“Wait!” I dodged and backed swiftly away, ducking around a beam. The pipe smacked into the wood a microsecond later, raising a hollow thud and a billow of dust. “Wait just a second,” I said as my attacker followed me around the beam, holding the pipe like a baseball bat. It swung at me again, and I dodged out of the way. “Will you relax? I’m not here to hurt you. Just listen to me.”

The others started forward, and I gave them a sharp look. “Don’t move!” I snapped, and thankfully, they froze. “Stay right there, both of you,” I insisted, holding out an arm, the universal gesture of let’s all calm the fuck down. “Everyone relax.”

The person with the pipe hesitated, shooting fearful looks between the three of us. A girl, I realized. Lithe and graceful, even as dirty as she was, with big blue eyes and silver-blond hair to the middle of her back. She wore a ratty T-shirt and baggy cargo jeans, and looked like she had slept in them for a while.

And she was definitely a hatchling, a teenager in human form. A little older than the ones I normally saw, wide-eyed and fresh out of training, but a hatchling nonetheless. The tightness in my chest eased a little, and I let out a furtive breath of relief. We’d found her before the Order did. That was all that mattered.

Panting, the girl backed up, still holding the pipe out in front of her. “Who are you?” she asked in a trembling voice. “What do you want?” Her voice, though it shook with fear, was low and cool, her words clear. Raising the pipe again, she gave us a fierce look. “I swear, I am not going back.”

“Easy.” I edged forward with one hand still outstretched, keeping my movements slow and unthreatening. “Take it easy,” I said again. “You’re safe. We’re not from Talon.”

She eyed me warily but visibly relaxed. The weapon hovered between us, dropping a few inches, but didn’t lower completely. “If you’re not from Talon, who are you?” the girl demanded. “How did you know about this place?”

“My name is Cobalt.” I offered my real name without hesitation. More people knew Cobalt, who he was and what he’d done. And even if this girl didn’t, Cobalt was a dragon name, subtly reminding her that we were alike. “And I’m sort of in the business of finding people like you. People who want out. I can help,” I went on, easing forward again. “I can take you somewhere safe, someplace Talon won’t be able to find you. But you have to trust me.”