“What are you inferring?” Wulf wanted to know.
“I infer nothing. There are three great caliphates of the Moslem world at the present time, one of which is the Abbasid, whose capital is in Baghdad. I merely ask if Princess Drifa could possibly be the granddaughter of the most celebrated of the Hamdanid emirs, Saif ad-Dawlah, best known as Sword of the State, before his death. His daughter was abducted many years ago in Egypt. ’Twould seem there is a resemblance.”
“Even if there was this connection, what does it matter?” Wulf was clearly annoyed by the eparch’s veiled threats.
“Saif ad-Dawlah’s family still has many supporters. They, along with his enemies, could use her for their own ill purposes.”
Drifa assumed that Mylonas was among those who might use her. Her already low opinion of the man sank lower.
“My mother’s name was Tahirah. I have no idea if that was her birth name or not. My father purchased her at the slave marts in Hedeby. He brought her home as a concubine, then married her. That is all I know.”
“And you have no intention of traveling to the Arab lands whilst here, mayhap to establish relations between the Norselands and our desert enemies?”
“Good gods, nay!” Drifa wanted nothing to do with politics or centuries-old feuds.
“You make many accusations. Dost have any proof of this?” Ivar demanded to know.
Mylonas put up a halting hand. “I make no accusations. Sorry I am if I have offended you with my questions.” The rat wasn’t sorry at all. He was fooling no one.
“Does the emperor know you are interrogating one of his honored guests in this manner?” Wulf added.
“Forgive me if I have shown disrespect, Princess Drifa. It is my job to ensure the safety and financial well-being of the city. Ofttimes threats come from the high, as well as the low born.”
Did he place her in the high or low born class? It mattered not. “I am no threat,” she said through gritted teeth.
“Let us hope so. Have a pleasant visit here in Constantinople.” He waved a hand in the air. They were obviously dismissed.
“Well, that was interesting,” she said after they’d left. “What do you suppose was the purpose?”
“Intimidation,” Wulf declared, and updated the others on what had happened behind the closed door.
“Would you want to meet your Arab family?” Thork wanted to know.
“It never occurred to me that might be possible, but, now that it’s been suggested, I don’t think so. I have thought of myself as Norse for too many years.”
“I wouldna mind meeting some harem lassies,” Jamie mused in a deep Scottish brogue that seemed to come and go at will.
“Harem lassies?” Thork scoffed.
“I still think you should return to Stoneheim, Princess Drifa. Even with your guardsmen ... well, I have a bad feeling.” Wulf was frowning with concern.
“I do, too,” Ivar surprised her by concurring.
She arched a brow at the older man, and he said, “I am confident of my abilities in a front-on fight. Even a sneak attack. But we are in a foreign city, and normal rules do not apply.”
“Listen, I understand your concerns, and I even concede that the dangers may be greater here than if I were in Jorvik, or Birka, or Dublin, but I am not a lackwit. I will cultivate a friendship with the empress. I will never go about without a guardsman. I have all the seamen who man my longship to back us up, if need be. I am here to study gardens, and I will make that abundantly clear to one and all. In fact, I will even inform the eparch of Ianthe’s plant roots that I intend to take home.”
All seven of the men accompanying her shook their heads hopelessly.
“If that be so, our longships will be leaving in two days,” Wulf said.
“Then let us all enjoy ourselves today,” she said cheerily. “Shall we go to the Hippodrome?”
They all agreed, though some of them had already visited yesterday. Apparently there was something new to see every day.
When she returned to her chambers later that day, Anna told her there had been a delivery for her in her absence. It was the harem garment, and there was a note.
Drifa: