One Thousand Nights (Tales of the Latter Kingdoms Book 6)

by Pope, Christine

  What that evidence possibly could have been, I had no idea.

  In the end it did not matter, for the executioner took his head under the merciless white-hot rays of Keshiaar’s springtime sun, and everyone went away, satisfied that justice had been done. The undercurrent of tension I had sensed among the members of the court seemed to have disappeared as well, like poison drained from a festering wound. Now their Hierarch was safe, after all. True, some believed the executed man had associates yet in hiding, as not all of the men who had assailed our camp had been killed that night. Even so, with their leader dead, they most likely did not pose much of a threat.

  This was the conversation that swirled around the palace…or at least the conversation as Therissa reported it to me. No one else would speak freely of such things in my presence. Oddly, though, my three maids did not seem to think it amiss that “Miram” and I would have such discussions. Perhaps that was how it had always been here, with the Hiereine isolated from the actual ruling of the kingdom, and her chatelaine being the one to keep her informed. I could not know for sure, as Besh’s mother had died when he was only a few days old, and Aldul, the under-cook besotted with Miram, was not old enough to have been alive when the previous Hierarch and his consort reigned.

  Once again the days began to slip past, each of such a weary sameness that I hardly bothered to glance at the calendar I had brought with me. Besh treated me with a fragile courtesy that made my heart ache a little more each day, and not once since my ill-fated expedition to his chambers had he escorted me from dinner. Neither had he invited me back to his observatory, even though the clouds of winter and early spring had now quite disappeared.

  And I awoke one morning, feeling the heat of the day already seeping through the latticed shutters, and realized I had been here an entire year.

  One year. When I had come here late last Averil, I had thought…what? That Besh and I would be experiencing the kind of matrimonial bliss I had seen in my own brother and his wife? That perhaps I would already have given him an heir, or at the very least would be carrying his child?

  Yes, I had thought all those things. And not a one of them had turned out to be true.

  I sat up in bed and pushed back my covers. They were far too hot now; I would have to ask Therissa to bring me the lighter coverlet of thin embroidered silk that topped my bed during the summer months.

  The memory of my previous summer here came to me then…the smothering heat, the endless, weary waiting for the sun to finally dip down below the horizon. At least then I had had my visits to Besh’s observatory to break up the monotony of those days, but now, I realized, I had no such pleasant diversions to occupy me.

  I did not have him, nor even the spurious comfort of his company.

  I was the Hiereine of Keshiaar, and I had nothing.

  Tears came to my eyes then. I attempted to blink them back, but there were so many of them, rising from some dark place in my soul, the only free-flowing water in a thousand miles.

  Then I heard the rustle of cloth, and a swirl of jasmine-scented perfume, and Therissa’s arms were around me. “There, there,” she soothed, stroking my tumbled hair. “I know it’s difficult, but you mustn’t give up. You mustn’t.”

  “Why not?” I raged, lifting my tear-soaked face from her shoulder. “It has been a year, Therissa. A year. If Besh truly wanted me, he would have made me his wife in truth by now. Whatever you saw in him, you must have misjudged. He cannot bring himself to care for me, not even a little bit. Indeed,” I added, choking back a bitter laugh, “perhaps I should be glad he is a man of such scruples. Most men in his position would have bedded me by now, whether or not there was any love involved.”

  She did not pretend to be shocked, but only said, “I cannot begin to imagine how trying all this must be for you. In truth, if I were a bolder woman, I would go up to him and give him a good sound shaking. Perhaps that would at last knock some sense into him.”

  “I doubt it. Such behavior would only get you a cell in the dungeons, I fear.” I wiped my eyes, drew in a deep, shuddering breath. “Perhaps I should ask him for a divorce.”

  That remark did make her widen her eyes, and she said, “My lady, you are distraught. Such things are very rare, even in Sirlende, and the practice does not exist at all here in Keshiaar. When you are married in the eyes of God, you are married forever.”

