Ariana Sinclair thought losing Kael would be the worst pain she could endure.

She was wrong.

The bond that once tied her to Kael Vaughn, the feared Storm Wolf, has shattered… and in its place, something ancient claimed her as Bride.

The moment Ariana’s Fifth Blood awakened, an ancient entity returned and marked her as the one it had waited lifetimes to reclaim. Kingdoms now hunt her power, monsters kneel before her scent, and the man who once would have burned the world for her has been taken beyond her reach.

Kael was supposed to protect her.

Instead, he has become the chosen Guardian of the darkness rising against her, the one meant to deliver her into its hands.

Across forgotten lifetimes, he has found Ariana again and again.
Loved her. Lost her. Betrayed her. Killed for her.

Now he is gone with Mira, a woman who can control the power inside him as if it was always hers to command.

With their bond broken and war closing in, Ariana is left with one terrifying truth:

If Kael returns, he may not come back as the man she loved.

He may return as the weapon forged to claim her for the entity that calls her Bride.

But Ariana was never born to kneel.

And if fate wants a bride, it may have chosen the wrong woman.

Hundreds of dragons tore through the clouds above the mountain, one after another descending through the gray sky. Massive shadows swept across the hidden city, their scales flashing like dark steel beneath the fading light. Their eyes burned the same furious red, and for a moment, the entire city froze under the weight of their presence. Even the Dragon King slowly lifted his massive head, and the golden dragon beside Ariana released a low rumble that vibrated through the palace floor.


Chapter 16 - The Sky of Fire