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Jim spent most of the evening working to restore the book while the rest of his team transferred the skeleton into the storage facility he'd rented. Progress was steady and he managed to prepare about a third of the pages, but they had to dry for a little while before he could look over them and either way he didn't want to try to decipher the combination of iffy handwriting and old English at midnight. He did glance at the first page, however, and according to the first few sentences the book was a journal kept by one Sir Bourdan.

They returned to the ruin site the next morning, to collect the equipment they'd left there--the skeleton was so large they'd been forced to leave most of their archaeological equipment behind in order to move the bones--and to see if there was anything else for them to find at the remains of the fortress. Everything appeared the same when they arrived at the plateau, and as they got out of their trucks Jim said, "Charlie, how about a fine sweep? It'll give us a lot to look at but I'm thinking we want to find as much as we can after yesterday."

"Sure. Let's just make sure none of our stuff was disturbed overnight..."

The team walked over towards where they'd left all their digging and examining equipment, but Bill froze almost as soon as they'd entered the outer wall of the ruins, held out his arms and said, "everyone stop!" Jim almost pushed past him, but then Bill pointed at the ground, and he finally noticed...

Footprints.

They weren't human footprints that Bill had seen; they were big, claw-tipped depressions clearly made by something enormous--and heavy enough to leave a mark even in the dry ground.

"Those weren't here yesterday," Charlie said.

"What left them? They're too big for a bear, and look at how far apart they are..." Jim looked around and saw another cluster of prints more than five meters away, then another group in between, and seemingly... "They're all over the place! Someone figure out what direction they came from." The team scattered across the ruins towards the other side of the plateau and the trees to either side, eyes down to follow the tracks.

He watched them go, then knelt to examine one of the prints, pulled out his digital camera and took a picture of it. "What creature could make footprints like these?"

"I found something!" He looked up to see Adam over near the center of the ruins, hunched down over something on the ground. They all gathered around him and he said, "I think I know what left these tracks." He picked up the object and held it out: a dull reddish scale that was bigger around than his hand. "A dragon was here last night."

Jim nearly laughed at the notion--dragons, living in secret and having gone undiscovered for so long!--but here was the evidence staring him in the face. Not only were dragons real, not only had they lived without being found for so long, but one had been at these very ruins just hours ago; it was almost overwhelming to think about.

"Oh my God," one of the archaeologists said, breaking the extended silence.

Charlie spoke up next. "We have to tell everyone. Government, police, Chris... Everyone."

"They wouldn't believe us..." Bill said.

"With the evidence we have? They'd have to."

"Eventually, yes, we'll have to tell everyone," Jim said, raising his voice. "But if we aren't careful we'll cause a panic, or make everyone want to come here to try to see it, or who knows what... We're going to have to do some other things first. We have to learn as much about dragons as we can, which I hope that book we found will help us with."

"And we'll need more evidence than some footprints and what could be a scale to prove they're still around," Bill said.

"And we have to tell Chris! He could be in danger, living so close to one."

"We also have to find out if they're dangerous to us," Jim said, taking the scale from Adam and looking it over for a moment. "My brother's a biologist; if I give him a call he may be able to help us find the dragon that was here last night, learn more about it, figure out if it's dangerous and, if it is, how to make it not dangerous any more. And," he looked around, "I think what we've found already is going to be more useful than any little things we may have missed here yesterday. Let's get back to the warehouse, put the skeleton back together, finish restoring the journal and start reading through what's been restored already; it'll tell us more about dragons than anything we try to figure out ourselves."

They packed all the digging equipment into their trucks and drove back down the mountain, working their way back to public roads and heading to the storage facility Jim had rented as a place store their findings from the dig. They arrived and Jim typed in the entry code next to the door, then the door opened and they all walked inside.

