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The Velvet Lotus wasn’t the most gilded brothel in the city, but it did its best to attract customers longing for a carnal getaway. The girls all had high hopes that one day a handsome and wealthy prince would come to marry them, or perhaps they’d be popular enough to choose their guests and move to their own houses, with flower gardens and fountains. But as for now, all fifteen of them lived together in a large mansion close to the bazaar.
I walked through the arched gate, straight into the courtyard, populated by dry and pungent plants, a few parched palms and a three-feet statue of the goddess Ivara.
“How well do you know this place?” Ezair said.
“Not that well. I’ve been here once or twice. Some of the girls here were customers of mine, others I know from elsewhere. I didn’t work here, if that’s what you mean.”
Before Osmi found me, there was a pretty good chance I’d have ended up here to entertain guests for my daily payout, like them. I didn’t think I could have borne it. The girls worked much harder than most people thought, and in return they only got a few sungold and general contempt.
“I wouldn’t mind. People make a living however they can, I’d be the last to judge someone for that,” Ezair said.
“We’re looking for a girl called Sheen. She’s a blonde with blue eyes, so you can spot her from a mile away. Or we can go straight to Aylea, the owner of the place. I only know her by sight, but my da—, I mean, the old man sold her a lot of things. She might help us for a long-term discount or a few liters of free perfume.”
Ezair nodded and walked through the main entrance.
The front door led into a reception hall filled with benches and colored carpets, before opening into a larger area dotted with pools, where the noble audience could sit with ease and pick out the girls they fancied.
I saw two men inside, one by the pools and another guarding the entrance. We could almost hear them snoring after the night shift, but we were lucky anyone was even here.
As we approached, the guard in front of us let out a yawn. “The brothel’s not open yet.”
“We’re not customers. I’m Zaira, the perfumer’s daughter. My dad serves the girls here and I want to speak to the head of the house. You know, about business.”
Funnily enough, I wasn’t even lying. It was business, just not the kind Lady Aylea expected.
The guard didn’t respond, just stared sternly at the dagger in Ezair’s belt. I felt jitters creep up my spine. A bloodied dagger wasn’t the best base for negotiation, but when the mercenary unsheathed it, all I saw was the dazzling steel blade. I didn’t notice when he cleared it, but I saw before how fast he could move.
There were still some problems, though. I had planned to hide here until this storm blew over, but I hadn’t counted Ezair into the equation.
“You better stay here,” I said to him, but he shook his head.
“That’s not happening.”
“You can’t enter with a weapon,” the guard said, grasping the handle of his sword. Ezair sighed, detached the dagger’s sheath from his belt and threw it on the ground.
“Better? I’m Miss Zaira’s bodyguard, paid for the same thing as you. Do you really want to get stuck on this?”
I unwittingly cracked a smile over his reaction. “All right, take it easy. Nobody wants to kill anyone. Is Lady Aylea awake?”
I had no idea what her appropriate title was. The girls just referred to her as “Mother”, but I wasn’t one of them.
“Yeah, she is,” said the guard. “You can wait in her office. Someone will find her.”
The other guard just rolled his eyes and stepped away from his post, heading up the stairs.
“Come on, this way,” the front guard said, leading us through a side corridor.
We followed him into Aylea’s office. I’d been running around all day and my feet were not used to this much strain, so I collapsed into one of the padded chairs without asking. Ezair, meanwhile, leaned against the wall next to the desk with his arms folded. At first, he just stared at his feet, but from my angle, I could see his eyes drifting around the room – he just didn’t want anyone else to notice him inspecting every inch and spot.
The guard didn’t move from the doorway. It offended me that he suspected us to steal something, but if this had been my workshop, I would’ve done the same. After some time, a firm female voice broke the silence. “You can leave, Naren. If you’re needed, I’ll call for you.”
Aylea marched into the room and settled down, not minding us. She wasn’t walking, she actually marched as if she were nothing less than the prince’s mother. The girls said she had been a popular courtesan in her prime, but now wrinkles creased the corners of her eyes, and the thick line of ink didn’t help much either. But she had polished her hair to an obsidian shine and wore a well-tailored robe like the nobles, so her authority was unquestionable.
“To what do I owe this cheekily early visit?” she asked.
I bit my lips. I hadn’t planned on exactly what I was going to say to Aylea, and my previous confidence had been blown away by her sudden appearance.
“Well... I don’t know if you heard, but my father was unjustly imprisoned and—”
“Come on, dear. I know everything. I know things before they even happen,” she said, cutting me off, and her smile completely threw me off balance. It was remarkably easy to gather information at a brothel. It was enough if even one loose-tongued nobleman or nosy soldier whispered the news into a girl’s ears for her to learn about everything worth knowing.
“You knew?” I asked. “And still let me in?”
“You weren’t really asking for permission.” she said. “Why? Was I making a mistake?”
I clutched one hand with the other to avoid biting my nails. “I don’t know. Maybe. But I’m not asking for a favor. I’m here to bargain.”
