by Elm Vince
The sultan toyed with the golden buttons on his shirt, his expression distant. He turned back to his spymaster. “We’ve yet to make an official announcement about the vizier to the people of Kisrabah, correct?”
Namir nodded, the picture of composure once more, although sweat beaded on his forehead. “Although plenty of people were present for the assassination attempt at the festival.” He grasped a piece of parchment from where it had been knocked to the floor in his fight with Aliyah. “I was about to release a statement informing all Astarians the ex-Royal Vizier is a traitor to the kingdom and they should stay alert.”
Kassim faced my sister, his broad shoulders dwarfing her slender frame. She tilted her chin up to meet his intense stare.
“Then I see no reason we can’t use this to our advantage. We can come up with a cover story to tie your reappearance with the vizier’s disappearance.” Kassim sounded as if he were suggesting an afternoon stroll through the gardens, not lying to a whole kingdom in order to bring my sister back from the dead.
Aliyah hissed in a breath. “You’re suggesting we tell everyone the vizier had Lalana all this time? That she’d kidnapped her and locked her away in a tower?”
Kassim nodded, still looking at Lalana.
Ali laughed. “Princess locked in a tower? A bit trite, isn’t it?”
“It could work.” Namir’s voice was smooth and thoughtful. “The vizier made an attempt on Zadie’s life, which suggests her motives were to stop the alliance between Khiridesh and Astaran. If that’s the case, she could have easily been the reason Khiridesh lost their eldest princess in the first place.”
Lalana turned her honey eyes to me, her face questioning. My lips parted to answer, but my whirling thoughts rendered me speechless. Kassim’s idea was a good one. The vizier was an enemy of the kingdom, and she clearly hadn’t wanted our marriage to proceed. There was no reason she couldn’t have kidnapped Lalana, too. It was the perfect way to get my sister back properly, without having to hide her true identity.
So why was unease burrowing in the pit of my stomach? I wiped my clammy palms on my robes, looking between Kassim and Lalana once more as I realized the source of my anxiety.
If Lalana chose to become a princess again, she would be Kassim’s rightful betrothed once more...
“Zadie?” Lalana prompted. She wrung her hands together. I noticed she still wore the amethyst ring on her finger, even though Tarak was long gone.
“It’s up to you, Lalana,” I replied, my voice tight. “It’s believable. If you want to become a princess again, the vizier isn’t here to refute the claim. Even if she were, now that she’s a known enemy of Astaran, no one would believe her anyway.”
“Lalana.” There was a note of urgency in Kassim’s deep voice. “You need to decide now. Your parents arrive tomorrow for the wedding.”
I noticed Kassim said the wedding, not our wedding. I tried to ignore the way my heart suddenly pounded against my ribcage.
“Well, personally, I think it’s all pretty shady,” Aliyah announced, leaping down from the table and striding to the window. “Good luck with it, L. If you decide to leave the princess life behind, you’re welcome to sign up as the forty-first thief in my gang.”
She flicked her gaze to Namir’s. “Until next time, spymaster.”
She leapt onto the window ledge. Holding the edge of the window, the thief queen swung herself out, licked her finger, and held it to the air in a gesture reminiscent of a certain pirate king.
“The weather’s about to turn. A storm’s coming in, royals. I hope you’re ready for it,” she said, her face momentarily serious, before she grinned and dropped like a stone from the tower window.
My stomach plummeted, Lalana and Mehri screamed, and Namir raced to the window, his palms pressed against the frame as he leaned out, craning his neck after the thief.
Purple flashed past the window, and relief flooded through me. Bahar’s magic carpet. So that’s how she gets in.
Everyone paused, watching the thief queen until she was no more than a speck in the bright blue sky.
“Yes.”
I spun around at Lalana’s steady voice.
“If there’s a chance, I want to be a princess again.” She flashed me a smile I couldn’t return.
Kassim nodded. “Then welcome back, princess.”