The team split into three groups: the first gathered around the many bones of the dead dragon and began to piece it back together using the chart they'd drawn when taking apart the skeleton. The second carefully extracted pages from the binding of the journal and worked to restore them so the faded ink could be read, and the third read through the pages that had already been finished, reading through the ancient script and looking for any information about dragons they could use.

Jim stood between the two archaeologists reading through the journal with a notepad in his hands, waiting to write down everything they read to him. First Adam found a physical description of a dragon: fifteen meters long, a little less than four meters high at the shoulder, with a sixteen-meter wingspan, four legs and a long neck and tail. Jim wrote it all down, then looked over Adam's shoulder at the next several pages, which all contained sketches of a dragon from various angles.

Next, Kate found a few pages that told of a knight who had found a cave where a whole clan of dragons lived together. The directions were given from the ruins, which made them difficult to follow at first, but Jim pulled out a map and soon got to work tracing the route. After marking the location of the fortress, he traced the path down the mountain, across a valley to another mountain, then up its northern slope to a wide ledge. He marked the location with a red dot.

"You two keep looking," Jim said. "I'll be back in a moment; I want to see who owns the land the dragons' cave is on." He pulled out his laptop, connected to the internet and compared the map to a land ownership chart. After a brief consultation, he found that the land both the fortress and the dragons' cave were on had been owned by one family, the Drakes, for nearly three hundred years.

The Drakes... he chuckled. That was quite a coincidence. After thinking for a moment about his encounter with Chris the previous day, he returned to Adam and Kate to take notes as they continued on through the journal, finding and recording everything from the dragons' feeding habits to how often they flew past the fortress.

But the journal told them something else, too: after writing about some initial aggressiveness on the dragons' part, Sir Bourdan noted that a peace agreement had been reached between the dragons and his own force. And that meant...

"You can't make an agreement with an animal," Adam said.

Jim nodded. "Dragons must be intelligent, then. That... Well, that will make things more interesting."

Finally they finished going through the journal, both the pages that had been restored last night and the fresh ones that were handed to them by the second group of the team. They reattached the pages to the book's binding, then went over to help the first group finish reconstructing the dragon skeleton. It was early evening by the time they finally put the last few pieces into place; the whole team looked over the skeleton for a little while, then Jim said, "I think we all know what we have to do now: we have to find the dragon who still lives here."

"How are we supposed to do that?" Bill said. "I searched news archives for any reports of unusual sightings in this area, and there was nothing. That means this dragon, or clan of dragons, is very good at hiding."

"But how many people know the exact location of that cave? We have enough information from this journal to be able to find the dragon and study it. Could you imagine how incredible that would be?"

"None of us are biologists," Charlie said. "I don't know about you, but even if we somehow found one I wouldn't have any idea what to observe."

"My brother Dave is. He works at a zoo in Sacramento; I'll just call him and have him drive out so we can catch this dragon and research it. Even if we don't know exactly how to go about this sort of thing, I know for sure he does. Let's head back to the hotel for the night, I'll call Mr. Martin to get a little more funding for this extra work, then I'll call Dave and ask him to come help us out."

The team drove back to the hotel they were all staying at during their time in Polson and went to their separate rooms. Jim swiped his keycard through the reader on the doorframe and opened the door, then sighed and looked out at the evening sky for a moment before walking inside.

The lights turned on automatically when he opened the door, revealing the small, single-bed hotel room. He closed and locked the door behind him, then walked over to the desk, put the backpack with his laptop down on the desktop and took out his cell phone. He thought for a moment, then dialed.

The person on the other end picked up after the third ring. "Martin residence, this is the butler speaking. How may I help you?"

"Yes, can I speak to Alex, please?"

"May I ask who I am speaking to, and what your business is with Mr. Martin?"

"Jim Fuller. Alex funds the archaeological work that I do, and I need to discuss things with him."

"All right, sir. One moment please..."

There was a click on the other end of the line, then Jim heard the phone ringing again. After five rings, Alex picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Alex, it's Jim."

