Captivity (31 page)

Lady Ladakh took another deep breath. She had
already reached a turning point, had chosen the path of
righteousness. “My lord, that
thing
is a man. Whatever his
crimes, however wicked his deeds, he is a human being. And my faith
does not permit the punishment you have chosen.”

Dominic and I were silent in the face of such
passion.

Lady Ladakh fixed first Dominic, then me with
her intense gaze. “The Threefold God has shown his everlasting
mercy to that man, the mercy he extends to all sinners. He has
granted him death—the ending of his life in this world, the
beginning of his true life in the next world. Yet you have
repeatedly denied this man what God has given him, forcing him back
into a life that is over. It is no longer his life, and certainly
not yours, to prolong.” She lowered her own silver eyelids, met
Dominic’s glassy stare without blinking. “I know you are not of my
faith, but you are an honorable man, an upholder of justice. It is
for you to set the example in your own land. Yet you, Margrave
Aranyi, are guilty of the greatest crime of all, of playing God.
And that is blasphemy.”

Her voice deepened to a command. “Let him
die. I am not asking you to forgive. Just let him die.”