Shadow Seer [18+]

~ Twenty ~

Two days went by without Sanaa seeing Amir. Miri continued feeding her the small information she had but there was also no change in Ghassan. He remained sleeping, his wounds and physical body being tended to by attendees including Fatima, although Sanaa didn't see her personally and Miri remained her sole attendant.

Now that she had intended to do something about her situation in the palace and actually had the means to achieve, the last two days had felt more positive for Sanaa. She had her secret dagger with which to kill Ghassan and access to his chambers. She just needed the opportunity, to know when he would not be guarded. Miri was looking into the guard shifts but had to be discreet even if it was her sister she would ultimately be getting the information from. Sanaa was aware that Fatima and her lover wanted Ghassan dead, but there would be no way Sanaa would have known this and so she couldn't ask Miri to question her directly.

Another grey area remained in that Sanaa had still not been able to see Archimedes. Even if she hadn't overheard his conversation with Amir, he was her effectively her carer. How could he not visit her. The only saving grace she could find was that he could still be ill. She'd only heard him. She'd not seen him. Until he permit her entry to his chambers, Sanaa was stuck and she couldn't deny the resentment that was slowly building within her.

Sanaa also hadn't received any further message that she could exit the palace and she was too afraid to ask. His previous message didn't say the privilege was limited to just one day, but she didn't want to assume by asking, then being denied. She had some pride.

Miri had just finished doing Sanaa's hair and makeup after dressing her in a pair of blush pink culottes with the matching sleeveless cropped top and silk slippers. Her hair was up in a sleek ponytail, a sheer pink veil covering her face, pinned just above her ears with a gold chained hair pin. They were preparing for a game of chess when the door knocked and Miri went to answer it.

"Your Majesty!" Sanaa heard Miri gasp and her body was immediately alert. The tension escaped her when Miri stepped back from the doorway and Amir entered

Sanaa drank him in. Amir leaned against the doorway, his tanned muscular arms folded across his chest. His slippered feet were crossed at the ankles, his long legs covered by black high waisted sirwal pants. The band wraps were covered to just below his naval and left the top of his stomach and pectorals exposed. He wore a long sleeveless black overcoat with thick gold cuffs around both wrists. His hair was up in a tight bun, exposing the diamond studs in his ears, and his beard glistened in the sun that breached her living room window.

"Hello, Sanaa. Did you miss me?"

Amir's eyes twinkled as he smirked at her. His jovial nature jarring her immediately considering how long ago she'd seen him and what had almost happened between them. She'd practically begged him to kiss her and now he was here like nothing had happened. Despite this oddity, Sanaa found herself smiling back at him. Not a big smile, but a demure curving of her lips as she continued to take in how devastatingly handsome he was.

"Of course not," she said, not taking her eyes from him, wondering what was so different about him today. He looked... happy.

"Walk with me?" he asked, pushing off the door frame and gesturing into the hallway beyond.

"Where?" Sanaa asked, even while her feet took her towards him as though they compelled her to.

"Does it matter?" he asked as she arrived in front of him and looked up into his beautiful face. No one this stunning can be truly evil, Sanaa thought to herself as she shook her head in denial.

"No," she said. "It doesn't." She had her plan. Ghassan would be dead soon and maybe this thing between them could turn into something.

A casual distant by her side, Amir walked Sanaa through the palace. He showed her the troves and alcoves he often visited as a child and the rooms he frequented more as an adult. He took her to the training courtyard she'd only ever heard but never been allowed to enter, and then to the stables where they kept their prized Cotaini horses.