Chapter 4 #2
elegant delivery methods. More her style. We used to joke that of the three of us, I could kill you up close, Tinbu could
kill you from another ship, and Dalila could kill you from a different city three days later.
I drank back the entire cup.
She cackled. “Oh, nakhudha, I have missed you.”
“Enough to stop jesting about my death?”
Dalila shrugged, finally taking a sip from her own cup. “That depends. How’s my baby?”
“Marjana is flourishing, God be praised. She is lovely and kind and nothing like either of her parents.”
A hint of relief flickered in her face. Dalila was the only person I allowed to attend Marjana’s birth. The only person I
trusted to do what was necessary if my worst fears came true. “I am glad to hear it.”
“What about you? Have you a life beyond trying to burn down your workshop in an experimental blaze?” I glanced around. “I
see no evidence of a husband.”
Dalila laughed again. “Men are your weakness, Amina. Not mine.”
“Come now,” I persisted. “Companionship has occasional benefits.”
“You do not need men for companionship. And Kamran tried to stab you. Twice .”
“Yes, but in my defense, it was my first marriage, and he was distractingly pretty.”
“You threw the second one off the Marawati stark naked.”
“We were at port, it was warm, and he was an excellent swimmer. Besides, I upgraded to Salih after, and he was lovely. Even
you liked him.”
“He was an extremely impressive cutpurse,” Dalila admitted. Then she gave me a pointed look. “And the husband after Salih?”
I cleared my throat. “Never mind marriage. Still... being cooped up in here must get dull, no? You are perhaps desiring
an adventure beyond alchemy and poisoning the neighborhood grooms?”
Dalila leaned against a cushion. “How abruptly you puncture the illusion this visit was prompted by friendship.”
“I apologize for my rudeness. Asif al-Hilli’s mother came to visit me.”
The humor left her eyes. “What? Does she—”
“No,” I said quickly. “It wasn’t about... about what happened to him.” I hesitated, my heart still a mess when it came
to Asif. “He had a daughter, Dalila. A wife.”
“Ah.” Her lips thinned. “I guess they got left out of those stories about how terrible his family was.”
I grimaced. “That’s not fair. He was young.”
“He was a fool.” But her blunt words were tinged with grief. “A fool who made a deal anyone else would have seen was a trap.”
It was difficult not to flinch at that—Asif wasn’t the only fool. “He didn’t deserve what happened to him,” I said instead.
Dalila sighed, returning to the matter at hand. “So, Asif had a daughter and wife he walked out on, and now his rich mother
has tracked you down. Why?”
“You may have to steady yourself. She believes his daughter was kidnapped by some Frank prowling about Aden.”
Dalila went completely still. “A Frank? A Frank prowling about Aden?”
I frowned. “Have you heard of such a man?”
“You might say that.” Dalila rose to her feet, heading for a trunk in the corner. “A man matching that exact description wrote
to me last year.”
I gasped. “He wrote to you ? How? I didn’t think anyone else even knew where you were.”
“You are bold to assume such a priority in my life. There are a few others who know how to contact me, but none I could imagine
foolish enough to share that information.” Dalila unlocked the trunk and rifled through a messy stack of letters and broken
scrolls before plucking one out. “Yet this foreigner was able to get his note into my hands.”
“What did he want?”
“It is best heard directly from its insane source.” Dalila brought the letter to her face, squinted, and then held it farther
out to read aloud. “‘To the Mistress of Poisons, I have heard great tales of your feats and accomplishments. I, too, am a
Seeker of Truth and’... well, here he mostly brags about himself for a paragraph, comparing his intellect to Aristotle’s
and his fighting prowess to Samson’s—”
“Modest.”
“Yes, he is quite humble. He continues: ‘I will pay most handsomely for your expertise in the manner of vapors and humoral
sciences in both coin and knowledge. If you are interested in peering past the mysteries of the Veil to see the Unseen and
quench thy thirst on the magic of the Hidden Realm, I would be delighted to guide you. I look forward to your response.’”
“He sounds like a drunk witch.” I grimaced. “I don’t like it. You know how I feel about magic.”
