by Megan Derr
Did no one recall or care about the sacredness of the harems? They were meant to be an honor, a gift, not an expensive prize to show off, a fancy toy to play with.
"The High Council of Tavamara has voted," Kagan said. "The royal harems are to become the palace harems, open to all nobles who contribute the proper funds on a regular basis, with the details to be worked out by the council in the coming days."
Demir had not often cried in his thirty-eight years, but only discipline prevented him from doing so then. "Respect, Your Majesty, I would like to know why the council has decided to reinstate a practice that was once abolished for its atrociousness." He could feel eyes on him, feel every gaze like a sentence no one was willing to speak. He'd spent his life feeling eyes crawling over him; he knew looks better than words. Pity. Vindictive triumph. Smug satisfaction. Mean-spirited amusement.
Ihsan was the worst by far. The genuine pain he felt for Demir—on Demir's behalf. Returned only a matter of weeks and he cared more than anyone else in the palace. Demir wished with every heartbeat he had remaining that Ihsan was not there. That on top of losing his entire world, the humiliation was not witnessed by the only noble—royal—he cared anything about. A man he was coming to care too much about.
It was Councilor Galal who answered, after the king nodded. Anguish turned to anger. His Majesty could have at least shown enough respect to answer the question himself. "The biggest problem with the harems is that they are tucked away, kept mysterious, made to be more than they are by citizens and foreigners. They will be more approachable this way, better funded—better cared for with the additional funds and your fine care, Harem Master."
More approachable, indeed.
"As to the heinous past you speak of—we know the mistakes that were made in the past, which means we can create rules to prevent those atrocities. Concubines were built from the priests, and the priests serve many, not few. There is every reason for the harem to echo that and no reason for them not to."
"What of the concubines?" Demir asked. "Those who joined the harem to serve the king and queen did not agree to the service to which they are about to be put. The harems of Prince Ihsan and Princess Euren especially did not agree to become concubines to the whole of the palace. If you are going to make the harem available to all the palace, then by rights the concubines should be given choice anew.
"How shall concubines be selected going forward? Can any noble with a stake in the harems ask just anyone to join the harem to be made available to them? What of the awkwardness of a person making use of a concubine who is the son of a peer?"
Galal gave a patronizing smile. "All current concubines are to be released. The awkwardness you mention is certainly a problem, and it will be eliminated by offering the position to men and women from the general population. There are plenty in Tavamara who would be honored to become palace concubines."
Demir focused on his breathing, pushed back the violent rage setting his body aflame.
"And, of course, these changes mean that your duties will increase significantly, Harem Master," Galal continued. "You will be properly compensated and allotted sufficient funds to hire assistants, as it will be too much for you to manage alone."
Ha. He expected foreigners to think him stupid because he looked like a concubine, but the councilors should know better. Did they forget he knew their secrets? Knew the secrets of their wives, husbands, siblings, and children? Did they forget that concubines were always seen but not seen and therefore heard far more than anyone cared to notice? He wasn't stupid. He had not survived decades of court intrigue and a volatile king by luck.
And whenever power changed hands, the remnants of the old were removed. They might be raising his pay and giving him assistants, but only until they could get rid of him. Bile burned his throat as he recalled Kitt's words, admonitions to be careful because he would fetch a high price on the slave market. In months at best, and more likely weeks, he would vanish.
If he was going to lose the harem, then it would damn well be his choice.
Removing the chain wrapped around his waist, holding the ring of keys close one last time, he looked at Kagan and said, "My family has served the harems and the crown for many generations. We were loyal priests defending the royal bloodline when everyone else abandoned it. We have remained faithful all these years. Now when the harem most needs that faith returned, you abandon us to be whored out, to be treated like common prostitutes. You have spat in the face of a lifetime of devotion. I have no faith left in you, Majesty. No faith left in this court. The only pride I have left is of family and of self. I will not sacrifice those and be left with nothing. If you seek to violate the sacredness of those who devote their lives to you, then I will have no part. I resign as Harem Master." He dropped the keys at his feet. "I have the right to name my successor, and I name Lord Sabah."
