their translucence from my first flight on his back, the way the gray light shone through them. They were folded against his back just then, but they had an impressive span when they were spread.

I ran a hand over his side as I walked from back to front, and I could feel the way his sides moved with each deep breath.

A living, breathing dragon, and I was touching him.

It had the strangest effect on me. I wanted to do more than just touch him. When would I ever have an opportunity like that again? Standing in front of a dragon, with the heat from his body warming me in a way the sun never could.

He turned his head, neck bending gracefully to look behind him to where I stood, dwarfed.

He was beautiful.

Looking into those big, amber eyes which seemed to know me so well solidified the desire which danced around the edges of my awareness.

I almost couldn’t admit to myself what he stirred within me. This beautiful beast. A living, breathing connection to a time I couldn’t even imagine. Those eyes had seen so much, and they were looking at me. Into me.

A shiver ran up my spine.

“Can I…?” I gestured to his back, pointing up, chewing my lip. Was it considered rude to ask a dragon for a ride?

If it was, he didn’t seem to care. Instead of flying off or roaring at me, he stretched his neck out flat and lowered it until it was flat on the ground.

I took the hint—it was the easiest way for me to climb on, and even then, I grunted and huffed as I mounted him like I was mounting a horse. An extremely large, extremely scaly horse. Without the benefit of stirrups or a saddle.

I eased my way back, careful to raise myself over the ridges which rose up from his spine. I realized quickly that I could hold onto one of them like I’d hold onto a pommel. It was better than nothing.

“Is this far enough?” I asked, and he turned his head to look back at me again. If I hadn’t known better, I would’ve sworn he was smiling.

My thighs gripped him tighter than ever. I wasn’t sure I liked that smile. Like he was about to show me a thing or two.

Sure enough, we were off the ground in seconds and soaring up, up, up.

I screamed, but it wasn’t entirely in terror. Exhilaration, for sure, and sheer joy.

First, we were climbing up to the top of the mountain, and suddenly we were plummeting down in almost a free-fall.

I shrieked and clung to him even tighter as my stomach dropped and the wind whipped through my hair.

“Pierce!” I screamed, but the wind carried it away.

Not that it would’ve mattered if he’d heard it—he was in control, and maybe even showing off a bit.

We banked, gliding in a smooth circle around the outside of the mountain. I could see the entrance where he must have brought me in, on the opposite side from the place where I’d come out and found him. It was overgrown, half-hidden.

I wouldn’t have known it was there otherwise. I guessed that was the idea.

Looking out, there was nothing but mountains and trees for miles and miles all the way out to the horizon. It was like they lived in their own world—which, again, I guessed was the idea.

They needed somewhere they could have the freedom to do this, to spread their wings and soar. If I could fly, not much would stop me from doing it all the time. I didn’t know why Pierce bothered to ever shift into his human form if this was the alternative.

Who would tether themselves to a fragile, two-legged existence? This was freedom, this was power.

I let out a whoop of pure joy, and the dragon roared in response. At that moment, we were together. United.

I couldn’t help but feel a pang of disappointment when he landed. It would never be long enough for me, no matter how long or how far we flew.

My heart hammered wildly as I swung my leg over his neck and allowed my body to slide over his until my feet touched solid ground. I realized I was grinning like an idiot, but nothing could’ve wiped that smile from my face.

He looked down at me, waiting. I wasn’t sure what to say. What could I say that would encompass all the emotions rushing through me?

“Thank you,” was all I could manage.

He nodded again, before I decided to go back inside. It was easier than wondering what to do next, or how to feel. I made the long walk back through the tunnel in a daze, still coming down from that natural high.

“Where have you been?” Alina called out as soon as she saw me.

She came running, and it was clear from the way her eyebrows nearly met over the bridge of her nose that she was furious.

“I was… outside,” I mumbled, gesturing down the tunnel. “Pierce took me for a flight.”

She let out a huge sigh and relaxed. “That’s why your hair looks like you just went through a hurricane. I’ll help you brush it out back in your room.” She took my hand.

I pulled away. “No. I’ll do it. I want to be alone right now.” I couldn’t have her with me while I was trying to process everything.

It didn’t even occur to me until I was back in my room with my hairbrush caught in a snarl that I had forgotten all about my plan to cozy up to Pierce while I was out there.