Page 54 of Dark Dragon’s Wolf

A security camera.

Mayah bit her lips. The camera couldn’t see her and Tristan, but it was definitely recording everything the prisoner was doing and saying. If they saw her talking to someone who wasn’t there, it might tip them off.

But this woman was a white wolf. She had to have some kind of mental abilities. Mayah reached out with her mind. Can you hear me?

The woman’s eyes widened again. Yes. Who are you? She paused, looking from one of them to the other. Are you really the Dragon-wolf?

Like in the song you were singing?

The song of our salvation. We teach it to the children. We pretend it’s a game.

The children. Mayah suddenly realized that if everyone had been here as long as the couple Tristan knew, then most of the children had been born here.

With nothing but a nursery rhyme to give them hope. Because somehow, the wolves knew she and Tristan would come for them.

They’d always known.

I’m Mayah, Draken Princess of the House of Al-Maddeiri. And this is Tristan. We’re going to get you out of here. How many of you are here?

There are… She paused, obviously counting in her mind. Thirty-one.

So their original count had been pretty much right on the money.

And all of you are here? On this hallway? There are no other prisoners?

She shook her head slightly. Not as far as we know. They let us out in the yard, for exercise. I’ve never seen anyone but us, and the guards never talk about any other prisoners, either.

How big is this place?

Four buildings surrounding the yard.

What’s in the rest of them?

Offices and labs. The parts they can let people see.

Right. Because there’s no way they could let anyone on Earth know they were keeping people in here, and experimenting on them.

Mayah returned to her intelligence-gathering.

What’s behind that door? She indicated the reinforced metal door at the end of the hall. Tristan, unable to hear their conversation, had moved off across the hall, looking in the other cells.

Looking for more people he knew. Mayah felt her stomach clench, but forced her attention back to what the young woman was saying.

Guard room. Holding cell. Exit to the yard. Security monitoring room, I think. And access to the other buildings.

Okay. Hang tight. We’re going to get you out of here soon, but we have to find out as much as we can before we mount a rescue.

The woman rested her forehead back on her knees. Thank you. There was a short silence, and then Mayah heard, faintly, Please don’t be a dream.

Mayah went to Tristan and put her hand briefly on the top of his head. I’m going through the door at the end of the hall. She says the security station is through there. Are you coming?

Of course. He tore himself away from the cell he was staring into and followed her. But she saw him gazing into every one they passed.

She stepped through the door. To her right was the security monitoring station, with a bank of monitors showing different views of the complex.

But Tristan didn’t come through. Had his amulet not worked?

She was about to go back when she saw something else—the holding cell, glowing with magical runes. With good reason.