Persie's got the keys to the kingdom. She's spent months training hard, taking names, making friends, and Purging beasts with a newfound confidence. Everything, she thinks, is going swimmingly. But secrets are brewing in and around the Institute, ushered in by the arrival of a mysterious stranger who is fundamentally opposed to everything Persie stands for. But he's fascinated by her. And he needs her help. While Persie is forced to confront her entire belief system, Nathan struggles to hide dangerous secrets of his own. The awkward, bookish, monster-loving scholar's aide is much more than he seems-but if the truth were known, he would lose everything...