“Could you make sure they pass on a message for me?” I asked. “To Ali and Navid—both of them, mind!”
Yara gave me an odd look but nodded. “They can do that easily enough. What is it?”
“Just let them know that Nyla intends to send Kasim over later today to inquire about their visitors and their apparent change in fortune.”
“Change in fortune?” Yara’s eyes brightened at the hint of gossip. “Is Mariam’s family going to help them out, then?”
I shrugged. “Just make sure they give that exact message.”
Yara rolled her eyes upward. “I love you dearly, Zaria, but you’re no good for a comfortable chat.”
I grinned at her. “Apologies, Yara. You’ll have to wait until Rowan is off duty. I know perfectly well that beneath his stolid exterior, he loves gossip almost as much as you do.”
“The cheek!” said Yara, but she was also grinning. “I’ll send him with the food and your message himself, which will serve you right.”
My grin broadened. “Perfect. You’re a true gem, as always, Yara. Rowan can be trusted to get the message right.”
I departed the busy hum of the kitchen with a soft sigh of relief. Thank goodness I didn’t need to find an excuse to immediately dash back to Ali’s house. With Rowan warning them of Kasim’s imminent arrival, I’d done all I could to ease them over that hurdle.
Not that a period of calm reflection brought much relief. I had seen too often that Kasim’s blustering personality could overwhelm Ali. Mariam was made of sterner stuff, and Navid was impervious to his uncle’s combination of foolishness and force. But I couldn’t be sure the two of them would manage to make Ali hold his ground.
There was nothing I could do about it, however. I would be far better off working out how I was going to explain my need to drop everything and run off at an unknown future point. I had instructed Rek to send his message to Rowan, so I was confident it would get through to me. At worst, I could simply bolt without an explanation, but there’d be a lot of unpleasantness on my return if I did that.
I was still considering the matter when I went to sleep. Knowing Kasim had left for his brother’s immediately after the evening meal and still hadn’t returned, I had expected to find sleep difficult. But after the emotional surprises of the day, I nodded off almost instantly.
It felt only moments later that I was being shaken gently awake.
“Zaria!” a familiar voice said in an urgent whisper. “Zaria!”
I sat up, nearly colliding with Yara’s head as she bent over me.
“What is it? What’s happened?” I looked urgently around, a string of confused, nonsensical scenarios streaming through my mind.
“Rowan sent me,” Yara said, the gleam of excitement visible behind her serious expression. “A message arrived for you from the palace.”
“A message?” I gasped. “From Rek? Already?”
One of her eyebrows rose. “Prince Tarek, yes,” she said, with emphasis on his full name.
Her curiosity was fanning higher, but I was too shocked to think about all the questions she was going to have after this.
“It’s too soon, surely?”
“I’m not sure what you’re talking about, but I’m to tell you to meet at the south gate. Immediately.”
She looked at me expectantly, but I offered no explanation. Leaping from bed, I pulled on the closest clothes to hand, choosing my sturdiest shoes.
Unable to contain herself any longer, Yara burst into further speech. “Zaria, why is the crown prince sending you urgent messages to meet him in the middle of the night?”
“I can’t explain now,” I said, taking the easy way out. “You heard the message. I have to go immediately.”
I slipped a single item from the tiny side table by my bed into my pocket. The gold coin was sitting out because I had been examining it again before falling asleep, and seeing it reminded me of my desire to return it. With treachery involved, I wanted even less to do with this treasure than before.
Planting a kiss on Yara’s cheek, I brushed past her and out into the corridor. All the hours I’d spent worrying about finding an excuse to leave had been unnecessary. I could have saved myself the trouble if I’d only known the summons would come at night.
Rowan waited for me at the entrance to the stables. He led me swiftly past the sleeping horses, not pestering me with questions, just holding open the small door that gave access to the alley that ran down the side of the house. He used it for the delivery of supplies for the stables, and it was the entrance I had directed Rek’s messenger to use.
Only at the door itself did he hesitate. “Stay safe, Zaria,” he murmured in a gruff voice. “Don’t go getting yourself into trouble.”