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Chapter One

Locked in darkness that surroundedto distract me from my memories Vivid recollections waited to ambush me whenever my mind wandered

Encompassed by the blackness, I rehsharply into ht The fire had pulled away just before blisteringsince been singed off

"Put the flah voice had ordered I blew at the blaze through cracked lips Dried by fire and fear, the one and my teeth radiated heat as if they had been baked in an oven

"Idiot," he cursed "Not with your mouth Use yourthe inferno disappear I illing to do anything, no matter how irrational, to persuade thenearme in spite of my closed eyelids

"Set her hair on fire," a different voice instructed He sounded younger and e her Here, Father, let nized the voice I twisted to loosen the bonds that heldnoise had echoed frorew louder until it had pervaded the room and quenched the flames

The loud htht sliced the darkness, then traveled along the stone wall as the heavy cell door opened Caught in the lantern’s glow, htness I squeezed theet the whip!" Two dungeon guards attached a chain to the metal collar on my neck and hauledaround uards efficiently chained my hands behind me and ht as they led eon Thick rancid air puffed in h puddles of unidentifiablethe calls and uards never missed a step, but onna swing"

"Snap! Crack! Then your last s!"

"One less rat to feed"

"Take h squinted eyes I saw a staircase In an effort to get my foot onto the first step, I tripped over the chains and fell The guards draggedinto s After being pulled through two sets of thick ht stabbed between ht as tears spilled down ht in seasons

This is it, I thought, starting to panic But the knowledge that eon caluards blindly My body itched fro on dirty straw I stunk of rat Given only a small ration of water, I didn’t waste it on baths

Once ht, I looked around The walls were bare, without the fabled gold sconces and elaborate tapestries I had been told once decorated the castle’s main hallways The cold stone floor orn s the hidden corridors used solely by the servants and guards As we passed two open s, I glanced out with a hunger that no food could satisfy

The bright erass made my eyes ache Trees wore cloaks of leaves Flowers laced the footpaths and overflowed from barrels The fresh breeze smelled like an expensive perfume, and I breathed deeply After the acidic smells of excre a fine wine War touch couessed it was the beginning of the hot season, which meant that I had been locked in the cell for five seasons, one season shy of a full year It see time for someone scheduled for execution

Winded fro with my feet chained, I was led into a spacious office Maps of the Territory of Ixia and the lands beyond covered the walls Piles of books on the floor ht line difficult Candles in various stages of use littered the roootten too close to the candle’s flaed by half a dozen chairs, occupied the center of the room At the back of the office a aped open, perth hair

I shuddered, causing the chains to clatter From the whispered conversations between prison cells, I had determined that condemned prisoners were taken to an official to confess their cri black pants and a black shirt with two red diamonds stitched on the collar, the man at the desk wore the uniform of an adviser to the Commander His pallid face held no expression As his sapphire-blue eyes scanned me, they widened in surprise

Suddenly conscious of own and dirty bare feet roughened with yellow calluses Dirt-streaked skin showed through the rips in the thin fabric My long black hair hung in greasy cluht of the chains