“I hope you made good use of your last night.”
“You want a detailed description, you perv?”
I spoke through gritted teeth, trying not to let on how much pain I was in. The cut on my sternum had scabbed over, but my shoulder was agony. Dhav had tied his handkerchief around the wound, and blood was already seeping through. The not-so-gentle handling by the ghuls hadn’t helped.
“You have a strong will, child.” He leaned forward, his handsome face twisted with spite. “I hope some part of you remembers that, when you are no longer able to exert it.”
I spat in his face. He flinched, and in that moment I called up a whirlwind and sent it through the ghuls, clearing a path to the door.
It cost me. The effort of overcoming my pain and exhaustion left me feeling nauseous. But it was now or never.
“Go, Dhav!” I screamed, and he got to his feet, sprinting gracefully towards the door to freedom.
It was a slim chance, but it was the only one we had.
More ghuls poured out of the shadows, blocking Dhav’s path. Without hesitation, he veered left, pelting down the line of alcoves. As a line of ghuls came towards him, he hurdled a fallen marble torso and dodged behind a statue. He dropped out of sight.
Al Uddin laughed manically.
“Hiding? Hiding? Is that what a ruler does? You coward. You filthy coward. Come out.”
Nothing happened. With an impatient wave, Al Uddin sent a ghul in to get him. Dhav was dragged from his hiding place and thrown to the floor. Al Uddin looked at him contemptuously.
“Look at him cower, djinn. He is not worthy of you. He would have left you here to your fate.”
Dhav stayed huddled on the ground and I flushed in anger.
“Leave him alone. You’ve won. There’s no need to rub it in.”
“You are right. The day is dawning. Let us begin the ritual.”
At some point in the night he had drawn a circle on the floor, with an eight-pronged star in the centre. I was dragged into it and forced to kneel. A ghul brought out an iron band and forced it round my upper arm. I knew it was iron, because as soon as it was snapped closed, I felt my power die.
The ghuls melted away as the sun rose. Al Uddin let them go, knowing I no longer posed any risk. A shaft of sunlight illuminated the circle, and I looked over at Dhav. He hadn’t moved.
Al Uddin drew the ring off his finger and held it up to the sun. The light hit it and refracted through it, sending bolts of blue and red onto the walls. He focused the rays on me, and my skin tingled.
He started chanting, and a curious lethargy came over me. I felt numb, disconnected from reality. My limbs were like lead. Even when he pushed his fingers into the open wound on my shoulder, I could barely do more than whimper.
He smeared the blood on the ring.
My muscles gave way and I fell onto my side, unable to move. Through half closed eyes, I saw Dhav still on the floor, his head turned towards me. Our eyes met.
You’ll die soon, I thought. Forgive me.
Al Uddin’s chants grew louder, and the blood-smeared ruby started glowing. The more it glowed, the more I felt something inside me tugging me towards it.
My mark writhed on my arm, the serpent flailing as I changed. It burned and throbbed, as my single, solitary power was expanded almost without limit.
“No, no. Please.”
I cried weakly, like a drowning kitten, struggling to stop what was happening. But I wasn’t strong enough.
There was a blinding flash, and my very essence was altered. I dissolved, and was reformed. My body flooded with power, my strength grew ten thousand-fold. My cells crackled with raw energy.
I got to my feet, and carried on going up. I was floating, flying, and it was effortless.
With a piercing clarity, I understood that I was now a being of pure magic. All-powerful, all knowing. No longer djinn, no longer human. Something more.
I could shape lands and drain seas, if I desired. I could create kings and destroy kingdoms. I could travel from one end of the world to the other in the blink of an eye.
I noticed distantly my wounds were healed and my hair was long again, hanging almost to my waist. Every scar I’d ever had was gone. Every reminder of my history - the time I’d fallen off the swing, or the time I’d carelessly cut myself - had vanished.
I had been reborn. I was immortal.
