Assassination in Al Qahira

by James Boschert

  “Do not be afraid. We are going deep into the souk where I have friends,” he whispered to them as he handed a lamp to Panhsj. He hoped that he was right.

  Khalidah’s look questioned how he had friends here, but he pretended not to notice. Panhsj’s features registered deep puzzlement, but Talon gripped his arm and said, “Trust me, Panhsj. Here I we may be safe. Follow me carefully.”

  He led them stumbling along the dark narrow tunnels over debris from roof falls and across gurgling underground streams. They descended rapidly at one point to where the ceiling dripped water and the walls were wet. Their pathway became muddy and slippery. The children clutched at the proffered hands of the two escorts, while Khalidah took Talon’s arm for support.

  He felt pity for them. While the warriors were in riding boots, they wore only light house slippers which were quite useless on this mucky floor. The air was stuffy, musty and dense with the stink of rotting objects and filthy, stagnant water holes.

  The squeaking of rats and low flying bats that flew close to their faces unnerved Jasmine and she let out a stifled moan, but Khalidah whispered a warning to her. At one time Khalidah gripped Talon’s arm fiercely, almost like a spasm, and he guessed the same had happened to her; he was holding the oil lamp high and from the corner of his eye he saw a furry creature scuttle away into the darkness from under their feet. The eyes of the rats glowed red in the lamplight, increasing the sense of menace in this alien world they had entered. He was relieved that they did not encounter anyone coming or going at this time of night. It might not have gone well.

  Finally, when he was beginning to think he might have taken a wrong turn, Talon sensed a light draft of air carrying the whiff of hashish. It told him that they were near their destination. He held the lamp over his head and motioned the party to stop, cautioning them not to make any noise and to remain still while he went forward to find out what awaited them.

  He eased his way along the tunnel until he came to the familiar opening into the larger series of wider archways where Mukhwana held court. His eyes searched the poorly lit area for any sign of activity, but it seemed that despite the several oil lamps still burning, everyone had gone to bed.

  He looked for guards, but he saw none. He guessed that the people had a sense of security here in their underground home. He eased out into the opening to go to where he usually sat with Mukhwana, when a small movement alerted him. Someone had entered the cavernous hall from another area. Talon drifted into deeper shadow. Then he recognized Kontar hobbling quickly across the uneven surface of the cavern floor.

  “Mukhwana!” Kontar screamed as he hobbled as fast as his crutch would permit him towards the platform where Mukhwana usually seated himself.

  “Mukhwana, they have attacked the house of Abbas,” he sobbed. Then he tripped and sprawled on the floor. Talon moved quickly forward, lifted him to his feet, and retrieved his stick.

  Kantor stared up at him, not understanding that it was Talon. Then he gaped in surprise, “Suleiman! Where…where did you come from?” Fear and uncertainty were written across his tear stained face. There was obvious distress, but there was no guilt.

  “It is all right now, Kontar, we have escaped.” Talon patted the terrified boy reassuringly on his shoulder.

  Kantor’s screams had brought others, and they were soon surrounded by bearded men, still half asleep, clutching an odd assortment of knives and old swords and spears, gathered into a hostile cluster around the two of them. A dozen voices demanded that Kantor tell them what had happened, and who was this person with him? Then a roar from nearby stopped everyone in mid-sentence.

  “What in Allah’s name is happening that you should disturb my sleep?” Mukhwana bellowed. A path immediately opened for him to advance towards Talon and Kontar.

  Mukhwana lumbered towards them, disheveled and obviously in bad humor at the noise. His eyes rested on Kontar, who was still sobbing and shaking. Then he saw Talon and his one eye widened.

  “How in the name of all the Djinn did you get here?” he demanded. “Who brought you?”

  “I know the way, my friend, and Kontar is right, we were attacked and the house is overrun by the enemies of Abbas.”

  Mukhwana stared at him for a long hard moment and then looked back at Kantor. “What happened, boy, why did you not warn them? Those were your instructions.” He demanded in a low voice filled with menace.

