When news reaches the prince’s patrol that they are being summoned to the king’s court on charges of treason, fleeing is their only option. 

Plunging headlong into an ambush, Bastian must lead them through the gambit of dragon fire and carry his rider to safety. 

But battles are unpredictable, and sounding the retreat isolates the reckless warrior Bastian would protect even above his own rider. He races to Finn’s rescue in a bloody and brutal charge ... because dragons don’t do mercy.

**The original prologue of Flowers and Flames that hit the cutting room floor here now to give you a glimpse into our heroes and the moment that sent them into exile. Enjoy the tease, mind the cliff.

"Juniper and Steel"

by R. L. Elise