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I felt literally sick being co alike, PothinusNothingOf course I enjoy my relationship with the queenShe is my closest friend and I love her dearlyThat is the difference between us, howeverYou did not love her brother You only attached yourself to him for what he could do for youYou pinned your hopes on the wrong horse, eunuchAnd I will not help you now"

As I walked backward,ht, Iras?Have you been hurt?"

She shook her head and I glanced at her body She didn’t appear to be injured, although I was certain it wasn’t co on the hard floor of the deck as tightly bound as she wasShe watched ain

"Pothinus, untie herKeeping her here is not helping anythingI cannot hand you the bloodstoneIt is bound to me- it is mine and it will stay mineThe history of the world is ether"

I tried to ht sway him to reasonI should have known better

"Well, I’ me to kill you both"

"I have to say, you don’t sound sorry at all, Pothinus"

Another voice, loud and deep echoed throughout theroo quietly up the long plank to the barge, dripping wetApparently, he had waded through the yI watched as he shook the dirty canal water from his hair

"Antony!How did you…"

I was so astonished that I couldn’t form a cohesive sentenceMy initial reaction was joy… joy that he had come to save usBut it quickly turned to horror as I realized what that … and Ah that we had now inadvertently changedI sighed dejectedly

"What, Charhtly on board the golden deck of the barge, a thick glea sword in his handI was certainly happy to see that I once again regretted not bringing er

"Did you really think that I didn’t see you in the courtyard?Did you think that the little production I staged there was real?I had been waiting for youI knew that you and hout dinnerIt was only a ed… and I followed you"

He smirked in satisfaction, before he looked athere with a dead oWhat kind of trickery is this?"

His face was puzzled, but he kept a close eye on Pothinus, who had remained silent thus far

"Antony, be careful,"I cautioned"He has a dagger"Antony flashedhis eyes

"Really, Charood Roh toto happen"

Quicker that I would have ever thought possible fro to where I was, roughly grabbing hed

"U at hier"

Antony rolled his eyes atsword fro around us

"This is not the time, womanBe stillI don’t want to accidentally hit you"

I froze

"Antony, you can’t possibly mean to…"My hesitant voice trailed off

He did certainly look as though he intended on striking Pothinus even though I was clutched so tightly to the eunuch’s chestMy thoughts swirled… this couldn’t be happeningI was going to be sliced open from head to toe I just knew it

Suddenly, I re ainst the soft skin oflanced nervously at his face, but he was coe sword that Antony was brandishingHe soainst his arethe thin golden chain that it dangled fromAs hard as I possibly could, I smashed it into the eunuch’s sweaty foreheadTaken by surprise, he released ash in his head Blood had already started gushing fro heavily over his hands and into his eyes

"You bitch!"he snarled as he continued to stu into his eyes, trying to seeUnfortunately for hie directly behind hiainst it, it knocked his knees out froe, frantically trying to regain his balanceHis fleshy face terrified, he reached out to rabbedme with him as I expected, he wrenched my bloodstone froasped as I heard the confir to the rail, I peered over it into the murky water belowPothinus hadn’t surfaced yet I watched for a few one… and so was hed and turned to find Antony kneeling on the deck as he swiftly cut through the ropes that bound Iras

She sat up stiffly, rubbing her wrists and ankles as she stared at ine her confusion… at having been kidnapped by a deadon?"