"Jim, how are you? It's been a while."

"It's been two weeks, buddy."

"Yeah, well, I'm a busy person, especially with the merge going on. Do you know how much money is being transferred in this deal?"

"Billions of UNits, I'm sure. Is it all going smoothly?"

"Yes, of course. I'm just waiting for the other executives to sign the contract, then the deal's finished. So, what did you call about?"

"This research I'm doing out in Polson. I've discovered something... Well, something odd, and I need to have a biologist come out here to do some related work for me."

"What about the rest? Do you need any more funding for the dig?"

"Not that any archaeologist ever does much actual digging any more, but that's finished... We've found pretty much all there is to find, I think. But anyway, I'm going to call my brother to see if he'll do the work for us; he'll give us a good deal for his time. He's good, and it'll cost less than hiring some other professional."

"Sounds like a plan. How much money do you think he'll ask for?"

"That depends on how long he works, but I wouldn't expect too much. I'll see what he asks for."

"Do that, but the maximum I'm allowing you to spend on hiring him is a thousand UNits. He doesn't need any more than that for whatever he's doing for you, if it's as simple as you're making it sound."

"What if he can't do it?"

"Maybe I'll raise the figure a bit if you have to hire someone else, but Dave should be able to help you. Why's he even still working, anyway? He could have retired after winning that lawsuit."

"He's always enjoyed what he does; he started working again as soon as he was out of physical therapy. I'll call him, see what he says, and let you know as soon as I can."

"All right. We'll talk later."

"See you." Jim ended the call and dialed another number. The phone rang four times, then an answering machine picked up.

"You've reached David Fuller, and I'm obviously not here right now, so leave a message. I'll get back to you eventually, but I might be in Africa again, so I won't make any promises."

The machine beeped. "Hey, Dave, it's Jim. Listen, I've come across... Well, I've come across something very strange while working up in Polson, and I need you to come up here. I can't really give any details over the phone, but..."

The machine clicked, then Jim heard heavy breathing. "Sorry, bro," Dave said. "I was downstairs working out, and I couldn't come right away. So, what's this strange thing?"

He sighed. "I can't really say anything about it over the phone, but I'm sure it'll interest you. It won't take more than a week, if that."

His brother was silent for a moment, then, "you and your paranoia. All right, I'll call in and tell my boss I need to take a few personal days; good thing I haven't used any yet this year. I'll head out in the morning, but it'd better be good... Do you need me to bring anything?"

Jim thought for a moment. "Hmm... You'll need your trapping, tracking and restraining equipment, I think."

"Oh, I'm researching something, am I? How big is whatever you want me to track down?"

"What's the largest thing you've had to work with?"

"I think..." Jim heard Dave whispering incoherently on the other end of the line. "Giraffes were the largest," he said after a few seconds.

"Bigger than that. Or longer, anyway; the description wasn't very clear about weight."

"In the Rocky Mountains? What on earth did you find up there?"

"I'll tell you as soon as you get here. Get moving and you can find out sooner."

"I can't make it there if I leave now, I'll be too tired."

"So let the car drive for you. It's made to be able to do that."

"Jim, I spent a year and a half in physical therapy because my last car didn't do that properly. I don't trust the auto-drive systems, you know that; that's why my new car doesn't have one." Dave was silent for a moment or two. "What's the address?" Jim gave him the address for the storage building, then he said, "I should get there around noon tomorrow."

"All right, I'll see you then. ...your Callahan really doesn't have an auto-drive?"

"No; that and the engine were the two main reasons I bought it. Anyway, I have a workout to finish, so I'll see you tomorrow."

"All right, bye."

He hung up, then called Alex back.

"Did he accept?"

"Of course. I'll let you know when he decides how much he wants us to pay him."

"Good. Remember, a thousand UNits is his ceiling."

"I won't forget. See you."

