Banished (Forbidden)

by Kimberley Griffiths Little

I glanced into Naomi’s sympathetic face. She placed a hand across the table of glittering crystal and lavish food. “Jayden, you will have the most spectacular wedding a girl of Sariba—a princess of Sariba—ever had. I promise you that. I’ve already begun a list. While the men assemble their weapons and soldiers, I will enlist every servant to create a magnificent wedding in three days instead of the usual three months.”

  Kadesh knelt at my feet and clasped my hands in his. “Jayden, will you marry me in three days hence?”

  Happiness coursed through me. “Every day and forever.”

  Kadesh glanced over to his uncle Josiah. “Will you please prepare the marriage tent for us?” he asked. It was tradition for the marriage tent to be arranged by the groom’s family.

  A blush crept up my neck.

  “Jayden,” Kadesh added. “If we are married, Horeb cannot claim you. It’s the only way to ensure our success. And our future peace and happiness.”

  32

  The nightmares came again that night, wrestling with me, just like the prophet Jacob had wrestled with an angel. Except my angel was actually a demon named Aliyah.

  I woke, sweating, my pillow clamped over my face, as if someone had been trying to suffocate me.

  I had assumed the royal family’s food was prepared and tasted by trusted servants. But perhaps I really was being poisoned? The idea was unimaginable, but too many strange things were happening to me.

  I flung off the heavy pillow, like a chain holding me to the bed, and darted glances into every corner. Nobody lay in wait. Perhaps I had been trying to smother myself. Had I experienced a seizure—the same as Kadesh’s mother had suffered?

  My stomach lurched. I ran to the chamber pot in the dark, stumbling my way past the tables and chairs. Silent as a shadow, Jasmine was there, holding my hair back.

  After lighting the polished brass lamp on the bedside table, the maid prepared a cold cloth for my brow. I lay down while she administered it and Tijah slept on.

  “Thank you,” I whispered.

  Jasmine nodded, running a soothing hand along my fevered arm. She held up a finger to signal for me to remain lying on the bed and then returned with a cup of cold water.

  I sipped it slowly, a hundred worries battling inside my head. “What am I going to do?”

  My maid gave a shake of her head. Then she made a sign for me to go to sleep, biting her lips, concern in her face.

  I gripped her hand like I used to with Leila when I’d had a bad dream. “How can I sleep when my dreams turn into nightmares?”

  Moonlight fell across the bedroom floor, washing the room in silvery waves. Moments later, a sheen of fog crept across the windows, sinister and lurking.

  Jasmine’s eyes fixed on mine, her face glowing in the night light.

  “I saw fire,” I whispered into the stillness. “I imagined the palace toppling, burning. I saw my sister being thrown into a deep well. I could feel her screams in my bones. How can I fight Aliyah and Horeb both?”

  Jasmine’s eyes welled up with tears.

  I pressed her hand into mine. “I’m sorry; I don’t mean to frighten you.”

  She pointed to her sleeping sister and then to herself, jamming her finger into her chest.

  “I know you want to help, but nobody has power over the Sariba Goddess. This land is filled with a beauty that surpasses all dreams. But a specter of doom reigns, keeping us in compliance.”

  Jasmine pointed to my ring finger. She mouthed the name of Kadesh.

  “You think I should marry Kadesh despite the coming war?”

  Vigorously, she nodded, and then lifted her hands over her heart to convey the symbol of the marriage vow.

  I was comforted by her assurances. “When I marry Kadesh we’ll be bound through eternity. That gives me strength not to give up.”

  She gave a sigh then laid her head against my arm and curled onto the floor beside the bed. It was a strange gesture for a handmaid to make to her mistress, but I was touched. I wondered if the girls’ mother was still alive.

  I stroked her hair, feeling a maternal instinct toward her. “You’re tired, Jasmine. Please go to bed. I’ll leave the lamp on.”

  But the girl had already fallen asleep.

  I watched her chest rise and fall in slow breaths. After a moment, I scooted across the comforter and lifted her featherweight body onto the mattress with me. I imagined myself and Leila as children, snuggled in our beds in our father’s tent, my mother sleeping close by. My own tears now fell into Jasmine’s sweet-smelling hair.

