Page 102 of Sands of Atonement

Casimir stepped in, “That’s ridiculous. Eshe, don’t worry.” But Ezra was staring at me with orange coals in his eyes. “If I find you out in the sands, I’ll bring you in with me.”

Ezra flung his head toward Casimir, and I swear he was thinking of murdering his own brother. I might have trembled for Casimir’s life at that moment. Ezra clenched his fists.

Casimir waved his hands up and smiled innocently. “Choose wisely, is all I’m saying!”

“Guys,” Norrah intervened with a beaming smile. “This is ridiculous! Mara—I mean Eshe will be sharing with me, but this is pure entertainment. Wish I could have kept you all going a little longer, but she’s about to implode.”

We all stared at Norrah, forgetting for a moment that that was a possibility. We were all a bunch of fucking idiots.

Casimir mumbled his leave, grabbed the young woman’s hand, and left down the hallway, muttering something about how it was too hot in here.

The young girl was flushed and giggled while she tried to keep up with his long steps.

“This way, just next door!” Norrah walked backward and went into a chamber.

Turning around, I glanced at Ezra, who had kept a piercing glare on me.

“What?” I raised my eyebrows.

“Do I need to worry about you?”

I rolled my eyes. I knew what he meant. He was wondering if I was going to try to escape him.

“Mmm… not yet. But I’ll let you know when I have any ideas about leaving.”

“Liar.”

“You asked a dumb question, I’ll answer it so. I’m not leaving Norrah here. Whether I like it or not, she’s safer here with you. So, you got what you wanted,” I deadpanned. “I’m stuck here.”

“That’s not what I really want,” he said.

Confused, I frowned at him and followed Norrah into our chamber.

The chamber was a decent area with an elephant-sized low bed on the left side. Thin, white veils covered the tops and hugged the pillars of the bed. I walked in, my black boots making small sounds against the shiny red marble floors. My fingers brushed against the hanging potted plants that gave life to the room. It smelled like lilies.

I looked into the mirror with a golden rim that looked like waves of sand and saw a disheveled person’s reflection.

Gross.

My braided hair was matted, and my face was smudged with dirt. I needed a bath.

“You didn’t tell me I looked homeless, Norrah,” I rebuked her jokingly.

“That’s because you are,” she chirped back.

I laughed softly, so grateful she was here with me. “Listen, about…”

She looked toward me as softly as she always had. “You don’t have to explain yourself. We all have our secrets, and I don’t blame you for yours.” Her eyes flitted downward to her hands in front of her and continued, “And in some way, I understand running from a past identity. That’s what I’ve been doing from the Norrah who was filled with obligations. Now... well, I’m not really sure what kind of Norrah I am, but just know, I understand.”

I gave her a genuine smile. “Thank you… No one knew I was alive for so long. I went as Mara. I didn’t want to lie to you, but I had to keep my identity a secret.” I paused, “and the Norrah I know couldn’t be more perfect.” I pulled her into a warm embrace. “You’re sweet, and we’re never going to let Gabriel take that away from you.”

She gave me a confident nod, but I could see the hesitation in her smile, though it was faint. I knew she’d come to me if she really wanted to talk about it.

“You’re with me now. You’re safe, I promise.”

I was about to share the information I had gathered on Gabriel before she continued,

“With Princess Eshe.” She beamed, and we both chuckled. “I heard so much about you growing up. It was in the annual reports of Zyriah and Tehara on when they would finally marry the two countries together. In the schoolroom, we’d pretend we were all of you. We never thought Casimir was a choice, but…” She laughed and stared off into the distance. “But most of us, we chose Casimir.”