Faustine instinctively knew her fight was over! She was trapped between the Valencian mob and the charging Spanish army! She dropped to her knees out of sheer exhaustion, acutely aware of the Spaniard on the black mustang as he raised his gleaming jewel-handled sword-preparing to strike! She closed her eyes tight, feeling the warmth of the sun one last time against her tearstained face, silently praying for the strength to remain brave through to the bitter end. She felt a deep ache in her chest as her thoughts turned to her father.

He had given her the choice to tagalong on his military campaign, bringing the two of them to Madrid. She had been looking forward to spending the summer amid the city's romantic flare, but the mood of the capital was far from friendly as the natives teetered on the verge of a momentous rebellion, due to the French army's bold march across Spain, turning the streets into a bloody arena.

At the first sign of trouble her father did not hesitate to send her out of harm's way-that's how she ended up at the home of her great-aunt who was a prominent resident of Valencia. It was for that reason she feared her father would blame himself when he learned hundreds of French civilians had been massacred at the hands of the Valencian mob! Yet there was no way he could have known that the Spanish Uprising would spread like wildfire across every region of Spain or bring about her premature demise as she stared into the face of death!.