  When I opened my eyes again morning sun streamed into the bedroom. Jasmine was gone. Rolling onto my back, I tried to organize my thoughts. Sleep wrapped around my tongue and I blinked, trying to fully wake up.

  On my dressing table was a bowl of clean water and rose-scented soap. Fresh bread, butter, and yogurt lay nestled inside a basket. I tried to nibble at the food while I washed.

  I wondered where Tijah and Jasmine had gone.

  My hands shook when I applied my kohl. Then I attempted to untangle the clumped knots in my hair. The wild hours of nightmares had left me a mess. A moment later, the two maids rushed through the door.

  “You’re awake, my lady!” Tijah exclaimed. “We left you sleeping for just a moment while we attended to your laundry—and wedding plans!”

  Jasmine’s eyes sparkled. She put her hands to her lips and mouthed, “Wedding.”

  “We’ve never helped with a wedding,” Tijah went on. “And a royal wedding is—is—wondrous!”

  I smiled at her enthusiasm. “Not in three days, I’m afraid. I’m trying to make a list in my mind, but there are too many details.”

  “Lady Naomi already has a list! And a scribe to keep track of everything.”

  I laughed, the somber mood of the night lifting in the eager smiles of the girls.

  “We’re ordered to bring you to her rooms immediately. She has an entire wardrobe of wedding gowns for you to try on.”

  “It sounds lovely, but I need a scribe right now myself. Can you fetch one, Tijah?”

  While Jasmine cleaned the room and Tijah ran out the door, I stood by the window, warming myself after days of somber fog. Soon the maid returned with a young boy named Nathan. He produced thin tablets of stone and writing tools, laying them out on the desk by the window.

  “I can write well, my lady,” he said, bending over the stone, ready for my dictation.

  I took a breath. “To the Priestess Leila of the Sariba Temple.”

  His eyebrows shot up, but he didn’t ask any questions, just engraved my words, inviting Leila to my wedding on the evening of the second day hence.

  There was so much more I wanted to say, but it couldn’t be written in a letter. I had to see Leila for myself. An invitation for her to live here at the palace with me had to be made in person. And I had to find a physician or healer to undo the confused state she was in.

  When Nathan finished, he let me inspect the letter. I couldn’t read most of it but I did recognize the name of Leila and my own closing the letter. “I will deliver it now, my lady. My father has a good horse I can use to climb the mountain to the temple.”

  “Good. Thank you very much. And Nathan,” I added.

  “Yes, my lady?”

  “Please be careful. Deliver the letter at the servant’s receiving doors, but do not enter the temple yourself.”

  Despite my precautions, I worried my letter would be intercepted by Aliyah.

  Moments later I was delivered to Lady Naomi’s personal office and dressing rooms. The rooms were spacious, with floors of imported marble and fluttering draperies hanging at the expansive windows. I wished my mother and grandmother could be here to help me choose a dress. To be a part of this momentous time of my life. Their absence was sorely felt.

  Naomi kissed me, and then ushered me to a cushioned chair in front of the wardrobe. My maidservants stepped back out of the way, but Lady Naomi said, “Girls, please be our models. Try on the various dresses so
Princess Jayden can see them.”

  Jasmine let out a giggle when she realized she’d be wearing some of the beautiful dresses. I gave a start, having never heard her make a single noise before.

  The morning passed in a blur of soft cottons and sheer silks, reds, greens, deep purples, and blues. I finally settled on a cream-colored gown with a flowing skirt made up of so much satiny material it shimmered like water at my feet. The dress boasted intricately designed beadwork and jewels along the bodice and sleeves, and a stiff open collar showed off my pale neck.

  “The perfect spot to display a few royal jewels,” Naomi said. “You shall have an emerald and ruby necklace with clusters of diamonds, matching bangles on your wrists, and these earrings.”

  She opened an ebony box that held earrings with rubies and oval-cut diamonds. “These jewels are fashioned here in Sariba by our own craftsmen. See here on the back.”

  The jeweler’s brand was engraved in the metal. A frankincense tree with twisted branches. “I must be living a dream,” I said. “I’ve never seen such jewels in all my life.”

