As war looms, eleven-year-old Mara hopes the knights of the god Belthor's church will protect her. Instead they arrest her outspoken aunt Lila on trumped-up charges of witchcraft. When adults refuse to get involved, Mara steps up to rescue her aunt. Secrets unravel which cause her to see her mother, her father, and her country in a new way. Mara's curiosity, intelligence and sense of right and wrong draw her into intrigues which will define her life.