Queen Fesora took seriously the possiblity that Mildrede was her daughter. After all, she was the right age and gender. She had a name beginning with M, and she possessed a necklace much like the won so often worn by the Queen's sister, Isabella. Under the Queen's tutelage, Mildrede behaved exceptionally well, and she took great interest in her studies.

But the guards, Sentira and Dorran, were more cautious. They noted discrepancies in the evidence found so far and wanted to pursue it. Queen Fesora trusted them to do their jobs well and to let her know if anything new was discovered.

The guards decided that it was best to travel to Whitmohr again to learn more. This was the home of Dorothea who was a sister of Silvera, the midwife. It is also the place that Carl, the former castle gatekeeper, and his wife, Bettina had moved to. This couple had once tried to raise Mildrede. They had just lost their own daughter, Susan, and they hoped that the foundling, Mildrede, could fill their lives. Unfortunately, Mildrede turned out to be too much of a handful for them. That is when she was turned over to Fortan's care. After that Carl and Bettina moved to Whitmohr to erase old memories.

The road to Whitmohr was fraught with peril. To travel there, one must pass through the dark forest. Not only were the dark shadows and wild animals a problem, the guards, Niamh, and other questors were taunted by a Dark Stranger who seemed to delight in throwing obstacles in their path.

Dark Stranger

Along the way to Whitmohr, Baby~Mars and the questors found an abandoned cabin in the woods. They discovered that a youth, known as Renti, had once lived their. He studied and drew a picture of a wolf that he called, Pal. And indeed, a wolf ... perhaps the same one ... guarded a path near the cottage. Once they were able to call this wolf by his name, he showed them the path that led to Whitmohr. Pal was not the only friendly animal in the forest. The Wise Owls had been paying attention to the comings and goings of people in the forest, and they provided clues that helped Molly and the other questors locate Dorothea and the home of Carl and Bettina.

Once in Whitmohr, the mayor promised to help questors who knew the addresses of those they sought. A city diretory led to the home of Dorothea. She was suffereing from a cough and was pleased to take the water questors brought her. She contradicted several of the points from the second letter found in the maid's room. For one thing, the 2nd letter had said Silvera had a daughter Veronica and a grandson. Dorothea reported this as a falsehood.

Sharkie and the others found a visit to Carl and Bettina was also useful. They did not remember any necklace found in the bundle that had been dropped beside the abandoned child, Mildrede. They did remember though, that the wolves that had been seen near Mildrede when she was abandoned sometimes came back to watch her. They were particularly attracted by the sound of a small bell that Mildrede had been given as a child. Often when she would ring the bell, one of the wolves would come around. Bettina asked the questors to take the bell to Mildrede as a keepsake.

In the forest, the bell turned out to be useful. city redneck found that it allowed entrance into a wolf's lair. And once the wolf had been found, the bell appeased it. The wolf pointed questors to a small earthen mound under which was found Isabella's true necklace.

The guards had much to report to Queen Fesora. They were more suspicious of Mildrede than ever. After all, the letter which stated the heir was a girl contained at least some falsehoods. And Mildrede had claimed that she had had a necklace since a child, that her foster parents had no memory of. Worse than that, the necklace she had was not that of Isabella, and yet it was very close to it in appearance. Wasn't that a sign of deception on the part of Mildrede?

Queen Fesora heard this report but still was unwilling to draw the conclusion that Mildrede was a false heir. She wanted the girl to have a chance to defend herself. However, the situation prevented that. When Mildrede came in to the audience, late from studying, she saw a bomb planted under her the Queen's throne. It was about to go off! Mildrede, quickly pushed the Queen out of the way , and when the bomb exploded, it was Mildrede herself who took the brunt of the blast.

The Queen was astounded and more sure of Mildrede than ever. She and Fortan quickly hurried to attend to Mildrede's burns. Once they were out of the room, Milo, Sentira, and Dorran puzzled over who could have done such a thing. The Dorran commented ... "Perhaps we should think about who benefitted from it."

The story continues.