by Hight, Jack
John refused to meet his gaze. ‘I cannot say.’
‘Cannot say? I am your lord!’ Yusuf snapped. ‘You will tell me.’
‘I am a free man,’ John replied quietly. ‘I will not tell you.’
Yusuf’s eyes narrowed. ‘Was it Zimat?’ John said nothing, and Yusuf crossed the room to him. ‘I will say this only once: Zimat is my sister. If you stain her honour, I will kill you myself.’
‘I understand.’
Yusuf nodded, then turned away to pace the room. ‘Send for Turan,’ he told John. ‘I will know the truth of this from him.’
‘He is not in the citadel. I saw him leave for town earlier today.’
Yusuf stopped pacing. ‘Do you think he went to—?’ John nodded. ‘Saddle my horse. I will go to Khaldun’s home.’
‘I will meet you at the stables,’ John said and left.
Faridah rose and went to Yusuf, putting her arms around him from behind. ‘What will you do?’ she asked.
Yusuf picked up his sword belt and pulled it tight around his waist. ‘I do not know.’
‘Open up!’ Yusuf shouted as he pounded on the gate of Khaldun’s villa. John stood behind him, holding the reins of their horses. ‘I am Yusuf ibn Ayub, come to see Khaldun. Open this gate!’
The gate creaked open a few feet to reveal two eunuch guards. ‘Our lord is not here,’ one of them said in a high voice. ‘He left for Baalbek this morning.’
‘Then I will see my sister, Zimat.’ Yusuf tried to push past the guards, but they grabbed his arms, stopping him.
‘You cannot enter,’ the first guard said. ‘Khaldun has told us to admit no guests while he is absent.’
‘Not even my brother, Turan,’ Yusuf growled. The two guards exchanged a nervous glance. ‘Shall I tell Khaldun what you have allowed to take place in his absence?’
The second guard paled. ‘I will take you to your sister. Come.’
Yusuf turned to John. ‘Make sure no one leaves or goes to warn Turan.’ John nodded, and Yusuf followed the eunuch guard inside. They crossed the villa courtyard and entered the carpeted room where Yusuf had feasted the night before. They passed through into a corridor on the right, then turned sharply right again into a long hallway with rooms opening off to either side. The guard knocked at one of the doors.
‘Enter,’ Zimat called from inside, and the guard pushed the door open. Zimat, dressed in a simple white caftan, stood at the centre of the room. ‘Brother!’ she exclaimed. ‘Thank Allah you have come.’ She went to Yusuf and embraced him.
Yusuf gently pushed her away. ‘Is it true?’ Zimat nodded. ‘Why did you tell John and not me?’
‘I wanted to tell you, but I did not know how. Khaldun was there, and he would never believe me.’ Her face twisted into a scowl. ‘That slut Nadhira has blinded him.’
‘You should not have spoken to John,’ Yusuf told her. ‘He is a man and a Frank. You could be whipped for seeing him alone.’
Zimat lowered her head. ‘I did not know what else to do. Someone had to know.’
‘Very well. But you are never to see John again. You must promise me.’
Zimat looked away. ‘I promise.’
‘Now tell me, do you have proof of what you say about Turan?’
‘You will see for yourself.’ Zimat led him down the hallway to another door. ‘This is Nadhira’s room,’ she whispered.
Yusuf tried the handle. The door was locked. He reared back and kicked the door, splintering the wood around the lock. The door swung open to reveal a room dominated by a large bed. Nadhira was on the bed, her legs wrapped around Turan, who lay naked on top of her.
‘I said we were not to be disturbed!’ Turan roared as he turned towards the door. His eyes widened when he saw Yusuf. ‘Brother!’ he gasped.
‘What have you done?’ Yusuf roared, drawing his sword. Turan scrambled from the bed and backed into the far corner, his hands over his crotch. Nadhira screamed and pulled a silk sheet over herself. ‘You have dishonoured our family,’ Yusuf growled.
‘The whore seduced me!’ Turan protested.
‘He lies,’ Nadhira sobbed. ‘He forced himself upon me. He made me.’
