I was a dragon. I had scales, wings, and no clue how to get back to myself—either of my selves. Dragos descended from dragons, but we weren’t dragons. Not anymore. There was nothing familiar about the creature I’d become—yet it didn’t feel wrong. There was comfort being inside such a large beast and a sense of coming home. But comfort or not, there was still something about my new form that felt off—a tug of something magical I knew came from a very dark place. I had no idea what was happening, but I needed to figure it out quickly. Strong or not, dark magic could only be coming from one place, and being tied to a creature like Veronica was dangerous.

Despite my own precarious situation, my thoughts kept returning to Hailey. I needed to know if she was safe. I needed to make sure Veronica hadn’t done something equally as monstrous to her.

“You won’t be a dragon forever.” Veronica sat on a stool in front of me. Her short dress was hiked up to her thighs as if she wanted me to look or completely didn’t care. Everything about her disgusted me, and I looked her directly in the eyes to make sure she knew I wasn’t afraid of her. “Although I do like you better as a dragon. You’re quieter, and my Scarber side finds you more attractive this way. Do you feel the same way about me? Should I transform too?”

I didn’t care what she did. After seeing her as a monster once I already knew what lay beneath her pleasant looking facade.

“But I will return you to your humanoid form eventually, if you play your cards right. If you haven’t figured it out already, I hold all the keys here. You will be stuck as a dragon under my control forever if you disobey me. Can I get a nod?”

I made no move.

“I won’t count this against you. I don’t really care if you nod or not. At least not when we’re alone. When the others come, you will obey my every command. I hope you understand. And if being trapped as a dragon isn’t enough to make you obey, I’ll make sure Hailey suffers even more than you. And Troy.”

Troy? I froze. What did Troy have to do with anything?

“The Elders were nice enough to give him to me to play with. Without his fire that’s really all he’s good for now. Playing. I wonder if the old adage is true… a Drago’s mate will appeal to all the other Dragos. Do you think Troy might like her too?” Veronica cackled.

Mentally I knew I had nothing to worry about with Hailey and Troy, but the animal side of me, the side that was now completely in control, thought differently. I felt fire build.

“But Hailey loves you, doesn’t she?” Veronica stood and took a few steps toward me. “You aren’t doubting her, are you?”

I wasn’t doubting Hailey. Not for a second, and rationally I knew Troy wouldn’t... but did he know? What if he didn’t understand why he was attracted to her now?

She touched my wing. I recoiled. “Now, now, Wyatt. I just told you I can control you completely. Do you really want to make me mad? Don’t you want to get out of here eventually so you can see Hailey?”

Yet all she was doing was trying to make me angry. The Troy and Hailey talk only served one purpose. I wanted to kill her. I needed to kill her, but I couldn’t. Not only would it destroy my chances of shifting back, but her magic had a hold on me. It made me listen to her even if I didn’t want to.

“I know what you’re thinking.” Veronica touched my wing again. “You are wondering why you aren’t trying to hurt me. I already told you, you are under my control. Your thoughts might be your own, but your actions are not. It’s all a matter of how much of my magic I need to use. Right now you might be able to fight me a little. Like refusing to nod. You resist anymore and my control increases—and your chance of ever becoming yourself again disappears.

I was in a nightmare, a horrible nightmare I would never wake up from. I needed to get to Hailey. I couldn’t wait much longer.

“I wonder what Hailey would think of your new look.” Veronica grinned. “Does she like green?” She cackled in an inhuman way, the first break in her flawless facade. “I wonder how she’d feel about you now… if she could even figure out it was you.”

She would know. I had to believe it. I had to believe our connection was so deep she’d know me no matter what exterior I wore. But what if she couldn’t?

Veronica’s phone rang, and she held it to her ear. “Come up anytime. We’re ready.” She slipped the phone back into the small red purse she wore over her shoulder.

“Looks like our company will be here very soon. Aren’t you excited?”

Excitement wasn’t any of the things I was feeling.

“I believe you’ve met one of our guests before. Won’t that be fun? I’m sure she’s going to love seeing you with your new skin.”

Met her before? Who was Veronica talking about? When you’d lived as long as I had you meet many creatures over the years. I ran through the list of the evil ones I thought might possibly be willing to work with someone like Veronica.

