Villiam’s manor prepares for Christmas and the coming of Agata’s baby. Ina is hired to be Agata’s servant and midwife, and the two of them are sequestered from the rest of the manor to minimize any risk of injury or illness. Ina keeps Agata drugged with herbal concoctions to the point that Agata doesn’t resist her captivity.

Villiam experiences a deepening sense of anxiety as he tries to mature into the role of the father of the new Savior. He ceases his daily entertainment, replaces Clod with Lispeth because she is more serious, and worries about how this new lifestyle will age him. He also fears that his new, holy role will attract danger, so he instructs the servants to bury all the wine far away from the estate for fear that it might be poisoned.

Grigor visits the manor once a week to drop off the herbs that Ina uses in her medicines. During these visits, Grigor begins to converse with Jude, whom Villiam has hired to replace Luka as the manor’s horseman; he is drawn to Jude’s solitary, unconventional lifestyle and harsh past. Jude tells Grigor the truth of the exchange involving Jacob and

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