  “So I am bound to a loveless marriage no matter what I do?”

  She did not answer, but only cast her gaze downward at the rug beneath her feet.

  Her silence was more painful than any words of hers could have been. Overcome, I pushed my way off the bed and went to the window, then looked down at the stolid forms of the guards standing some twenty feet below. They might have been the same men who were there the morning before, or a new group. From this angle, I could not determine any great difference between them.

  The very sight of them made the angry heat rise up in me even higher, and I whirled back toward Therissa, saying, “And I am a prisoner in this very palace that is supposed to be mine! Oh, the accommodations are more luxurious, but even so, I have no more freedom than that poor wretch Besh had executed all those weeks ago. Indeed, perhaps I should ask him to lock me up in the dungeons. At least that way my status will be clear.”

  She stood up, taking a few hesitant steps toward me. “Lyarris, do not say such things. It must be difficult to remain here, to not have even the limited freedoms you enjoyed as Crown Princess back in Sirlende. But Keshiaar is a very different place — ”

  “Do you not think that I know that?” I demanded. “And do not tell me how difficult it must be, not when you have the freedom to come and go as you like, putting on different faces and personas as needed. You may go anywhere you like, while — ”

  And there I broke off, for a notion had occurred to me, one so simple I wondered why I had not thought of it before.

  “What is it?” Therissa inquired, although the expression of worry that passed over her face told me she had begun to guess what was in my mind.

  “You did as much for Ashara, and so I am asking you to do the same for me — or very close to it. I want you to take on my semblance, and cast a spell so I look like Miram, and that way I can get out and away from here, and breathe in air that is not bounded by gates and walls.”

  “My lady, no — ”

  “Are you refusing me in this?” I asked, in what I hoped were my most queenly tones.

  Her fingers knotted in the pale fabric of the long over-tunic she wore. “Please, think of what you are asking — the dangers — ”

  “What dangers?” I scoffed. “Is Tir el-Alisaad such a dangerous place that a woman may not go to the bazaar to shop, or merely walk its streets?”

  “It is not that it is dangerous,” she replied quietly. “But it is not the custom for a woman to go about alone in the city. When I go to the bazaar, I have two guards with me. So you would not be as free as you might think.”

  “But I would still be able to escape this wretched palace, would I not?”

  A long hesitation. Then she said, reluctance clear in every word, “Yes, you would. I go often to the bazaar, to purchase spices for the sachets with which I scent your wardrobe, or to acquire the compounds used to make the rouge for your lips and the kohl for your eyes. So that sort of an expedition would not seem at all out of the ordinary.”

  “Well, then,” I said in some triumph. Truly, in that moment even going to purchase a few spices and powders sounded wholly exotic to me, as I had not been outside the palace gates since that ill-fated journey to watch the conjunction of the planets. And I had gotten only the briefest glimpse of the capital city when I was first brought here. I had seen nothing when we ventured forth to view the planets in the deep desert, for the palace was built on the extreme eastern edge of the city, and we went out the east gate when we left, our departure unobserved by anyone save a few guards.

  That realization shook me somewhat, for it was not as if we had rid
den in state through the streets of the capital, letting everyone know that the Hierarch and his consort had ventured forth from the safety of their palace. True, it was not a complete secret, and members of the household knew of it, as they were the ones who had helped to prepare our horses and packed our supplies and so forth. Even so, I had to wonder how the man who had been executed had known where we were going and where we would be.

  “What is it?” Therissa asked, apparently seeing my brows pull together in puzzlement.

  “Nothing,” I replied. I would have to ponder that matter later. Now, I could only focus on my desire to be away from these rooms, whose walls seemed to be closing in on me more with every day that passed. It was true that my escape would be a short one, but it would be enough. And if all was successful, then there was no reason why we could not make the exchange again in a few days or weeks, when once again I felt the need to flee my apartments. “Let us do it this morning, after I have broken my fast. It will be warm, but not so hot as I know it will be later in the day, and that way I will be able to enjoy the expedition all the better.”