Turning around, ignoring when his name was bellowed by Kagan, by the councilors, he strode to the doors.
"Guards! Detain him!" Kagan snarled.
The guards looked at the king, then bowed to Demir and pulled the doors open. "Thank you," Demir said quietly as he walked out. The door slammed shut behind him, and Demir strode off quickly, not quite fast enough to be running.
If only it was possible to go back to his room. Hopefully Shamir would be willing to take him in until he could procure funds and supplies. Fighting back tears, Demir turned the corner and strode to the main palace entrance.
One of the guards, wearing a bright green sash that designated the outer guards, frowned as he spied Demir. "Harem Master, are you well?"
"I am no longer Harem Master," Demir replied. "If I may beg a favor, tell no one that I came this way."
"You were never here," the guard replied, and the other three guarding the door with him nodded.
Demir nodded, closed his eyes briefly, fighting down all the emotions that wanted to break free in a raw-edged scream. "Thank you."
He made to walk on, but one the guards stopped him, unwound the fabric draped over his head and shoulders, and held it out. "Take it, please, Harem Master."
"My gratitude," Demir replied and wrapped the fabric around his head and shoulders before striding off.
By the time he reached the House of the Moon Orchid, he felt like he was held together only by fraying threads. He knocked heavily on the back door, trembling with the effort not to fall apart.
The door swung open, and the woman who answered drew up short, words frozen on her lips and eyes popping wide. "My lord. Come inside, come inside." She tugged Demir in, closing the door behind him. "Whatever is the—oh, never mind me. Merciful Divine! Lady Shamir is in her office, and she's alone. Go on up. I'll bring you tea." She eyed him. "Maybe wine."
"Wine," Demir said and strode off without further word.
Shamir's office was on the third floor, all the way in the back where it was quietest and hard for customers to reach her when they decided they needed special treatment from the proprietor. Staff, however, had ways of reaching her quickly. Demir took the back stairs only staff could access, knocked three times, then three more before pushing the door open and stepping inside.
Already halfway across the room, by the time he closed the door she had reached him. "Demir, what's wrong?"
Demir let out a crack of laughter that ended on a broken sob. He bit it back, let her lead him to the sofa, and slowly told her of the council and their changes to the harem. By the time he was done, a servant had come with the wine, discreetly setting it on the table in front of them before slipping soundlessly away again.
"I am sorry," Shamir said quietly, curling their hands together on his thigh. "I hope they realize all they have lost today, all they have thrown away. I hope they see sense and beg you to return, vow to set all to rights."
"They won't," Demir said. "They've been seduced by something they see as more." And he was done with the mess. Let Ihsan and his men sort it all out. Demir's duty was to the harem. Let the royals and nobles see to the kin
gdom as was their duty. His chest gave a painful, stabbing lurch at the thought of Ihsan, but whatever feelings had been forming there, they'd always been hopeless and doomed to end in misery.
Especially now that Demir was nothing. Thirty-eight and nothing to his name save what he wore. He had not believed it would truly happen, had always held some hope that Kagan would not actually go this far. Why? That was the most infuriating, confounding part. Kagan loved using the harem to cause the court further pain, taking their sons and nephews to be concubines, keeping them all afraid over which one he would execute next.
So why had he let the council have their way? Because if Kagan had pushed it, they would have voted a different way, surely.
Then again, if Havarin was willing to throw twenty-five marks at a prostitute, what sort of money were they throwing at the council to ensure voting went their way? Still, Kagan could have fought it if he'd truly wanted—even bribes and blackmail only went so far when the king could order their heads removed.
It wasn't his problem anymore, though. Ihsan and his men could work on stopping the slave traders, and Captain Fatih would have to manage on his own when it came to smuggling concubines to safety.