3
“Hold still.” Jevera pulled back my braid, scraping a jeweled hairpin across my scalp and securing it so tightly it gave me an instant headache. I bit back my complaint, instead twisting the golden rings around my fingers nervously.
Hot shafts of apricot-colored light striped the floor of the antechamber as we waited to receive my parents, who had been spotted by Elian’s guards outside the city limits.
To my left, two servants attended to Kassim, one adjusting his deep orange turban, another fastening an intricate golden belt around his hips. As usual, he was impeccably dressed.
This was the first time we’d been together since our discussion in Namir’s tower yesterday. Kassim had found excuses to stay busy with preparations for our guests and the wedding, so I’d spent the rest of the day with my sister. Lalana was giddy with excitement we were together again. She’d mentioned nothing of Kassim, the betrothal, or the impending nuptials tomorrow.
And neither had he.
“Stop chewing your lip,” Jevera tutted, standing on tiptoes to anoint my lips with a sweet balm tinted a dark rose color to match my gown. “And stop fidgeting, or it’ll smudge.”
I kept still. Jevera was in a bad mood.
“First, Mehri begs off helping, complaining of a mystery illness,” she muttered under her breath as she worked. “So now I have to get you ready to greet the Khirideshi royals all by myself. And I still have to put the final touches to your wedding gown before tomorrow. Which I’ll have to do with your boorish new bodyguard staring at me. She refuses to leave your chambers, you know?”
“You mean Lisha?” I asked, and I felt the lip paint smear down my chin.
Jevera made an exasperated sound. “Yes, her,” she said crossly, rubbing at my lips and chin before reapplying the balm with a glare. “She claims Namir has enlisted her to protect you, but anyone can see she’s not one of his.”
I wanted to ask Jevera exactly how she knew Lisha wasn’t one of Namir’s spies, but thought better of smudging my lip paint once more. Perhaps Jevera worked for Namir. Now that I thought about it, if the spymaster wanted to keep an eye on me, assigning one of his spies as my handmaid would be the perfect way to do it.
“If she’s staring, perhaps she just likes you,” I replied, my voice sounding odd and stilted as I tried not to close my lips and smudge Jevera’s hard work.
“Hmph. Unlikely,” Jevera replied, but her cheeks colored slightly.
Before she could protest further, Kassim’s voice rang out through the marble antechamber. “Leave us.”
Instantly, the two servants attending him dipped their heads and retreated. Jevera, looking furious at being made to finish her work before she was ready, packed away her case of cosmetics with several huffs before giving a brief curtsey in the sultan’s direction. The doors slammed closed behind her.
I looked down at my jeweled slippers, scuffing them against the smooth, stone floor. I could feel Kassim’s gaze on me.
“How shall we tell your parents Lalana is still alive?” he asked, his voice even. “Do you want to tell them?”
I didn’t say anything.
“Zadie?”
The air was heavy with a cloying floral scent from the rose-filled urns decorating the room. I glanced at Kassim to see his brow furrowed. He wasn’t going to like this.
I forced a smile onto my face, as if I had good news. “They already know.”
“What?”
I flinched at his anger. “It was their idea to tell you Lalana was dead so you might marry me instead.” My words were choked. I never thought I would be telling Kassim these things.
My knees suddenly fe
lt weak, and I moved to sink onto one of the nearby divans. My dress creased around me.
Kassim let out a low breath. “So the whole Khirideshi court was in on this lie?”
“No! Not the whole court. Only my parents.”
“And you.”
“And me,” I conceded.
Kassim tore the turban from his head, flinging it across the room where the jewels clattered against the floor. He pushed dark hair away from his brow as he stormed through the beaded curtains leading out to the balcony.
Tears pricked at my eyes once more. There was a time I wouldn’t have cared if I’d angered Kassim. If anything, I relished challenging him. But now… He was so close to being my husband, and I’d lost him.
I stood on shaky legs and followed him, the beads hissing as I slowly pushed through them. Beyond the thick walls of the palace, the air rippled with heat. The sultan leaned forward on the far end of the balcony, resting his forearms against the marble as he surveyed his city beyond.