"Bye." Jim returned his phone to his pocket, then went to the bathroom. He paused and looked in the mirror on his way out, then wet a hand towel and wiped a large smudge of dirt from his cheek--who could tell how long it had been there. He sighed, folded up the towel and put it back on the rack. Talking to his friends and family always made him depressed.

They're all rich, he thought, everyone but me. Some of them worked for it and some of them didn't, but they all have lots of money. So why don't I? If everyone else has the wealth to do whatever they want, then so should I! He kicked at the carpeted floor. He worked harder than most of them, too, and he didn't get anything to show for it. But what was he supposed to do? He loved archaeology. He couldn't imagine working any other job.

Jim walked over to his bed, pulled out his suitcase and selected the long shirt he always slept in. He laid it on the edge of the bed, then took off his shirt, replacing it with the one he slept in. Then he removed his shoes and socks, unhooked his belt and was about to remove it when his hand knocked against the stun pistol that rested against his right hip.

He put a finger on the grip, then grabbed the pistol and drew it, pointing it at the far wall. He had never fired the pistol, but always carried it--with crime the way it was these days, one never knew when he could be in danger. He turned the pistol on its side and checked the battery level, which was still full. He clicked the safety off, then on again, then he rolled up the pistol in his belt and tucked it into a corner of the suitcase.

He pulled off his pants and got into bed. Hopefully Dave wouldn't take too long driving out there...

---

Jim got to the storage building a little before noon and made sure everything was in order, from the notes he'd taken from the journal to the journal itself to the fully constructed skeleton and the scale they'd found. He stood and admired the bones for a while, remembering the sketches he'd seen in the journal and smiling a little. To think what it would be like to see something so incredible in person...

Finally he heard the crunch of tires on gravel, walked to the door and put his hand on the knob, then glanced at the outdoor monitor, just in case: he was presented with the view of a man who, aside from being fifteen centimeters taller and having grey eyes instead of blue ones, looked almost exactly like him. He turned off the monitor and opened the door; Dave stood there, hand raised to knock. "Hey."

Dave lowered his hand, flushing. "Hi. Now, can you tell me why I'm here?"

He nodded and ushered his brother indoors, then closed and locked the door. "In a moment. Did you bring everything I said you needed?"

"Yes, of course... Would you hurry up and tell me what I'm here for? It's been driving me crazy since you called. What could possibly live in Montana that's larger than a giraffe? I can't think of anything."

Jim smiled. "How do dragons sound to you?"

Any traces of expression disappeared from Dave's face. "You've got to be kidding."

He shook his head, grin widening. "Not at all."

Dave broke into a grin as well. "That... That's incredible, do you know? They're supposed to be myths, and they've been living right here this whole time?" He fell silent and frowned, lines appearing on his forehead as he thought. "But how do you know?"

"My team found some bones," he said, and pointed to where the skeleton was laid out.

He groaned. "Jim, you know that doesn't mean anything. Myths and legends about dragons exist everywhere because people just found dinosaur fossils and invented dragons from them."

"Didn't say fossils, said bones. I also found a journal that documents their presence in these mountains, those bones had chains wrapped around them, and we found footprints and a dragon scale when we went back yesterday morning."

Dave gaped at him. "Oh, God..." he finally said. "This is real, isn't it?"

"Looks like."

"Wow." He snapped his fingers, suspending his awe and attempting to concentrate. "To business, then. How much does this journal of yours have to say about dragons?"

Jim picked up the notepad and opened it to the pages he had filled out. "Take a look at this. It's all I could find."

He scanned the paper for several minutes. "This... This is perfect. I can get right to work with this data; I could practically write a report without even seeing a dragon. ...but do you think we'd have a chance of finding one?"

"That's something I was going to ask you. The man who owns the land the cave is on has given my truck clearance to enter and leave his property, so we'll be able to get pretty close to that cave without much trouble... But that could be a bad idea, if however many dragons remain aren't peaceful."

