Moon Face secured the latticed windows. She had seen two young men carry Gold Dust and the Ancient Zoroastrian’s fleshless frame on a stretcher. “I’ll sneak out from the Courtyard of Eunuchs,” Moon Face pleaded with Gulf Lily. “I won’t be recognized behind the mask. I’ll be back in no time.”

With arms folded against a muscular chest, and a fierce fire burning in his stomach, Gulf Lily remained rooted, his tar eyes fixed on his mistress.

She softened her voice. “Gulf Lily, you love me, don’t you?”

He raised both palms to his eyes to hide his dark yes.

“You want me like a man wants a woman.”

His ebony skin turned crimson. He planted his feet apart to steady himself and control the violent quake that began to shake him. He had been a father to her. He had taught her to hone the Shah’s curiosity, and to handle the envy of the sultanas. He had fed her boiled chestnuts to plump and soften her lean flesh, so it could be dented with loving fingertips. He had served her a diet of goat milk to lighten her skin. He had shared her most personal concerns. He was the one to assure her it was normal to bleed every month. He fell down to his knees, sobs shaking his immense body.

“Dear, dear Gulf Lily.” Moon Face pressed his shaven head to her raw, pumiced cheek. “It’s all right.”

No, he thought, it was not. He had raised her like his own child while wanting her as a lover. He should have plucked his eyeballs out before they had begun lusting after her. Now that he had revealed his true emotions, he would have to find a way to preserve the integrity of his soul.

Moon Face felt the beat of his temples, the shudder in his limbs. She locked her mouth to his, forcing his eggplant-colored lips open, her tongue searching for his. “You are the only one I have in this world. Help me!”

Gulf Lily went to the chest of clothing and selected a cloak and a mask of black leather. He helped Moon Face conceal herself in them. He wrapped himself in his mantle and hid his face with a flap of his turban.

“Delight in the glory of nature,” the Ancient Zoroastrian said to Gold Dust as they moved toward the Jewish Quarter. “Savor the beauty of dawn and dusk. Choose between the forces of good and evil. Ahura Mazda gave you free will; use it wisely. Above all, love intensely. Love is the mortar of your bones.”

Gold Dust kissed the old woman’s hand. “Holy One, you’ve given me back my life.”

The talon-like fingers clawed the air. “Don’t spit blasphemy! Have I given you life? I? When will you learn, child? You, your will, your heart, your mind give you life, joy, strong bones.”