Sand and Stone (The Chronicles of Sakadri Book 1)

He hides the truth behind a mask. She hides her heart behind a cause. Roark is a fugitive with no home, no banner, and no interest in choosing sides. Haunted by the ghosts of betrayal and loss, he’s content to vanish into the shadows of Sakadri’s capital while he searches for a way to save his sister. But when a sharp-eyed thief with secrets of her own pulls him into a black-market scheme turned resistance, Roark is forced to confront the very path he swore he’d abandoned. Saren walks a careful line between survival and rebellion. Loyal, cautious, and driven by a cause greater than herself, she’s seeking someone who can shift the sands of fate. Roark turns out to be more than she hoped for—not just a rebel soldier, but a former Elite with ghosts that still linger in the palace shadows. As ancient powers stir and buried secrets rise, Roark and Saren are drawn into a tangled web of lies, betrayal, and reluctant trust. And as trust gives way to something deeper, both must decide how much of themselves they’re willing to risk—for the kingdom, for the truth, and for each other. Secrets run deep in Sakadri—and the deeper they go, the more dangerous the truth becomes.