East

"Whoa, wait!" I said, startled. "What are we doing to the goddess?"

"The illness in my body. Your divine blood will purify me. The shaman has said only the divine can cure me."

"First, my blood isn't divine. I am a woman who is blessed by the Big Blue Sky or whatever you call it," I said and yanked at my hand. "Second, Batu said I'd be safe here."

"You misunderstand. I will not hurt you," he said.

"Then how will you draw my blood?"

"The divine do not feel pain."

"Not true. At all." I shook my head vehemently.

"We shall see."

Before I could register what happened, he sliced my palm open. Fiery pain shot through me. He flipped it to face the ceiling so the blood pooled in the center.

"That definitely hurt," I whispered, another wave of nausea and dizziness washing over me.

"My family has waited for you for many years." He didn't appear concerned about the wound. He moved away, towards the wine on the table.

Oh, shit. My world was growing fuzzy around the edges. Of all the places to pass out, now seemed more dangerous than in the castle.

I sank to my knees. "Why?" I managed, struggling to stay focused on my surroundings. I stared at the throbbing wound on my hand. Black streaks were in my blood, too, the lingering effects of Carter's magic pills. That can't be healthy. I made a mental note to ask him what he'd done to me, assuming I ever spoke to him again.

"You brought victory and great wealth to the empire. Your appearance saved the lives of every man in the tumen headed for battle. There was an ambush waiting for my grandfather, but he stopped when you fell from the sky, and the ambush was discovered a day later."

"That's … good." I was having trouble making out his words.

"I would not be here, if not for you." He knelt beside me with some effort, given his weight. Tilting my hand, he squeezed blood into a goblet filled with wine. "You will save my life from the poison."

Ugh. Why do I end up with the crazies? I shook my head. Even the pain of him squeezing more blood out of my wound couldn't pull me back.

"You will be given a place of honor in my council, and you will serve me, a living goddess at my command," he said more quietly. "This is what is meant to be."

I didn't think gods and goddesses served men, but I also suspected he was drunk.

Maybe when the alcohol wore off, I'd be better able to convince him I wasn't a goddess. He wasn't buying it now. My eyes closed. I heard movement around me without understanding exactly what happened. Unable to pull out of the in-between place, I drifted into restless sleep.