"An ambush would probably work better, I think, if we can find a good spot to settle down. Your notes mentioned a nearby pond where Sir Bourdan could usually find at least one dragon, depending on the time of day... That would be a good spot to start from, if the pond is still there. But first, I'm taking a look at these bones."

He led him over to the dragon's remains, and Dave paused again. "Man, these aren't just bones, this is a complete skeleton. Do you have any idea how rare this is?"

"Archaeology is my line of work, you know. Finding a complete, articulated skeleton is like... I don't even know what it would be like. It almost seems like the dragon was buried, then its skin and organs decomposed."

"I'm more curious that it stayed together this well despite who knows how many earthquakes disturbing the ground since it was buried." Dave walked all around the bones, examining them closely and taking a few notes on his own notepad, then he said, "right, that's all I needed to see here." He grinned, put his pad in his backpack and rubbed his hands together. "Let's go."

The two brothers walked outside, then transferred most of Dave's equipment from the trailer hitched to his sports car to the bed of Jim's truck. Dave held up a rifle for a moment, considering something, then left it in the trailer, closing it and a few other leftover items inside. He got into the truck, and Jim reached for the console between the two front seats.

"No auto-drive, Jim. Not with me in the car."

"Fine, I'll drive myself," he said, rolling his eyes just a little, and pulled the truck onto the road. He drove back to the edge of Chris' property, where a pair of dirt paths led off into the woods. Jim hesitated.

"Let's go to the slopes below the cave first, if you can get there," Dave said.

"What, are we just going to walk in on them?"

He shook his head. "Oh, no, we can't do that. If there are still dragons living there, they'd probably kill us in a heartbeat--especially if that battle with this Sir Bourdan was the last contact they had with humans. I'm just going to plant a sensor below the ledge of the cave; it'll tell us if anything ever enters or leaves their home."

"You think they would kill us? According to the journal, they've made peace with humans before."

"Did those humans walk into their cave unannounced and try to capture one of them?"

Jim raised a finger. "Good point."

They were forced to drive far from any established paths to reach the slopes below the cave, but it was still mid-afternoon when Dave activated his sensor. "There," he said once they were back in the truck. "Now, all we can do is set up a blind by the pond and hope to catch a dragon off guard. They'd have stop by there for water pretty often if they want to get water without being seen, so we would have as good a chance as any of encountering one there."

"If the pond hasn't dried up."

"Well, yeah, but we'll find that out before trying to figure out a better place to set up."

Jim drove back to the main roads, then re-entered the Drake property by a different access path. After finding the pond, he parked his truck under a thick stand of trees and turned it off. Dave removed some things from the bed of the truck, then pulled a large, patterned blanket from his things and laid it over the truck.

"A camouflage blanket," he explained. "If a dragon saw your truck there, it wouldn't land at the pond to drink."

Next, Dave walked out onto the bank of the pond, a large suitcase over one shoulder. He chose an open spot on the bank and put the suitcase down, then pressed a button on its side and quickly backed away. It beeped for a few seconds, then expanded outward until it resembled a boulder; he opened a concealed door on the side and motioned for Jim to walk inside. Dave walked in after him and closed the door.

"This is my best hunting blind. There isn't a creature on earth, or at least none we know of, that can distinguish this from a real boulder." He gestured to various dials, monitors and other items that lined the walls. "We have radar, motion sensors, outside cameras and all that important stuff; it's even soundproofed. This model has a folding chair and a sleeping bag for those long stakeouts, but of course I've never used either of those," he grinned. "The weapon I'll use to stun it will pop out of the top of the blind when I tell it I'm ready to shoot. It even calculates how much charge to use on its own, based on what I say I want to happen to the target. Hmm, I'll set it for stunning blasts now, so I don't forget."

Dave pressed a few buttons on a side panel. "All right, now comes the best part."

"You mean waiting?" Jim sighed.

"Exactly."