Millicent stumbled and banged her knee against rock. She cursed and struggled to her feet. In her haste, she had taken a wrong turn and now she was lost in a corridor of heat and flame.

She stopped to catch her breath. The jubilant sounds of the Elani had told her all she needed to know. The Kingdom of Malinas no longer belonged solely to the Lamya. She screwed up her nose and ground her teeth.

Suddenly there was a flash of light and a flame flared up at her side, roaring and hissing like a dragon. She jumped back, her heart hammering in her chest. She had no idea where she was, the red rock walls blocked out all her view and she had lost sight of the castle a long time ago.

"Sorrel," she hissed, narrowing her eyes and watching as the flames danced for her. "This was meant to be mine! I should have this power!"

Power...

She curled her hand into a fist and smacked it into the palm of her other hand thoughtfully.

Power...

Her own shadow flickered on the wall in front of her, brought to life from the light of the flames. To her right and then again to her left fire spat out of the earth. Somebody must have put the fire there. Somebody with...

Power!

Millicent smiled. Slowly she started to laugh. "There is a power hidden at the Kingdom of Malinas," she whispered to her shadow. "And I will have it."

She relaxed. She remembered the way now. "The Kingdom of Malinas will always attract evil," she said as she turned on her heels away from the dead end. "Remember that, Sorrel. I am coming..."

End of Book One