But the iron band was still attached to my arm, and my clothes were still torn and bloodied. No matter how I concentrated, I couldn’t change that. I couldn’t do anything, unless my master wished it.
“Genie, come here.”
I wanted to resist, to tell him to go to hell. But he held the ring, and my power was bound to it. Reluctantly, I descended.
“What have you done to me?” I hissed.
“I have made you the most powerful mage in the universe. You can move mountains and boil seas. But only if I wish it. You are mine to command.”
I gazed at the ring on his finger, and knew he was right. But my bond to the ring also told me something he didn’t know. I raised my chin.
“Three wishes.”
“What was that?” He frowned. “What did you say?”
I smiled slowly.
“The last Keeper of the Ring altered it. She told me herself. She made it so the genie of the ring could only grant three wishes.”
“You’re lying.”
I spread my hands.
“It’s impossible for me to lie now,” I said truthfully.
Al Uddin’s fury was incandescent. Spittle flew from his mouth. He screamed his anger, but he knew I had to tell him the truth. I was his genie.
“You think you have won,” he sneered. “But three wishes is more than enough for what I need to do.” His enraged gaze fell on Dhav, still cowering on the floor. “And you will feel every second of the torture you are about to inflict on your prince.”
My heart started thudding, but I forced myself to breathe calmly. I couldn’t panic now. Dhav’s fate depended on his next words.
“What do you wish to see me do to him, my master?” I asked.
“I want to see him die. I want him screaming in agony, pleading for his own death. I want to see him beg for mercy.”
“Is that…” I licked my lips. “Is that your wish, master?”
“Yes!” he roared. “I command it!”
I had no idea how to grant a wish, what magic went into it, but it was easier than I imagined. Al Uddin’s words allowed my power to channel itself into exactly what he wanted, no more, and no less.
I pointed at Dhav, and he screamed. His flesh started to burn, and then peel off. His body contorted as his bones snapped, one after the other.
He writhed in agony, calling out my name.
I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. I thought the words over and over, but I was prevented from saying them. I hated Al Uddin, and I hated myself even more, as I destroyed my beautiful prince.
I closed my eyes, unable to watch the suffering I was inflicting. But I couldn’t shut out his voice. Tears streamed down my face as he begged for mercy. But I couldn’t stop. I wasn’t allowed to stop until Al Uddin’s first wish had been fulfilled, and Dhav’s life was expunged in the most painful way possible.
He died at my feet, and I thought my heart would break.
Chapter Thirty One
I turned away, sick to my stomach. I couldn’t bring myself to look at his ruined body. I clenched my fists, driving my nails into the palms of my hands, loathing Al Uddin with every fibre of my being.
He walked to Dhav’s mutilated corpse and kicked it. I wanted to vomit.
“That was most satisfying,” he said. I saw something flicker out of the corner of my eye, and kept silent. “What? No mourning for your lost prince? No remorse for your part in his death?”
Idly he scratched at his mark, and I felt mine itching too. I needed to distract him. I forced myself to look at Dhav’s body, at what I’d done. Grief overwhelmed me, and without thinking I
threw a punch at Al Uddin’s hateful, sneering face.
I didn’t even get close. There was something shielding him from me. An invisible barrier. I couldn’t hurt him. He laughed, amused by my pathetic attempts.
“Genies cannot harm their masters, girl. I on the other hand…”
He slapped me, hard. I fell to the ground, my knees buckling. He grabbed me by the hair and forced me to look up at him.
“You bastard,” I hissed.
“If a genie could kill their master, don’t you think they would have done it by now? You belong to me. I give you orders, you obey. Look at your prince. Look at what you did to him by my command.” He jerked my head painfully, yanking my roots against my scalp. “Tell me how it makes you feel. How it will always make you feel.”
I swallowed, mindful I could only speak the truth. My voice trembled.
