Page 121 of A Thousand Nights Before Dawn
After a few silent moments, themedjayurged his horse onward.
Zahra remained silent for several more minutes before she stepped out. The ground beneath her moved, and there was a loud hiss before a sharp pain came to Zahra’s left ankle.
She cried out, kicking the snake with her other foot. It unlatched from her, flying backward into the grass. Zahra grunted, limping toward a tree.
The snake hissed, its eyes bright yellow and its scales the color of the dirt.
Zahra’s heart dropped.A viper.
The snake hissed and slithered toward her. Zahra turned to run, but it was difficult with her foot. She tripped over a rock, catching herself hard on her hands. She turned and screamed.
Katerina dove down from the sky, catching the viper’s neck in her talons. Zahra looked up in surprise as another eagle swooped down and grabbed its body. Katerina tightened her grasp on the snake’s neck. It writhed in their grip, until suddenly it was limp.The two eagles dropped the snake several feet from Zahra, where it lay motionless.
Zahra pushed herself to her feet, wincing as she tried to stand on her leg. Her ankle was already beginning to swell, and blood was freely flowing from the wound.
Zahra leaned against a tree and placed her hand on the bite. Her father had told her stories of those bitten by vipers. She would be lucky if there was no venom, but the swelling was not a good sign.
Katerina took off into the sky, while the other eagle found a spot in a tree above her. Zahra took a deep breath, looking up at the bird. “Thank you.”
The eagle cawed in response, resting her wings as she looked around.
Zahra focused on her wound. No matter how hard she pressed, the bite still bled.
Katerina returned, carrying something in her foot. Zahra grunted as she sat up and Katerina dropped the object above Zahra’s head. It landed softly in Zahra’s lap, and Katerina rested on another part of the tree.
Zahra picked up her mother’s scarf. How did Katerina get this? If she had brought it here, then that meant…
“Poulaki mou!”
Zahra looked up to see her father running toward her. She cried out in surprise. “Patér!”
Omar came to Zahra’s side, his gaze immediately landing on her foot. “What has happened?”
Zahra choked down a sob. “You can’t be here. Themedjayare after me.”
“Then we are lucky,” Omar said, tearing part of his clothes. “They’re after me as well. What snake bit you?”
“A viper.” Zahra inhaled sharply as he pushed the fabric against her wound.
Omar tied the piece of fabric around her ankle above the bite. “We must get you to a physician’s office.”
“But themedjay—” Zahra started.
“We don’t have time to worry about that.”
Zahra grunted as Omar lifted her to her feet, putting her arm around his shoulder and helping her walk. By the time they reached the physician’s office, blood was dripping down her foot, and Zahra was lightheaded.
The building was empty, and Omar lifted Zahra onto a bed and got to work. Zahra tried to rest, but the pain was too great, especially as Omar attended her. She rested her head back against the wall, her gaze drifting to the window. Katerina sat there, humming a song that only Zahra could hear.
Katerina’s song was soothing, and Zahra held her mother’s scarf close to her chest, breathing heavily as drowsiness tugged at her eyelids. She thought of her mother and how they would walk the shoreline and look for shells. It was difficult to visualize her mother’s face, but she remembered the softness of her voice and the gentleness of her hands. How she smelled of sea salt and reminded Zahra of the Sea.
Tears sprang to Zahra’s eyes as her last memory with her mother played in her head. If her mother could see what was to come, why did she save her? Did she know that Zahra would help Namir? Was it worth it, even though her only daughter would suffer and die?
Zahra’s eyes slipped closed. Her mother’s scarf was warm against her chest, and the sound of the Sea whistled in her ears. How she wished she could see her mother again.
When Zahra opened her eyes, she was sailing on the Sea. There were no angrymedjayor dangerous rapids. The Sea was calm and shimmered a beautiful blue. A soft hum floated around her.
Her father crouched at the back of the boat, pulling a net full of fish aboard. Zahra was helping, and she reveled in the fact that her small hands could do so much. The fish flopped and twitched, and Zahra let out a shriek as one jumped on her foot in an attempt to escape.
