You Can Run

The Gazis

Jaserah lay on her stomach and listened, her veiled face resting on her palm. Hashir cleared his throat and pulled his bedroll closer to the desk, leaning against it for support as he began to speak.

"So, I left you in the hands of Aydin, and he promised to take good care of you."

"Which was a complete and utter lie," Jaserah reminded him jovially.

"Admit it, you didn't come across any danger in his hands."

"He nearly hit me," Jaserah stated matter-of-factly.

"He what?" Hashir's eyes widened in disbelief. "Are you serious? How did that happen?"

"He also touched me," Jaserah blurted, taken aback at Hashir's concern. "He pushed me in order to get to the study."

Hashir's face turned red with anger as he clenched his fists. "I can't believe he would do such a thing. I trusted him to keep you safe." Jaserah shrugged, trying to downplay the incident. "It's fine, really. I managed to avoid any serious harm." Hashir's expression softened, concern etched on his face. "Still, it's unacceptable behavior." He crossed his arms across his chest.

"Things happen." Jaserah shrugged. "I'll have to learn to get over it if I want to survive in the world, don't I?"

Hashir sighed, his worry evident in his eyes. "I just wish people would treat you with the respect you deserve. It's frustrating to see you go through these situations." Jaserah nodded, appreciating Hashir's concern.

"Hashir?" Jaserah called out his name.

Hashir turned towards Jaserah, his eyebrows raised in anticipation. "Yes, Jaserah?" he responded.

"You were going to tell me how you found the Maarid," Jaserah reminded Hashir.

"His name is Burak." Hashir waved her off. "And I found him, after weeks and weeks of searching in the sands of Arabia."

"The map I had with me told me that Burak was in the middle of the Arabian desert, and when I reached the point marked on it, there was nothing. I knew the map couldn't be wrong, but at the same time, I couldn't believe there was nothing there. So I started digging. I dug in and around the area for seven days until I found the lamp. I didn't initially know what was in there; of course, I just opened it because I thought it might be useful. Imagine my surprise when Burak comes out; enraged." He rubbed his right wrist with a look of disenchantment.

"Then he seemed to remember me. Said I had my mother's nose. So I asked him what had happened. He told me everything—about how Aydin had trapped him inside and about the sigil—and then asked to see Aydin one last time. I told him about the pledge and how the descendants required his assistance. He seemed to oblige. But he asked to see Aydin one last time, so I obliged." Shrugging, Hashir positioned his arms behind his head, his muscles tensing. "And the rest, well, you already know it."

A breath escaped Jaserah's lips as Hashir ended his tale. He gave her a tired smile. "So," he started, turning to the side. "What were you up to in the last ten days here?"

"Not much," Jaserah admitted. "I spent most of my time reading. I'm sorry, I wasn't much help."

"Are you joking?" Hashir exclaimed, sitting up. "If it wasn't for you, we still wouldn't have found her!"

"Aydin did most of the work," Jaserah credited, tracing invisible patterns on the cold stone floor. "I just helped a little."

"Nonsense," Hashir scoffed. "If it wasn't for you, Aydin wouldn't even have managed that."

Jaserah wanted to argue that Aydin had never really bothered to find her, but decided not to.

"What's the next step?" she asked instead. "Are we going to Arjasaymstan?"