Fourteen-year-old Jack Morgan has been through a lot. His parents died years ago, and since his Uncle Virgil was killed, Jack has been alone. But he does have a friend now, named Draycos . . . if you can call a golden-scaled draconic K'da poet-warrior a friend.The two friends both have scores to settle. Draycos must find and expose those behind a vast conspiracy against his people, and Jack is desperate to thwart the men who framed him for a crime he didn't commit. Alone, Draycos, who must bond with a host or die, is dead; Jack, on his own, is sunk. Together, they might have a chance. Especially when Draycos, who can slip onto Jack's skin like a living tattoo, uses some of his special talents. They know mercenaries helped launch the ambush that destroyed Draycos's advance team, but when Jack joined up with one such group to get information on the identities of those involved, he and Draycos were nearly killed before they escaped--empty-handed.