  Her expression was a study in doubt. “My lady, please think on this some more —”

  “I have thought on it. As you said, no one will think anything strange of you going out to purchase a few items for the Hiereine. And I know you have managed to bespell your own face and that of another at the same time, so do not tell me you cannot do it.”

  “I can do it,” she began. “However, this is somewhat different from the enchantment I used on Ashara. I only had to enchant her clothing and her hair. I did not have to change her face or body, or the way she walked and talked. I will have to do all these for you at the same time I am working such an alteration on myself, and that is much more difficult.”

  Since she had already told me she could manage the thing, I did not let her last remark dissuade me. “But it is not impossible.”

  “No, not impossible.” She paused. “But because it will be so much more of a strain on me, you will have to go and return promptly. I was able to keep the spell going on Ashara for hours and hours because I did not have to alter as much of her person. This time, do not go out for more than an hour and a half.”

  “That little?” Already I began to feel some of my enthusiasm dampen. How much could I see of the city in an hour and a half?

  “Yes,” she replied. “For you will need some time after you return to the palace to come here to your apartments and change places with me. The city is large, and the bazaar a good fifteen-minute walk from here. Do not think you will be carried there in luxury in a sedan chair. Miram is a servant, and is expected to walk.”

  “Good,” I said. “For being jostled around in a sedan chair in this heat makes me quite sick to my stomach. I look forward to walking.”

  Her mouth quirked at that. “You may change your mind, after you have spent a few minutes traversing the streets of Tir el-Alisaad.”

  * * *

  And she turned out to be correct in that. Oh, it was quite thrilling to have her cast the spell on me while Lila and Marsali and Alina were occupied with scrubbing down the bath chamber, and both thrilling and odd to watch Therissa transform herself into me, right down to the ruby ring I wore on my right hand. It was so very different from gazing into a mirror; I had thought I knew well enough what I looked like, but as I stared at her, I noted the quizzical lift to the eyebrows, a certain sadness in the dark eyes. Was that how I appeared to everyone else, or were some of Therissa’s own expressions showing on my features?

  I could not say for certain, but clearly the illusion had been well cast, for as I left my bedchamber, I nearly bumped into Lila, who had a bucket full of wet rags in one hand.

  “Pardon, honored one!” she gasped.

  For a second or two, I wondered why she had addressed me in such a fashion, as the term was never applied to a member of the aristocracy, but only a social better in one of the lower classes. Then I remembered. I wore Miram’s face, and so of course Lila would never say “my lady” or “Your Majesty” to me.

  “Watch where you are going!” I told her, hoping I had injected enough affronted dignity into the rebuke.

  She’d bobbed a curtsey and fled, while I made my way through the halls of the palace, following Therissa’s instructions as to where the guards would wait to take her on one of her errands. Sure enough, two of them were standing near an exit off the kitchens, neither of them appearing too happy to be sent forth to play nursemaid to the Hiereine’s chatelaine.

  Recalling what Therissa had told me to do, I bowed, hands clasped in front of me. If one carefully dissected the pecking order of the servants within the palace, then Miram was rather highly placed, but her relative rank did not come into play when the guards were involved. They were a group set off on their own, following their own chain of command, and therefore demanded a certain amount of obsequiousness, no matter who in the servant class they might be dealing with.

  It seemed I appeared humble enough, for they nodded, then opened the door and led me outside. We were in a confined space between the palace proper and the outer walls, one whose primary purpose seemed to be storing refuse until it could be carted away, and I fought to keep from wrinkling my nose and coughing. Surely Miram had been here scores of times before, which meant I could not show any particular reaction to the stench.