Demir reached out and picked up the wine dish Shamir had filled, tossed back the dark, burnt umber wine that seared his throat on the way down. His eyes watered, but he wiped them away and refilled his dish.
"I apologize for burdening you—"
"Oh, be quiet," Shamir cut in. "You've always been a son to me. I am glad you knew you could come here." She leaned in and kissed his cheek, then drew back to stroke his hair. "I'll have a room prepared for you. Right now I think you need to rest, spend some time alone, let all the grief out."
"Thank you," Demir said quietly and drank two more dishes of wine while she was gone.
A short time later a young woman escorted him to a small, pretty room, decorated in blue and green with white flowers scattered about. There was a small tub of hot water in front of a small fireplace, and the silence fell over him like a soft, warm blanket. Stripping off his clothes and jewelry, he strode over to the tub, ignoring the tears that started slow but increased rapidly, turning into quiet sobs as he scrubbed himself clean. When he was clean, he ignored the clothes that had been set out in favor of simply climbing into the waiting bed and falling almost immediately asleep.
He woke to someone rapping softly on his door. The room had gone dark, the fire burning low, and the smell of the food someone had left for him lingered. Climbing out of bed, Demir padded over to the door and pulled it open.
The woman on the other side gave a quick bow. "My lord, there are people here to see you. Lady Shamir has put them in the vermillion room, but she says if you prefer they be sent away then she will see it done."
Who had known to find him here? But he knew the answer before he'd finished the question: Haluk. "I will come see them. Thank you."
"My lord." The woman bowed and walked off. Demir closed the door and went to get dressed, pulling on black pants and shirt and shrugging into a stiff, short, dark purple jacket with slightly too long sleeves. He tied a purple and blue sash around his waist, leaving the ends to hang from his right hip. The boots fit well enough, though as always wearing shoes felt strange and slightly wrong.
Braiding his hair back, he twisted it into a knot at the back of his head then slowly left the bedroom and made his way to the first floor, toward the front receiving rooms. As predicted, Haluk was waiting for him. More surprising were the Cobra, though only Emre and two of his men were present. "Greetings, Lord Emre, Lord Haluk."
Haluk's mouth twisted in a sour smile. "It's only Haluk now, Lord Demir. You are no master; I am no concubine. We have come on Prince Ihsan's behalf to deliver belongings to you and escort you wherever you want to go. He has also sent you this, as paltry recompense for all you have endured." Haluk gestured to a small, black-painted chest sitting on the table. It was marked with the royal crest, locked with a key that Haluk held out.
Demir did not need to open it to know what was inside; he wanted to reject it. He didn't want money. He wanted to go home, wanted his life back. Shoving pointless wants aside, he unlocked the chest and flipped it open.
All right, he hadn't expected that much money. Five hundred marks was enough for two lifetimes. He closed and locked the chest again, tucked the key away in his sash. "Tell His Highness thank you for me." He looked to the Cobra, standing by the fireplace, looking like the dark, mysterious figures they were in the tales told about them. "Where are the rest of your companions? Are they well?"
"Very well, thank you," Emre said with a smile. "Some are procuring additional horses and supplies. The rest are tracking down Lady Irmak. His Highness has asked us to get her away from her father and take her somewhere safe. He did not specify a place, so we are still working on that particular detail, but getting her away is simple enough."
Haluk smiled. "You've done much more for us than we did for you, brother of the sands."
Emre shrugged. "Playing bodyguard is not so difficult a thing and far better than anything I do in the sands." He flashed a brief grin. "And it's not a bad thing to be owed a favor from a prince."
"True," Haluk agreed with a laugh.
Lady Irmak… Demir might have been angry about the way he was being treated, but he was positively enraged at the way Bulut had treated his own daughter. "What has happened at the palace since I left?" he asked.
