Finally, Dineas turns back to me. “I’m a soldier, first and foremost. There are comrades of mine that I don’t care for, those that I’d give a good beating on the training grounds, given the chance. But on the battlefield, if an enemy comes at us, I’ll give my life for that man I despise.” He looks at me. “They say you’re one of the village’s best healers, that you worked harder than any of the other apprentices. If you’re really that good, then I think you’d act the same as a soldier in battle. You might despise me, but you won’t let me come to harm under your care. If you don’t do it out of concern for me, you’ll do it out of pride.”

I don’t know what response I’d expected from him, but I’m surprised at the truth in his words. “You’re sure, then?”

A spasm flashes across his face. “Just do your job.”

Neither of us speak as I pour the potion into a small leather bag and carry it to the cot. Sewn into one end of the bag is the tooth of a serpent, strengthened with resin and kept sharp and hollow. To Dineas’s credit, he doesn’t draw his arm away as I reach for it, though his hands have gone cold, and a film of sweat coats his skin. He breathes slowly and deliberately through his nose and looks away.

At the last moment, it is I who falter. My healer’s vows run through my head, and I wonder if I’m making a grave mistake. It takes him a while to realize that I’ve frozen.

“Do this, please,” he says. There’s a quiet desperation in his voice. “Even if I lose my mind, it’s a small price to pay for the chance to take them down.”

What did the Amparans do to him in prison? I want to ask, but instead I plunge the tooth into his arm. He grits his teeth and stares beyond me at the wall as I slowly push the potion out of the bag. When I squeeze too hard, he stiffens but doesn’t make a sound. Finally, I pull the snake tooth away and wipe away the blood welling up through the puncture.

He stares at the blood, as if he’d expected more. “Is that it?”

“You’ll feel the effects in a few moments.” My eyes are on the wound, where an angry red welt is already spreading. I take his chin, turn his head to the light, and look at his pupils. They’re easy to see against the hazel of his eyes, and slowly expanding.