Kyra use to be a member of the
Master Trio of Potioners, along with Ned and Hal. They are the best poisonous
weapons users in the kingdom but of the three, she was the best. Unfortunately
for Kyra, she made a couple of mistakes. First, she fell in love with the well
groomed and arrogant Hal but she ended up breaking his heart. Second, she
betrayed every one she knew when she tried to murder the kingdom's princess and
failed. Now she is on the run and being hunted by Ned and Hal.
At the age of twelve, Kyra was
brought in by the Queen to be part of Princess Ariana's education. Born sickly,
Ariana led a sheltered life. Kyra's job was to instruct the princess in the art
of makeup since Krya excelled at cosmetic potions and charms. Neither girl wanted
anything to do with the other. Since she was a first year apprentice, Kyra set
out to complete a potion for homework. Ariana took an immediate interest in
Kyra's work. She asked Kyra if there was a potion to get them out of the
confines of the castle. Kyra set out to make one and Ariana was ecstatic that
it worked. After one afternoon of fun, the girls' lessons quickly turned into
secret adventures outside the castle. Soon, Ariana and Kyra turned into the
best of friends and the adventures continued for five years. This is why
everyone in the kingdom was shocked to learn that Kyra had tried to kill
Princess Ariana and failed.
Desperate and in hiding in the three
months since her failed assassination attempt on Princess Ariana's sixteenth
birthday, Kyra cannot locate Ariana. She travels outside the town of Tippolow
to find the King of Criminals, Arlo Abbaduto. Having turned down Arlo on two occasions
for work, Krya is at his mercy. She offers to pay him with Potioners' coins and
change their imprint to him. Potioners' coins always find their way back to
their owner. In exchange, Arlo will give her a small Katzenheim pig, the best
hunter he has, guaranteed to find the person she is looking for. Kyra isn't
given a chance to protest and Arlo even provides her with an object belonging
to the princess. He laughs as she leaves his hideout.
The next morning, the piglet leads
Krya to a river. Not wanting to waste time looking for a bridge to cross, she
decides to strip down to her undergarments, hold the piglet and her belongings
above her head and cross. She is able to see the bottom. Just past half way,
she hears a whistle and looks up to see a handsome boy a couple of years older
than her. Asking him to leave, he says that he will stay in case she needs
rescuing. Kyra then sees a wolf come out of the woods behind the boy. Soon the
piglet notices it too and pokes Kyra in the eye with a hoof and she is caught
in a swift river current. The handsome boy is able to rescue her after all.
Back on shore, he introduces himself as Fred and the wolf is actually his dog,
Langley. After getting her clothes back on and Fred naming her pig Rosie, Krya
turns down the offer of a hot meal and departs.
Walking along, Kyra hears footsteps.
She grabs Rosie and dives for cover with the aid of a cloaking potion. Turns
out Dartagn, one of the king's elite soldiers who had trained Krya is right on
top of her. She throws a rock and he turns his attention in the opposite
direction and leaves. Kyra leaves once Dartagn is out of the area. She later
hears footstep again and is almost discovered by Fred and Langley. They leave
but soon she hears a scream. Running, Kyra comes across Fred being attacked by
six goblins. He is knocked out and Kyra is able to knock several out and cha
the rest away. She drags Fred to safety. When he wakes up, Fred repays her by
cooking dinner and offering her a camp spot for the night. Tired of being alone
and hungry, Kyra accepts against her better judgment.
The next morning, Krya leaves
payment for Fred and sneaks off while he is still sleeping. She hasn't traveled
far when Fred catches up to her. He is hurt and angry at Krya leaving.
Realizing she actually cares what he thinks of her against her better judgment.
She asks if they can continue to travel together knowing that eventually she
will have to abandon him once more.
Why was Krya trying to kill her best
friend, Princess Ariana? Why does she think her death would be the best thing
for the kingdom? Can Rosie the pig really track the princess? Will Kyra attempt
to assassinate the Ariana again? Is Kyra captured? Does Fred find out her true
identity and what will he do with that knowledge? And will Krya be able to find
a happily ever after?
Bridget Zinn was a writer and
librarian who unfortunately died two years before the publication of her only
book, Poison.
