Skye O'Malley: A Love For All Time Part 33

Pa.s.sing into the next section of the gardens the sultan and his party were treated to large beds bordered in deep blue hyacinths, and filled with large narcissi in yellows and whites. As she looked out over the beds it appeared to Aidan that there wasn't a bulb there that wasn't in bloom, and at the peak of perfection. It was an incredible panorama.

"Your head gardener is a genius to have planned this all," said Murad.

"But he did not," replied Aidan quietly. "I did. My slaves only work the soil. It is I who tell them what to do."

"And do you soil your beautiful hands with the dirt of this land, fair Marjallah?" He had stopped, and was now holding up her hands for his inspection. They were lovely hands, slender with long fingers, soft and white perfectly shaped nails. Casually he kissed her fingertips, and then lowering her hands moved on again.

"I enjoy working in my gardens, your majesty," she replied, deliberately forcing her voice to remain cool and totally impersonal. His bold action had both frightened her somewhat, and shocked her for she felt that by his actions the sultan was disloyal to Safiye. She would never get used to a world where a man took his pleasure of as many women as suited him.

They had pa.s.sed through now into what Aidan considered the main part of the garden, and here was planted bed upon bed of tulips. Graceful goblets that swayed in the gentle breeze, their colors ranged from white and cream to pink, red, scarlet, crimson, gold, and deep blue-purple. There were exquisite water-lily tulips from Turkestan, and from the fabled city of Samarkand there were glorious brilliant scarlet blossoms. Planted in groups of both solid and contrasting colors they sprang from beds that were both round and rectangular in shape, some encircling the newly repaired fountains and pools some of which had pink water lilies just coming into bloom, and were now home to schools of large, fat goldfish. At the corner of some of the flowerbeds were yellow azaleas native to the region just across the Bosporus, and therefore quite comfortable in Aidan's garden.

There were other plants growing in the gardens, but none was yet in bloom. As the season progressed there would be roses of many varieties, bougainvillea, lilies, and sultan's balsam as well as two flowers of the night-blooming species, sweet nicotiana and moonflowers. There were, however, blooming even now with her bulbs almond and peach trees whose feathery blossoms stood in delicate contrast to the st.u.r.dy dark green pines and cypresses.

Aidan and the prince now led their guests to a pavilion that had been set up at the end of the garden. It offered both a view of the deep blue sea beyond, and of the glorious garden itself. An awning made of cloth of gold, and gra.s.s-green silk had been placed over the wooden pavilion to protect its inhabitants from the heat of the midday sun; and it was furnished with a thick wool carpet in softl blue and gold spread over the flooring of the platform upon which had been placed two divans, one for the sultan, and the other for his mother. Stools with red velvet pillows had been provided for Safiye, Fahrusha Sultan, and the lady Janfeda while the rest of the ladies were forced to make do, positioning themselves about the sultan's divan on plump silk cus.h.i.+ons in jeweled colors.

The sultan invited Javid Khan to share his divan while inviting Aidan to sit upon a cus.h.i.+on on the rug between them. Refreshments were then served consisting of several different kinds of sherbets, some flavored with strawberries, lemon, or orange, others flavored with rose or violet. There was an abundance of fresh fruits, oranges already sectioned, and peeled free of their delicate white membrane; wild, sweet strawberries of dark red hue; green figs; early golden peaches and apricots as well as bunches of fat purple grapes that had been brought from the orchards of the Holy Land; and a golden platter upon which had been arranged plump dates, each stuffed with an almond. A selection of delightful pastries, flaky layers of dough filled with chopped nuts and honey, gazelle horns, treats made with sesame and honey, and delicate almond cakes, completed the repast.

