“I came here to kill your son,” Kamran said flatly. “Little else animates my interest at the moment.”
Sarra clapped her hands together. “In that case, youmuststay until the end of the season, at the very least. Though if you do manage to kill Cyrus, I beg you to make it appear an accident, for I detest war, and do not desire bloodshed between our lands.”
The five of them, collectively, stared at her.
Gently, Huda said, “Are you joking, Your Majesty?”
“About which part, dear?”
Choosing to ignore this, the prince glanced at Hazan before saying, with great resignation, “We’ll stay just long enough to find out where she is. Lord knows what he did with her.” He felt dazed suddenly; exhausted. “Hells, she might not even be alive.”
Sarra stiffened, color leaching from her face. “What?”
“Oh, don’t say that,” said Huda. “We must not lose hope –”
“She was injured,” Omid explained. “Earlier, ma’am.”
Sarra gripped the table for support. “What do you mean,injured?”
“Forgive me,” said Deen. “But didn’t you see the moment she and Cyrus fell off the cliff? When we were outside?”
“You fool,” Sarra snapped, standing up so fast her chair fell over with a thud. “If I’d seen anything of the sort do you think I would’ve wasted my time with the lot of you? What on earth happened to her?”
Hazan, who appeared as disconcerted by this eruption as Kamran was, said carefully: “She was caught by a stray arrow.”
Sarra made a guttural, mournful sound. “By whose hand?”
“Why is that important?”
“It’s of the utmost importance!” she shouted. “If Cyrus had anything to do with it” – she shook her head – “oh, I’ll kill him, I’ll really do it this time. By the angels, they’re going to riot again. They’ll set fire to the castle –”
“Who?” Deen asked, eyes darting around. “Who’s going to set fire to the castle?”
“When I’m upset,” Omid said helpfully, “I like to take a walk, and search the streets for spare coin –”
Huda squeezed the boy’s hand. “Not now, dear.”
“It was me,” Kamran said in an undertone. “I shot her by accident.”
“You.” Sarra straightened in obvious relief, pressing a hand to her chest. “It was you. Yes, we’ll tell them you did it. Your empire will take the blame.It was all your fault –”
“What are you talking about?” Hazan demanded. “Who are you referring to?”
“The Jinn!” she cried. “Thousands and thousands of them! I swear they were going to kill us all!”
“The Jinn?” Kamran echoed softly, stunned.
Hazan rose slowly from the table, his countenance visibly altered. His old friend looked shaken, his eyes burning with feeling. “What Jinn?” he said.
“Last night, they stormed the castle,” Sarra said, her breathing shallow. “Our Jinn population is normally very gentle – unlike most empires, we allow them a measure of freedom to exercise their abilities without penalty – but yesterday – yesterday they were terrifying and violent. They threatened to burn down the palace. They threatened to destroy the city. They wanted proof that she was alive, that she was unharmed –”
“I need you to be clear,” Hazan said to Sarra, a slight tremor in his voice. “Do you mean to say she was discovered? That she’s been revealed publicly as the long-lost heir to the Jinn kingdom?”
Kamran felt a twist in his gut.
“Sothat’swhat she is?” Huda exclaimed. “I knew she was some kind of forgotten royal, but she never told me her true identity, only that she was running for her life –”
“It’s not some courtesy title?” Deen asked. “She’s a real queen, then? All that time I’d thought she was a servant… And that horrible housekeeper, the way she treated her –”
