Chapter 1

There was oncea time where I wanted to be saved. Where I wished I could summon the nerve and tell my sister the truth about what happened the day I left. I was supposed to leave when she did. I was supposed to escape. But I waited too long and by the time I'd summoned the nerve, the pride had caught on to what we were doing. I had no other choice but to turn back and pretend I wasn't involved. If I didn't, I would've suffered a much worse fate.

"We can"t keep doing this, Talia."

My stomach clenched involuntarily. I knew deep down that my sister wouldn't hurt me. It was hard to convince my mind of that fact. After years of living in the pride, disappointment in someone's tone was usually followed by violence.

"I– I don't know what you want from me."

Kiara sighed, plopping onto the bed next to me. "I want you to be okay. I brought you here to get better. It almost feels like you're getting worse. You're hiding. Have you even gone to the trailer park yet? Have you seen Rhea?"

Fear skittered across my mind at the thought of leaving the compound. There were men in the trailer park. An unknown number of strange men who could hurt me and Leo. I masked my expression the best I could, but my hands gave me away, clenched tightly in my lap.

"They won't hurt you, Talia. I've met them. They're good people," Kiara assured me.

Good to her, maybe. Kiara was a force to be reckoned with and very dominant. No one was going to hurt her. No one stood a chance. Meanwhile, after years in the pride, my dominance was stuffed down so much that I didn't feel it at all anymore. They made me into the submissive they wanted and I couldn't get that back. I wasn't sure I wanted to. Fighting only brought more pain.

"Think about Leo. He's not willing to go anywhere without you. You want him stuck in this room forever?"

My gaze flicked to the little lump on the bed. My son was my world, my reason for waking up each morning. He was a strong boy, he did well during his pride training, but he was also quiet like me. He preferred reading under the covers over going to play with the other boys in the pride. And Kiara was right. Since we moved out here, he never left my side. I couldn't remember the last time he smiled.

When Kiara told me she was moving us away from the pride to the tiny town where our oldest friend lived with her crew, I had wanted to refuse. The pride was all I knew. It was relatively safe, or so I thought. But Kiara wouldn't budge and said I was blind if I thought I could ever be happy there. Even after the women took over the pride, Kiara said it wasn't good enough. She packed our things, and we took a road trip from the desert all the way into the cool mountains of Montana.

I missed the sun. Missed the heat. The place she brought me to was cold. There was no room for us at the trailer park, not with Rhea's mother moving up here too. Instead, Kiara brought me to the dragon's lair. A brand new compound with no charm and too much cold steel. The sun streaming through the floor to ceiling windows did nothing to cut through the cold. And I wouldn't admit it out loud, for fear of the dragon overhearing me, but the whole place was… ugly.

I couldn't tell Kiara any of that. I didn't want her to hate me. She already felt guilty for what happened, even though it wasn't her fault. It was mine. I was too much of a coward to leave when I had the chance. If I'd been brave enough, I would've left with her and none of this would've happened.

But then I also wouldn't have Leo…

His little body moved as he got more comfortable. I wasn't entirely sure why he enjoyed reading that way. It was just how he preferred it. He burrowed into the blankets and read his books with a flashlight. Kiara thought it was strange, but I didn't say anything about it. It comforted him, and I didn't want to take away his comfort.

I didn't want him to end up like me, but the idea of being that close to so many new people was terrifying. I spent my whole life with the pride. There were no newcomers unless they were other lions coming to trade females for the pride. And I never went outside when they were around. I didn't want to be dragged even farther away from my home. I didn"t know how to interact with people, and I was scared to try.

"Talia…" Kiara sighed.

"I… I'm sorry…"

When I lifted my gaze off my clasped hands, my heart ached when I saw the exasperated look on my sister's face. She only wanted to help me. But she was asking for the impossible. She wanted me to go back to the way I was. I didn"t think that person existed anymore.

"What about school? One of the mates in Blackridge set up a little school in her trailer. She's got a teaching license and everything. Don't you want him to succeed?"

I did. And I knew I couldn't teach him forever. My education was limited. I tried supplementing it when I was alone, reading whatever I could get my hands on, but it wouldn't be enough to teach Leo forever. He was already so much smarter than me.

"Is… Is it safe?"

"Yes, Talia," Kiara groaned. "I wouldn't suggest it if it wasn't. Come on. Most of the crew works. They should be gone already. You'll go there, see the school, and decide if you want Leo to go there. Easy, right?"

The blankets rustled and Leo finally poked his head out of the blankets, a scowl already on his face. "I don't want to go to school."

"No one asked you," Kiara snapped back.

Those two didn't get along. They didn't know each other that well, since Kiara couldn't come near the pride without getting caught. They only ever talked through video chat every few months, and that wasn't enough to form a relationship. They both had strong personalities and clashed a lot, which was disheartening. I didn't want either of them to be upset.

"It's my life! I should get to decide where I go to school!"

Kiara growled out a warning that Leo answered with one of his own. Kiara might not be seriously willing to hurt a cub, but she'd put him in his place if she had to. And Leo wouldn't go down without a fight. He was trained by the pride. They taught him women were supposed to listen to men, no matter the age.

"Please don't fight," I pleaded with them both. Kiara still looked angry, but Leo's gaze flicked to me for a moment. He wasn't like the other boys in the pride. He didn't act cruel to me just because I was a woman. He went the other way. He was protective to the point where it was sometimes hard to recognize who the parent was. He didn't want to upset me.

After glaring at his aunt once more, Leo climbed out of his little hiding place until he sat next to me, his chin lifted defiantly at Kiara.

"I don't need school. There's online stuff. And Mom can teach me."

I winced. I hated that I had to tell him he was wrong. I did fine in some areas. His love of reading came from me. But with math and science, I was hopeless, and I didn"t want him to get left behind his peers.

"Kiara is right, Leo. I… I think we should go check it out."

Leo looked pained, putting his little hand on top of mine. "No, Mom. You're scared. I don't want to go somewhere that will scare you."

"I'm not…" I hesitated, trying to figure out how best to make him understand. "I'm not the greatest at math. I don't want you to be held back by me. Let's at least check it out for part of the day. So we can see if the teacher can help. Okay?"

His eyes searched mine, so I took on the blank mask I'd perfected over the years in the pride. The less emotion I showed, the less likely the males would get mad at me for reacting. It was safer to pretend I wasn't as scared as I was. Some of them enjoyed making the females cry.

"Fine," Leo said after a minute of silence. "But if you're scared, we're leaving. I can teach myself if I have to."

Kiara rolled her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest. "You know, for eight years old, you sure know everything. What the hell did the pride teach you?"

Leo scowled at her, but didn't reply. He instead focused on me, clasping my hand to support me as we made our way to Kiara's car. It was going to take every ounce of bravery I had to go to Rhea's home. I could only hope that I could keep my skin and get through it. If I shifted out of fear, Leo would shift too, to protect me. And I didn"t want him angering any of the males there. His safety and happiness were my priority. Nothing else mattered.