When the sweet feast had been finished, and Aidan's slaves had pa.s.sed around fragrant moist towels to all the guests so that they might wipe the stickiness from their hands and faces, the entertainment began. There was an amusing gypsy family with their troupe of performing dogs that had the sultan roaring with laughter. He so much enjoyed them that he took a large, virtually flawless diamond from his finger, and presented it to the patriarch of the family, a proud mustachioed man who accepted the tribute as graciously as it was given. Next came an elderly Indian who placing several deep, round baskets before the pavilion then seated himself behind them, and began to play upon a pipe. As the reedy tune filled the air there came from the baskets-one at a time-the tune changing ever so slightly as each basket's inhabitant took his cue-large, hooded snakes that Javid Khan told the a.s.sembled gathering were called cobras, and were native to the snake charmer's land. The rather frightening reptiles writhed and bobbed seemingly in time to their master's music. Aidan was not sorry to see the finish to the snake charmer's performance.

In the trees about the pavilion there had been placed silver and gold cages of singing birds who now went wild as a young girl appeared to entertain the a.s.sembled guests with a flock of doves and pigeons that she had trained to fly in various formations according to her whistled signals. The conclusion of her recital was a spectacular exhibition in which the birds first flew in a wide circle above the gardens, and then descended in a line to position themselves upon their mistress' outstretched arms. The spectators clapped wildly, and the sultan valideh rewarded the girl with a necklace of semiprecious gemstones.

The conclusion of the entertainment was provided by a troupe of very sensual and exotic dancing girls who traveled about the sultan's empire with their master, who was a Syrian. It was a great honor for them to dance before Murad, and they strove to give him their best performance. The sultan was enchanted enough to consider buying the troupe for his own amus.e.m.e.nt, but he was prevented from his folly by his mother who hissed at him, "Would you make yourself a laughingstock? You already have too many dancing girls, and if you want more then leave it to Ilban Bey to see to it. Do not lower yourself to bargain like a common merchant! You are the Grand Turk, my lion!"

Murad compressed his lips in a tight line, and nodded. "You are right, mother. I was but carried away by the moment, and the deep and great pleasure this day has given me." He turned to Javid Khan. "I do not know when I have enjoyed myself so much, my friend. Your hospitality and that of your lovely wife has warmed my heart." He sighed effusively. "It is rare that I can allow myself the privilege of behaving like an ordinary man. Today has meant much to me."

Similar thanks were forthcoming from Nur-U-Banu. "Dearest Marjallah, I am so relieved to see you happy and obviously content. I well remember the agony of first captivity, but then we are not really captives, are we? It is the way of nature that a woman be subservient to her lord. Thank you for a lovely day."

Safiye took Aidan's hands in her own. "I am so glad," she said softly, "that we are friends. You know my difficulties, but now I have you to rely upon, and you, Marjallah, have me. Remember that."

Fahrusha Sultan and the lady Janfeda took their leave of their hostess politely as did the other ladies of the harem who had accompanied their master to Javid Khan's palace. Then like a troupe of pastel-colored b.u.t.terflies they fluttered across the lawn and down to the waiting caiques. The sultan, however, had remained behind, and now taking Aidan's hand in his once more he raised it to his lips, turning it to kiss her palm. His dark eyes locked hypnotically onto hers.

"You have pleased me, Marjallah," he said quietly. "Your perfect demeanor and your clever wit have brought honor upon my house because you were my gift to Javid Khan. I will think carefully of the best way to reward you for your behavior.

"I am already rewarded by your majesty's presence, and his gracious words," Aidan replied all the while stilling the urge to pull her hand back and wipe his kiss from her skin. Murad frightened her with his intensity.

"You are perfection," he said, "and in a few days' time I will send you a gift to match your spirit. Farewell, Marjallah!" Then he was gone, striding away down the quay, and only when he had gone did she shudder with repugnance.

Her husband's arm went tightly about her shoulders. He had seen the sultan's leave-taking of his wife, and Javid Khan's anger had burned hot that Marjallah must be forced to stand uncomplaining while Murad had salivated over her. "I agree with the sultan in one thing," he said. "You have a magnificent and incomparable spirit, my jewel. I will not, however, allow you to be insulted like that again. In a little over three months' time my father's tribute will arrive from the Crimea. I will write to my father to send a new amba.s.sador to the Sublime Porte so that we may return home then."