She turned her neck around further than a human ever could. “You get to meet some of my associates. I’m sure you are very excited at the prospect.”

Excited wasn’t quite how I would describe my current emotional state. I normally had a plan. I always had a plan. I knew when to use brute strength and when to use intellect. I knew when to run for cover in order to take the time to spring into action at the perfect moment. I didn’t have any of those options now. None of them. I was trapped, and it was my life and Hailey’s on the line. Not to mention the possibility of many, many more innocent lives. Veronica had her sights on destroying The Society. Without The Society humans would be at the mercy of the supernaturals—and many of them wouldn’t hesitate to destroy them.

“Remember. I expect you to be on good behavior.” She petted my head.

What was I? Her pet? I struggled to hide my reaction. If her threat was real, the last thing I wanted was for her to up the intensity of her hold on me.

I made no move. I wasn’t going to nod if I didn’t have to. Instead I returned to my thoughts of Hailey. We were going to make it through this. Both of us. We were both strong, and if I could only find a way out of my mess I’d get to her. That is if she didn’t find me first. Hailey was capable of the most amazing things.

I tried to see more of the room, but I couldn’t see much. It was all white walls and concrete floors from where I was. I had no idea if I was still in Veronica’s crazy house or if she’d moved me somewhere else. The fact I didn’t know underlined just how messed up the situation was.

I heard the sound of footsteps. Two sets. Neither were heels at least. Not that it mattered, but I didn’t want to see any other monsters dressed up.

“Come in, come in,” Veronica called over her shoulder.

A man and woman, both wearing sunglasses and black suits, walked in.

For a second I worried they were Seers, but then I remembered they could be something much worse.

They simultaneously took off their sunglasses and hung them from the pocket of their black jackets.

I recognized the woman as soon as her shades were removed. Veronica hadn’t been lying. I did know this woman—although know was probably a tame word for it. Maybe Veronica wasn’t aware of the extent of our history.

“Wait.” The woman, Dara, turned to Veronica. “That’s him? That’s Wyatt?”

“Yes, it is. Doesn’t he look wonderful?”

“He does. Although I did always like him in his Drago form. The best sex I ever had.” She twirled a strand of her blond hair around her finger.

“Is that so?” Veronica eyed me. “Wish I’d known that before.”

“Are we done talking about your sexual exploits, Dara?” The man beside her, a man I didn’t recognize at all, asked. “I do not wish to interrupt.”

“Yes, Daniel. I’m done.”

Dara stepped toward me. “How rude, Wyatt. This is Daniel. I made him a few decades after you left.”

Made him? What the hell was she talking about?

“You may have to explain more than that, darling. He’s been in living in his Drago bubble after all.” Veronica drew a circle in the air with her finger.

“Oh.” Dara nodded. “I can see your point.” She directed her attention toward me. “I’ve developed some new skills since you left.”

Like the ability to live for decades without aging? What was going on? Last time I saw Dara she was a regular witch. I could feel her power now, and there was nothing weak, nor typical, about it.

“As you can tell, I no longer age. You aren’t the only one who gets to live longer, Wyatt.” She patted Daniel’s arm. “And I made myself the perfect man. He has all the traits I love, and he won’t leave. He’ll never leave me.”

“I’ll never leave,” Daniel nodded. “I’ll never leave you.”

Was he a robot? Either that or… a horrible thought hit me. Was he human? Was she using magic to imprison the man? To make him bend to her will? Yes. I was sure I was right. I could hear his heart beat when the room fell quiet.

“We will have more company later, but I thought you might want some time to catch up with Dara first.”

I’d left her for good reason. She had been experimenting with dark magic, and I wanted nothing to do with that. We’d met when we both were grieving—and somehow that had blinded me to her true ambitions.

“I owe you a thank you.” Dara smiled. “Without you I wouldn’t be where I am today. Without you I wouldn’t have met Randolph and become his apprentice.”

Randolph? She was working for Randolph? If I weren’t already sick, I’d have been queasy. I’d been right all along. Veronica wasn’t working alone, and her boss was the worst of the worst. I was already determined to break free, but now I had no choice. The future of the human race depended on it.