Yusuf looked from one to the other. His lips curled back in a snarl as he felt rage build within him. He stepped around the bed towards Turan, who cowered in the corner. Yusuf raised his sword, but then stopped. Shirkuh had told him that he must not allow his passions to rule him. Yusuf closed his eyes and forced himself to breath deeply. When he opened his eyes, his features had calmed, his mouth setting in a hard line. He picked up Turan’s caftan and tossed it to him. ‘Get dressed.’
‘What will you do to me, Brother?’ Turan asked as he pulled on his caftan.
‘Nothing.’ Yusuf turned away.
Zimat grabbed his arm. ‘What are you doing?’ she demanded. ‘He has shamed the family! Father would have him beaten!’
Yusuf pulled away from her. ‘I am not Father.’
‘Then I will not be punished?’ Turan asked.
Yusuf looked back to him. ‘You will come with me to witness Nadhira’s fate. That will be your punishment.’
Nadhira left the bed and approached Yusuf. ‘And what will happen to me?’ she asked, her hands trembling and her eyes wide with fright.
‘I do not know,’ Yusuf replied. ‘That is for your husband to decide.’
Yusuf stood with Turan and John in the central market square of Aleppo on a warm spring morning, the air heavy with the scent of oranges from the trees that ringed the square. The space was crowded as usual, but today the people had not come for the market. Veiled women stood whispering at the edge of the crowd, their children playing around them. At the centre of the square, grim-faced men stood silently in groups of threes and fours, their eyes on the street that led from Khaldun’s home. In their hands, the men held fist-sized rocks.
A murmur of anticipation ran through the crowd as they caught sight of Khaldun approaching on foot, his hand clamped around Nadhira’s arm as he pulled her along beside him. He had returned yesterday after a week in Baalbek, and Yusuf had gone immediately to tell him of Nadhira and Turan. Khaldun had not questioned Yusuf’s word. He had simply nodded and told Yusuf to meet him in the square after morning prayers. Yusuf noticed that Khaldun, too, carried a white stone in his hand.
‘Do we have to be here?’ John asked.
Yusuf nodded. ‘It is my duty. I am the witness to the crime.’
The crowd parted as Khaldun dragged Nadhira to the centre of the square. She was dressed in a white cotton caftan, with no veil, and her eyes were red from weeping. The crowd closed around her. Yusuf pushed his way to the front, pulling Turan after him. Khaldun released Nadhira and left her standing alone as he turned to face Yusuf.
‘This woman has been accused of adultery,’ Khaldun said, speaking loudly so that the crowd could hear. ‘Yusuf ibn Ayub, you witnessed her crime. Do you swear by Allah that she is guilty?’
The square fell silent. The men in the crowd seemed to be holding their breath as they waited for Yusuf to speak. He looked at Nadhira, who shook so strongly with fear that she was barely able to stand. Yusuf suddenly felt sick. He looked away from Nadhira and said softly, ‘I swear it.’
‘The punishment for her crime is death by stoning,’ Khaldun said. He moved to stand across from Yusuf and raised the stone he held. As the wronged party, it was his duty to cast the first stone.
Nadhira took a step towards Khaldun. ‘Please, Husband—’ she sobbed. ‘Forgive me.’
Khaldun said nothing, but his face contorted in a grimace as he hurled the rock at her. Nadhira cried out in pain as it caught her in the shoulder, spinning her around. A second later her screaming was cut short as another rock smashed into her mouth, breaking her jaw and spattering blood across Yusuf and Turan. Turan looked away, his face pale. Yusuf grabbed his jaw and turned his head, forcing him to watch. Nadhira lay curled on the ground, moaning as rock after rock slammed into her with a sickening crunch. Her eyes fixed on
Turan, then a rock hit her in the face, crushing her right eye and knocking her unconscious. The stones continued to fall until her broken, bloodied body was barely recognizable as human.
Yusuf turned and pushed his way through to the edge of the crowd, where he bent over and vomited. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and rose to find that the crowd was already dispersing, the men hurrying away as if ashamed of what they had done. John and Turan remained standing near Khaldun, who knelt in the centre of the square, cradling the wrecked body of his wife in his arms.
Turan went to Khaldun and placed his hand on his shoulder. ‘Forgive me,’ he pleaded, his voice shaking.
