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her mother Ondine, youngest of the six High Witches, lived.
    Sindri flung his arms round Tia. ‘But you’re going to stay with us a bit longer, aren’t you?’
    Tia hugged him back. ‘Oh, at least till tomorrow!’
    There were no more questions then. The children seemed happy with Tia’s answers, and they settled down to sleep.
    Tia lay down too, but when the others were asleep she quietly lifted her blankets, prised up the loose stone, took out the emerald ring and threaded it back on her chain.
    She’d slept so long already that she was wide awake, so she concentrated on thinking about how to steal the sapphire. She planned to do it that night. She was sure she could get through the trolls’ magic beams without raising the alarm. Then, before Skadi was awake, she’d leave by the watergate with her friends, as usual. She’d wait for the guards to open the town gates at dawn, follow the quarrymen down the Avenue of Beasts and wait for Loki to find her. When he did she’d ask him to fly the jewel, and a message, to Finn.
    She smiled at the thought of seeing her DragonBrother again. He might even disguise himself to fool the spell and come to pick her up in his scaly arms. That would save her a walk!
    She turned over and dozed off, dreaming she was back in the Drakelow Mountains, curled up against her beloved DragonMother in her warm familiar cavern.

    â€˜Time to go!’ Ingvar unlocked the trapdoor and they climbed into the street. He and Sindri walked ahead while Tia and Bryndis followed.
    â€˜You’ve brought your bag with you tonight – are you leaving?’ Bryndis asked softly.
    â€˜Yes,’ Tia said. ‘I didn’t find my parents and it’s time to move on. Besides, I don’t want Skadi to know I escaped.’ All those facts were true. ‘I’ll help you with the tasks tonight and leave in the morning.’
    â€˜Will we see you again?’
    â€˜I hope so.’
    â€˜We’ll miss you.’
    â€˜I’ll miss you too.’ Tia had grown to like her friends very much. Not as much as Finn but he was her DragonBrother and she loved him.
    At the castle they did their jobs as usual, hid from Tinna, and played games after she’d gone. While her friends were absorbed in throwing dice Tia quietly left the kitchen and made her way to the High Witch’s tower rooms. She went up the dark stairway, darted through the blue-lit hall and sneaked a look into the troll room. Nothing had changed.
    Tia set her bag by the archway and concentrated on the rays streaming from the trolls’ eyes. She could take her time but she had to be sure she didn’t touch one of the beams of magic and set off an alarm.
    She took a deep breath, made sure her jacket wasn’t flapping loose and stepped over the first beam. The trolls didn’t move. She was safe!
    Bit by bit she worked her way over and under the rays of magic until she reached the marble block with the silver bracelet resting on the top. The sapphire was held in a setting running round the jewel’s edge like a belt. That meant one side always lay on the wearer’s skin while the other side was on show.

    And what a show it was! The sapphire glowed like the purest blue sky on a summer’s day. Tia wanted to stare into its depths for ever.
    She reached out and carefully picked up the bracelet. The trolls didn’t move. Tia slid the bracelet onto her wrist, feeling the sapphire against her skin, its power seeping into her. She lifted her arm and the jewel glowed at her.
    Tia’s mind swam, filled with the beauty and power of the blue stone. Why didn’t she just transport herself straight to Askarlend? She could do it with no problem at all...
    No! She’d promised Finn she’d never use the jewels. She shook her head, stumbled backwards as her mind cleared, and trod on one of the gossamer rays of magic.
    The beams turned red, piercing the sapphire’s