Dalila waved off my concern. “These are the sort who see a card trick and believe it an act of the greatest sorcery. The Frank
said he intended to visit Aden last spring and that if I desired a meeting, he had an agent by the name of Layth.”
“Salima said a local agent set up their meeting as well. And Aden in the spring would put him in the city when Dunya was kidnapped.” I quickly related the rest of Salima’s story.
Dalila looked skeptical. “Ransom?”
“None, which has been gnawing at me. Salima said there has been no further contact.”
“So she has no proof this man is involved?”
“That was my response as well. But the family apparently has quite the treasure trove of talismanic items. If Falco is the
same man who sent you that ridiculous letter, I could certainly see him being interested in their stash.”
“Still, it is strikingly slim evidence to have lured you out of retirement.” Dalila gave me a knowing look. “What did she
offer?”
“A hundred thousand dinars if we learn the girl’s location.” Despite the circumstances, it was impossible not to grin. “A million if we retrieve her. As well as any plunder we recover from the Frank.”
Dalila let out a soft breath: not even a daughter of the Banu Sasan could remain stone-faced at the prospect of such a sum.
“Do you believe she has that kind of money?”
“She gave me ten thousand as a deposit. For ten thousand dinars, I am happy to go ask some questions in Aden and check on
the Marawati . We shall see what we uncover and take it from there.”
“Oh, is it ‘we’ already? I do not recall agreeing.”
“I mean, if you fear your skills have deteriorated...”
“Amina, you nearly jumped out of your sandals when I appeared. Do not insult me out of pretense.” Dalila squinted at my face
again. “Does it not seem a bit coincidental that this Frank has learned of two different members of your crew?”
“It is far too coincidental,” I agreed. “Which is even further motivation. You should come with me to Aden and make sure we
thoroughly investigate matters.”
Dalila rolled her eyes. But then she paused.
“I used to wonder, you know, what would finally bring you back. Whenever a strange message showed up, whenever an unexpected shadow fell over my doorstep, I would think, ‘This is it. She has some new score, some new scheme.’” Dalila met my gaze, her face carefully expressionless.
“But then one year turned into two. Five. A decade.”
I opened and closed my mouth, lost for words at the unexpected confession: Dalila and sentiment had always seemed enemies.
“I didn’t think any of you wanted to see me again,” I said. “Not after how things ended.”
“That end wasn’t your fault, Amina. Maybe if you had bothered to write, I could have assured you of such and you would not
have spent the past ten years as a hermit, ignoring the rest of us.” I flushed with shame, but before I could apologize, she
changed the subject in her abrupt, enigmatic way. “Though I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised it would be the most dangerous
of jobs that would tempt you back.”
Even more heat crept into my face. “Yes. Ah... that is actually why I came to you first,” I admitted, feeling extremely
sheepish. “You know how I have a tendency to misjudge risk?”
She snorted. “You are an excellent judge of risk. Your problem is that you run toward it.”
“I can’t this time. I promised my mother and daughter that I’d come home safe. That I’d walk away if things got too dangerous.”
I attempted some groveling. “Dalila, I have never met anyone with your skills. If there’s anyone who can help me keep that promise, it’s you.”
“I understand.” Something almost compassionate flickered in Dalila’s face. “You will give me a bonus from your cut.”
So much for affection. “See? This is why Tinbu got my ship.”
Dalila ignored my response, screwing up her eyes again as she studied her laboratory. “I will need to pack; I have some promising
projects I’d like to bring along.”
“Wait.” Acting on my own suspicion, I walked across the courtyard and raised a hand. “How many fingers am I holding up?”
“Two.”
I dropped my closed fist. “Not even close. Are you having problems with your eyesight?”
“Just when I read,” Dalila replied dismissively. “It is a small thing.”
“You were not reading just now!” I gasped. “You make poisons , Dalila. Can you even see the labels on those vials you’ve been mixing up?”
“I can see well enough to notice your limp, Amina. Are you sure you can fight with such an impairment? It could be very dangerous were you to lose your balance
at sea when no one was around to help you.”
“Are you threatening me already?”
Dalila gave me a wicked smile. “Of course not, nakhudha. Especially not when you’re worth a million dinars. Now help me pack.
We both know your true love awaits in Aden.”