Children have been disappearing from across Menaiya for longer than Amraeya ni Ansarim can remember. When her friend's sister is snatched, Rae knows she can't look away any longer - even if that means seeking answers from the royal court, where her country upbringing and clubfoot will only invite ridicule.

Yet at court she discovers an ally in the foreign princess, who recruits her as an attendant. So Rae begins to seek answers in the dark city streets, finding unexpected help in a thief with secrets of his own. But treachery runs deep, and the more Rae uncovers, the more she endangers the kingdom itself.