“I will never be able to forget what I inflicted on him. It’s a horror I will carry with me forever. But he’s gone now. If I grant you two more wishes, then I’ll be finished with you.”
“That’s not how it works.” Al Uddin snarled. He forced me to my feet. “Even after my wishes are used up, you will still be enslaved to the ring. I will hand you down to my son, and he to his son. Generation after generation, you will live only to grant wishes for my descendants.”
I staggered, the full weight of his words hitting me like a kick to the stomach. I would live forever, and long after everyone I knew had turned to dust, I would go on ensuring wealth and success for the Al Uddins.
The thought was horrifying. I wanted to scream and cry, and claw his gloating face to shreds. But I couldn’t lay a finger on him.
I, the most powerful being on the planet, was powerless. And Al Uddin would remind me of it every single day.
I stared into his cold eyes and knew then how desperately my gran must have yearned for escape. And she had endured centuries of this.
With an effort, I gathered myself.
“Well then, let’s get on with it. What is your second wish, my master?”
“That’s better. You know what I want.”
“You have to say it. What is it that you wish? If I were you, I’d ask for a decent haircut and a personality transplant.”
He studied me thoughtfully and I cursed my big mouth.
“I understand you were close to Prince Dhavani’s brother, hm? The one my ghuls left in limbo.”
I tensed.
“What of it?”
“When I am free, I think I will give him the antidote after all. And then I will let you watch as he grows old and withers away behind bars for the rest of his life while you remain young and fresh.”
I clenched my fists.
“All you do is make people suffer. No wonder people hated you. No wonder no-one tried to rescue you or even come and see you when you were trapped in here.”
“Suffering is a fact of life. You know nothing about losing the one you love.” His eyes slid to Dhav’s body. “Or maybe you do, hm?”
“What would Jaswinder think of you now?” I snapped. “Would she be proud of you? Of what you’ve done? Would she still love you?”
Rage flared in his eyes, and he drew back his hand again. I braced for the blow, but it never came. With an effort he reined in his temper.
“Do not test me, djinn. I may only have two more wishes, but I will still own you. And I can make your existence extremely painful. Being immortal has its downsides. Trust me, I know.”
“If it means listening to you forever, I agree.”
He threw back his head and laughed, the manic sound raising goose bumps on my flesh.
“I will enjoy breaking you, genie. I will enjoy it very much. Now, to business. My second wish.”
“What is it that you want, master?” He ignored the sarcasm.
“I wish to be free.”
I tensed.
“You have to be more specific, or you’ll waste the wish.”
“You are right, my genie. Very well, let me be specific. I wish I was no longer bound by the curse of your grandmother. I want her wish undone.”
I paused a beat, feeling the power welling up in me. Then I looked directly into his eyes, and smiled.
He frowned, momentarily perturbed by my reaction. And then he realised.
“No, wait, I take that back, I…”
“Too late, dickhead,” I hissed. “Your wish is my command.”
Chapter Thirty Two
My cells filled with magic, but this time I welcomed it.
I saw Al Uddin open his mouth, try to formulate the words of a new wish to counteract this one, but I didn’t give him chance.
My power flowed, and the curse was lifted.
The curse that had trapped him for a hundred years, yes. But also the curse that had protected him from the ravages of time, and illness, and death.
Ten decades came slamming into him. Like a fast-forward movie, he aged a century in just a few seconds. His skin became mottled and papery, stretched thinly across a hairless skull. His eyes grew sunken and milky, his teeth yellowed and fell out one by one.
He collapsed to his knees, his bones as brittle as chalk.
Two circles of blood bloomed on his chest, punctures belatedly opening where Dhav’s knives had slammed into him the night before.
Other scars suddenly appeared. A red noose burn around his neck. Slashes on his wrists. A gaping wound on his head. Remnants of previous attempts to kill himself, all now catching up with him at once.
His breath was a faint wheeze. I bent closer to hear what he was saying.
