Amani hadn't known the Falcon had planned on leaving Ziyad's oasis that very night, but it suited her just fine. The sooner she left the Spider in the dunes, the sooner she could leave her humiliation behind.
The Falcon's princess had been the one to accept her into their caravan, allowing her to put on the green of their people rather than having to bear the shame of wearing Ziyad's black.
He'd divorced her. Of all the things she thought she'd have to bear with the Spider, she'd never once foreseen that he would completely cast her aside. It proved to her that he'd never cared for her. All the talk of being cold and needing her had been nothing more than a ruse to get her to sleep with him.
To bear him an heir.
Amani's heart burned. She hated him. No, she didn't hate him. She loved him. It hurt so very much every time his face swam before her eyes. Each night she'd dreamt of him, and each night it had been the same nightmare. He'd denounced her in front of his people, and in front of his peer, the Falcon Prince.
There was no doubt in her mind the Spider had been waiting for a chance to be rid of her. His heart was buried with Karis. He was so deep into his first wife's grave that he was never going to emerge.
It was far better to love a man who loved her in return. Perhaps this was a blessing in disguise. She was now free to marry for love. That is, if any man on Jikkar could see past her disgrace. She'd been tossed aside by one of the most powerful men in the Golden Desert.
She'd be hard-pressed to find another husband.
And this would no doubt bring shame onto her father's house, as the governor of Suridesh.
Amani hadn't wanted the Falcon's servants to bring her food and water, but she didn't have the courage to leave her carav. Despite the fact that the Falcon's people were more than hospitable, she couldn't face the idea that they were probably whispering among themselves about her.
She pulled a golden chain from around her neck that had been hiding under her robes. On it was her Spider ring. She hadn't given it back to Ziyad before leaving him in the dust. Amani couldn't bring herself to wear it any longer, but she couldn't be parted from it, either. Zara had told her it was a piece of Ziyad, with her always.
Despite the fact that he'd made it painfully clear he didn't want her, nothing would ever stop her from wanting him and dreaming of the way it could have been—if he'd chosen to marry her instead of Karis those years ago.
True, she'd be the one in the grave at the Spider's oasis.
But she would have died knowing the depths of a man's love.
Thirteen
"I must call the Princes' Council."
Zara glanced at her husband after he'd spoken. Their carav was dark aside from one lit lamp. Khalil sat on his throne, deep in thought.
She'd been sitting amongst the pillows, playing with their son who was delighted to chase after a ball fashioned of leather. Zara had never seen the Falcon so pensive.
"You do not believe the Spider will let it lie." She knew her husband well. And he, in turn, knew Ziyad.
Khalil shook his head. "No, he won't. What he did to Amani was done in the heat of the moment. He wasn't thinking straight. He will follow us to Suridesh and demand Amani return to his caravan. I need the other princes to make him see reason."
"You mean to keep Amani from him?" Zara asked, her eyes wide. "What if she wishes to return?"
Khalil took a deep breath. "Ziyad cannot merely whisk her away. She is no longer his wife. But if he wants to keep her, the council can force him to accept her as his princess. If the Spider accepts those terms, then it will indeed be up to Amani to stay or go."
"You would be forcing him to turn away from Karis."
Khalil's eyes narrowed, but Zara knew his frustration wasn't aimed at her. "Karis is dead. Ziyad is too damned loyal for his own good."
Zara stood and wandered over to him, threading her fingers through Khalil's thick hair. Instantly, green bloomed with grey and brown in her mind. It was her magical ability, to see colors and intentions whenever she touched another.
And Khalil was both worried and angry.
"The Spider Prince has been through Kaldaeron, my love," she said gently. "He's been raked over the coals time and again. His wife and unborn heir were struck down. He has been unable to find their killers. And he needed another wife to bear him a son. Could you be so willing to take another woman to your bed if I had died with Akim in my belly?"
Zara watched as Khalil glanced at their young son toddling near the pillows. The boy turned and gave his father a toothy grin.
"Gods, Zara, don't make me think of it."
"I must," she whispered. "If only to allow you to give Ziyad your mercy. He cares for Amani. But his loyalty to Karis has been weighing him down. Perhaps this is what will wake him up and bring him out of his despair. Perhaps this is what will make him realize he needs Amani."
Khalil nodded. "That is exactly my intention. Amani loves Ziyad, but what he did broke her heart. I'm not so sure she will take him back. And then where will the Spider be?"
Zara licked her lips and thought of the options. "He will become a hardened, jaded man. He won't care about anything or anyone."
"Yes," Khalil agreed. "He is afraid of that possibility just as much as we are. He will come for Amani. In his mind, she still belongs to him. But he cannot continue to treat her like a servant. I am willing to take the gamble that Ziyad is smart enough to make Amani the mother of his caravan rather than turn her away for good. He's in too deep now. Perhaps he could have turned her away after their marriage, but now…" Khalil shook his head.
"I touched him, right before he divorced Amani. I saw his colors. I believe he loves her. He just hasn't realized it yet."
"Then we must make him realize it."
Zara and Khalil stared at each other for a few long seconds. "How will you call the others?" she asked.
Khalil grinned and pulled her down to his lap. "I will summon my falcons to take them messages. It won't be long before every prince in the desert descends upon Suridesh." ~ * ~
Ziyad left his water caravs behind in order to travel faster. He'd considered merely saddling a horse and taking a few men and supplies to intercept the Falcon. But lighting out across the desert without the necessary supplies he'd need would be a suicide mission. He knew where Khalil was going. He'd merely arrive a little behind him.
