More Precious than a Crown

‘I am aware of that.’

‘Here, you are not the man you are overseas.’

‘I have brought Trinity here as a friend as, not for anything else.’

‘It is not respectful to your future bride to be housing your mistress!’

‘She is not my mistress,’ Zahid said, for she no longer was. They had said their intimate goodbyes on the plane.

‘Then why is she here?’

‘For pause,’ Zahid said. ‘She has just lost her brother and there are family issues.’

‘What does that have to do with you?’

When Zahid did not respond the king breathed out loudly. ‘You are to say to Abdul that she is here to help Layla with her English.’

‘Why lie?’

‘It is not a lie,’ Fahid said. ‘Layla is, after all, helping to teach the girls of Ishla English and, given you have many functions and dinners to attend in the coming days, I assume it will be Layla who entertains her.’

‘Yes.’

‘And that will help Layla’s English.’

‘Fine,’ Zahid said, and he looked at his father and saw he was visibly worried, for Zahid had never brought any friends from England, let alone a woman, back to the palace. ‘It is just for a few days. You will hardly see her...’

‘Why would I not greet your guest? Why, if you have nothing to hide, is she to be tucked away?’ The king would prefer to confront the enemy, the woman who could seemingly so easily sway his son from the marriage that the king had in mind for Zahid. ‘Tonight we will dine, and I would like to meet your guest’

‘Trinity is tired from her travels.’

‘Then we will dine early. Layla has to teach in the morning anyway.’

* * *

‘It is nothing to be nervous about,’ Layla said after Zahid had told Trinity a little later that she would be dining with the king tonight. ‘You won’t be expected to say much.’

Trinity smiled at Layla’s rather wry comment.

‘I talk too much,’ Layla said, ‘I question things and it itches my father.’

‘Irritates,’ Trinity corrected her, and Layla frowned. ‘It irritates your father.’ Trinity explained but she watched as Layla’s cheeks turned pink. ‘Zahid just said I was to help you with your English.’

‘My English is perfect,’ Layla said. ‘Don’t correct me again.’

Whoa!

They were all terribly polite, Trinity amended, if you remembered your place.

Yet Layla, in her own, very odd way, was lovely. ‘Try this.’ She held up a lilac tunic for Trinity but as soon as she tried it on, both women realised it was far too tight. It clung instead of hung and gave her more curves than were polite in Ishla.

‘Oh, no.’ Layla laughed, making the same cut throat gesture that Zahid once had. ‘Try this one instead.’ But as she handed her a pale mint one that would hopefully fit better, Trinity suddenly stopped smiling as she stared at her refelction.

Yes, she had lost a lot of weight this past month, just not from her breasts—for once she actually filled her bra.

Layla misread the sudden silence.

‘I am sorry you lost your brother. I would die if something happened to Zahid.’

‘We weren’t very close in the last few years,’ Trinity admitted.

‘It must hurt.’

‘It does,’ Trinity said, ‘but I am very angry with him at the moment.’

It felt strange to be able to speak with Layla, who she had only just met, more easily than she could with her parents.

‘There are other hurts,’ Trinity said, glad when Layla did not ask her to elaborate.

Only it wasn’t the other hurts that were worrying Trinity now.

As she slipped the tunic over her head, that brief second of privacy had Trinity’s face screw up in a frantic, silent panic as she willed her brain to remember her last period, but with all that had happened since that day, the last month was a painful blur.

‘That’s better.’ Layla smiled and helped Trinity arrange the tunic. ‘There are some lovely gold slippers that go nicely with it, or these jewelled ones, which I think would go really well.’

‘The gold are beautiful...’

‘But I prefer the jewelled ones,’ Layla said.

She was in Ishla, Trinity reminded herself as she accepted Layla’s suggestion, but even a detail like slippers served to remind Trinity that she knew nothing about this strange land.

* * *

Zahid was rather nervous both for Trinity and himself.

He watched as she walked in and after a flurry of introductions took a seat on a low cushion. He was grateful to Layla, who quickly moved Trinity’s feet so her soles were facing away from the king.

