Blood Never Sleeps

"Speak up," my captor commands, fiddling with my little kitchen knife. He leans in and lifts my chin with its blunt end.

I look away.

"I can make this idiot talk-" a raised hand shuts him up.

"No need of that, poor girl's suffered enough."

I am sitting on the floor with my hands tied up. What happened previously was nothing worth much mentioning. Before I could answer his question, that soldier Cihangir showed up and forced me into a cabin for interrogation.

He moves the knife away and starts questioning me again. "Look here, what was your name? Raziye?"

I finally make eye contact, out of surprise. He basically is admitting the fact that it was him I met at the market. It is him. Just without his dark cloak and shemagh. He's wearing a turban and some sort of military uniform, mahogany in colour, with a star insignia by the collar.

"It's Razia, say it properly."

"Speak with respect, wench!" Cihangir shouts.

"Oh why? Is he the Shehzade? I might as well kiss his feet then, for kidnapping me, and shooting me twice," I reply with a mocking smile. "You're that beggar, Ali, from the market."

"You think it's a coincidence the prince and I, a beggar, have the same name then?" He smiles. I swear half of the smiles he gives, despite being pretty, are fake.

"No...I heard he was an lout who never got out of his harem cage. You're..." My voice trails off as I look him up and down. He doesn't look exactly like a lout. He's very tall, his stature slender and his skin quite pale, it's as though the sun is his enemy. His clean shaven face, closer up, looks like he might be near as young as I even. Definitely not someone with the clap.

He winces at what I just said. "I think you confuse the shehzade with someone else."

The soldier Cihangir, standing next to him, clears his throat. "She just insulted your fa-"

"Let's just get to the point." He leans back into his chair. I was only toying with you, I'm the admiral of the fleet-"

"Pft- Admiral? You look too much of a kid-" Then I pause. Watch your tongue Razia. You may hate them, but you're the one tied down.

He tries to suppress a frown. "I am turning twenty-one soon, I thank you very much for guessing."

He puts the kitchen knife on a table beside him. It's full of maps and books. "Anyways, I was going to question you girls in the first place, so there's nothing to be afraid of, we won't hurt you. You happen to know Kasim Ibn-Harun?"

I pause for a moment. Is there any good in lying? I'd get in more trouble. "Aye".

"You said you were his daughter, but he has no family."

I gulp. "I lied."

"Ah, that makes things more clear, lieutenant," he says with a sidelong glance at the soldier.

He nods in reply, "I knew you wouldn't be wrong, she- ahem, admiral."

"And who exactly is Kasim to you? How'd you end up in his carriage?"

"He-he is a good friend of my father. He promised him to take me to Persia for a trip."

"Hear her Cihangir? A visit! How could you even believe that when the Sayyids hate us- no, you're just a little girl..."

"Will you send me back home?"

"What?"

"In exchange for information, will you send me back home?"

"Fool, you're at the mercy of the great sheh- ahem, admiral, and you're making a deal?" Cihangir glares his dark eyes at me.

"What are you going to do with a frail girl like me? I've never even washed my own clothes- I was never meant to be some slave!" I say, pointing at myself. I am anything but frail, but better say whatever that can get me away from trouble...

All of a sudden, the admiral grabs my wrist and tries to search for something. He doesn't find anything than the gunshot wound, and he grimaces at that. I pull my hand away.

He doesn't react at all, considering something for a while. "Kasim was going to make you a slave too, you know. I can't send you back, a war will break out soon, Beirut being a part of it. Maybe later- I'll consider it."

I sigh. That's the most I can get. I can't help but feel my stomach lurch at the thought that if my family survived the fire, they might not be lucky the second time.

"Alright, then, all I know is that back in Beirut we used to think there was a peace treaty between the Turks and Persians. We even traded with the Safavid. Recently, he was going to pay a visit to the Sayyid Sultan's court, bringing slave girls with him as gifts."

"That treacherous bastard spread the news, I learnt from the report." The lieutenant says.

He just sighs, stands up and motions Cihangir to untie my bonds. "I'm finished with this one. Question a few others if needed to support the warrant for that dog. Also, if she had any injuries, tend to her. My lady-" he reaches out a hand. I ignore it and stand, even though it's difficult, and stare directly face to face.

"You're going to kill him too, aren't you? You really are complete barbarians!" I don't know what to feel about Kasim anymore, but the fact that these cruel men are going to take someone away from me yet again makes my blood boil.

"Take the girl away." He's avoiding my gaze.

"I don't care if he was going to make me a slave, the same thing is happening right now- do you know why your empire is crippling? Blood never sleeps, all the poor men you killed are cursing you dogs-" that earns me a tight slap from Cihangir. I shut my mouth, but my face is glowering and fists clench. I will take revenge for this one day.

"You know what? You don't even deserve to be taken to the palace. Sir, give the orders and I'll-"

He sinks down on a cushioned chair beside the table full of complicated maps, and rakes his dark hair, as if in some mental debate. "Just- just take her away."