“I … I wish…”
He gave a final rattling gasp and fell forward, his immortality gone.
I sank to my knees, my head bowed.
He had been right when he told me words were important. With wishes, words were critical.
“Thanks for the advice,” I muttered. “You should have just wished you could leave the tower.”
I reached over and took the ring off his finger, grimacing as I touched the skeletal remains. Then I stood, gathering my strength, and forced myself to walk over to Dhav’s body.
I looked down at it, and knew what I’d said to Al Uddin was right. I would remember this sight forever.
The way he’d screamed. The way he’d died with my name on his lips. I would have nightmares about it for the rest of my life.
The scene flickered, as if something else was trying to superimpose itself on it. I heard a noise and looked up, my face breaking into a smile as a lean figure slid from behind a statue.
I ran to him and flung myself into his arms.
“We did it,” I sobbed. “I didn’t think it would work but we did it.”
Dhav stroked my hair, soothing me.
“Are you alright? What you had to do, that was gruesome.”
“We had to give him what he wanted. But it was horrific. I’m so sorry you had to watch that.”
“I wish I could have helped. Hiding in here, not able to do anything while he forced you to do those things...” His voice trailed off and I realised it had cost him to stay silent.
“It was the only way, Dhav. You know that.”
“And when he struck you…” His face was bleak. I cupped it in both hands.
“Look at me. I’m fine. We won.”
“Yes. We won.” His eyes flicked to his mirror image lying crumpled on the floor. “Remind me never to upset Kiran. She has a vivid imagination. How long will it last?”
“Not for much longer. She can only hold illusions for minutes, an hour max. I was terrified we’d run out of time.”
“She can really project them from so far away?”
“I wasn’t sure till now. But she told me once if she could see something, she could shape it. And thanks to the cairn-witch, she could see us in that crystal ball.”
The projection of Dhav’s shattered body on the ground suddenly dissolved and vanished. But I knew it would always be there in my memory. Al Uddin had been right about that.
&
nbsp; I realised tears were coursing down my face when Dhav, the real Dhav who’d hidden just as we’d planned the night before, gently kissed them away.
“If I could take the memory away, I would. I wish…”
I clapped a hand over his mouth.
“Careful,” I warned him. “I’m still a genie, remember?”
“That, at least, I can do something about. Where’s the ring?”
“Here. But…” I bit my lip. “You know, you get three wishes with this. Maybe use the first one to save Raj?”
He took the ring, turning it over in his hands.
“Are you sure? I don’t like the idea of making you do my bidding.”
“Really? I thought that was every man’s dream,” I teased him, trying to lighten the mood.
His face was grave.
“The idea repels me,” he said. “I would rather set you free right now, than…”
I kissed him impulsively, feeling joy bubbling up inside me. I wanted desperately to tell him how I felt, but the damn genie thing meant we’d be here all day while I spilled my guts out, unable to stop revealing the truth.
We were both breathless when I let him go.
“Stop dithering and put the ring on,” I told him.
Reluctantly, he slid the ruby onto his finger. Immediately I felt the change. I was bonded to the ring, and the ring belonged to Dhav. He was now my master.
It was still an uncomfortable feeling, not having my own will, but it was a thousand times better than belonging to Al Uddin. If I had to belong to someone, Dhav was the only one in the world I would trust.
You’d belong to him even if you weren’t his genie. The errant thought made me blush.
“Tell me to save Raj,” I said hurriedly, before he noticed. “But be precise. Words are important. Once you make the wish, there’s no going back.”
He pondered for a moment.
“I wish Raj would wake up unharmed and unaffected by the ghul attack.”
I smiled.
“Your wish is my command, master.”
I snapped my fingers and in the blink of an eye I was in Raj’s bedroom at the palace. He lay deathly still, his body covered in dressings where the ghuls had mutilated him, and a drip attached to his arm by a needle.
Mark of the Djinn: A Young Adult Urban Fantasy Romance Page 19