The day after her 16th birthday, Elan Montescue, the last heir to a legacy of powerful sorcerers, leaves the ancient family Keep in the densely-forested mountains of the Riege on a mission of vengeance. Ten years earlier, Elan witnessed the cold-blooded murder of her father and brother. After narrowly escaping with Gregor, her tutor, the grieving Elan learned she is the first Riegian memory witch in a thousand years.
"I'm going to learn to use my powers," Elan said after a lengthy pause. "I'm going to find the men who killed Father and Willem."
"Excellent!" Gregor said. "We can bring them to justice."
"No," Elan said.
"No? What else is there to do once you've found them?"
Elan shifted on the log. Her face was dirty, her smock torn, and her bright-red hair gnarled and stringy. She wore blood on her arms, and her legs were stained with mud from the tunnel and green grass from the hillock.
"I'm going to kill them," Elan said.
Gregor's jaw dropped.
"One at a time," the small girl said. "Until they are all dead."