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"Venetian?" the man asked, looking him over.

"Yes," Alexis replied. "I'm not going to hurt you. Where are you wounded?"

The man grimaced. "Shoulder. Hip. Gut. I don't know. I need…a confessor."

The man had black, filthy curls and a scar on his lip that cut through his stubble. His eyes, in the dusk, were dark and full of pain. The strange magic around him flared a little brighter, and Alexis caught the scent of hot sand.

Mio Dio.

The breath left Alexis without warning. He had felt that strange touch of blessing before on Arslan. What had he just found?

"Your name?" Alexis asked, stepping closer.

"Aurelio."

"Aurelio of where?"

"Aurelio of Genoa. House of d'Oria. Cousin of Giovanni Giustiniani."

"How is Giustiniani?"

"We got him back here, but… he…" Aurelio stammered.

Alexis knew that Giustiniani had been carried off the parapet wounded, but maybe it was this man who had taken him the same route that Alexis had.

"Aurelio, listen to me. You can't stay here." Alexis pointed back the way he had come. "Go up the hill toward the Galata Tower. There is a church with a single dome. Knock at the door, and when they answer, say you need the head priest. They will take you in."

The man grimaced, and blood oozed out between his fingers. "W-Why?"

"Because that is where the help is, or a confessor if you want that too," Alexis replied. "Go. Now."

The man nodded, turned with careful slowness, and stumbled away down the lane.

Alexis watched him until he turned at the small fountain.

He has to find Arslan on his own, and may Anubis's blessing be strong enough to get him there.

When Aurelio was out of sight, Alexis stepped over the four Janissaries on the cobbles, set their swords pointing the same way out of an old soldier's habit, and went the other way along the lane toward the church.

He took the longer route, backtracking to check the streets for more trouble but finding none. For a moment, he debated going back into the city and decided against it. Arslan had sent all his people there, and if more Ottomans didn't want to honor the Sultan's agreement, someone needed to help.

When he came at last to the small square, the door of the church was open, and Phaidros was standing in it.

Behind him in the doorway, Arslan was frowning. The lamplight from the chapel behind him cast his gold eyes in a way that made them shimmer like the eyes of the god he served.

Alexis stopped in front of them. "Did Aurelio…"

"He's here," Arslan replied with a nod. "He came to the door less than an hour ago. He was bleeding very badly and asked for a priest. Why did you send him here?"

"He felt…" Alexis searched for the right words. "There's a mark on him, and it was like a thread that runs through your magic. I can't know for sure, but I think he has Anubis's blessing."

Arslan ran his hands over his face. "He'd better, because he's in Anubis's hands now. I felt something, like a compulsion, and gave him the elixir. After all this time, I hope this is the right choice."

"Trust the Lord of the Duat," Alexis replied, placing his hands on Arslan's shoulders. "He guided us both to help him."

"And if he's found unworthy, Anubis will just feed him to Ammit," Phaidros added with a grin. Both Arslan and Alexis glared at him, and it only made Phaidros laugh louder.

"Come inside, old friend. This day has taken enough from you," Arslan said to Alexis and shut the doors on the burning world behind them.