SOLVED. Branded slave girl from slave race befriends Priest-like character?(fantasy) [s]

[Nova]

The book is about a girl who is a slave. She is from a race of people who are slaves and are branded during childhood. She has an older male friend whom she may have a crush on but he later is unavailable to her due to an arranged marriage with another slave girl.

She has to work for a priest-like character of the non-slave people and somehow gains some power and eminence through that.

The details are blurry and I may not have things exactly right. This is a book I read probably in 2000 but I believe it's older than that.

[caracal-eyes]

Sounds like Winter of Fire.

[Nova]

That's the one. Thank you.