Chapter 20 The Greedy Mistress #2
Bahiti grabbed a fistful of Zahra’s hair, dragging her backward across the floor. Zahra writhed, pulling against Bahiti as much as she could bear. “Please. Please!”
The other servants did nothing but look away. Those in front of the kitchen door moved aside. A few began returning to their duties as the door was shut to the kitchen with Bahiti and Zahra on the other side.
Bahiti dragged Zahra by her hair and arm into a small back room with random old trinkets and antiques that Bahiti did not want in the house but couldn’t bear to get rid of. There were no windows, and the only light came from a small hole that had developed from a crack in the wall.
Bile rose in Zahra’s throat as the memories of being trapped in that space flooded her mind. Bahiti threw Zahra’s small frame against the cold wall. Zahra let out a cry as her bones connected with the wall and floor, and she choked down a sob.
Bahiti picked up a wooden rod, still discolored from its last brutal use. “Hurry up, girl. I don’t have all day.”
Zahra trembled. All reason or thought of escape left her mind. All she could do was try to delay the inevitable. “M—Mistress, please. Can we wait until tomorrow? Your daughters—”
“Do not use my daughters as an excuse. You are lucky this is your only punishment and that I am not reporting you to the medjay for accusing me of theft.” Bahiti waved her hand. “The dress, girl. Take it off and turn around.”
Zahra stiffened. Slowly, she turned around and pulled her shawl over her head. Her hands shook terribly, making it difficult for her to grab the straps of her dress.
“Hurry, sobki,” Bahiti spat.
Zahra flinched. She removed the straps one by one, letting her dress fall down her back. The straps hung around her elbows, exposing her back to the cool air. Her curls fell around her face as she placed her palms on the wall, bracing herself.
Do not flinch. Do not cry. Do not show her your fear.
The first blow vibrated through Zahra’s spine.
Her throat squeaked as she suppressed a cry.
The second blow was harder, but she endured.
She had to. Zahra was knocked to her knees with the third blow, which landed on the site of the first. She let out a cry as she bumped into some old pottery. It shattered beside her.
Bahiti scoffed. “Clumsy girl. Those pots will be added to your debt.”
Zahra shivered on the ground, her palms still flat against the wall. She closed her eyes as Bahiti landed another blow. And another. And another.
Zahra’s cries escaped her throat, and her moans echoed her memories: the beatings, the torture, the deaths she was forced to endure.
Zahra screamed, though she was numb to her reactions. All she felt was pain.
Zahra still flinched when she heard the crack, but it took until she did not hear another one to realize the last hit had not hit her. Ringing penetrated her ears, her sight blinded by light and tears.
A man stood between her and Bahiti. The rod landed at Bahiti’s feet. “Leave,” he growled, and she was gone.
Kanefer. Why was he here? He was supposed to be with Darius in Khem.
Zahra gathered her dress around her chest as he came toward her. The world spun, and her body crashed into the floor.
“Zahra.” He touched her arm, and she screamed and kicked him.
“Leave me!” Her limbs shook, numb and uncoordinated as she sat up, trying to escape. But there was nowhere to go. He was blocking the door.
The man pulled his hand back. “I am here to help you.”
“You abandoned me,” Zahra cried. “You told me that you would save me, but you lied!”
“I am sorry.” His voice was tense with emotion. “Zahra, I am here now. I shouldn’t have left you.”
She smacked his hand. “Stay away from me, Kanefer!”
There was a moment of silence before his voice came again. “Zahra, look at me. She is gone. Bahiti is gone!”
Zahra froze. His words rang through her mind. Kanefer had never spoken about Bahiti in that tone. He sounded angry, determined even. This was not Kanefer.
She blinked hard, focusing on the face before her. Her lips quivered as she spoke, her voice small. “Namir?”
“Yes.” His black eyes were horrified, watching her as if she was unrecognizable.
Zahra’s stomach flipped over, and she struggled for breath. “Y—You can’t be here.”
Namir moved closer, pausing as she flinched. “Why not?”
“You were not supposed to see.” It was after she said the words that she realized what they had meant. He had seen her. He had seen it all.
Namir spoke, but Zahra did not hear it. He had seen. He knew. And, unlike everyone else that learned of her secret, he wouldn’t forget.
“Zahra?” Namir asked. “Can you hear me?”
Zahra crawled away, hiding herself the best she could. “D—Don’t look.”
“I must,” Namir said, removing his cloak. She flinched as he offered it to her. “Zahra, you are not well.”
“I am fine.” She hugged her knees to her chest, hiding in the darkest corner of the room. “You can leave. I will see you tomorrow—”
“No.” Namir shook his head. “I will not. I am sorry. I will do anything for you, but I will not leave you here.”
Zahra choked down a sob. “Why did you come?”
“I came for you.” He watched her with careful eyes. “Ramses had seen you come inside, and when I came looking for you, I heard—” His gaze focused on the bloody rod on the ground near them.
Zahra shut her eyes, turning her head away. Her lip trembled as tears rolled down her cheeks.
“Zahra, I want to help.” His voice cracked. “What can I do for you?” He moved to stand. “I will get a physician. I will have Ramses—”
“No. No, please.” She turned toward him, reaching out with her shaking hand. “Don’t leave. Please, don’t leave me!”
Namir dropped to the ground. “I will not. I will stay right here.” He moved his hand toward her, though he kept it flat on the floor. “I will not leave you.”
Zahra hiccupped as another cry tried to escape her throat. She leaned against the wall, clutching her dress around her. Sleep tugged at her eyelids, but she forced them open, staring at Namir’s curls as if looking away would make him leave.
After several moments of Zahra’s heavy breathing echoing in the room, Namir’s voice came softly. “What would you like to do?”
His words surprised her. She shivered, afraid to respond. “I want to leave this place.”
Namir accepted her decision with a slight nod. He opened his mouth with hesitation. “May I touch you?”
After a few moments of silence, Zahra nodded. He moved closer to her, holding up his cloak. With great care, he placed the cloak around her. She hissed in pain, and he whispered an apology. He returned the straps of her dress to her shoulders with the same gentleness.
With her permission, he slipped his hands under her neck and legs, lifting her slowly into the air. She wrapped her arms around his neck, afraid he would drop her. He held her with such strength that the fear left her mind, and she buried her tear-covered face in his shirt.
Zahra listened only to his breathing as Namir carried her, ignoring the whispers of the other servants and the quiet complaining of the sisters. Ramses gasped when he saw them, but Namir said nothing as he carried Zahra away from her master’s house.