  “Kadesh will be giving you an entire box on your wedding day. Your father will receive one hundred camels and twenty-five Arabian horses from Uncle Ephrem.”

  Speechless, I stared at myself in the lace-trimmed gown in the mirror. “What shall I give Kadesh as a wedding gift?”

  Naomi’s mouth lifted in a smile. “Your heart. Your body. Your true self, my dear.”

  Emotion bit at the back of my throat. I wished my mother could see me now. It was finally happening. I was marrying the boy I loved.

  The next two days I rushed back and forth between gardens and rooms, occasionally stopping Nathan, my scribe, to ask if there had been any reply from Leila at the temple. The boy always shook his head, no, and I tried not to fret, but focus on the wedding preparations. That was my task right now, other than continuing to practice with the superb sword Kadesh had given me in the land of Sheba.

  We’d been in Sariba about a week now, and, after the confrontation between me and Asher and Kadesh, as well as the meeting with King Ephrem, we’d all agreed Asher needed to maintain our practice sessions.

  Three times a day for an hour. Learning the proper stances and thrusts, turns and parries, helped keep me distracted and extremely busy. The day I brought my sword straight down on Asher’s weapon, and then whipped around to lay my sword against his neck, he grinned—and I laughed.

  “I did it,” I whispered.

  “I think you’re ready,” he said.

  “Now I just need several inches of muscle on my arms and shoulders.”

  “Your strength is your ability to move with grace and precision. Dancing all your life has given you that. Speed and fast turns will help to keep you alive with any fighter.”

  I sucked in a breath and released it. A towering Assyrian warrior wearing leather armor dripping with bronze scales filled me with a terror that made my legs weak.

  “Confidence will take you far,” Asher added, his expression turning serious. “Believe in yourself. Believe in Kadesh. And believe in the Land of Sariba, your new home.”

  “We will win,” I said. “We will win.”

  I repeated the words to give myself conviction but did I really believe it? Maybe Kadesh and I should spend our few married days sparring with each other so I would be truly ready. The thought made me smile and I shook my head, trying to banish bad thoughts.

  After putting my sword away, I made a final inspection of the wedding preparations.

  Palace gardeners had constructed a wedding pavilion on the garden patios that overlooked the sea. The rocky cliffs enclosed us on both sides like an embrace.

  Tables were placed in position, along with chairs, pillows, and carpets. A corner was set aside for the musicians: drummers, three harpists, as well as five flutists. Another corner for an outdoor kitchen and serving area. Backdrops of flowers and fountains. Hundreds of lamps had been erected on poles, which would light up the wedding arena in imitation of a galaxy of stars dropping to the earth.

  I hadn’t seen Kadesh during the past two days. The tribal council, generals, and captains were having constant strategy meetings that lasted well into the night, too. I received a note from him on the second day, which Nathan read for me, his cheeks turning a bright red. “I will see you next on the evening of our wedding—under the canopy—where we will declare our love and vows and I will dress you in jewels.”

  Taking the note, I ran my finger over Kadesh’s beautiful words, and then pressed the paper to my heart.

  On the last day, I went over the wedding menu with Naomi and the palace kitchen staff. “The only thing I want for certain is sugared dumplings,” I told her.

  She leaned in close with a knowing smile. “The sweets of the tribal desert nuptials, yes?”

  I nodded, remembering my betrothal night. The women of my tribe dancing with me and welcoming me into their world.

  Aunt Naomi wiped at my eyes, which I didn’t even realize had leaked tears. “Sweet dreams tonight. By this time tomorrow you will be Kadesh’s wife.”

  I wandered back out to the gardens and watched a magnificent fountain erected. A river of water would wind its way through the patios where the guests could watch the dances. I’d been practicing my seven wedding dances, and Naomi had helped me choose the various silks and chiffons.

  Tonight I planned to practice the dances until I was so tired I’d be able to fall asleep and stay asleep without terrible dreams waking me. After tomorrow’s ceremony, I’d never sleep alone again. Kadesh would take away all my nightmares.

  Leaving the wedding pavilion, I strolled down the pathway, lost in the trees and flowers. A servant bowed to me. “My lady, would you like to approve the plans for the marriage tent?”

