Born of Shadow - Book 1 (complete)

Chapter 24

I thoroughly enjoyed reading about your character choices and why you would like to interview them! With this chapter, we are back to Zaynah's story. As always, thanks so much for reading and for your feedback.

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This was Zaynah's next test. 

It had been two years since she'd been here last. She had been weak then. No, worse than weak. Pathetic.

So much had happened since then, but the most important of them had been her ability to understand the voice. The voice had instructed her since, and now she knew precisely what to do.

Her hand rested on the whip beneath her robes. She stroked it, the memories bubbling to the surface as she did of another time, at this place.    

Her father had told her never to return. She refused to obey.

She walked to the front door and rang the doorbell. A new housekeeper answered. 

"I am here to see Ola Gamil," Zaynah said, smiling brightly. "We are raising money to buy school supplies for the Atfal Amal Orphanage." 

"Please wait a moment."

Zaynah paused, fairly certain her ruse would work. She had done her research. Her father's new wife had a soft spot for orphans. But even if she didn't let her in, she had other, shall we say, persuasive, ways of getting what she wanted. 

"She will see you," the housekeeper said. She led Zaynah through the entryway and into a beautifully furnished drawing room. Zaynah gritted her teeth. It still irked her that her father had left his family to fall apart while living in such luxury. It wasn't fair. 

She sat on a plush couch with carved armrests. Within a minute, Ola joined her. She was wearing an expensive looking deep blue tunic and pant set. She sat on the couch opposite, looking at Zaynah expectantly.  

"I'm not actually here to talk about orphans," Zaynah said. The woman looked startled. Her eyes darted nervously toward the other room. "But I am aware of something that you have a right to know."

"What's that?" the woman asked.

Zaynah pulled out a cigarette, lit it and breathed in a deep drag. She looked at the woman through the hazy smoke. Her father's second wife had gained a little weight since she had last seen her, but she was still lovely. She looked uncannily like her mother, back when she was young and beautiful, before life, disappointment, and disease wasted her away. She was just as timid too, but then, her father had always felt the need to dominate. He would only have selected wives who were suitably submissive. 

She blew the smoke in the woman's direction. Zaynah was upsetting Ola, and she found she enjoyed it.

"The man you married has another family. I am his daughter. I have a brother."

The woman's face reflected surprise, and she instinctively shook her head. Clearly, she still didn't know. Zaynah took a long drag from the cigarette. For years she'd avoided these things because she'd been told they were bad for her. With her new body, it didn't matter.

The woman coughed.

"Will you please put that dirty thing out?"

Zaynah grinned. She liked that please. So polite.

"No," she answered. "I would rather not."

"You are wrong with these accusations. Elias would not do that. He loves me."

Zaynah snorted.

"He loves himself. He is a survivor, at whatever cost to those around him."

"Don't talk about him that way. You are mistaken. Elias is not like that."