  Kontar sniffled and wiped his nose with his filthy ragged sleeve. “It…it was late and we were together eating at a corner nearby when some men came towards us. They were very quiet and caught us by surprise. We were afraid because we quickly understood that they wanted to have some sport with us. I was pushed into a dark corner while the others ran off to distract them from me. But the men went after them, Salem and Hussein. They killed them right there, not far from me on the street.” He sniffled again. Talon reassuringly tightened his arm over the shaking boy’s thin frame.

  “We were betrayed from within, Mukhwana,” Talon said. “The eunuch and his cronies first murdered my master and then opened the gates to the marauders, I only just escaped.” He did not mention the lady and the others, because he had yet to ascertain if he could trust Mukhwana. After this night, he was not sure whom to trust.

  “Go and get fed and then rest,” Mukhwana growled to the boy, and then he said, “Suleiman, you are deserving of the name Heru. I do not know how you found this place, but now that you are here, you are safe. Come, we will have tea and you shall tell me all.”

  The curious crowd was beginning to disperse now that the excitement had cooled.

  Talon stepped close to the man and said in a very low voice. “I thank you, Mukhwana, from my heart. May Allah’s blessings be with you always…but I have others with me. Can I trust you to provide them with your protection?”

  Mukhwana glared at him with his one eye. “I am the law here and if I provide you with protection that goes for anyone who came with you, other than my sworn enemies.”

  Talon bowed low. “Forgive me, Oustez, but tonight has been one of treachery and murder. I have with me the wife and children of Abbas, and their surviving guards. I place us under your protection.”

  “Who did you say?” Mukhwana asked with a stunned look.

  “My Lady Khalidah, with her children and her guards,” Talon repeated.

  Mukhwana recovered enough to say curtly, “Bring them to me.” He lumbered off shouting to some women nearby, “Prepare food and tea, we have guests. Be quick about it!”

  As Talon went to collect Khalidah and the children, the people nearby began to chatter again. This was indeed going to be an interesting night.

  By the time Talon brought his party to the middle of the cavern, Mukhwana had seated himself on his makeshift throne and looked a lot less disheveled.

  Talon led Khalidah towards him. She was pale and exhausted. Her clothing of expensive cotton cloth was rent and dirty, her face smudged, and her hair barely covered by her veil. Despite this, the crowds of beggars who had gathered nearby were clearly awed by her beauty and her dignity. Mukhwana himself was obviously very impressed.

  “My Lady Khalidah, wife of Emir Abbas Abdul Azim ibn Athir Faysal, we are now under the protection of Mukhwana, Lord of the beggars of Cairo,” Talon intoned by way of introduction.

  She stared at him to see if he were joking, but in the lamplight his face was dead serious; so she took her cue from that.

  “My lord Mukhwana,” she said, “I am indebted to you for offering your protection. I regret that I and my children have had to come to you in this condition but we had no choice, and my servant…my children’s tutor, Suleiman, told me that you were an honorable man.”

  Her voice was melodious and clear despite her fatigue, and it had the desired effect. The people were captivated. There were murmurs of sympathy from nearby women.

  Talon glanced at Panhsj, who himself had caused much comment on his arrival because of his large and fearsome bearing. Panhsj nodded silently as tho
ugh agreeing with Talon’s questioning look. There was silence for a moment in the wide hall.

  Mukhwana seemed to have been lost in admiring her beauty. Then he finally found his voice and cleared his throat.

  “Ahem… my Lady. You are the wife of Emir Abbas, whom we all respected, and you are a friend of Suleiman. That is enough. You have my protection for as long as you stay here. We can protect you from all enemies, Insha’Allah.”

  Khalidah gave a small sigh and seemed to slump. Talon was instantly by her side, but she placed slim fingers on his arm and said quietly in return to Mukhwana, “I…I am grateful. I shall repay you in great measure for your kindness once we have taken back what is my husband’s. I give thanks to Allah for his benefice and for bringing me into your care.”

  Mukhwana shifted uncomfortably. He was not used to being treated as an equal by persons of aristocracy, even if they had fallen upon terrible times like this beautiful woman standing before him.

