Steampunk Omnibus: A Galvanic Century Collection (33 page)

"Why did they take you?" Penny asked.

"Slavery had been outlawed in the Empire the year I was born, but under Abdülhamid the ban was not much enforced in the outskirts of the Empire."

"You were a slave?"

"I remember a long march to the sea. I remember listening to the cries of the older women at night when the soldiers would... beat them... and worry if I was to be next. I remember a cramped boat that took me to a city -- İskenderiye, perhaps, or Suwais. A loathsome Macedonian merchant bought me and took me to his villa. He was an evil man, a cruel man, who took delight in harsh punishments for the smallest of slights."

"I'm so sorry for your pain," Aldora said.

"It is my pain that has made me strong," Safiyya said. "I survived. And when I was sixteen, I was rescued -- saved by Cemal Bey. He killed the man who had been my tormentor, took me into his household, brought physicians to heal me. I owe him more than my freedom -- I owe him my life."

"What an amazing story," Penny said.

"I am a learned woman, but for the time being I serve Cemal. Not because I am his, not because he owns me, not because I am woman and he man, but because I owe him a debt. It is not a debt I can ever repay, perhaps, but it is my choice to shoulder such obligation. In that, perhaps for the first time in my life, I have freedom."

The scars, Aldora decided, did not mar the dark woman's otherwise flawless skin. They were a sign of strength, a testament to what Safiyya could endure. She had little doubt that the woman's story was more traumatic and awful than the sanitised version she had told in front of Penny. To live as long as she had without hope of rescue, subjected to what amounted to torture and abuse... she could not say how she herself would fare under such treatment, or if she would not have simply taken her own life.

"You say you are educated?" Aldora said.

"I joined Cemal's household while he was an officer in Macedonia," Safiyya said, slipping her towel back over her shoulders, turning to dangle her powerful lean legs in the hot water. "I served him as
yaver
-- what the English military would call a batman -- even though I was not a soldier, and he taught me to read and write. After the revolution, and the colleges were made to admit women, Cemal Bey enrolled me in the law program at
İstanbul Darülfünûnu
."

"Law. Are you a solicitor?"

"I am trained in the law, and I volunteer to campaign for the rights of women in the Empire, but for now my chosen occupation is to serve Cemal Bey."

"Women seem to have so much more freedom here," Aldora said. "The transformation is amazing. I have to admit a degree of envy."

"If you're envious, then I'm doing my job as advocate well." Safiyya smiled.

Aldora chuckled, then sat up on the stone. "Where's Penny?"

"Your ward?" Safiyya turned to the bath attendant. "
Küçük kız nereye gitti
?"

"
Çocuk sıcak bir odaya gitti
," the woman said.

"She's gone on to the next bath chamber."

Aldora sighed in frustration. "She's so impatient to go and see her friend."

"Let's go and fetch her," Safiyya said. "I will wait for the men in the coffee house, and you two can go meet this friend. I will pass your regards on to Cemal."

Aldora's felt her face colour. "Thank you, Safiyya."

The valet leaned forward conspiratorially. "He's rather fond of you, you know. I can tell."

"Well, I..." Aldora stammered. "I shall go and fetch Penelope, and we will meet you in the coffee house before we go."

Safiyya's mirthful laughter followed her as she slipped on her wooden sandals, grabbed her woven cotton towel, and quickly but stiffly walked from the room.

***

A long corridor led Aldora to the next chamber. Cemal Bey had reserved the baths for the early part of the day, and while he, Herr Brugmann, the Comte, and Mr. Herbert enjoyed the men's facilities, Aldora, Safiyya, and Penny had the women's half to themselves. Other than the attendant she'd left in the hot room with the valet she had not seen any staff; they must have been given the day off.

The facility's layout was similar to the Turkish baths popular in London. The first room had been dry but very hot, allowing a patron to steam themselves into a fine sweat. The second room, where she had left Safiyya, was serviced by warm water, where the bathers could cleanse themselves and relax. The third chamber was fed by a cool running stream, and had within it a number of small private relaxation nooks. She didn't see her ward upon entering.

"Penelope?" Aldora called, passing from alcove to alcove.

The cool room --
frigidarium
to the Romans, lord knew what the Turks called it -- was the last stop before leaving, and the girls' clothing had been left -- cleaned and neatly folded -- in the niches. She found her own garments quickly enough, noted Safiyya's in the next niche, but Penny's were nowhere to be found.

Had the girl dressed and run off? Should she, Aldora, go after her, not knowing the city, or where this Kalil lived? Penny's father had let his daughter run freely through the great cities of Europe, but Aldora didn't feel comfortable not knowing where her adopted daughter was. Still, if Penny could take care of herself -- and Aldora had no reason to believe otherwise -- that left her free to stay with Cemal for coffee and the theatre afterwards...

Aldora's ruminations were interrupted when strong hands grabbed her from behind, heavy masculine arms wrapping around her torso, a solid forearm across her neck and one across her ribs. She was yanked back, off of her feet, only able to give the tiniest of yelps before the pressure at her throat cut the air from her lungs.

She struck back almost instinctively with her elbow, but her attacker was arched away, maintaining his grip while keeping himself out of range. She stamped back with the heel of her sandalled foot towards where she imagined his instep to be, but only managed to chip the bathhouse tiles.

Her vision began to grey out at the edges and the man pulled back on her neck again, almost bending her over backwards. She used that momentum to kick herself up and out of her sandals, feet scrabbling for purchase on the bathhouse wall, and launching herself into an almost vertical lift above her attacker. The sudden movement unbalanced him and sent him stumbling back into the cool water of the chamber's pool, letting go of the Englishwoman as he hit its surface.

