THE DANCING GIRL

Chapter 21

THE next day, it was easy to slip away.

Haqiya was working in the kitchens, Nihaal and Nazrat in laundry. Nazrat hadn't told her anything about the night, hadn't even given her more than a passing glance. She really was good at pretending nothing was going on.

Noor made her way to the library, her steps lighter. For once, they didn't have to sneak about and hide. It would be a stretch to believe the Rajkumars were helping a dancer and a courtesan with their studies, but it was possible.

She made it to the library, walking to their usual table. Amir and the Rajkumars were already there.

She sat down opposite Amir, next to Rajkumar Vikram. "Good morning."

"You're in a good mood today," Amir said, squinting at her.

She shrugged. "Why can't I be?"

"No reason," Amir said. He was still eyeing her suspiciously, though.

"Alright," Rajkumar Fayyaz said, getting their attention. "We're going to be doing something different today."

"What?" Amir asked, looking at him curiously.

"We're giving you a surprise exam," Rajkumar Vikram said.

"What?" Noor blurted.

"Relax," he said, giving her a soothing grin. "We just want to test all you've learnt."

"But we haven't prepared anything!" Amir said, his eyes wide. He exchanged a frantic look with Noor.

"You won't need to," Rajkumar Fayyaz said seriously. "You'll do just fine. You know all of this."

"We believe in you," Rajkumar Vikram said reassuringly.

Somehow, that didn't reassure her.

"Let's get on to it, shall we?" Rajkumar Fayyaz said, raising his eyebrows. He pulled out some papers from between the pages of a book and handed half to Amir, half to Noor.

"You may begin reading now," Rajkumar Vikram said, his voice serious.

Noor gave Amir an anxious look and turned her focus to the papers.

It...wasn't that bad.

The surprise exam was difficult, yes, but she had no doubt she could solve the mathematics part. The science she knew, mostly, and the geography—if she had studied, she'd have been able to get it, excepting a few confusing questions.

She gave Rajkumar Vikram beside her a dirty look.

He grinned. "Ready to begin writing?"

Noor nodded, glancing at Amir. He looked somewhat calmer.

"You'll have three hours," Rajkumar Vikram said. "Begin."

The Rajkumars waited silently as Noor and Amir wrote, the sound of them writing the only thing in the library. They must have done something, because not a single soul entered the library.

Noor skipped the questions she didn't know, returning to them later. She managed to solve a few more, but left the rest. She checked over her answers, making it nearly till the end when Rajkumar Fayyaz said, "Fifteen minutes left."

She finished cross-checking, pushing down her nerves and looking up. She met Amir' eyes.

He raised his eyebrows at her.

She shrugged and raised her eyebrows back.

He nodded.

"If you're done," Rajkumar Fayyaz said dryly. "May we have the papers?"