  “Allah in his infinite mercy and wisdom will see you through this terrible time, my Lady. You will take some refreshment as my guests before you retire? I shall have an area set aside for you while you remain here.”

  He beckoned to some women, who carried trays of hot tea and small bits of food. Where and how they had conjured it up in such a short space of time? Talon had no idea. The children were introduced to Mukhwana, who was beginning to enjoy his sudden stature, and he behaved kindly to them.

  Jasmine was ready to collapse, but managed to sip some tea from a not so clean little cup, but she refused the food. Kazim was too dazed to do more than take a bite of the food, which he must have liked because he took a second bite.

  Soon Khalidah and the children were led off by the same women who had brought the tea to a place of privacy somewhere in the deeper reaches of the cavern, while the men stayed behind and talked.

  Before she left Khalidah whispered to Talon, “This is the second time you have saved our lives, Suleiman. I and my children are placed ever deeper in your debt.” She turned to Panhsj. “Ah, Panhsj, you grieve too? My husband’s faithful companion, I am in your debt as well. May Allah’s blessings be upon you.”

  The two men bowed silently and would not look at one another as she left, because they were embarrassed by the tears in their eyes.

  Talon and Panhsj, with the two guards, who were named Hanif and Aahmes, were enjoined to eat and to tell of the events that had taken place. They sat cross legged on the frayed carpet in the wavering light of the oil lamps and nibbled the small pastries and sipped the hot tea. Kantor now sat with them, although he looked shaken from his own experiences. Talon and Panhsj asked him to tell what he had seen before he had to flee.

  “Did you see any of their faces?” Panhsj asked him, but Kontar was so scared of his fierce features, despite the unthreatening intent, that he shifted closer to Talon, who laughed and said, “Kantor, this is my friend Panhsj, who is a great warrior, none fiercer in battle but none kinder to his friends. You are safe with him. Tell us what you can.”

  “It was dark, Suleiman, but we could see enough to know that there were many of them, mostly on foot and carrying spears and bows. That is why we were surprised; if they had been on horses we would have heard them and had more warning. They were moving very quietly and only when it was too late for us did we know the peril.”

  “Did you see the faces of anyone you might know?” Panhsj asked, this time with a smile that he hoped would relax the boy. In fact, when Panhsj smiled it was perhaps even more intimidating. Kantor gave him another of his fearful looks.

  “Jo Oustez, I did not,” he said respectfully. “I only know that while I was in the dark hole, two men came by later; these men were on horses, and one looked like the man who you played chogan against, Suleiman.”

  Talon started. “Are you sure? Which one?” he demanded.

  “The one who led the other team…I think.”

  Panhsj almost leapt to his feet in his agitation. Kantor flinched and said pitifully, “Suleiman, you know we would have warned you, and we were about to. As Allah is my witness, we would have…” his voice trailed off.

  “You know what this means, Suleiman,” Panhsj grated, ignoring the boy.

  Talon nodded. “With the sultan gone, Bahir came to settle accounts. He is probably enjoying the spoils of that, even now as we speak.”

  Panhsj gave a low menacing growl. He understood what that meant only too well. “We should go back and kill him tonight before he can do more harm,” he said through clenched teeth.

  Talon touched Panhsj on the knee. “You forget, my friend, in your hurt and pain that we have another task, and that is to care for my Lady and her children. We will not do any good to her by rushing back and killing or being killed tonight.”

  “I am anguished at the loss of my lord,” Panhsj almost shouted.

  “I too, but we will deal with them in our own time. For now we have the protection of Mukhwana, and we should rest. Tomorrow we plan.”

  “I agree with Suleiman,” Mukhwana said. “There is nothing you can do to bring your master back, and rushing out there to be killed will do no one any good.” His voice was quiet, but there was a firmness to it that brooked no more outbursts from Panhsj, who hung his head as though defeated.

  Talon reached over and placed his hand on Panhsj’s slumped shoulders.

  “Be sure of one thing, Panhsj. Abbas will be avenged, as God is my witness, but now we must rest.”