Aldora pushed away from his body and turned to face the man who had grabbed her. He was a Turk; dressed in dark clothing, a curved dagger at his sash, floating motionless in the water. His head lay upon the edge of the pool where he'd fallen, his neck twisted at an unnatural angle where he'd landed on the edge. The assassin -- if assassin he was -- was dead.

Sudden fear for her ward's safety filled Aldora's mind. She pulled the dagger from the dead man's sash, climbed out of the pool, and ran back down the corridor to the warm room, bare feet slapping on the stone tile floor.

The warm room was empty, devoid of Safiyya or the bath attendant, so Aldora continued through it towards the steam room. There, she could see two figures partially concealed by the steam. The smaller one was undoubtedly the Sudanese woman, but the other figure -- bulky, dressed in dark clothing, but with pale skin -- was another assassin, and it looked as though he was creeping up on her friend.

Aldora's tread shifted to the balls of her feet, minimising the sound of her pace.

She practically flew into the hot steam room, launching herself at the assassin and driving her knee into the man's spine at the small of his back.

He buckled with a whining gasp. She grabbed the back of his head below the nape of the turban that he wore, using the force of her impact to drive the man crashing to the floor.

Safiyya whirled and gave a surprised cry at the sight of the unexpected melee.

The man rolled to the side, trying to throw Aldora off of his back as he drew his dagger. The Englishwoman was quicker and drew her own blade's curved edge across his throat, slicing open his trachea and ending his life with a helpless gurgle.

Safiyya stared down at the dead man with a mixture of horror and confusion on her face.

"Assassins!" Aldora said. "Another attacked me in the cool room."

Safiyya continued staring at her in shock for a moment before understanding broke over her face. "We must alert Cemal Bey!"

"Penny is missing," Aldora said. "We have to find her."

Safiyya ran towards the cold room, followed swiftly by her companion. "She may have escaped... you said yourself she was trying to sneak out. Running off after her into the city will only expose you to what killers remain."

Every instinct urged Aldora to go looking for her adoptive daughter, but the Sudanese woman was right. Cemal's resources were extensive, he knew the city, and he might have insight into who had tried to have her killed.

A stray thought almost stopped her cold, causing her to stumble. She had assumed the assassins were targeting her. It seemed she had the nasty habit of making enemies of dangerous men -- but she'd been in the country for less than twenty-four hours, and hadn't given anyone cause to attack her. The fact that Safiyya had been attacked as well indicated that whatever was going on might not be about her.

She realised that, for once, she had no idea what was going on.

***

"What in blazes is going on?" the British ambassador asked.

"I wish I could tell you, Sir Lowther," Aldora said.

"The facts of the matter are quite plain," Cemal said, resting a bandaged hand on top of the conference table. His gaze passed from the Sir Lowther to the German, American, and French ambassadors, each of whom had gathered in the British embassy's conference room, along with the Bey, his guard captain Uğur, and Aldora.

"A gang of armed thugs covertly entered the hamam, bribing the staff to depart, and forcibly abducted Mr. Brugmann, Comte Montagni and Mr. Herbert, and attempted to abduct Ms. Fiske. They attempted to kill myself and my valet."

"I am unsurprised Ms. Fiske managed to fight them off," Sir Lowther said. "Formidable woman that she is."

Aldora managed not to grimace at the man, her face stone. She had little love for the overbearing knight.

"This is unacceptable," Von Bieberstein, the German Ambassador, said. "What are you doing to recover Herr Brugmann?"

Captain Uğur shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He was a large man -- not fat, simply big, tall and broad. The elegantly carved wooden chair he sat in was insufficient to accommodate the width of his hips, and from the ginger way he shifted she believed that he feared a collapse at any moment.

"My valet is working with the police to find out whatever we can about these kidnappers," Cemal said. "I can assure you that the Committee of Union and Progress is making this a matter of highest priority."

"Do you believe Minister Viviani and his wife are to be targeted as well?" the French ambassador Bompard asked. Of those present, he was the eldest, his neatly trimmed beard and moustache a pure white. "They never arrived for their appointment."

"We fear so," Uğur said, his voice a low rumble, his English imprecise. "Men out looking for them, but for now we think they taken."

"So a coordinated attack?" American ambassador Rockhill asked. "What is it these assassins are after?"

"That has yet to be determined," Cemal said. "But rest assured, I will personally be investigating the matter."

Von Bieberstein folded his hands. "And you may 'rest assured', Cemal Bey, that the German Empire does not look kindly upon states that cannot guarantee the safety of its citizens."

"Nor does France," Bompard said. "Viviani is a government minister, for the love of God. I cannot guarantee that the Republic can leave this matter in the hands of the Ottoman Empire."

"I understand your positions," Cemal said, "and the Empire is grateful for any assistance the powers of Europe care to render. But understand, this is a matter of honour. It is only two years since the Committee took control, and foreign intervention would be seen by the monarchists as a sign of weakness, of letting Europe dictate Imperial policy. I trust I am not being too bold in saying that none of us -- not the Young Turks, not your nations -- want an Ottoman return to dictatorship."

"I understand the political implications," Bompard said, "But the decision is not mine to make."

"If France intervenes, so shall Germany." Von Bieberstein made a fist.

"I am not asking for a promise of non-intervention," Cemal said. "All I am asking for is time to uncover the conspiracy which has taken your citizens. Time to rescue them. Let us view this as an opportunity to forge stronger bonds between our peoples."

"I can support that," Rockhill said.

Ambassador Bompard drummed his fingers on the table. "I will do what I can to afford you the time you require."

"Such is all I ask."

"But you must keep the French embassy informed."

"Of course."

"And the German embassy," Von Bieberstein said.