Ziyad hadn't been in his right mind the night Amani left. He'd holed himself within his carav and let his own sorrow and self-loathing overcome him. But in the light of dawn, determination had taken their place.
Amani was his, and he wasn't about to give up without fighting for her. She had to know he'd been venting his anger. He didn't truly wish for her to leave him. It also didn't help matters that every time he gazed at his throne, he thought only of his wife's sweet pussy and her soft, hot sighs in his ear.
There was no way he was going to live the rest of his life without experiencing her touch again. Unlike Karis, Amani was alive. And as long as she was alive, she was his wife.
Ziyad wanted to push his caravan. He wanted to travel at night, like the Falcon did. But they were also traveling by day. While the Sentinels could handle it, Ziyad knew his people could not. But he didn't allow them long to rest. They set out long before the sun rose, and camped long after the sun set.
By the gods, he was going to make it to Suridesh before the week was out.
~ * ~
There it was, the tent city, gleaming in the sand like a mirage. Amani squinted and shielded her eyes from the hot sun, but that didn't stop her wide grin. It hadn't been long since she'd left her father's tent, but it seemed like ages. She couldn't wait to see her sisters again, and her mother, who would no doubt demand the Spider's head on her bractav platter.
At Zara's urgings, Amani had finally emerged from her carav and walked with the caravan. She'd even eaten with Zara in the kitchen. Amani remembered trying to do the same with Ziyad's people, but feeling uncomfortable in their presence. However it was obvious the Falcon's people loved their princess and jumped over themselves to do her bidding.
Now, she and Zara walked together in the sand, only a few leagues away from their destination.
"Ziyad will come for you," Zara said, giving her a sideways glance. "Make no mistake."
Amani shivered in spite of the sweat rolling down her back. "He does not want me."
"Oh yes he does. That man has been trying to rebuild himself after his world was destroyed. I don't know him well, but what I do know is that he will fight for what he considers his, and from what I saw at his oasis, he still considers you his wife."
Amani scowled. "Then he should have thought about that before speaking the words that released me from our bond."
"Unfortunately, Ziyad is not one for thinking before acting. He is impulsive, but fiercely loyal. I do not believe he meant to divorce you. Khalil and I were trying to convince him to see you as his princess. I am sure his anger was directed toward us, not you."
Amani turned to look at the princess. "Whatever his reasoning, it does not matter. We would need to be remarried."
"Not necessarily."
"What do you mean?"
Zara wiped her brow. "Khalil has sent his falcons to summon the princes of the Golden Desert. He wants to call a council."
Being the daughter of the governor, Amani knew what that meant. If two princes couldn't settle a dispute, they called a council to settle it, relying on the decisions of their peers to judge fairly. And the governor of Suridesh presided.
"A council for what?" she asked.
"If Ziyad is willing to claim you as his princess, then your wedding vows will stand, assuming you choose to stay with him. If he is not willing, or if you do not wish to be with him any longer, then you will be divorced.
"However, it is not as easy as it sounds. The princes must vote on what they deem is right. They will hear what Ziyad did to you and choose if he deserves to be your husband. If they vote no, then he cannot be your husband, even if he is willing to claim you as his princess, and even if you wish to go with him."
Amani knitted her brows. "So the princes must vote on whether our vows are still intact, then Ziyad must be willing to claim me and I make my choice?"
Zara nodded. "Correct."
"I don't know if I can go through with it."
The Falcon Princess gave her a sharp glance. "Why not?"
"If Ziyad is forced to make me his princess, then can we truly be happy? His resentment will fester until he lashes out once more."
Zara walked in silence before speaking again. "Did you notice a change in him? Before he spoke so harshly to you?"
Amani looked down at the sand and bit her lip, remembering. "He…opened up to me more than I thought he would. He told me he was only warm—in my arms. And…he wanted me to sit with him at the feast, even though I wasn't royalty. That's what started everything."
Zara rubbed Amani's shoulder when she heard the tears in her voice. "Ziyad is an intensely private person. The fact that he told you something from the heart is proof enough he cares for you. He was conflicted about where you should sit at the feast because you are his wife, but he'd previously declared you weren't his princess. His feelings were warring within him." She squeezed Amani's shoulder. "I have no doubt the Spider wants you to be his princess, but felt his duty was otherwise. Khalil believes, as do I, that the Princes' Council will open Ziyad's eyes and make him see what his heart has known all along."
"And what if you're wrong? What if Ziyad took his water supply on to Parradh and washed his hands of me?"
Zara looked Amani in the eye. "Peer into your heart of hearts, Amani. Do you truly believe he did? With all you know of Ziyad Bihar, do you believe a man such as that would back down from a fight? Would he give up so easily? Would he lie down and accept this defeat?"
Amani sighed deeply. She shook her head.
Zara continued. "Then you must prepare yourself for seeing him again, and ask yourself if you're willing to return to his caravan. Loving a man is easy. It's staying with him that's the hard part."
Fourteen
Now that the Falcon's caravan had pulled up to the gates of Suridesh, Amani had second thoughts about visiting with her parents. She didn't wish for her shame to become theirs. A few people ran out to greet them, presumably friends and families of those who rode with the Falcon through the dunes.