"Oh, Javid, do you really want to? Will it not displease your father that you leave this post he has honored you with only after a year's time?" Her face was a mask of concern for him, and it didn't occur to Aidan that she wasn't even afraid of leaving Istanbul for a place that would be more distant from England.

His arm still about her as they walked back into the gardens, he said, "The Khanate of the Crimea has never before sent a resident amba.s.sador to Istanbul. The Ottoman is our overlord, and each year we have sent our tribute to him in late summer, but Murad wanted an amba.s.sador. My father chose to ignore his request, politely, of course, but nonetheless he ignored it. When my brother Temur murdered my family those long months ago, my melancholy was so great that my mother persuaded my father to honor the sultan's desire for an amba.s.sador, and to send me. It was done to remove me from the scene of my greatest happiness, and my greatest sorrow. Now, however, I have found new and even greater happiness with you, my precious jewel. As long as we are together I shall lack for nothing.

"You will like my homeland! Although the upland plains that comprise most of our lands are cold and windy in the winter, and hot and dry in the summer season, my home is along the coast where it is mild and healthful. The lands along that southeast coastal strip are very fertile. The orchards and the vineyards are numerous. The variety of fruits in the marketplaces is amazing to behold. There are cherries, and peaches, figs, apricots, apples, pomegranates, pears, and grapes. I had an entire orchard of almond trees, and on the steppes I grazed a great herd of horses. Praise Allah that Temur was so busy indulging in his blood l.u.s.t that he did not destroy my orchards although he burned my home and my stables, but not before he ran off my stock. He behaved exactly like our rather fierce ancestors. He always took great delight in the fact that he was named after the great Tartar warlord, Timur, descendant of the mighty Genghis Khan, grandson of the famed Kublai Khan."

"Why did you not revenge yourself upon him, my lord Javid? Why did you not kill him?" This was something that had been disturbing Aidan for some time now.

"I am a Muslim, Marjallah, and I like to think that if I am not a very devout man, at least I am a good Muslim. The Koran, our holy book, forbids the taking of a brother's life. Temur is not just my brother though, he is my twin. We shared the same womb at the same time. We were birthed together. Despite his b.e.s.t.i.a.lity I cannot kill him for to do so would be to kill off a part of me, a part of our mother who has suffered deeply the actions of one of her sons, our father who has always been a wise and fair man. Destroying Temur would have given me but momentary satisfaction. It would not, however, have brought back my wives and family.

"Temur and I seem to be like night and day. He has ever flouted our laws, our religion, our ways. Each day he lives he is punished now for his actions have cut him off from his own family, his people, and this for a Tartar is the worst punishment of all. His name has been struck from our history, and it is as if he never existed at all. It is a living death, Marjallah."

She nodded. "I understand," she said, "and now I even feel a little sorry for your brother. There is no way he can right the wrong that he has committed. He will never see his own wives and his son again. How terrible, my lord Javid! What devils have ever driven him that he would perpetrate such folly not only upon you, his twin, but upon himself?"

Javid Khan stopped, and tipped her face up to his. Looking down on her, his eyes br.i.m.m.i.n.g with love he said, "This is why I adore you, my wife. You have a heart that could understand the devil himself!"

Blus.h.i.+ng prettily at his extravagant compliment Aidan hid her face against his shoulder. "You make me sound so good," she said, "and I am not! If I could get my hands upon your brother I should make him suffer for all the pain he has caused you!"

The prince laughed heartily. "Ahh," he said, "I think that you must have a little Tartar blood in your veins, my jewel! How very fierce you sound, and what is more I believe that you would do exactly as you threaten."

"I would!" She looked back up at him, her gray eyes stormy.

"We are going home to the Crimea," he said firmly. "I will send my father word, and I shall rebuild us a new palace, but not upon the site of the old one lest the ghosts of the slain trouble us. I will take you home, my darling wife, and we will become settled old married folk."

"Who shall raise almonds, and children," she teased him.

"Sons," he corrected her.

"And daughters, too," she insisted.

"Only," he said, "if they are pretty and as clever as their mother."

Aidan smiled up at Javid Khan. "I promise," she said solemnly.