Haluk sighed. "His Majesty has withdrawn to his chambers and once more confined Ihsan and Euren to theirs. Their harems have been disbanded. Kitt is a guest of Lord Cenk, Lady Asli has returned to her family, and Canan and Gulden elected to go stay in the city temple. Lord Sabah has agreed to your request and taken control of the harem. Ihsan says thank you."
"I could not do much, but I tried to do something," Demir replied quietly. It was a long ago stipulation in the contract that bound his family line to the throne, a protection and show of trust that should his family ever feel compelled to resign, they had the right to choose who would take their place. It would not prevent the council from eventually finding a way to replace Sabah, but until they did, the harem was controlled by somebody loyal to Ihsan. "What of you?"
"For the present, my duty is to protect you. After the problems at court have been resolved, we will see."
Demir frowned. "I do not need protection."
"I do as my prince commands." Haluk leaned against the wall and folded his arms across his chests, mouth curving in a slow smile. "You and I have already had this discussion, Lord Demir. I see no point in repeating it."
"I am perfectly capable of leaving without you."
Haluk's smile widened, hot with challenge. "Try."
Demir was suddenly, sharply aware that neither of them was restricted by their positions anymore. Haluk was a soldier, and Demir was nothing. Not that he would be so crass as to immediately approach a man Prince Ihsan loved and had every intention of reclaiming the moment he could… but the possibility of it, all those baffling, distracting moments from their night adventures, tingled along his skin.
Emre's chuckle prevented Demir's reply. Probably for the best. "We have brought trunks of clothes and other belongings for you, my lord. Where should we put them?"
"I am no longer a lord," Demir said. "Leave them packed, if that's not too much trouble. Once we locate Lady Irmak, I think I know where to take her that she'll be safe and well-cared for." When they looked at him in silent question, he finished, "My parents. They live on the coast about a week's journey from here. It's a quiet house, close to nothing else save the town of Cheth, about half a day's journey away. My mother will look after her."
She would probably also try to take care of him, and while he was not opposed to resting for a few weeks, he ultimately needed to find his own path.
"That would be most generous of your mother," Haluk said. "But it's always been apparent you inherited your kindness from Lady Nuray, Lord Demir."
"I'm not—" Demir b
roke off, settled for a quelling look. Haluk only smiled and shrugged in reply. Demir pointedly turned away, looking at Emre. "How long do you think it will take your people to find Lady Irmak?"
"Not long," Emre said. "No one was happy to see her leave with him, and the people we asked said that she was crying and had very obviously been struck. People notice crying young women, especially when they are in the company of older men. But we had best head out the moment she is found, because if we linger too long in the city we will be found ourselves. I do not want to bring trouble down on you or your friends here. We arranged to meet at…" He frowned, looking at Haluk.
"The Silk Spider," Haluk finished. "I'm sure one of Lady Shamir's people can take you to it."
That was a private wine café two streets over, right on the cusp of where the wealthy and poor districts overlapped. They had a long-standing policy of not asking questions so long as no trouble was caused. "I can take you to it."
Haluk scowled. "You're staying here until we're ready to depart."
Demir smiled. "I am free to do as I like. The bodyguard's duty is to protect me wherever I choose to go."
"If I order you to remain here—"
"You do not give the orders," Demir replied. He looked back at Emre, who was doing a poor job of covering his amusement. "Shall we go, Lord Emre?"
Emre nodded and gave a playful bow. "Lead the way, Lord Demir."
"I am not a lord anymore," Demir repeated with a sigh as he locked his chest of gold again. He penned a note to Shamir with a request she pass on their plans to Sabah however she was able, and returned the chest to the cart with his other belongings. Leaving a mark with the note, he gave it to a servant to deliver to Shamir.
He accepted a wrap from Haluk as they stepped outside, winding the heavy fabric around his shoulders and drawing it up to cover his head and shadow his face. Emre spoke to the men with him, and they faded off into the alleyway beyond the Orchid house. As Emre joined Haluk and Demir on the street, he said, "They are going to take the cart to the city gates, wait for us there. Are you certain your mother will not mind?"