The wall around Kasim’s enormous home was a far cry from the one around his brother’s house. Instead of a simple door, elaborate double gates gave entrance into the large courtyard. Both Kasim and Nyla loved entertaining merchants and officials—putting on elaborate parties with dancers or fire breathers—and at this time of the late afternoon, it wouldn’t have been surprising to find guests arriving.
Normally I loved to hide and watch the dancers, my toes itching to join the dance, but on this occasion I was grateful to slip through the gates to an empty courtyard. My nerves were already on edge, and I didn’t want an audience.
“Welcome back!” The cheerful call made me start before I recognized the gray hair and calm expression of one of the senior grooms.
I forced a smile and crossed the open space to greet the mare he was leading back from her daily exercise. She was one of my favorites, a gentle creature who deserved a better rider than Nyla.
“Evening, girl,” I murmured, patting her velvety nose.
“Greetings to you, too,” said Rowan with a chuckle.
“Sorry.” I gave him an apologetic look. “It’s been a tiring afternoon. Consider my greetings meant for both of you.”
He chuckled. “How can I mind being eclipsed by such a noble lady as this?” He gave the mare an affectionate pat before looking back at me. “I heard she sent you out to the forest.” His voice held sympathy, and neither of us felt the need to clarify whoshewas. “You were probably better off, though. She’s been raging all afternoon, so you would have just been a target here.”
I grimaced, sorry for the rest of them who had been left behind. Nyla’s gold had bought her a secure place in the social circle of the merchants of Karema, but what she really wanted was access to the royal circle and acceptance among the courtiers. It wasn’t a totally impossible dream since the richest merchants were often invited to palace functions. But for some reason, an initial invitation four years ago had never been followed up by another.
I sighed. “I hope she’ll have calmed down by tomorrow. Are there any guests expected tonight?”
When he shook his head, I breathed a sigh of relief. The night would end a lot earlier without guests, and I wanted the sanctuary of my tiny bedchamber to sort out my muddled thoughts.
Images kept flashing through my mind—chests overflowing with gold alternated with the grim look of the thieves and with the face of Rek. I had thought myself long ago adjusted to my new life, but seeing my old friend had stirred it all up again.
“Maybe you should head straight for bed.” Rowan watched my face with concern. “You look exhausted, and the last thing you need is to run into her.”
I dredged up an approximation of my usual grin. “Don’t worry about me. You know I can handle it. I’ve been coping for three years, and I’m not going to collapse in a heap now.”
“That’s our Zaria.” He smiled back at me. “Irrepressible. That’s what Yara always says about you.”
I laughed, although I hardly felt my normal self. Rowan and Yara, the cook, formed the heart of the small group of servants whose positions in the household were of long-standing, and when I arrived here, heartbroken and in shock, they had been my first friends. Their acceptance had paved my way. With an endless stream of servants coming and going, driven away by Nyla’s manner and ceaseless demands, it hadn’t been long before I was no longer the useless new girl from the palace. I would always be grateful to them for their kindness.
“Tempting as it is, I can’t go and hide immediately,” I said. “I need to speak to Yara. Mariam sent a message for her.”
I gave the mare a final pat and Rowan a farewell smile before hurrying the rest of the way across the courtyard. I made directly for the external kitchen door, knowing I was unlikely to find Nyla inside.
Sure enough, only the cook and her various underlings were inside the bustling room. The evening meal was in the final stages of preparation, but Yara still broke off her work to greet me with a cry of delight.
“There you are!” she exclaimed. “I was starting to think you’d vanished.”
I rolled my eyes. “It hasn’t been that long. I visited yesterday!”
“Yes, but everyone knowsshe’son a rampage today. I thought you’d have sought refuge in here before now.”
“She sent me out with Ali.” I took a seat on one of the stools by the long workbench and stole a date from a nearby platter.
As I put it in my mouth, I hummed softly with pleasure. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d eaten.
Yara’s face softened, and she smiled at me affectionately. “Of course she did. Why you put up with her, I don’t know. And don’t tell me that you stay because the job is physically undemanding and pays well! I’ve heard that nonsense from you often enough, but the rest of us aren’t subjected to the same constant persecution you are. I don’t care if they’re only words, she’ll wear you away until there’s nothing left if you let her, child.”
I shrugged. We’d had this conversation enough times before that Yara could recite my side as easily as hers. My friends had never been able to understand why I stayed, putting up with Nyla’s verbal abuse. Perhaps that was because I had never fully articulated it even to myself. But the day’s events had changed everything—and I was only beginning to sense how much that was true. I needed time to sort out my own emotions.
“You must be even more exhausted than you look!” Yara’s voice broke my reverie, and I sent her a guilty look.
“Sorry, were you speaking to me?”
She raised an eyebrow. “I was telling you that you don’t need to scavenge from the master’s plate. I’ll have one of the girls make you a plate of your own.”
She waved vaguely in the direction of a small knot of kitchen maids, and one launched into action. I smiled gratefully at the girl before turning back to Yara.