Chapter 14.

In the hour before dawn Aidan was awakened by Marta, and she arose to dress for she was going to Istanbul to bring Esther Kira back for a visit. Normally she would have let the elderly lady come to her, but since the matriarch of the Kira family had given her the means of creating her beautiful gardens, she wanted to show her friend the courtesy of coming for her herself. She dressed warmly for although it was mid-spring, it was chilly out upon the water in the early morning, and the lined sleeveless robe of sky-blue silk that she put on over her other clothing was welcome.

Sipping a handleless cup of strong black tea she gave Marta her final instructions. "Be sure to wake my lord Javid shortly after I leave so that he may ride at dawn. Tell Hammed that he is to serve baby lamb for the meal today, but under no circ.u.mstances is he to serve any dairy product upon the table with the meat for it is against Esther Kira's religion for such things to be mixed, I am told. Be sure that the servants use the new dishes, the ones I had blessed by the Jewish priest so that Esther might eat with me. Do we have plenty of Turkish paste candy for Esther does love it?"

"Yes, my lady, yes, yes, yes!" laughed Marta. "Everything is in perfect readiness as you ordered. There is nothing to worry about, and I will oversee all in your absence. Now go, for if you do not then you will not reach the city in time, and then you and your guest will not be able to enjoy the sunrise from the water."

Aidan slipped back into her bedchamber, and leaning over the bed she kissed Javid Khan. Instantly he was awake, and rolling over he pulled her down into the bed atop him. "My lord! You will make me late," she protested.

His mouth found hers in a searing kiss, and then releasing his grip only slightly he said, "We have no time at all?" and his hand slipped skillfully through several layers of her clothing to tease at her nipples.

"Shameless one!" she laughed pulling his hand away. "Did you not sate yourself last night?"

"Ahh, my jewel, but that was last night. I am awake and hungry once again for your sweet body."

"d.a.m.n you, Javid," she muttered, "there really is no time."

"Then I can but await the departure of our guest who has not even arrived yet. Tonight, however, I shall exact a severe revenge from you for my disappointment of this morning." His sky-blue eyes twinkled at her. "Go now!"

"I shall eagerly await your rebuke, my lord husband," she teased him as she went out the door.

"I love you, Marjallah, my wife," he called after her, and Aidan smiled with genuine happiness.

Jinji, ever mindful of her appearance, would not allow her to travel alone the short distance to the city, and so he and Marta's daughters, Fern and Iris, were now awaiting her. Together the four of them hurried to the caique where the oarsmen sleepily awaited them.

The water in the chill of the predawn was black and calm. Above them the sky was slate-colored, its flat surface broken here and there by clear, cold stars, some of which were blue-white in color, and others an icy red. There was absolutely no wind and no sound other than the slap-slap of the caique's oars as they creased the water. The prince's vessel moved slowly from its mooring, and then guided by their helmsman who stood at the stern of the boat gripping his long oar, the oarsmen slipped out into the main channel of the Bosporus. Quickly finding their rhythm the oarsmen soon had the caique moving swiftly through the mirror-still waters.

Aidan didn't bother drawing the curtains of the caique, and looking out she could see the pa.s.sing landscape although in the predawn darkness there was little to see. The hills on the Asian side of the Bosporus resembled nothing more than great lumps, and the island in midstream that was located halfway between Istanbul and Javid's palace was equally indistinguishable. Jinji for once was silent. He was not a morning person. Fern and Iris sat sleepily nodding against each other, and Aidan was frankly grateful for the quiet. Esther Kira was to meet them at the waterfront quay reserved for vessels belonging to amba.s.sadors to the Sublime Porte. Rounding a point Aidan saw the towers, the domes, and the minarets of the city come into view. The sky was now a light gray, and the stars had almost all faded away but for bright Jupiter.