  Think in this batter’d Caravanserai

  Whose portals are alternate Night and Day

  How Sultan after Sultan with his pomp

  Abode his destined Hour, and went his way.

  — Omar Khayyam

  Chapter 18

  Deep Sanctuary

  Talon awoke in the darkness of the alcove that he and Panhsj shared and immediately began to scratch his ribs. Once more he was in a place that was infested with fleas and other nameless parasites; it was unpleasant to have them for company again; the memory of the prison was vivid in his mind.

  He wondered how Khalidah and the children were faring. This must be an unpleasant experience for them after the comfortable life they have lived hitherto, he thought.

  He stretched, feeling as if he had rested well, and realized that he must have slept for six hours despite the events the night before, but he could not be sure. Nearby he heard a low snore and realized that Panhsj was still sleeping the deep sleep of the exhausted. Talon worried about his friend. He considered Panhsj a friend now. He would have to keep a check on Panhsj’s hot temper during this difficult time; especially when they had to find a way out of Cairo and find their way to the estate. Talon wondered if unspoken guilt would weigh on Panhsj and cause him to do reckless things that would place them all in danger.

  He got up and walked quietly away, leaving his friend to sleep. He found the communal hall under the wide crumbling arches of limestone almost empty of people. He supposed that the beggars—men, women, and children—would be out in the streets by now earning a few coppers. He saw a group of small children, ragged and dirty, playing contentedly around the few adults who were chatting amongst themselves, and he heard a baby crying somewhere in the gloom.

  Somewhat to his surprise he found Khalidah seated on a cushion talking to Mukhwana, while nearby Jasmine and Kazim were in the company of Kantor. They were munching on food and there was steaming tea in a high brass pot, placed on a brass tray in front of Khalidah.

  As he came up to them he bowed and said, “Salaam Aliekom, my Lady and my lord Mukhwana. I hope you have rested well.”

  “Aliekom Salaam, Suleiman. While you have been sleeping the day away we have been planning,” Mukhwana said complacently. The men who normally sat around him were gone, and Talon supposed they had been sent to listen for information on the streets of the city. Mukhwana was evidently enjoying his new status and the company of such a distinguished woman who, despite her dirty clothes, bore herself with much dignity. Khalidah gave Talon a wan smile
with her eyes.

  “Good morning, Suleiman, I hope you slept well…enough,” she said with just a tinge of irony. Talon was forced to look at the ground and control his smile. She clearly meant the accommodation. But when he looked up he could see that her eyes over the veil were hollow, tired, and somehow lost.

  “Suleiman,” Kazim said coming over to him, “when will we go home?” The boy had voiced what they were all wondering.

  Jasmine smiled tentatively at him but said nothing. She still looked drawn, frightened, and exhausted.

  “Soon, young master,” Talon said, as he sat down beside Khalidah. This was not the place to dwell on ceremony. However he addressed Mukhwana politely.

  “I apologize for our untimely arrival last night, but we could not linger out in the streets and wait for them to hunt us down.”

  “You are brave to have come here in the night. There are strange things in these tunnels, and Djinn stalk the night. Cairo has a city beneath the city and we live here with ghosts and other creatures that it is best not to encounter. We are safe in this place as long as we do not wander about alone; as it is then that the creatures come out of the walls and take unsuspecting people,” Mukhwana stated, his one eye gleaming.

  Kazim edged a little closer to Talon, and Jasmine looked even more frightened than before. Khalidah had tensed but otherwise showed a perfect aplomb.

  “We have to leave Cairo as soon as we can, Mukhwana. I must take my Lady to her estates in the south,” Talon said.

  “You must wait, Suleiman. My spies are out across the town today. Will you have enough gold to pay me for the trouble I am going to on your behalf?” He laughed, and Talon smiled, but he knew that Mukhwana meant what he said and would need payment some time.

  “Once I can get to the Jews in the bazaar I can pay you, my lord.” He glanced at Khalidah, who was watching them. “What do your spies tell you at present?” he enquired.