LITMIR.BIZ

      Anthony jumped out of her reach. Sophie was just as strong as he was, and she practised her tae kwon do a lot more, so she usually beat him in a fight. “My pleasure. I wouldn’t want to hang round with you two losers anyway!” he flung over his shoulder as he ran away.

      Sophie banged the door shut behind him. Why did she have to have a twin brother like Anthony? He’d been even more annoying than usual the last few days. She knew it was because Grandpa was suddenly doing stuff with her, and Anthony was jealous. Ever since she could remember, Grandpa had spent a lot of time with Anthony. Now she knew that he’d only done so because he’d thought Anthony would be the next Guardian. But the magic hadn’t chosen her twin, it had chosen her. The first girl Guardian ever.

      Thinking of Grandpa’s dour expression as he’d helped her train that afternoon, Sophie straightened her shoulders. I’m going to prove to him that I’m just as good a Guardian as Anthony would have been, she promised herself. Better, even!

      “Look, Soph!” Sam shoved the book across the carpet at her. It was open at a drawing of a round, squat creature with big ears that stuck out sideways, huge flat feet and enormous hands. The title was Thunder Trolls. But Sophie wasn’t reading the title. She was looking at the four-line verse that Sam was pointing to at the bottom of the page. She read it out:

      “High in an old place

      The yellow gem can be found

      Hidden on a dusty shelf

      Strange wares all around.”

      “The yellow gem!” Sophie gasped, meeting her best friend’s excited eyes. “Sam! You’ve found one of the five clues!”