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Hooking my fingers into the rook, I hoisted myself up. A whimper flew past my lips. I stuffed back the burn and reached for the next handhold. Fear propelled mehigher.
“Your buddy lost his genie lamp,” I called out, hoping this one might join in on the search, giving me a free ticket out ofhere.
No such luck. He reached the wall, dropped his torch, and began his ascent. Of course, he was much faster than I was. Then again, he wasn’t sore all over and carrying a rolledankle.
He grabbed my foot andyanked.
I dug my fingers into the rock for grip. My nails scraped from his repeated tugs.Shish kebab.If he did that again, I was going tofall.
“Get down here,” he yelled. “In the name of thesultan.”
A final jolt tore me loose, and I screamed. My back jarred as I crashed to the ground. Tears stung my eyes, and I rubbed my back. Now I couldn’t run if I wanted to. I could barely move without ragingpain.
The second guard stripped my bag from me and emptied the contents “My, my…stealing from the sultan. Let's see what his vizier has to say aboutthis.”
My stomach hardened like rock as he dragged me along besidehim.
The vizier? Gossip on the streets of Utaara told of his cruelty. Torture to extract information. Sabotaging his colleagues to claw his way to thetop.
My whole world crashed to the floor and split into thousands ofpieces.
Ali. The medicine. Ourfuture.
* * *
Shadows swallowedme as two guards from the cave hauled me into the depths of the dungeons beneath the palace. Prisoners moaned. Hands stretched out, as if begging for assistance. But I had nothing to offer them. The place stunk like blood, sweat, piss, and excrement. Water dripped, staining the walls withred.
“No, please, let me go,” Ipleaded.
Hay on the dusty, stone floor kicked up as the guards dragged me into a grimycell.
“My brother's sick and needs medicine. Please, don't kill me. Who will care for him?” Iasked.
The guards slammed me into the wall. I wheezed from theimpact.
One of them put chains on my wrists. I flinched as he clamped thelatch.
The two men stepped back and looked me up and down. The guard who had arrested me clutched the hilt of his sword, as if reminding me of mypunishment.
My heart pinched. “Please.” My shackles clanged as I yanked at them. I straightened my back, even though the heavy chains weighed medown.
I wasn't below begging when it came to Ali’s life. But my appeal to the guards’ hearts failed to soften their resolve. With sinister smiles, they left me there. The slam of the heavy, iron door vibrated through mybones.
Darkness crashed in my mind. Here I would remain for the rest of my life. Torturing myself over the death of my brother. Adding more scratches in the wall to mark the number of days of mycaptivity.
My mind jolted. What about Karim? Where was my monkey? Left to die in the cave? My heart crashed to the bottom of my rib cage. I’d let the monkey and my brotherdown.
My ankle and back throbbed. I inched up against the wall, stretching my legs out straight. There I sat until I fellasleep.
* * *
Golden raysof morning light filtered through the gloomy cell from iron bars in thewindow.
What was Ali doing now? Was he worried sick because I hadn’t returned home? How could I have been so stupid to getcaught?
The clunk of the iron latch on the door jolted me from my thoughts. Creaks tore through the cell as the door swung open. In strode a man, dripping in robes of the finest silks, his fingers laced with jeweled rings. He had a steely gaze, stiff jaw, and cold eyes. The savage cut of his moustache ended in a sharp point like a knife. Judging by the snake symbol on his necklace, this was the vizier. My punisher. The taker of my hands—the one tool I needed to keep my brother and mealive.
Coldness spread from my stomach to mytoes.
