Naamah's Blessing

He glanced at me again. “That should please you, I think.”
    “It does,” I said. “But what you told me was true, too. When the gods thirst, sometimes blood
is
the only sacrifice.” I swallowed involuntarily, reliving the memory of Cusi’s blood spilling over the stair. “I wish it were not so.”
    “Perhaps it will not always be so,” Achcuatli said gently. Reaching out with one hand, he ran a few strands of my hair through his fingers, then leaned down to kiss my lips. “Now go, and return to your husband.”
    I went.
    Following the pull of my
diadh-anam
, I found Bao in a palace courtyard, sparring with Temilotzin. Both men were stripped to the waist, sweating in the sunlight, Temilotzin wielding a new obsidian-studded club and grunting with frustration as he tried in vain to either get inside Bao’s reach or splinter his elusive bamboo staff. I held my tongue, fearing that if I interrupted them, there would be bloodshed.
    “I cannot believe I am having such difficulty defeating a man with a
stick
,” the Jaguar Knight complained, and then he caught sight of me and stayed his hand, lowering his club. “Ah! Hello, my little warrior.”
    I smiled at him. “Hello, Temilotzin.”
    Bao turned. “Moirin.”
    Mayhap it was petty of me, but the studied neutrality of his tone galled me a bit. “Emperor Achcuatli made me a considerable offer,” Iinformed him. “One we did not expect. In exchange for a single night with me, he is willing to grant trade-rights to Terre d’Ange. You may have your pick of his wives, since the last one did not please you. As a token of his trust, he will fill the hold of our ship with gold and
chocolatl
until it wallows in the water under the weight of its cargo.”
    Bao’s expression darkened. “At least you command a worthy price.”
    “I said no.”
    He stared at me, blinking.
    Temilotzin chuckled. “Do not be concerned,” he said in a helpful manner. “The Emperor does but toy with you. He has already made his choice, and he wishes to trade with your nation. Eyahue and I have agreed to sail with you if you will have us. We would learn more of this world across the sea.”
    It was my turn to blink. “You do? You are?”
    The Jaguar Knight shrugged. “The old
pochteca
can’t stand being idle, and his family is angry at him for his nephew’s death, even though the idiot deserved it. As for me…” His voice trailed off. “You’re not listening, are you?”
    “Stupid girl,” Bao breathed, crossing the courtyard in a few swift strides. His hands rose to cup my face, and he kissed me hard. “You knew the Emperor had already chosen. You were just trying to torment me, weren’t you?”
    “A little,” I admitted. “I made you a promise, Bao. You might have trusted me to keep it.”
    He gave me a wry look. “When it comes to matters of fidelity, history is not on your side, Moirin.”
    I returned his kiss. “Nor yours, my magpie.
I
did not wed the Great Khan’s daughter, or bed the Spider Queen Jagrati.”
    Bao’s hands slid to my waist. “Jagrati does not count,” he whispered against my lips. “I thought you were dead, not cavorting in the wilderness with some strapping milk-sop of a Vralian lad. And you would have done whatever Jagrati asked of you, were it not for the Rani Amrita.” He kissed me again. “Which is another story, isn’t it?”
    I pressed a finger against his lips. “And you know why. I will not have you speak a word against our lady Amrita.”
    He narrowed his eyes at me. “Shall we speak of your dreams instead? Dreams held on the very eve of our wedding?”
    “No.” I twined my arms around his neck and kissed him. “If you don’t mind, I’d sooner we don’t speak at all.”
    Bao smiled. “I don’t mind.”
    “You are a
very
strange people,” Temilotzin commented, slinging his club over one shoulder. “Truly.”

SEVENTY-EIGHT

    T wo days later, we departed the city of Tenochtitlan escorted by a mounted company of Aragonians and trailed by a long line of Nahuatl porters carrying laden baskets.
    Diego Ortiz y Ramos was none too happy about the turn of developments, but there wasn’t much he could do about it. Emperor Achcuatli had made it clear we were in his favor, and the new allegiances he had formed within the Nahuatl Empire were strong enough that the Aragonians no longer dreamed of outright conquest, but worried about maintaining such favor as they had acquired.
    Once more, we passed beneath the shadow of the