What if you knew a story that you could tell no one—except one person?
The Duke of La Marche is being held prisoner in a tower over a friendship he never tried to hide. As confidant to the famous Maid of Donremy, the duke should have been a hero. Instead, he was locked up by his king and called a traitor.
But this betrayal no longer matters to the duke. What does matter is a promise he made to a young girl—to the Maid. For the Maid had been but a girl once—a girl with a name and her own astonishing story—as he had been but a boy. He knows that one day, when he is old and frail, another girl, a poisoner, will come looking for him. And he will keep his promise—he will reveal to her the Maid's mystery so that destiny will be fulfilled.
When Ankarette, the queen's poisoner, arrives in enemy territory on a quest for the Maid's magic sword, little does she realize that she's been chosen—or that the duke's story will alter the fabric of her mission—and the impending war about to tear two kingdoms apart.
