Page 111 of A Thousand Nights Before Dawn
Zahra tried reaching out to the ring, but she couldn’t see Namir with it. She could only see darkness. Zahra looked up at the sky. It was nearly five Atum. The moonlight grew dim as they searched the darkness for any trace of him. The othermedjaywere searching in different directions, trying to cover as much ground as possible.
A small oasis caught Zahra’s eye, and she pointed toward it. “Over there!”
Ramses turned the horse toward it, and Zahra hopped off before Ramses had even come to a stop. She stepped into a small stream as she ran toward the trees. There was no one hiding in the shadows, though there were footprints. A glint of light caught Zahra’s eye, and she dug at the soil beneath the tree, pulling out a small, round object. She wiped the dirt off it, her heart sinking once the shape became familiar.
It was Namir’s ring. The moonstone reflected clearly in the low light.
Horror filled Zahra as she studied the footprints. He had been here, but other people had been there as well. She picked up a torn piece of fabric. It was from his shirt—and it was stained with blood.
Zahra covered her mouth, quieting a moan. The assassins had Namir, and she had no way of knowing if he was alive or dead, or where he was. She turned to Ramses, showing him thering. He stared at it, confused. She tried to explain, but she couldn’t. Her frame was wracked with sobs, and she fell into the dirt, screaming.
She had failed. She had lost him. It was her duty to protect him, and she had been the one to chase him away. Namir wasgone.
Katerina cawed from above, landing beside her. Zahra sobbed, shaking her head. “He is dead. They have taken him!”
Katerina cawed again, but this time Zahra heard her voice. “You can find him.”
Zahra swiped at her tears, pushing herself up from the ground. She closed her eyes, pulling in a deep breath. She thought of Namir’s black eyes and his laugh. She pictured his face and the way her hand fit in his. She pulled on his image, hoping for something—anything—to pull her to him.
Moonlight came to her eyes, and a vision unfolded around her. She saw the shapes of people fighting where she was sitting. There were four of them, and one was clearly Namir. He used a dagger with bound hands, swiping at the assassins. He managed to knock two down, but another came at him with a sword. He pushed them away, stealing one of their horses and escaping.
Her vision followed him away from the palm trees to fields of wheat. He fell off the horse, his hands wet and bloody as he clutched his side.
He was injured.
Zahra focused on him as he ran toward a row of buildings near the fields. He hid inside one of them. The assassins searched for him not far away, getting closer and closer to his hiding place.
Zahra gasped as she left the vision. She nodded to Katerina, grasping the corners of the scarf around her neck. “Thank you.”
Katerina chirped and inclined her head before taking off into the air.
Zahra turned to Ramses, signing to him. “I know where he is.”
Zahra directed Ramses southeast, toward the fields of wheat. An obelisk in the distance chimed five times as they approached, and Ramses came to a halt. There was someone wearing amedjay’suniform in the wheat stalks. Ramses moved toward them, but Zahra stopped him, shaking her head. That was nomedjay.
Zahra instructed him to hide. Then, she went toward themedjay. “Help! Please!”
Themedjayturned toward her, speaking in Auran with a thick Ionian accent. “Halt! You cannot go any further.”
Zahra recognized Pesha’s cautious eyes. “Please, I was traveling home when I saw an injured man. I tried to get him to come with me, but he ran off. Please, he needs help.”
Pesha stepped forward. “Where was this man?”
“That way.” Zahra pointed west. “He was going toward the city over there.”
“Thank you for telling me. Please, return home. It is not safe out.”
Zahra waited until Pesha was out of sight before motioning for Ramses to follow her. They entered the building Zahra had seen Namir enter.
The first floor looked like an office with small windows near the ceiling that let light in. There were scrolls and farming records. Past a wall was a set of stairs. Zahra walked carefully down them, and Ramses followed her into the dark space.
A dagger tore through the air, narrowly missing her face. She jumped back as the attacker clumsily fell over. Startled black eyes appeared in the low light. “Zahra?”
Zahra let out a breath of relief, coming to Namir’s side. She placed her hand on his sweaty cheek. “I am here, Namir. I am right here.”
He leaned into her touch, falling back further. “How did you find me?”
“I managed to see where you went despite your best efforts,” she said, removing his other hand from his side. He hissed as she did so, and she immediately put pressure on the wound as blood came spurting out. She looked back at Ramses, and he quickly came to their side.
