***
Omazan entered the chamber alone. His escorts remained outside, so that they would not see the priestess naked…if she was still there. Privately, the old priest feared what he would find.
The first thing he saw were the leather thongs dangling from their rings. They looked as if they had been cut through, and at first his heart sank. Then, by the wavering lamplight, he saw Ampanae lying atop her ruined gown on the far side of the chamber, thongs still tied around her wrists and ankles. She looked unearthly pale. He hurried over to her, fearing that he would find her a corpse, but he saw that she still breathed. Kneeling beside her, he gently raised her head and held a bottle of water to her mouth. Water splashed across her lips and splashed onto her naked body before she stirred and