‘My son tells me you live in America?’

‘I have for a few years.’

‘You studied?’

‘Ancient art history.’

‘You must take Trinity to the second palace.’ The king looked at his son. ‘I am sure she would be interested. Perhaps Trinity would like to start the cataloguing.’

‘Trinity is not here to work.’

‘It wouldn’t be work.’ Trinity smiled. ‘I didn’t know there was a second palace. I don’t remember seeing it as we came in to land.’

‘It is hidden,’ the king said. ‘I am sure Zahid will be grateful for that in the coming year.’

‘Coming year?’

‘Once married, Zahid will live there with his bride until it is time for him to be king.’

Trinity reached for her water. Suddenly the thought of going there, seeing first hand where Zahid would live, held little appeal, but taking a cool drink she forced her smile brighter and Zahid could only admire her composure, for he knew his father was goading her for a reaction.

‘And then Zahid will rule from here,’ the king continued.

‘Well, you’ll need a lot of baby gates.’ Trinity smiled sweetly, looking around at the many treasures.

‘The future princes and princesses shall not live here till they come of age.’ The king’s explanation only added to her confusion. ‘There are many treasures at the second palace too but, you are right, it is less formal. A lot of the artefacts at the second palace have significant, personal meaning.’

There were treasures everywhere. Even the plate she was picking up sticky rice from could have held her attention for an hour or more. Gold and blue, the more she ate, the more of the pattern it revealed, and Trinity would have loved to simply clear it and turn it around.

‘You should take Trinity over there tomorrow,’ the king said to Layla.

‘I have a class to teach tomorrow,’ Layla said.

‘And I would be the worst person to attempt to catalogue a palace.’ Trinity smiled. ‘It would never get done.’ She looked at the plate again and then at the king. ‘Among so many beautiful things, do you have favourites?’

Zahid caught Layla’s eye, both waiting for the king to silence her, yet the king actually forgot to be cross for a moment and smiled. ‘I do, though I have not looked at them in a long time. My wife collected amulets, they are stored in a mandoos, or rather, a wooden chest.’

‘In the second palace?’

‘No,’ the king said. ‘I had it moved here, not that I have looked through it in a while.’

They spoke easily through dinner but then the king turned to Layla.

‘Perhaps it is time for you to retire,’ the king said to his daughter, ‘if you want to be alert for your students tomorrow.’

Zahid caught Trinity’s eye for a brief second and again they were back in the woods, Zahid reminding her how much freedom she had, for he could not imagine Trinity at seventeen, let alone Layla’s twenty-four, being told, however politely, to go to bed.

After dinner they drank coffee that would surely keep Trinity awake till the small hours but soon the king retired, leaving Zahid to walk Trinity back to her quarters.

‘You did well,’ Zahid said.

‘I wasn’t aware it was a test,’ Trinity snapped.

‘I was just commenting...’ Zahid halted. ‘You are tired, it has been a long day. Perhaps...’

‘Please, don’t try to tell me when I need to go to bed again.’

‘I wasn’t,’ Zahid said. ‘I was going to suggest we take a walk on the beach. I thought that might relax you.’

‘Isn’t it forbidden?’

Zahid said nothing and they walked through the moonlit night, past the palace, but as Trinity turned in the direction of what she assumed was the path to the beach, Zahid’s hand gripped her arm and halted her.

‘It is this way.’

‘Oh,’ Trinity said, ‘so where does that lead?’ She saw his face shutter, acknowledged his lack of response to her question and, realising it was the entrance to the second palace, she let out a mirthless laugh.

‘Trinity, I am sorry if my father upset you tonight but I have never lied, I have never tried to hide my truth.’ His eyes were accusing. ‘Unlike you.’

‘I’ve told you why I couldn’t tell you.’

‘Have you?’ Zahid said. ‘You tell me only the pieces you want me to know and at a time of your choosing.’

‘That’s not true.’

‘Are you sure?’ Zahid asked, for she had lied about her workplace, her sexual history and he knew she had been in rehab too. ‘Are you sure you are as honest with me as I am with you?’