  “You mean it’s close by?”

  “This way, Princess.”

  I followed him into a three-room tent. Luxury greeted me in ridiculous amounts. Carpets so thick my toes melted into them, and a sitting room with brocade sofas and burnished lamps set into wall niches. The second room had a bed of perfumed linens sprinkled with fresh rose petals. Lilies and orchids lit up the tent with a profusion of color, in jars and urns and potted tubs.

  The third partition was a bathing room, boasting our own deep-set tub for bathing. There were soaps and luxurious towels. Wine bottles in tubs ready to be chilled. Thick robes to don after bathing, and cushioned chairs for napping—or kissing.

  I was overwhelmed by the romantic opulence. “Who ordered all this? Who designed it?”

  The servant bowed. “Prince Kadesh made all the arrangements. He wanted it to be perfect for you, my lady.”

  I felt a smile curve along my lips. “Then I probably shouldn’t be here to spoil the surprise.”

  The man didn’t answer, merely bowed as I passed through. Kadesh had thought of everything. For a year I had dreamed of lying in his arms, and now that it was here it hardly seemed real. We would have three nights of solitude . . . before Horeb showed up with his army. How many soldiers? Hundreds or thousands? I rubbed my arms against a sudden chill, feeling hunted like a lion.

  King Ephrem had told me in the clearest language that I should kill Horeb. But I’d be captured or killed by his bodyguards before I could even get close. And why would I need to kill Horeb if Kadesh and I were legally married? He could have no claim on me any longer. I’d be free at last, wouldn’t I?

  When I crossed back through the wedding pavilions and arrived at the palace doors again, twilight was descending. A liquid moon rose in the eastern sky. Tomorrow was the night of the seventh moon, the night of my wedding.

  The silver orb shifted, washing streams of light against the Sariba Goddess Temple in the mountains that eclipsed the city.

  The temple glowed like some kind of beacon, its tentacles stretching out to lure my soul to its heart and capture me forever. I pushed my way through the palace door. “You will not invade my dreams tonight.”

  33

  In
the morning I woke, miraculously still sane. No unnerving dreams or elusive demons trying to kill me. My skin was warm—not chilled by icy fear, nor hot as if burning coals pressed against my neck.

  Dazed by the quiet morning, I gazed out on the peaceful courtyards.

  My wedding day. And it was gorgeous.

  But Leila was missing from the most important day of my life. I hadn’t heard a word after sending the wedding invitation to the palace. I had no idea if she’d even received it. A great sadness filled my chest, but I would try not to mourn Leila or Sahmril, or worry about Horeb today. We had the army of Sariba to destroy them. The nightmares of my life were almost over.

  A knock came at the door with a message from Aunt Naomi. She and her personal servants would dress me for the wedding. Nervous, I could only eat a light breakfast, and then was escorted to Naomi’s suite afterward.

  Lady Naomi’s bathing area was enormous. A large sunken bath decorated with hand-painted tiles depicting the mountains of Qara brimmed with hot water and creamy soaps. Soft white towels bordered in deep purple lay in folded piles on the vanity. Vases of flowers bloomed on tables and in alcoves. Scents from burning candles floated dreamily through the air.

  “Here in our land, frankincense brings good luck to a marriage, Jayden,” Naomi told me with a quick embrace. “And the children that follow.”

  At the mention of future babies, I smiled self-consciously. Then I quickly undressed and stepped down the tiles into the bath. The water was deep and hot, relaxing my tight muscles as I reclined.

  Lady Naomi’s servants used exfoliating sponges on my skin, and a shampoo that made my hair feel like fine silk.

  The women’s voices echoed off the bathing chamber ceiling. I gazed up at the domed ceiling and windows set high into the walls. A mural created from tiles decorated the walls. Ponds and fountains and trees, as if I were bathing in a garden.

  The girls chatted about men and babies and the secrets of the marriage tent, reminding me of my betrothal night. Shy smiles tugged at my lips. Nerves whispered along my skin, settling deep into my belly as the hours ticked by. Getting closer to when I would dance for Kadesh, just like my cousin Hakak had danced for Laham.