I joined him, leaving a gap between us, the stone searing against my arms. Despite the heat, there were thick clouds gathering in the distance. I had thought Aliyah meant a metaphorical storm, but clearly there was rain on the horizon.
“I suppose you can marry Lalana now.” My whole body seemed to deflate as the words left me.
The golden line of the horizon and gathering clouds blurred as tears flooded my vision.
“Why would I do that?”
My heart sank. “You don’t want the alliance with Khiridesh anymore?” I forced myself to face the sultan, blinking away tears. “I know my parents lied to you, but politically, the match is still–”
“Zadie.” My name was a growl as the sultan closed the gap between us in two steps, gripping my arms tightly. “How can you think I would want to marry Lalana after spending all this time with you? I only came up with the story to bring her back because I thought it would please you.” His amber eyes shone. “Yes, I’m furious with you. But I’m angry because you lied to me. You. Not your parents, not your sister.” He paused, struggling for words. “But even though you lied, I wouldn’t give you up for anything.”
My heart jumped into my throat. “Y-you still want to marry me?” I rubbed at the tears escaping my eyes, and my blackened knuckles told me I’d undone all of Jevera’s hard work lining them.
“Zadie, you shouldn’t even have to ask me that.” Kassim rubbed my cheek with the corner of his golden sleeve, covering it in kohl, too. “But you must promise not to keep things from me anymore. If we are to be married, no more secrets.”
A sob escaped my chest as I pulled away from him.
Lalana had been the first lie I’d told when I met Kassim, but since coming to Astaran, I’d done nothing but lie to him again and again.
I pulled at the high neckline of my dress. My breath felt short as I realized what I had to do.
“I’ve lied to you about more than just Lalana,” I whispered.
The sultan stopped reaching for me and dropped his hand to his side, worry flashing across his face. “What do you mean?”
Something burst in my chest and the words flowed from me. “When I first met you, I thought you were the most handsome man I’d ever seen. I worried if Lalana had seen you first, she would have changed her mind about running away with Ambar.”
Kassim’s eyes softened. “Well, that’s not–”
“I hated being dressed up and displayed in the palanquin like part of the dowry. On my first day in the palace, I spied on you in the training grounds. I stole a ring from the treasury, as well as an enchanted key from the thieves. I really did stop them from stealing the treasure they came here for.”
Kassim’s eyes widened, but the words continued to tumble unbidden from my lips.
“I snuck out of the palace to send letters to Lalana when you wouldn’t let me write my own, I stole a book from the Order of Scholars, and I chased a sand golem through the tunnels under Kisrabah.” I took a breath. “At Safiyya’s ball, I thought your tiger costume looked more like a cat. And I dressed as a dancing girl in a tavern to cheat Bahar at cards.”
Kassim’s mouth fell open, but I kept pacing across the balcony and wringing my hands as I blurted more truths.
“I hate camels. I never trusted the vizier. I liked that you were jealous when Prince Cao flirted with me. I was jealous of Mak the whole time we were in Hidu.”
I touched the pale band of skin on my finger, suddenly hesitant. “This whole time, I’ve been master of a djinni who granted me seven wishes. But I gave him to Lalana and she set him free. And...”
I stopped pacing and spun to face Kassim, who leaned back on the balcony, an unreadable look on his face. “And even though I came here because I wanted to be sultanah, I want to be here now because I love you.”
A sudden breeze stirred my hair, tugging strands loose from Jevera’s braid. I felt lighter than I had since leaving Khiridesh. I had likely ruined any chance of being with Kassim, but at least the knot in my stomach had loosened. He’d said he wanted no more secrets, and now there were none left between us.
The sultan looked at me with an intense, amber gaze. “If all that’s true…”
I could barely remember everything I’d said, but I knew it was the truth. “It is.”