Khaldun looked up, his eyes wet with tears. ‘Leave me,’ his said, his voice breaking. His lips curled back into a snarl. ‘Get out of my sight, you bastard!’
Turan backed away, and Yusuf grabbed his arm, pulling him towards the citadel. When they reached the moat, Turan stopped and turned to Yusuf, who was surprised to see tears rolling down his brother’s cheeks. He had never seen Turan cry.
‘I – I loved her, Brother,’ Turan said. ‘And she is dead because of me. I cannot live with her blood on my hands.’
‘You must make amends,’ Yusuf told him.
‘How? I will do whatever you ask.’
‘I need capable men. Will you serve as my second in command?’
Turan hesitated. His hands clenched into fists, and Yusuf half expected his brother to refuse, to explode in a rage. But his hands relaxed and Turan nodded. ‘You could have killed me. I owe you my life.’
‘Good.’ Yusuf put his hand on his brother’s shoulder. ‘But that is not enough, Turan. It is not in my power to forgive you for what you have done to the two of them.’ He nodded towards the square. Khaldun was still there alone, Nadhira clasped to his chest. ‘For that, you must look to Allah.’
That night John sat on the bed in his room in the citadel palace, staring at the candle flickering on the table before him and fiddling with a copper fal. His hair was still wet from washing, and he wore a fresh white caftan. He glanced out of the window to where the crescent moon was rising above the horizon. He crossed himself and rose. Yusuf was dining with Nur ad-Din, and John knew that Khaldun was with them. Nur ad-Din was seeking to cheer him after his wife’s betrayal, and so they would dine late into the night, which meant that John had more than enough time. He ran a hand through his long blond hair, then picked up his sword and pulled it part way from the scabbard, checking his reflection in the blade. The lines of his face were harder than they had once been, and his short blond beard fuller. He sheathed the sword and buckled it around his waist. Then he blew out the candle and left.
The gate leading out of the citadel was guarded by four men, lit by torches burning in brackets. John recognized al-Mashtub amongst the men and nodded. The huge mamluk winked back.
‘What are you doing leaving so late?’ he asked. ‘Off to see a woman?’
‘I am going to church, to pray,’ John replied as he strode past and headed down the ramp leading to the moat.
‘Give her my regards,’ al-Mashtub called out behind him, and there was laughter in the gatehouse.
John headed across the moat and out into the city. The cobbled surface of the main square stretched away before him, empty save for a single homeless beggar, slumped in the middle and calling out for alms. John passed by the man and turned left, walking to the end of a wide avenue. A narrow alley, barred by an iron gate, opened off to his right. John looked both ways, then quickly scaled the gate, avoiding the sharp spikes at the top, and dropped over the far side. The alleyway was so dark that John could hardly see his outstretched hand before him. A dozen feet ahead, he tripped over a sleeping figure, who cursed him loudly before rolling over and dropping back to sleep. John continued on his way, counting his steps. After thirty-two paces he stopped. He felt the wooden gate to his left. Unless he was mistaken, this was the home of Khaldun, and Zimat.
John could see the top of the wall above him, silver in the moonlight. It was at least ten feet high. Luckily, the alleyway was no more than four feet across, and putting his feet against one wall and his hands against the other, he was able to slowly walk his way upward until he grasped the edge of the roof. Gripping it tight, he kicked off from the wall behind him and scrambled on to the flat roof of Khaldun’s villa. He crawled to the opposite side and looked down into the courtyard. The fountain burbled in the darkness, but he saw no movement. John took a deep breath and then dropped off the roof. His boots sounded loudly as he landed, and he scrambled back and crouched in a shadowy corner, his heart pounding.
A door in the gatehouse opened, shedding soft candlelight into the courtyard and illuminating the low fountain. A guard in chainmail, sword in hand, stepped into the courtyard just to John’s left and walked away along the periphery of the garden. He reached the far side and turned. John held his breath as the guard approached and then walked passed, close enough that John could have reached out and touched him. The guard did not stop. He finished his tour of the garden and, satisfied, re-entered the gatehouse.