The caique began to nose itself in toward the sh.o.r.e, steering a course between vessels that were anch.o.r.ed in the harbor. The city was beginning to awaken, but it was not yet noisy. Reaching their destination Aidan saw the ornate and comfortable litter of Esther Kira already waiting. Jinji leapt from the caique as it touched the quay, and hurried over to escort the venerable old lady from her vehicle to the boat. For a moment he stopped to chatter with a eunuch of the Kira household who had accompanied his mistress, and then the two of them aided the matriarch from her litter, and helped her into the caique of Javid Khan.

"Good morning, Esther Kira," said Aidan. "I believe that we are to have a beautiful day."

"Indeed, my child, I trust that you are correct." She turned back to her own servant. "Where is my shawl, Yakob? I am already cold."

The negligent Yakob hurried back to the litter, and returned bearing his lady's garment which he handed to a smirking Jinji, who entering the boat wrapped it about Esther Kira with great ceremony.

"Bring the brazier near the lady Esther's feet, Jinji," said Aidan, "and where is that soft woolen lap robe I asked you to bring?"

Jinji almost stumbled over himself to do Aidan's bidding, and very quickly everything was as she had ordered. Taking his seat he signaled to the helmsman and the oarsmen to get their craft under way once again.

"We shall return your lady at sunset, Yakob," Aidan called out as the caique pulled away from its dockage. "I hope," she said turning back to her guest, "that you do not mind my coming for you so early, but I wanted us to have the entire day together for I owe you so much, Esther Kira. Yesterday the sultan, his mother, Safiye, and a party of ladies from the harem including Fahrusha Sultan, and the lady Janfeda came to celebrate our gardens with us. They were most pleased, and went away content. It cannot but help my husband in his position as amba.s.sador from his homeland."

"It has ever been a woman's duty to aid her husband along his chosen pathway wherever she may, Marjallah. I am happy I have been able to be of service to you. It has been my life to be of service to others, and the lord G.o.d, whom we call Yahweh, blessed be his name forever, has rewarded me greatly by giving my family wealth and a power of sorts in this strange land which we inhabit."

"Have you lived here all your life, Esther Kira?" asked Aidan.

She loved the tales the old lady told, and she was eager to encourage her to further stories.

"Yes," said Esther Kira, "I was born here. My family was forced to leave the land of Israel, the homeland given to us so long ago that the date is lost in time, after the fall of the citadel of Masada, when the mighty Roman Empire ruled the world. You call Israel, Palestine, the Holy Land. My family wandered for many years until coming to the city of Constantinople in the days of the great Constantine himself. We have lived here ever since."

"Then your family has been here hundreds of years," noted Aidan.

"Yes," agreed Esther, "we have. We came when the people of the city were yet pagans, wors.h.i.+ping the old Roman G.o.ds, but Constantine, who was emperor of the Eastern Empire became a Christian, and we were persecuted for a time. Then in I453 the Ottoman sultan, Mohammed, called the Conqueror, came from across the Bosporus, and took the city which was then called Constantinople. The old empire had been dying slowly for years, and the Turks even had a small foothold on this side of the water by virtue of a dowry settlement of Princess Theadora Cantacuzene who was married first to Sultan Orkhan, and then later to his son, the first Sultan Murad."

"She married her own son?" Aidan was shocked.

Esther Kira laughed. "Bless me, no, child! Princess Theadora was not the first Murad's mother. Murad was half-grown when the little princess was bartered into a loveless marriage with a man old enough to be her grandfather. In exchange the princess' father obtained military aid from the sultan. The story goes that the first Murad saw her in his father's house, and fell in love with her. When his father died he married her, and it is their great-great-grandson who was the eventual conqueror of Constantinople which is now called Istanbul. When the Turks came we were not persecuted, nor were the Christians. It is the way of the Ottoman Muslims to tax us for our slightly different beliefs, not only in money, but in sons for their corps of Janissaries, and beautiful daughters for their harems. It is a price we pay, and under the Ottoman rule we have prospered. Their government is a sound and a fair one although I fear the rule of the women that has been slowly overcoming the sultans recently, but enough of this chatter, dear child. Look! The dawn! Blessed be the Lord G.o.d! There is no artist like him. Behold, the sky!" and her plump, beringed hand pointed to the dark hills of Asia, now quite visible in the morning light.