  Breathing through my mouth, I followed the guards as they made their way to a small gate, one not nearly as fine as that which guarded the main entrance to the palace. From there we emerged into a side street, one lined with buildings two and three stories high, apparently residences of some sort. People were coming and going, all on foot, most carrying parcels and bundles, one chasing a flock of squawking chickens over the hard-packed earth.

  It all sounded terribly noisy and chaotic, but that was nothing. After winding away along that street for some minutes, we came out onto a much larger avenue, this one choked with people on foot, men on horseback, carts being hauled by oxen and donkeys, and the odd sedan chair here and there, no doubt carrying some member of the aristocracy from the shelter of one townhouse to another. Or did they even call them that here? My only experience was of the palace, so I did not precisely know what the residences of those who did not reside at court might look like.

  What I did know was that, even with one guard in front of me and the other behind, more than once I had to dodge out of the way to avoid being knocked over, and several times I narrowly missed stepping in what the horses and oxen and donkeys had left behind. No wonder Therissa had smiled at my eagerness to walk these streets. She had known precisely what lay in store for me, while I, in my ignorance, had thought it would be refreshing. No breath of fresh air here, that was for certain; I would have been better served to find a well-shaded balcony at the palace and catch a stray breeze there. Perhaps away from these streets, and down at the docks, there was cleaner, cooler air to be had, but I knew I could never ask the guards to accompany me there. I had a reason to go to the bazaar, whereas I had none at all for going to the docks.

  Except, perhaps, to find a ship there bound for Sirlende, and to climb aboard, and make my way home, so I might go to my brother and beg his forgiveness for my foolishness. Surely he would take me in, even if he would be very angry with me for the way I had abandoned my responsibilities here in Keshiaar.

  No, of course I would never do any such thing. It was only a fantasy born of my despair at my current situation. I would never leave Besh. Even if he did not love me, he would be horribly wounded by such a desertion. I could not do that to him, not when I knew I loved him, despite everything.

  So I followed the guards as we wound through the streets, and I told myself there was plenty here to hold my interest — the quick chatter of the people around me, faster, more sibilant than the court speech I was used to, the intricate carving on even a simple drover’s cart, the way gold flashed from women’s ears and wrists, and from the ears of some of the men as well. This surprised me, for
I had not seen any of the courtiers sporting such a fashion. I also noted that none of the women were unaccompanied, that all had a man — husband, brother, father — with them. Even so, they did not seem terribly discommoded by being saddled with an escort at all times, for they talked and laughed with one another, seeming to ignore their companions outright when it suited them, and I had to repress a smile at the sight.

  Finally, we came to the bazaar, and my eyes widened in wonder. In my mind I had imagined it as a group of several score stalls and pavilions, taking up a space close to that of one of the parks that were sprinkled through my homeland’s capital, but in reality the bazaar was enormous, spanning such a huge area that I could not even see the far end of it, only an endless sea of canvas in various shades of beige and ivory, broken here and there by a more permanent stall constructed of sun-bleached wood. In that moment, I was glad of the two guards who flanked me, for not only did they provide a welcome barrier against the masses of humanity who flowed in and out of the bazaar, filling the narrow spaces between the stalls, but they also led me unerringly to my destination, a large pavilion filled with basket after basket of various spices and dried herbs, along with vials of the powdered minerals used for cosmetics.

  Therissa had already told me what I should ask for, so I requested a vial of red ochre for my lips, and another of galena for the kohl. The shopkeeper, whose name was Isala, smiled and took the silver coin I handed her in payment, saying she was surprised that I needed the pigments again so quickly, as apparently Miram had purchased those items only a few weeks earlier.

  I gave an off-hand shrug, attempting to mimic my chatelaine’s somewhat brusque manner, and said, “Ah, well, Her Most High Majesty would knock over the vials when she was setting down a book the other day — ”

  “Oh, my, that would explain it,” the woman said, chuckling a little. “I do hope she will take greater care in the future. That can’t have been easy to clean up.”