You worry over her, he agrees, and turns to cup my face. His thumbs stroke over my cheeks. You also worry over Amy. And Claudia. And if another female showed up on our doorstep, you would worry over her as well.

I give him a little smile. Can’t help it. I like for everyone in my little family to be happy.

I purse my lips, thinking as I consider the lack of communication from Emma. I’m not her mom, of course. She’s an adult and can do whatever she wants. But all this quiet is…strange. After the friendship we’ve built, it’s odd to just not hear from her at all. I hope she’s not mad.

You worry too much, Dakh tells me.

So I do. With one last glance at the “mailbox,” I go to Dakh’s side, where he’s waiting for me to buckle my saddle on. Maybe we’ll catch a glimpse of Emma as we fly over the city.

Claudia’s happy to see me again, as always, though I still feel a bit of niggling guilt that I haven’t been ‘home’ much this week to spend time with Emma. We take another gliding flight over the city, circling wide around the distant Fort Dallas. I can smell smoke in the air and see the glint of red scales in the distance. It’s that time of the month, when all of the red dragons seem to have their targets set on Fort Dallas and are determined to destroy it. The sight fills me with mixed emotions. I worry over the people there, trapped in their homes as they wait for dragonfire to cease, and I also feel sad for the dragons, that are out of their minds with what this place has done to them.

No one’s winning this situation.

We glide around the city, and I manage to stay on Dakh’s back as he dives for a fleeing cow and snaps it up in one gulp. I try not to be grossed out by it, because I know he has to eat, but my stomach still does a queasy little jump when a few drops of blood catch in the breeze and spatter my goggles.

I will try harder not to let it bleed on you, Dakh tells me. Perhaps next time I will not bite, just swallow whole.

Oh, for Pete’s sake, just bite the damn thing. It’s not your fault I’m squeamish. I chuckle to myself, amused at the thought of a dragon trying to change his habits for a puny human like myself. I can’t expect you to live on peanut butter and crackers like me. Ahead of us, Kael swoops and grabs another cow in his claws, ripping the head off before tossing it back in his throat. And at least you didn’t do that. Yeesh.

His mate is not bothered. You should not be either.

Maybe after I’ve ridden on you for a while, seeing you get your beef in the raw won’t be a big deal. For now, it’s still shocking. I’ll get used to it. It just takes time.

Then…you do not mind if I eat another?

Not at all, babe. Just let me know when you’re zooming in so I can close my eyes.

After the hunt is done, we re-alight back onto the “perching ledge”—as I’ve come to think of it—over Claudia’s open-air end of her enormous apartment. Amy’s nowhere to be seen, hiding downstairs in her bunker since dragon activity is high today. We dismount, and Claudia rubs a hand over her dirty face. “Want to go wash up and have a coffee before you go?”

“Sure.”

I follow her into the bathroom stalls. This building once housed offices, I think. Claudia and Kael have cleaned out any remnants of cubicles, and Claudia’s set it up like a cozy living room on the far end of the building, with patio furniture on the open-air side. I don’t know if I could live with a gigantic hole in the roof on one end, but it is rather sunny and breezy compared to the stale, dark store I’m living in. The bathroom itself is similar to the one back at the store, with a row of sinks and a broken mirror, and several toilet stalls, though most seem to be out of order.

“So what do you think of riding?” Claudia asks, picking up a bar of soap and turning on one of the taps in the sink. She scrubs at her hands and then soaps up her cheeks, dirty with ash and blood. “Best way to travel, isn’t it?”

“It does take a little getting used to, but it’s better than the alternative by far.” I take the soap from her and lather up, washing my face free of grime. Ever since I left Fort Dallas, I’ve been addicted to being clean. With free soap and water at hand, I never want to be as filthy as I was before. It’s the little things you appreciate, and gosh, do I appreciate a fresh-smelling bar of soap. I don’t even care that bar soap is bad for my face—I just like being clean.

“Are you guys going to stay out at that store? Or are you going to move closer to Old Dallas?” Claudia’s tone is casual, but I suspect there’s a lot more behind that simple question. She won’t look me in the eye in the mirror’s reflection. Strange.

“We haven’t given it much thought,” I tell her honestly. Or I have, but we haven’t really decided anything as of yet. I don’t want to leave Emma behind, not when we’re her only friends. “I’m still getting used to the idea of being able to go anywhere and be safe.” I pause, thinking. “I actually considered going south with Dakh, to the shore. See what the world is like down there. See if the oceans are all burned away or if there’s another fort near Houston. Maybe there are more survivors and we just haven’t heard from them. Maybe it’s nice and peaceful there. We don’t know because every time Fort Dallas sent a runner, no one ever came back, but I’d love to find out. And I’d love to see the ocean.” I sigh happily at the thought. “I wonder if Dakh’s ever seen it? He’d be so surprised to see all that water. And I’ve got a zillion bikinis, thanks to the store.”

“The beach, huh?” She looks a little disappointed. “I was hoping you’d want to move closer. We could pool our resources. Use our dragons for good and not evil! Keep Fort Dallas in line and all that.” She wiggles her eyebrows at me. “We could be superheroes. Kind of. Or you know, more like cops. With dragons. Keeping our neighborhood clean of corruption and the like.”

I shake my head at her. The longer I’m out of Fort Dallas, the less grateful I am to the city for “giving” me a place to live for the last few years. A place that left me trapped and forced to depend on others for survival, maybe. But I wouldn’t call it a living, and I feel sorry for all the others trapped in the same situation. “If you would have asked me a month ago, I probably would have said yes. But I’ve been on my own and scavenging with Dakh, and…the longer I’m away, the less I think they deserve help. They treated you like shit, Claud. They tried to take Amy hostage. And no one would help me at all.” I shake my head. “Or you want to help Tate make things safer? Tate who likes to break things? I’m actually kind of shocked that you would suggest helping the fort after what they did to you.”