I have to get back to Amy.

As I work, I can’t stop thinking about the dragon. The guy. Whatever. I had no idea they were human…or could pose as human. I try to think—have I seen anyone in Fort Dallas with golden hair, golden skin, and golden eyes? I don’t think so. But if the dragons have a human side, maybe we can communicate with them and ask them not to attack the city.

Then again, why do I want to save the city? Those assholes left me for dead. A friend sold me out. The guards didn’t help me. The mayor thought I was a piece of shit criminal. No one’s on my side. I rub my ankle, smearing blood everywhere. To be fair, the captain hadn’t been happy to leave me up here.

To be fair, it was also his idea. He’d still offered me up like a sacrificial lamb. So screw him.

A sharp stab of pain moves up my leg, and I pull the piece of metal free, gazing at my handiwork. I think I’m doing the opposite of helping, because now my ankle is swelling. Well, crap. I toss the metal aside and sigh, staring out at the wasteland of what used to be an office building. There won’t be any knives or saws here. If I’m lucky, I’ll find a stapler. And then what? Threaten to staple the dragon to death if he comes back? Frustrated, I thump down onto my butt and stare out at the trashed ruins. The dragon’s gone, but I’m still screwed. I can’t get free, and no one’s left me a canteen of water or a bite to eat.

They didn’t expect me to survive.

I think about Amy and Sasha. They’d have been waiting for me to bring home a score, because we were broke and there were no food supplies left. We had no one to turn to to help out, either. In Fort Dallas, there are only a few ways to feed a family if you don’t have a male protector that can work in the militia. You can scavenge, which is against the law, or you can whore, which is, ironically, not against the law. Sasha has a ‘friend’ in the militia who she trades favors with, even though she hates him. It keeps her from having to trade favors with a lot of friends, though, so she puts up with it. I’ve spared Amy from the worst. With her bad leg, she can’t scavenge. She barely leaves the broken-down school bus hull we call our ‘house.’ She’ll wait for me to come back…and then what? Go to the soldiers herself? See if Sasha knows of another friend that needs favors?

The thought leaves a sick taste in my mouth. My little sister with her bad leg, forced to approach one of the dickish militia… I grab the piece of metal again and jam it back into my cuff with renewed vigor, ignoring the discomfort.

I have to get out of here.

The thick, heavy beat of wings breaks into my frantic thoughts, and I freeze. My hair whips around my head as I look up, scanning the sky nervously. Is this my ‘friend’ with the gold eyes, or is this a new dragon? A red dragon, drawn by the remaining banner?

A flash of gold wing at the fringe of my vision makes my breath come a little easier. Okay. Probably the same guy again, which means he’s friendly…unless he’s decided he’s hungry. I watch in vague dread as he circles lower in the sky, then descends. The building shakes as he perches on the edge, wings flapping hard before he draws them against his body. The damn dragon’s as big as a city bus—two, maybe. Is it the same one as before? I scan it, looking for hints, and am relieved when I see the faint scar running along his cheek.

The dragon scans the top of the ruined building, and then the eyes lock on me. Dark pupils fix on my face, and as I watch, they flick from black to the deep amber gold. I shiver, my throat dry, and give my bloody cuff another yank.

He opens his mouth, gaze locked on me.

I flinch backward. Here it comes.

Something thumps to the ground. The dragon whiffs out a breath, as if irritated.

Er, okay. I cautiously open one eye.

There’s a dead creature in front of the dragon. It’s a goat, the neck snapped at an awkward angle. A chill creeps up my spine. Poor goat. Is this what’s going to happen to me? Is this a warning? I move behind the skinny pole, as if it’ll hide me.

The dragon just stares at me with those gold-on-gold eyes. Then he noses the dead goat toward me, pushing it with his long snout. He nudges it, then lifts his head and watches me. Waiting.

Is it…trying to feed me?

Surely not.

I blink at the dragon. Then down at the goat. Then back at the dragon.

He makes another noise deep in his throat, as if trying to get my attention. Then, he picks the goat up gently in his sharp teeth and drops it a few feet closer to me.

It’s a present.

Yippee.

A hysterical laugh bubbles up in my throat. What am I supposed to do with that? I twist my ankle in the cuff again, desperate. I just want to get away.

The dragon cocks his head at my movements, and takes another graceful step forward. The entire wreck of the building shivers in response to his weight as he settles down on his haunches. Then he nudges the goat towards me again.

He wants me to take it. “No, thanks,” I say, breathless. “I really should be going and all.” And I jerk on the cuff on my ankle again.

The car-sized head tilts. He bares his teeth, and my entire body breaks out into goosebumps of alarm. He seems so inhuman that I’m not entirely sure his human form was real. Maybe I imagined it. Maybe I’m having a psychotic break of some kind. Staring into the eyes of the monster, I have no idea how I ever thought this thing was anything but pure dragon—one hundred percent killer.

He lowers his head to me, and I can’t help but quail backward, raising my hands to shield myself. One enormous golden eye gazes at me, unblinking.

I jerk at my cuff again. Can’t help it. Need to get away.

That gets the dragon’s attention. It nudges past me, the enormous head shoving me aside as it studies the chain, sniffing it. I retreat as far as I can, until the chain is taut and the cuff is tight against my bloodied skin.

The enormous, fanged maw opens. I smother a cry as it takes the chain into its mouth, teeth brushing against my leg and dangerously close to breaking the skin.

Metal crunches. The chain goes slack.

The dragon sits back on its haunches, spitting out the length of chain.

I stumble backward, falling onto my ass in my haste to get away. I don’t get up, though. I just stay down and stare. Why did he free me?

The dragon leans in and whuffs my hair, as if testing my scent. I force myself to remain still for the inspection, even though the head is so big he could swallow me in a bite. I could lose a fist in one of the enormous nostrils that sniff me.