For years now the harvest has been less than it should be. Last year the people of Oisin's village sacrificed a goat, but their god did not come. Now, in desperation, a human sacrifice has been suggested, and Oisin, recently orphaned and feeling life is not worth living, volunteers. But the god Belinos is not quite what he seems, and Oisin's sacrifice will not be what he expects, for Belinos first came out of the darkness to drink the sacrificial blood not because he was a god, but because he was a vampire. This is just the beginning of the changes to Oisin's life, as he is drawn further and further into a world of gods and magic, where the most unexpected thing is not even his own blossoming talent, but the blossoming feelings he has for Belinos. Love between mortal and immortal is not without its difficulties, though. As outright war among the gods threatens, Oisin will end up making a far greater difference in the conflict than he could ever have dreamed possible.

The Sacrifice

“Yes.” Oisin smiled and kissed his lips briefly, sweetly. “But you didn’t stay with this sorcerer?”


“Not forever. I…died while I served him, but rose from that death, which is the way of vampires. We become as we are through death. My master kept me on still. He seemed very pleased that I was as he. We stayed in our mutual using for…I don’t know, exactly. Well over a century. Eventually, though, there was another man, who was not like my master at all. His name was Asher…” He trailed off, his voice wistful and sad. Oisin looked at Bel and wondered if, four thousand years from now, Bel would speak his name with such emotion in his voice. “He showed me that mutual using was not the only way to live. My master tried to keep me, and we fought…” Bel shook his head. “I won in the end, and my master fled. Then for a time I lived with Asher. But he was mortal, and died.” Bel fell silent, and Oisin squeezed his hand gently, but said nothing.


Chapter 64