The sky just above those hills was brightening, a thin band of molten gold widening quickly, and poured up to banish the dull gray of earlier. It was followed by an array of colors so breathtaking that Aidan caught her breath with delight. Like bolts of the finest China silk the colors- scarlet-orange, rose pink, pale mauves edged in royal purple, and lemon yellow-rolled across the sky until it s.h.i.+mmered and glowed with the ethereal light. Then the fiery ball of the crimson sun burst above the green hills, and the day had begun. A small breeze sprang up to ruffle gently the blue waters of the Bosporus as they drew abreast of the island Aidan considered the midway point in their journey.

"Is it not glorious?" said Esther Kira. "I will shortly he celebrating my eighty-ninth year, and no matter how many sunrises and sunsets I see, each one is different, each one a testimony to the greatness of G.o.d. It makes me feel quite unimportant in the scheme of things." She chuckled. "I believe I enjoy sunrises and sunsets because they have the ability to keep me humble and sensible. I tell my son, Solomon, and my grandsons, of this, but they, being superior beings, think I am naught but a foolish old woman."

"I do not believe for one moment that you think men superior beings, Esther Kira, no matter what they think," Aidan laughed.

"Men!" The matriarch smiled. "Men begin as helpless, crying infants who spring forth from women's bodies. They are nourished at a woman's breast, by a woman's milk, but for some reason the moment they begin to use their legs their brains tell them that they are superior to their mothers, and their sisters, and all other women. I find this an interesting phenomenon, don't you, Marjallah?"

"Indeed I do, but you have still not answered my question," replied Aidan.

Esther chuckled again. "You are an intelligent woman," she said, and then, "No, I do not necessarily consider men wiser than women in all cases, but that, as you well know, is a most radical viewpoint on my part. It is necessary for a wise woman to allow the men in her life their small illusions, is it not? They tell me that Prince Javid Khan loves you deeply, but you do not love him, I am certain, yet you give him the illusion of love, and he is satisfied."

Aidan flushed. "I do care for my lord Javid," she said, and then she sighed, "but you are right when you say I do not love him as he loves me. Perhaps in time I shall for he is such a kind and good man, and I do not want to cheat him of what should rightfully be his. Still, I cannot forget Conn, my true husband, Esther Kira. Pray G.o.d that in time I do."

"Again we are ruled by the infernal workings of the male mind," said the old lady. "You are given to the prince, and expected to wipe from your feeble female brain your entire past. It is a tribute to our stamina that women survive and cope so very well, Marjallah." She reached over, and patted Aidan's hand with her plump one. "Still you are happy, I can see, and I am glad. Now tell me of the gardens for we are almost there."

"Your bulbs are wonderful, Esther Kira! The sultan and his party were utterly enchanted, and I have promised to give the sultan some of the mauve crocuses with the orange throats. He was most taken by them." She went on to tell her friend of how she had arranged it so that all the bulbs were virtually at their peak, and Esther Kira nodded.

"You are a clever girl, Marjallah," she said. "Although the sultan's hobbies are clockmaking and painting, his trade is gardening. I le is a very high-strung, intense man, and he enjoys the solitude that the gardens offer him. Working about the plants and flowers is very soothing to him."

"I can understand that," answered Aidan. "Plants ask only to be pruned and watered, nothing more. They do not talk back at you or argue with you over trifling matters."

Esther Kira laughed an amused chuckle which suddenly died in her throat. Her dark eyes widened, straining to see the sh.o.r.e, and she pointed with a finger toward the land.

"What is it?" Aidan followed the direction of Esther's finger, and a chill swept her body.

"Stop the vessel!" the old woman croaked in a surprisingly strong voice. "Do not go any farther!"

The helmsman nodded to the oarsmen who raised their dripping oars, and they all looked toward the palace which had just come into their view. Out over the water they could now hear shouting, and the sound of discord. Then without warning a spear of flame shot up from the palace itself to be followed by another, and another, and another.

