Malika

25 Surprise

"The Ameer asked us to return early to the palace, sayidati," Daud reminds her, speaking in a hushed tone so as not to be heard.

"Let us stop by that one stall over there. We can leave then," Noura replies.

She buys a comb and a perfume and they make their way to their horses. Mounting hers with Roya and Daud following, they return to the palace. But instead of getting to her chamber, knowing there's still much time before Adam returns, she decides to let her horse trot around.

"Daud?"

Daud kicks his horse until its besides hers. "Yes, sayidati?"

"Adam has been receiving notes threatening his life?"

He hesitates to answer and Noura smiles at him.

"I know he does. I just want to know for how long?"

"You should ask the Ameer about it, sayidati. I'm afraid these secrets are not mine to talk about."

"If you care about your Ameer, you must know the one person willing to do anything for him is me. And for me to do something for him, I'll need to know everything I can."

Daud still doesn't open his mouth, throwing Roya a skeptical glance, to which Roya glares furiously at him.

"Roya is not under Eskander's service, she's under mine. You don't have to worry about her," Noura assures him.

He looks straight ahead, silently contemplating, before finally replying to her, "Ever since he became the governor of Qahira, sayidati. He started receiving those notes shortly after he moved there."

"And he never tried to find who sends them?"

"He did. He initially thought it to be..."

Daud glances at Roya again. She once again glares at him and he doesn't finish his sentence. Noura sighs and nods at Roya.

"I'll see you at my chamber."

She tips her head and leaves them alone. Noura turns to Daud who lowers his eyes.

"My apologies. One can never be careful enough."

"He thought it to be Al Hadi?" she completes for him.

"Yes, but we never found a prove to support the suspicion," he tells her. "Besides, the rivalry between Ameer Adam and Al Hadi isn't hidden. Al Hadi doesn't need to send him notes to threaten him, especially during the period of the truce when the council can hold him accountable for such actions."

"Then who can it be?"

"I'm not sure, sayidati. It must be a spy, but we don't know who they're working for. Who is it besides Al Hadi planning to harm Ameer Adam."

Noura doesn't respond, letting his words to take root into her mind. Someone besides Sulaiman who wishes to kill Adam. She wonders who, for if there was an associate of Sulaiman, Eskander would've known. He would've told her, for he has promised not to allow any harm come to Adam.

She tugs the reins and pulls the horse to a stop. Daud brings his horse to a halt too. Noura directs to him again.

"Why hasn't the spy being caught yet?"

"No attempts have been made on the Ameer's life, sayidati. There are only those notes. Initially, they threatened the Ameer's life directly. But then they started to warn him that there's someone who wants to kill him."

"You mean the spy has suddenly changed their mind from killing him to warning him against the danger?"

"That's what the Ameer suspects," Daud affirms. "There's also a possibility that different people could be sending those notes."