‘Look at his poor bruised body.’ She came to stand beside Duryodhan, a hand possessively on his arm. She touched two fingers to her forehead. ‘May the waves carry you.’

Duryodhan smiled. ‘May the current bring you back.’

The colour drained from Karna’s face. His world grew dark as icy confusion flooded his mind. He did not know what was more shocking, the cleaning wench’s hand on Duryodhan or Duryodhan blushing like a schoolboy. ‘I…I don’t understand.’

‘So…’ Duryodhan began, clearing his throat.

‘Let me explain, my sweet,’ the woman placed a finger on his lips, the same finger Karna had sucked so avidly a few days before. ‘I told the Prince how I was out with my girls for an outing near the Jade Harbour ruins, to get my Prince his wedding gift, when the Ocean Goddess conspired to bring you to my camp, bloodied and poisoned. Though you were a stranger, it was clearly my duty to fetch a healer to you. I rode you back to the Palace to do so.’

‘It’s a good thing Mati found you, Karna. Not the ideal way I would have wanted my betrothed and my closest friend to meet, of course.’

Betrothed. The other two did not hear Karna’s indrawn gulp. Kala is Mati! Princess of Kalinga! Duryodhan’s bride. The revelation sliced through him like a knife, the pain more intense than the poisoned quarrel had been.

Mati nudged Duryodhan lovingly. ‘At least it’s a story I won’t have to shy away from telling over dinner. The mighty, valiant Karna saved from certain death by a puny damsel! Let me find a bard to believe it first.’ She eyed Karna, her eyes full of glowering hate. ‘Too bad you didn’t give your real name when we met, Lord Karna. Could have saved you a lot of embarrassment. Now the whole world will be privy to your shame if you tell the tale.’

Karna said nothing. He could not.

‘Don’t let her get under your skin, my friend. No one in their right mind would call the Black Swan a puny damsel,’ Duryodhan scoffed.

Karna felt like a punch drunk fighter who’d long given up but whom Fate insisted on tossing back again and again into the ring till the water clock was empty. ‘You’re the Black Swan?’ he finally managed to utter. The one Prakar Mardin had spoken of.

Mati bowed. ‘In person. But now you must rest. The Prince and I have much to catch up on. He has not left your side since you were brought in.’ She narrowed her eyes again. ‘If I had known you were the Karna, I would have left you where I found you’ she laughed, but there was no humour in her eyes.

‘Rest now, Karna. Father has summoned us back to Hastina. We leave on the morrow. We will handle things here when you are better. For now,’ Duryodhan pressed his shoulder, ‘I’m glad you are safe.’