"Oh, my G.o.d!" whispered Aidan. "It is my lord Javid's nightmare all over again. Quickly! To the sh.o.r.e! We must help them!"

"No!" The word was sharp, and they looked to Esther Kira. "Marjallah, be sensible. Do not allow your heart to rule you in this instance. Someone is attacking your palace. Three young women, an old lady, and a handful of slaves cannot help whatever is happening. We have no weapons. If we step ash.o.r.e we shall all be killed. What purpose would that serve?" She looked to the helmsman. "Turn the caique about," she said, "and row as swiftly as you can for the Yeni Serai!" Then as the vessel was being swung around she said to Aidan, "We will go to the sultan for aid. He will send his soldiers."

"Javid," said Aidan. "He was going to ride at dawn as he usually does. Marta is there."

Fern and Iris, ordinarily quiet girls, began to weep, sensing the disaster, and Aidan drawing her two little slavegirls to her put a comforting arm about both of them, but she said nothing for she didn't know what she could possibly say. The caique sped over the water as if it were propelled by wings instead of oars. Aidan hadn't been aware that the vessel could move so quickly for under normal circ.u.mstances it moved at a stately pace. The city was soon in view, and they were once again wending their way through the harbor traffic, the noise, and the morning smells of the city calling out to them across the water. Across the mouth of the Golden Horn they raced, and the caique began edging itself in toward the sh.o.r.e as the Yeni Serai came into view. In a shorter time than she would have believed possible they were arriving at the palace, and the dockmen were making the vessel fast.

Esther Kira climbed out, and said, "We will go to the sultan valideh immediately. She will know what to do."

Aidan disembarked from the boat with Fern and Iris, and as they hurried through the gardens and the many courts that led to the valideh's apartments she worried, "It is so early. I doubt that the lady Nur-U-Banu will be up yet."

"Nur-U-Banu is always awake," said Esther Kira. "I cannot help but wonder when she sleeps although she a.s.sures-me that she does. She is very involved in her son's government for she is a wise woman."

Arriving at the apartments of the sultan's mother they were ushered inside. Nur-U-Banu's well-trained slaves showed absolutely no surprise at such an early visit by Esther Kira and Princess Marjallah Khan. They were seated and offered tea and almond cakes which Aidan waved away although Esther Kira accepted.

"Please," said Aidan, "we must see the valideh! It is most urgent!"

"Her majesty is just coming from her bath," the eunuch said. "I shall see if she will receive you now."

"Tell her it is urgent!" Aidan repeated, and then sat nervously as she waited.

Several minutes-it seemed like hours to Aidan-the sultan valideh hurried into the room. She was wearing only a chamber robe, a beautiful quilted silk garment of rich lavender, and her fair hair was unbound. "Esther! Marjallah! What is it? The eunuch said you claim urgency."

Esther Kira gave Aidan no time to explain, instead launching into her own version of their tale. She was quick and to the point, and the valideh not even waiting to inform her son gave immediate orders that a full troop of Janissaries be dispatched to the palace of Prince Javid Khan at once. Then she sent a message to the sultan to attend her as quickly as he could.

"My dear Marjallah," Nur-U-Banu said as she sat herself next to Aidan, and put a motherly arm about her, "you must not worry. It is highly unusual for what appears to have happened to happen within the borders of my son's empire let alone so close to the city. Although the prince was not expecting to be attacked, he and his men have undoubtedly routed the invaders although not without damage to your home, and possibly even some casualties amongst your servants. With the arrival of our Janissaries your husband will have adequate reinforcements to thoroughly defeat these invaders. We will have a report as soon as it is possible, and in the meantime I want you to stay with me, dear child. You look fairly worn, and I can certainly see why. These last days have been utterly exhausting for you preparing your gardens for our visit yesterday, and then coming so early to the city to fetch our dear Esther. Kaspar!" she called to the eunuch. "Fetch a strawberry sherbet prepared my special way for the princess. Be quick!"

"Oh, I couldn't," said Aidan, for she was terribly distressed. Why had someone attacked her home? Where was Javid? Was poor Marta all right ?