A Kingdom Threatened

There's a time to play along, and there's a time to put everything on the line

Merletta has survived her second-year test, but its revelations have once again upended everything she thought she knew. With so much at stake, it's hard to remember why she once cared so much about passing the program. It's time to show her true colors and face whatever comes . . . but yet again, she's failed to predict the Center's next move. And the consequences are disastrous for more than just her.

Heath, meanwhile, is taking no such stand. His magic is growing stronger by the day but revealing it would only be a barrier to peace. Not to mention Reka still refuses to explain his sudden antagonism toward Merletta. When Merletta is forced to flee the triple kingdoms-straight into Heath's arms-it's easy to tell himself he has everything he's ever wanted.

But the longer Heath willfully ignores the barriers between them, the higher the stakes become. Because dragons aren't as easy to deceive as humans. And the outcome of Heath and Merletta's unplanned connection will mean catastrophe on a scale they never could have imagined.