Nick feels the color wash out of his face as Amethyst’s words sink in. ‘Gone? Gone where?’ he wonders, hurrying over to the window and yanking it open. Amethyst is sitting on the lawn below them. Tris walks up slowly to stand beside him, holding onto the small railing just on the other side of the door-sized window.

“What do you mean?” Nick asks, looking down in absolute confusion at the dragon below. “We just spoke with him a little more than an hour ago,” he ...