John exhaled in relief and stood. The door that Zimat had shown him through was on the far side of the garden, lit by the bright moon above and in clear view of the gatehouse. John whispered a prayer to the Virgin, then slipped from the shadows and hurried to the door. It was locked. Cursing under his breath, he turned and went to the main door of the villa. He tried the handle, and breathed a sigh of relief. It was open. He slipped inside and closed the door quietly behind him. Then he waited with his ear to the door. They were no sounds of alarm.
John turned away from the door to find himself in a large, carpeted entrance room with passages leading off to the left and right. He took the dark hallway to the right and crept down it. After only a few feet the passage turned to the right. John rounded the corner just as one of the doors further down the hallway opened. John quickly stepped back behind the corner.
‘Yes, my lady,’ he heard a female voice saying, then the slap of sandals on stone as someone headed his way.
John retreated into the entrance room and slipped into a corner, pressing himself against the wall. A moment later, a maidservant entered. She crossed the room without even a glance to the side, and exited through the passage on the far side. As soon as she was gone, John hurried back down the hall to the door of the room she had left. ‘Mother Mary, let this be the right one,’ he whispered and then pushed the door open.
The room was dark, but John could make out the dim outlines of a bed with a woman lying in it. She sat up. ‘Who is there?’ she asked. It was Zimat’s voice. ‘Khaldun?’
John stepped into the room and closed the door behind him. ‘It is me, John.’
‘John!’ Zimat rose from the bed and rushed to him, throwing herself into his arms. ‘Praise Allah, you have come.’ She looked up and her mouth opened as she kissed him. She took his hand and placed it on her breast.
John pulled away. ‘I did not come for that, but only because I promised I would, and to tell you that we must not meet again. You know what happened to Nadhira. The same will happen to you if we are caught.’
Zimat lowered her head. ‘I was there,’ she whispered. ‘I did not think that Khaldun would kill her. I did not wish that for her.’
‘But you are your husband’s first wife again,’ John said gruffly. ‘Isn’t that what you wanted?’
‘No, what I want is you, John.’ She met his eyes. ‘I am property to Khaldun, no good unless I bear him a son. But you love me.’
John frowned. ‘I cannot betray Yusuf, not again. We were young and foolish before, Zimat. We should not make the same mistake twice.’
‘You think it a mistake?’ Zimat turned away. ‘Then go. You do not love me.’
John touched her shoulder. ‘You know I do.’
‘Then choose: you betray Yusuf, or you betray our love.’ Zimat turned and put her head against his chest. ‘You left me once, John. Do not leave me again.’
Jo
hn hesitated, then put his arms around her. They stood silently for a moment while he stroked her hair, and then she began to untie his cloak. John took her hands, stopping her. ‘But if we are discovered?’
‘Then we will die together. It is a chance that I am willing to take. Are you?’
An image of Nadhira’s broken body rose in John’s mind, but he shook his head, dispelling the thought. How many nights had he dreamed of holding Zimat? She was right: it was a chance worth taking. He stepped forward and took her in his arms, kissing her soft lips. ‘Yes,’ he murmured. ‘Yes.’
Chapter 14
AUGUST 1156: ALEPPO
Yusuf stood before a bronze mirror in his palace chamber and examined his reflection. He had been to the baths, where a barber had trimmed his beard short and smoothed back his hair with sweet-smelling oil. Upon his return, he had dressed in a red satin caftan decorated with swirling patterns in silver thread. Yusuf straightened his collar, then leaned closer to the mirror and frowned at the patchiness of his beard. He went to a trunk and took out a small wooden box. He opened it, scooped out a handful of kohl – a mixture of ash and ghee – and rubbed it into his beard. He went back to the mirror and nodded in satisfaction.
‘Are you ready yet?’ John grumbled as he entered the room.
Yusuf quickly turned away from the mirror. ‘Yes. Let’s not keep her waiting.’
Yusuf led them across the palace to the harem entrance. They were expected, and the tawashi escorted them to Asimat’s room. He knocked, and a moment later one of Asimat’s female servants opened the door. Yusuf and John followed the tawashi into the room.
‘My lady,’ the eunuch declared. ‘Your guests.’ He withdrew, shutting the door behind him. The servant went back to the loom in the corner.