In a prequel to Material Witness and Thirteen in the Medina, that can also be read as a standalone novel, it's the summer before she met Keith and Carrie's holiday plans have been thrown into disarray by the political climate. She ends up taking a trip to Sicily where she meets octogenarian Millie and a local Sicilian, Enzo.

Enzo appears to be following Carrie as she tours around the island; is he smitten, as Millie maintains, or does he have criminal intentions, as suggested by another of her fellow travellers?

And if so, is he responsible for a series of antiquities' burglaries?

Or is he on the hunt for Excalibur, the legendary sword rumoured to be lost in Sicily, a sword forged by the ancient Roman blacksmith, Vulcan, god of fire?

Carrie and Millie decide to investigate, but their amusement palls when the adventure takes an unpleasant turn as someone, it seems, is playing with fire.

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