At last, I spied what I was looking for.
Orwho.
The boy was dirty, with wet mud crusted around his mouth as if he’d been eating it. Dirt was daubed across his face and arms like paint—and I realized it probably was. He gave the appearance of a starving orphan who hadn’t been bathed in weeks. But when I cast my eyes over his frame and spied his healthy limbs poking out of his worn kurta, I knew he was getting enough to eat. This too was an act, one designed to dismiss him as a wretched beggar boy, so no one noticed that he was very practiced at his trade. When I’d last been at the bazaar with Noor, I’d let him go with a laugh when he’d tried to steal my purse.
But today I had business.
He hadn’t noticed me yet. Instead, he weaved through the crowd with practiced ease. The bazaar was busy, with the workday finishedand many stopping here to shop or grab a bite at the various kebab and paratha stands lining the edge of the market. Not a single customer noticed the filthy pickpocket as he made himself rich by lifting all their expensive belongings and bulging money purses.
He was quite a sight to watch. Bejeweled bangles, shining pocket watches, and thick sacks of coins—he pocketed them all in a streamlined fashion, tucking them into a small weathered bag that hung at his waist. By the time he made it to the other side of the street, I saw who I had hoped he would lead me to—an older boy waiting at the edge of the alley.
This was who he reported to.
I needed to be quick if I was going to catch them.
They slipped into the alley, a narrow space between yellowed mud-brick buildings that looked so uninviting no one else stood near it. I trailed behind, weaving through the heavy crowds and darting around a run-down jalebi stall.
I rounded the corner and stole into the alley behind them, the darkness swallowing me up.
My dagger was hidden under the folds of my kameez, and I reached for it. What I didn’t expect was the cool press of steel under my chin before I could even draw my own weapon.
“You didn’t think we saw you following Yashem? Sahiba, you stick out like the emperor’s stallion in a herd of pack camels.” The boy sounded amused, and far older than he had looked in the bazaar.
My lips lifted involuntarily, despite the surprise jolting through me that the urchin had managed to get the upper hand. I thought I’d been more prepared to deal with him. But I was more pleased than afraid, even though he was the one pressing the knife against my neck. If he could handle himself against me, he might do very well if Mazin was his opponent. I pushed my neck forward lightly to test the blade. The edge of it didn’t even prick my skin with the telltale slice of a stone-sharpened knife.
Blunt. I could work with blunt.
“It’s not many that have taken me by surprise with a dagger. You should consider yourself skilled.”
He flicked the point up to my chin, so I had to tilt my head up. “I do.”
Before he could make another move, I shot my hand to his, twisting the dagger from his fingers and turning it on him instead. I widened my stance, advancing on him with the dagger held firmly in my hands. It was heavier than I had thought it would be, a fairly decent blade. He must have stolen it from someone wealthy.
The boy held his hands up at me, fear replacing the mock bravado that I’d seen moments before. But his brown eyes grew even wider when I turned the hilt over to him.
“Go on, take it. I’m not here to fight you, I have something else in mind.”
His expression shadowed with suspicion as he snatched the knife from my hand. “What?”
“A business proposition.”
The boy scowled at me. “We don’t kill for money, sahiba. Now leave before we rob you of all your fine silks.”
I put my hands up. “I don’t want you to kill anyone. With any luck, no one will get hurt. And if you do a good job and are interested in easy money, I will have plenty more work for you.”
“What’s the job?” His voice was harsh, dismissive even, but I could hear the greedy interest behind them, especially when I lifted a purse full of coins to show him how serious I was.
I tossed him the bag and he caught it easily with one hand.
“Anam Sial, ward of the emperor, will be shopping later in the bazaar.” I swallowed thickly, pushing down the strange sensation of guilt bubbling up in my chest. But Maz had made his choice and with it, sealed her fate. Guilt was not an emotion I could afford.
“I want you to kidnap her.”
The urchin barked out a laugh before tossing the bag of coins back at me. “Now I know you aren’t in your right mind, sahiba. You thinkI don’t know who her brother is? Mazin Sial rules this city. Taking his sister would be a death sentence. He’d burn all of Basral down.”
The corner of my mouth lifted at the fear I heard behind the thief’s words. Mazin had built a reputation in the time I had been gone. One that I would happily tear apart.
The boy opened his mouth, but I pulled another purse of coins from my belt and any words died on his tongue. “You won’t have her for long. And Mazin won’t know who did this. It will be between you and me only. I can promise you that.”