“Then I suppose the first thing to do…” He stepped toward me, hooking a finger through the slim pearl belt at my waist and tugging me closer so the distance between us melted away, “is to get married tomorrow.” He leaned closer, whispering against my neck. “You’ll have the rest of your life to tell me these stories properly, from start to finish, every night. I want to hear about the thieves, the djinni, the dancing girl outfit… All of it.”
My heart thudded. “That’s it?” My words were breathless. “You just want to hear the stories?”
He tugged me even closer, and his scent of sandalwood and citrus clouded my thoughts. “Well, unless you can think of other ways you’d rather make it up to me.”
Heat rushed to my cheeks at his suggestive tone. He knew everything. And he still wanted me.
“Kassim.” My voice sounded distant as he pulled me closer, wrapping his hands around my neck and the small of my back. The wind picked up around us, whipping our hair and clothes.
Suddenly, I didn’t care if I smudged Jevera’s lip balm. I slid my arms around his neck, pulling him closer and kissing him.
“Kassim!” a deep voice called.
The sultan pulled away, frowning at the intrusion. Elian strode onto the balcony, a large hand shielding his eyes from the sun.
“This had better be important–”
“Sorry to interrupt, Kassim.” The captain’s tone was unusually clipped, and he made no comment about the lip paint smudged across the sultan’s mouth. “It couldn’t wait.”
“What is it?” Kassim asked.
Elian turned to me. His eyes creased with worry, his tone carefully gentle. “Princess, your parents and their convoy have arrived at the city gates.” He shifted on the spot, his hand gripping the hilt of his scimitar. “They were attacked on the road.”
4
“Where are my parents now? When can I see them?” I hurried to match Kassim’s and the captain’s long strides as we moved from the palace corridors out into the grounds.
The sun was still high in the sky as we stepped outside, but a cool, easterly wind whipped sand from the ground and sent my skirts flapping around my ankles. I again recalled Aliyah’s prediction that a storm was coming.
“They’re being given refreshments after their ordeal. You’ll see them at lunch,” the captain replied patiently. He flashed me a concerned smile, and I tried my best to return it. Elian had answered every single one of my questions on the walk over. I knew he was trying his hardest to reassure me, but I was anxious that he wouldn’t let me see them straight away.
“And you’re sure no one was hurt?”
“Like I said, several of your father’s personal guard sustained minor injuries, but they�
��re being treated by the healers. I promise. Your family is fine.” Elian gave me another tight smile. “Plus, given our past conversations, I thought you would appreciate being involved in the discussion about what happened on the road…”
My shoulders dropped and I wrapped my arms around myself. He was right. I did want to know what had happened. I shot the captain a grateful look as we hastened through the palace grounds. He’d come to know me well since I’d arrived in Kisrabah.
I thought we might head for the council chambers, but instead, Elian led us to the barracks.
Namir waited at the top of one of the archer-dotted walls, surveying small groups of soldiers hurrying across the courtyard, stablehands rushing to saddle horses. Wafts of sweat, leather, and horses drifted up from below.
The spymaster looked up as we joined him, his expression pinched. “Kassim, I swear there were no reports of bandits in the Tigrib Desert.” He looked nervous, probably because of the dressing-down he’d received earlier. “I had my men stationed at Persylis after the bandit attacks before, but–”
The sultan held up a hand. “I know, Namir. Your men are spread thin. We have guests from every corner of the twelve kingdoms traveling to Astaran for the wedding. You can’t have eyes everywhere.”
Elian unhooked a scroll from his belt and unrolled it with a flick of his wrist. He held it up to the sky, the parchment almost transparent with the glaring sun behind it.
We all shuffled closer to the captain, crowding around him. The map flapped in the breeze, so he caught the bottom end of the scroll with his other hand, holding it taut.
Namir pointed at the parchment. “Zadie’s family was attacked here, well inside Astaran’s borders. We’ve interrogated several of the bandits. They say they were paid to attack the Khirideshi royals, but they don’t know by whom.”
“And there have been no other attacks reported?” Elian asked.
Namir shook his head.
“Are my sisters here yet?” Kassim asked suddenly.
