George. My purpose was to kill.

Snatching my helmet from the bed, I returned to the kitchen, where Tristan had drawn all the blinds and was standing at the counter with the laptop. He had also changed into combat gear, and gave me a short nod as I came in.

“They’ve located the nest. Get ready. We move in tonight.”

Ember

After I left Garret’s apartment, I rode aimlessly for a while, my mind still a chaotic, swirling mess. Lexi had called me earlier, wanting to go surfing in the cove, but I knew I wasn’t clear-headed enough to tackle giant waves and would just end up getting pounded. Besides, Lexi would probably know something was up, and while she was great with human problems like boys and clothes and feelings, she could not help me with this.

I wished I could’ve talked to Garret, come totally clean and told him everything. After my training session and the atomic bomb Scary Talon Lady had dropped in my lap, I’d gone straight to his apartment, not really knowing what I would say, just that I had to see him.

That had been a mistake.

Meeting with Garret, stealing those kisses in his room, hearing his whispered confessions, made me realize how much I had to lose when the summer ended. I had thought it was just my freedom, but even that seemed to pale in comparison to losing Garret. He wasn’t just a cute human boy who could surf and play arcade games and take me to the carnival. This wasn’t a rebellious desire to show up my trainer, to experience human emotions because dragons weren’t supposed to have them. No, I really, truly wanted to be with him.

And the thought of him leaving, of never seeing him again, made my heart ache in a way I’d never felt before.

So now there were two black clouds hanging over my head, making me even crazier. Or, maybe it was just the one big cloud, and all my smaller issues stemmed from it. The suffocating, giant-ass cloud called Talon. Talon said humans were the inferior species. Talon forbade us from flying, or even changing into our real forms, without their permission. Talon sent an evil, sadistic trainer to make my life a living hell.

Talon wanted me to become a Viper.

I shivered, clenching the handlebars of the bike. Of all the factions and positions in the organization, I had never dreamed I would become a Viper. I knew I wasn’t big or strong enough for the Gilas, and I didn’t have the charm and grace to become a Chameleon.

After talking with Riley that afternoon on the pier, I was almost certain I was destined to become a Basilisk. Not ideal, but better than getting lumped with the Monitors, doing boring busy work for the rest of my life.

But Viper. Talon’s most elite operatives. Officially, the Vipers were called in as a last resort, a final gamble when everything else had failed. And, of course, they were occasionally dispatched to hunt down rogues and deserters and return them to the organization. That was the official story, anyway. That was why going rogue was as fu-tile as it was dangerous; you stood no chance against a Viper, once it was on your trail. They never gave up once they took a mission.

Was that my calling now? Hunting down my own kind, forcing them back to an organization that was slowly stifling me? It didn’t seem right. Though I had no idea what else the Vipers actually did.

Surely they didn’t just hunt down runaways. But when I’d asked Scary Talon Lady about it, she’d just laughed and said that wasn’t my concern just yet. That everything would reveal itself at the right time.

I needed to talk to someone. Garret had been a knee jerk reaction because I was upset and not thinking clearly, but he couldn’t help me with Talon problems. I needed another dragon, someone who understood what I was going through. And I knew of only one person who fit that description.

I pulled out my phone as I ditched the bike in the yard and climbed the steps to the house. My heart thumped loudly as I pulled up his number, my thumb hovering over the call button.

Still staring at the screen, I opened the front door, and crashed right into Dante, leaving the house.

“Oof. Ow. Again,” he complained, taking a step back and rubbing his chin, where he’d banged it against the top of my skull. “Geez, it’s like walking into a bowling ball. But I always knew you were hard-headed.”

“Funny.” He was acting normal again, like nothing was wrong. but I was tired of pretending, and stepped aside to let him pass. “I guess it’s better to have a head like a bowling ball than no balls at all.”

“Geez, below the belt, sis.” His forehead creased as he peered down at me. “You okay?”

“I’m fine. Besides, what do you care?” He wasn’t moving, so I tried sidling around him into the house. “Don’t you have things Talon wants you to do? Sucking up, brown nosing, that sort of thing?”

“Okaaay, someone is in a mood.” I slipped past him, but instead of leaving he followed me into the living room. His tone turned suspicious. “Wanna tell me what’s going on?.”

“Would you listen?” I challenged, staring at him over the kitchen counter. “Or would you just sell me out to Talon if I said something wrong?”

A hurt, angry expression crossed his face. “All right, that’s it,” he growled. Striding into the kitchen, he leaned over the counter and lowered his voice, speaking in a harsh whisper. “When have I ever not listened to you, Ember?” he demanded. “You keep telling me I’m not on your side, but this whole time, I’ve done nothing but look out for you, lied to our guardians for you, looked the other way when you broke the rules. I lied for you when you went out flying, I covered for us at the party, and I didn’t mention I saw you talking to that rogue.