Chapter 21: Whispers in the Shadows

The dim lanterns cast long shadows across the stone walls of the palace as Laila made her way down the corridor, her mind preoccupied with the events of the day. The meeting with the nobles had gone well enough, but their loyalty was fragile, tied more to promises of power than true allegiance. Every step she took felt heavier with the knowledge that time was running out.

Her thoughts kept circling back to her uncles—Zayd and Zubair—and their roles in this power struggle. Zayd, quiet and calculating, had remained frustratingly neutral, but Laila knew he couldn’t stay on the sidelines forever. Zubair, Tariq and Jamal’s father, had distanced himself from his sons’ ambitions, yet his silence still loomed like a dark cloud. It was impossible to know which way either man might turn.