Sabır (Patience) - Kurulus Osman

Chapter 49

"Maybe Osman Bey took the captives elsewhere," Konur suggested, equally confused, as he jumped off his horse and threw the reins over a plant followed by the rest.

"Maybe..." Ceyda apprehensively stepped closer to the scene, glancing around with her swords pulled out and ready. She reached a thick tree and examined it, brushing her fingers against its sharp, rutted bark. She looked down at its roots to see a cut rope around the tree. She cursed loudly and peered around the forest furiously as Konur neared her.

"Wha-" Konur started, but when he saw the ropes by Ceyda's boots, he too cursed and clenched his fist. "They escaped!" He gestured for Dumrul, Ayaz, and Cetin to circle the forest for Dundar, Zohre, and Aygul.

Ceyda kneeled and picked up the ropes, absent-mindedly rubbing its thick, rough texture between her fingers. She sighed heavily and shot up, backing away when her foot stepped on something hard and lumpy. Slowly, she turned around to see a body.

A dead body.

He was on the ground, face front. His Alp hat still on his head, but leaning carelessly away from it. His hands were not by his side; they were near his neck, showing that they were hopelessly trying to hold back the blood that poured from it when it was slit. The man, the Alp, lay limp on the ground as Ceyda and Konur walked around and knelt beside him.

Ceyda felt her hand shaking as she reached out to turn him over, to see who this murdered man was, to see who this blessed man, to be bestowed the highest ranks of Jannah, was. She shut her eyes and clenched her fist before moving it back. Konur let out a shaky breath and took the burden from her; he gently turned over the body, revealing his face to see with horror that it was one they knew so well.

"Kilic..." Konur froze, then squeezed his eyes shut. After a moment, he took a deep breath and took the loyal Alp's hat, resting it over his face as he raised his hands for a short prayer.

Ceyda pressed her lips together to keep herself from shrieking as hundreds of memories of Kilic swam through her mind. When they were children and trained together with the rest of her friends, when they fought together as they grew up, and most recently, when he wrapped the bandage over her wounded hand and helped her. So many memories, yet it seemed like she had spent so little time with Kilic, and the other Alps that fell martyrs in just a few months. Then, it dawned on her. As Dundar's threats echoed in her mind and she watched Kilic's dead body, her jaw clenched.

After finishing his prayer, Konur watched Ceyda as she unconsciously pulled out grass and weeds from the ground, roughly repeating the process and staring at the body, but not at the body. He reached out a hand to comfort her when she let out a yell, shooting her head back.

"HAYIR!" She shook when she finished, both of anger and grief, and Konur was sure he heard the rustling of leaves and birds in the trees flapping their wings in fright of the outrage below. "Dundar..."

"You think it was him?" Konur was thinking about the possibility when Ceyda cut him out of them.

"I know it was him! Oh, just you see what I do with that-" She shot up, grumbling and shouting insults at her uncle as she strode to her horse. Konur exhaled heavily and patted Kilic's back. "Rest in peace, kardesim benim," he murmured before following Ceyda as she jumped on her horse, struggling as Kahraman, knowing it was foolish to go after Dundar when his location was unknown, moved away from her, rearing to stop her from riding him.

"Ceyda, wait!" Konur jogged toward her as he heard footsteps coming from either side of the forest; Dumrul and Ayaz were back- it was not difficult to return after hearing the tempestuous roar Ceyda let out.