Azul looked up; Ragnar was looking at her, watching her, asking her.
Are you alright?
She wasn’t sure.Her body was hot, her mind was murky; it was as though she was surrounded by fog, all sensation muted.The trigger was something she couldn’t fully grasp; was it her memory?Was she poisoned?Was it truly talks of Methuselah?She didn’t know.
Somadina laughed, as though fear hadn’t seeped into his very bones."Great Khan, I was merely being helpful."He released Azul, stepping back with hands raised in mock surrender."Take her.I hope she recovers quickly."
Ragnar caught Azul as her knees buckled, lifting her naturally into his arms.She wrapped her arms around his neck, face pressed against the leather of his tunic.
He nodded to Somadina, not bothering to thank him as decorum demanded, and he turned to leave.
Behind them, Somadina's smile didn't waver, but his eyes—his eyes were flat and cold and murderous.
"Khan," he called as Ragnar turned to leave."A word of advice?My brother Borji has taken quite an interest in the Khatun.”
Azul’s heart staggered, fear coursing through her.Ragnar couldn’t doubt her now.Her plan had been working so far.
Ragnar didn't stop walking.
"So has my uncle.So many men eager to help a pretty woman.You'll have to watch her carefully."
She cursed Somadina viciously in her head.No man wanted to wear a green hat; Somadina accusing her of being unfaithful would anger anyone, much less a warlord.
Ragnar paused.
Azul watched helplessly as he turned to look at Somadina.
"Many can admire," he said, "but few have the skill to claim."
He said nothing more and nothing less, leaving the prince with a serene expression and a fist clenched so tight his knuckles blanched.
Chapter 19
Nkirutookonelookat Azul's face and fled to prepare some restorative broth.
Ragnar carried Azul inside, laid her on her bed and knelt beside her.His eyes glanced at the new vase of blue flowers on her windowsill, focusing on his betrothed.
"Khatun.What happened?"
Azul stared at the ceiling, her heart still hammering, her body still trembling."I was talking to the scholar, and then I had a memory.A bad one.When I came back, I couldn't stand.And he was there."
"What did you think about?"
"I—" She choked, her eyes stinging with sudden, humiliating heat."I want to see my sister."
Ragnar's brow furrowed slightly."Chidinma?"
Azul shook her head.The movement sent a fresh wave of dizziness through her, but she pushed through it."No."She took a deep breath, forcing the words out past the tightness in her chest."I want to see Kamsi."
His body stilled.“Khatun, who is Kamsi?”
Azul closed her eyes.She didn’t know how much was too much or how far was too far.But if she did not speak, she feared her soul would crumble under her mind.
But Ragnar was kneeling beside her bed, watching her with patient eyes, and something in his silence made her want to speak.
"Kamsi is my sister," she said."The last daughter.We grew up together in my father's compound."Once started, her words could not be stopped."She’s younger than me.Four years, maybe five."There was no way to know her true age since she was brought in as a toddler."Thin as a reed, with hair that curled so tight you could spend hours combing it and never reach the ends."A ghost of a smile touched her lips."She’s a Djinn."
Something flickered in Ragnar's eyes, but he didn't interrupt.
