Sofia
dishonor must have haunted her sleep, I decided. In the end, only a promise that I would seek the very first shelter, and hide there until light, seemed to calm her. “You’ve hurt your arm,” she was able to choke through sobs then, and tentatively touched the spot.“Just a scratch,” I assured her. “The arrow that killed Crazy Orhan.”
I took the time to wrap it with a strip of my light under -caftan, although it had long ago stopped bleeding. That comforted her, and she was at last willing to brave the horse’s back once more. Much against my better judgment, I kept my promise and when, in the first light of a false dawn I saw an outcropping in the rock above our heads, I led the way to it.
“At least we are out of the gorge,” I said.
I did not admit that, it would, in fact, be safer to wait until sunrise so I could judge better which way we should go.
“Can’t we have a fire?” Safiye complained.
“By God, now you’re really asking to go back to the brigands again. Nothing could give us away more. The smoke from this wet wood...”
But the damp of our clothes was settling in hard now. I could hear Esmikhan’s teeth chattering even through her veils. So I sighed and gave in, thinking the activity of gathering wood would keep us warm at least. And since there was very little chance I could get a spark going in such dampness, it would be time to move on before the dream of a fire ever became a reality.
Some dry leaves, twigs, and pine needles blown into the back of the overhang were a help, and I did in fact manage to get some smoke going. Even I was so cold by then that I was glad to see it come. But before my exultation quite carried me away, I heard a noise in the gorge below us. I smothered the smoke with my damp fur cloak. The girls moaned in disbelief and horror, but I motioned them in no uncertain terms to be silent.
Our horses nickered. Old friends of theirs were approaching. Then we heard voices. Soon, although the speakers remained invisible, their words were quite plain.
“There. Up under that overhang. Smoke. Smell it?”
“Yes, by Allah!”
A few moments passed while they climbed closer. In the predawn light, I saw two shadows, possibly three. They were close enough to hit with a stone, and I actually did pick one up, assuming that was what I would have to defend us with.
“No. Look. It’s just the girls and the eunuch.”
“I told you so. The dervish would not leave a trail like that. A trail like an elephant.”
“He left no trail, that dervish.”
“Are you sure he isn’t with them? The dervish?”
“No, I don’t think so.”
“He left no trail, I tell you.”
“If you ask my opinion, the dervish isn’t a man at all. Iblis, a devil, a jinni.”
The two other men spoke words to protect themselves from such an eventuality.
“I told you it was foolish to start after him in the first place.”
“But the blood of our slain comrades demands it. That was my brother he killed.”
“And six others, all our true companions.”
“By Allah, he moved like the very Angel of Death. No, no human could have done that—against fully armed men.”
“And then to just disappear... No, it is beyond us, comrades, as I said from the start. Let us admit the will of Allah when we see it and seek no more vengeance against devils.”
There was agreement and the shadows began to retreat.
“Well, here, let’s take the horses at least. The girls and the eunuch—thev’11 die of the cold in any case. No use letting good horseflesh go with them.”
“No, no use at all,” the other agreed.
In a moment, our mounts were gone, but along with them, our foes.
“They didn’t come and get us,” Esmikhan exclaimed, amazed and thanking heaven.
“They didn’t even care.” Safiye stamped her loot. “How is that possible? Do you know what ransom they were asking? Two thousand ghrush ! How is it possible that they could just turn their back on us so?”
Then she went to the edge of the outcropping and shouted to the drizzle, “Fools! Damnable fools!”
“Well, you heard what they said.” I was trying to explain our miraculous delivery to her as well as to myself. “Seven of their number must be dead, including Orhan and his son. It was Orhan who was really the driving force behind our kidnapping. His eve—it’s been burning in his head all these years and now Allah has finally given him peace. The others—I don’t suppose they had any personal grudge against Sokolli Pasha or the royal house. I think we may say that the bandits of Crazy Orhan are now effectively disbanded and will not bother the Porte again. Allah be praised.”
“Fool!” Safiye said to me.
“Can you think of a better explanation?”
“Fool!” she said again, this time shouting it out over the countryside. “You praise Allah,” she returned to me once more. “But now we don’t even have any horses. The man was right. We are bound to die out here.”
“But we can at least light a fire now without fear,” I said, beginning to gather kindling in earnest.
Esmikhan bent to help me, and even tore off a bit of the hem of her veil to get things started.
“Patience, dear Safiye,” she begged of her friend. “Really, we have much to thank Allah for.”
“Yes,” I agreed as a tiny flame leaped to life. “Allah, in the person of that mysterious holy man.”
By the time the sun rose, I’d finally gotten the girls comfortable enough to sleep. I slept, too, although somewhat fitfully. Once I started wide awake. I’d dreamed a re-enactment of our escape from the brigands, but this time there was no mistaking the face on the dervish as he whirled from victim to victim. It was my old friend, Husayn.
By God, I thought. The things men dream! But even waking