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So

Her head swa oil had been poured through her Pain filled her, wrenching her insides, surging through her veins She nearly cru her bowl aside

“Woman,” Tair said

She could barely focus, unable to get beyond the fire twisting her insides into two But his voice was strong, co

Tally looked at Tair, stricken, bewildered So she’d eaten Drunk

“Tally?”

There were two of him Now three She blinked, eyes heavy, hot with pain, the sa her belly “What have you done?” she choked, before slipping sideways to the floor

CHAPTER SEVEN

TAIRdidn’t waste any ti It was deliberate, and whatever had been slipped into Tally’s food—or drink—could be fatal, toxic

Tair did what he could until the doctor arrived He followed the simple universal antidote his mother had used with thenesia ave her two tablespoons of the mixture in a little bit of water He didn’t knohat she’d ingested, but knew that if the poison was metallic or alkaline, the tannic acid in the tea would neutralize it If the poison was acid, the nesia would neutralize it And the wood charcoal even in a very little dose can absorb strong quantities of toxin

With his servant’s help, he got the antidote in her, before inducing voave her another dose of the antidote and then puet down her throat—not an easy feat considering she was oblivious to everything except the nightmare of pain that had sed her whole

Even as he fought to save her, he pieced together the situation, needing to knohat, where, how as quickly as he could This wasn’t an accident Someone had deliberately doctored her food and drink But which of his men would do it, and why?

The doctor arrived at dawn, less than seven hours after Tally had been poisoned, arriving precisely the same time Tair discovered it was Ashraf who committed the crime

Tair had Ashraf isolated and monitored but Tair couldn’t deal personally with him until after the doctor had seen Tally