Aylea laughed. “Like father, like daughter. Go on dear, surprise me.”
“I want to lie low for a few days. In return, ask whatever you think is payment enough. A permanent discount on products made in the workshop, perhaps?”
Aylea shook her head. “The way it stands now, you’re never getting that shop back. You’re lucky if they only auction it off and let you go broke but alive.”
“You can beat them to it. There’s a lot of finished perfume in the shop and I can assure you nobody’s guarding it. It’s yours, everything in there.”
I knew I just sold off everything we had in a fit of desperation. Only an empty store would await Osmi when he got out, with no money and no merchandise – if we were lucky, as Aylea said.
Aylea looked at me with the eyes of a ruthless businesswoman. “That’s more like it. We can make you disappear for a few days, while I send someone to collect everything from the workshop. I suppose you don’t have the keys on you.”
“The soldiers wouldn’t let us lock up properly,” I said while my lips trembled from a repressed grimace. I had no guarantee she’d find anything of use, but I had to cling to some hope.
“Fine. We have a deal – with you. Your friend here, however...”
“I have something else,’ Ezair replied without a pause. He reached out and leaned on the table with one arm, revealing a wide, silver bracelet on his wrist. There was a serpent chiseled into the metal with two distinct heads. “Do you recognize it?”
“In my line of work, it’s a necessity to recognize a Viper bracelet. Are you threatening me?”
“On the contrary. I’m sure you know that the friendship of the Two-Headed Viper can mean a lot. News. Security. Fame. You’ll get them all if you agree to my deal. I’ll make sure the chiefs agree to it, personally.”
My eyes widened. I’d never heard of this organization. When I thought about it, I didn’t know much about this land and it was increasingly difficult to catch up each passing day. Myths, cults, and groups waited around every corner and it was starting to annoy me.
Aylea finally nodded. “It’s settled. With both of you, separately, before anyone misunderstands,” she said, with a triumphant glimmer in her eyes.
“Yes, of course,” I smiled. Aylea knew exactly how tense our situation was, and didn’t shy away from taking advantage of it. I was just hoping Osmi understood why I had agreed to it.
“You can have two rooms at the very end of the hall, so you don’t disturb anyone,” she said. I swallowed a harsh reply and just nodded. As if we would bother anyone in a brothel...
“Naren,” Aylea called out to the guard. “Escort our guests to their quarters. The upper level, right-wing, back two rooms.”
I had a hunch Naren had waited outside just for this moment. He opened the door and waved at us to follow him, then led us through the mansion.
We walked up some fancy stairs and through a couple of corridors, stopping in front of two tiny rooms opposite each other. Naren immediately left us and returned to his post, most likely to share snippets of the conversation he caught while eavesdropping at the office with the other guard.
I hid my bag under the bed, took off my cape, and leaned over the blanket. Everything in the room from the hard mattress to the small table was covered in dust. I guess they never thought about using the guest room.
I was exhausted. The escape, the planning, fighting and an encounter with death were too much for me for one morning, and only the excitement and survival instinct spurred me forward. I could walk for miles in the desert without food, water, or shade, but this morning had already worn me out.
I was about to doze off when someone knocked on my door.
“May I come in?” I heard Ezair’s deep voice.
“Yes,” I replied, without even sitting up. I had a lot of questions for him, but they all raced around in my head like a flock of birds and none became clear enough for a coherent sentence. I waited for him to take the lead because I suspected he had a reason for this visit.
Ezair settled in front of the dressing table and looked around. “I see you got ripped off, too. Have you known this place for long?”
“Two years, maybe, since the time their most famous courtesan walked into my shop. That’s how you say whore appropriately, by the way, Sheen taught me that.”
I tried smiling, but Ezair was clearly thinking of something else.
“Do you trust that they won’t call the soldiers and turn us in?”
“I know they don’t assume I killed anyone. The rest is a luxury for us.”
Humans always ended up talking about trust as if the world revolved around it, but I knew better. I couldn’t even trust those our shop was doing business with, much less someone who just had the kindness of their heart. I only had to make one wrong move and this quicksand of a conspiracy could have swallowed me, locking me behind bars.
“Maybe that’s enough for now.” Ezair smiled bitterly. “Do you know what this marid wants with you?”
“No. I didn’t even know he existed until last night.”.
“We could use this place to our advantage. People speak carelessly in a brothel and rumors wander around like a disease. You can learn many things without ever stepping outside the building. However, it could be dangerous, so I thought I’d ask you first. Can we ask Lady Aylea to gather word of what’s going on through the girls?”
“You can get Lady Aylea to do anything for the right price. I don’t know what you offered her or what is it worth, so that’s up to you two. Although I should warn you: she robbed me blind without a sweat and she’s not going to treat you any better.”
Ezair just frowned. “I’ll talk to her, see what I can do. In the meantime, what’s your plan?”
“If I don’t have to work... I don’t know,” I said. “I’ll may try to help out, put some make-up on, hide my face with a shawl. No one would recognize me.”
I didn’t need to explain who I meant by no one.
“In the tavern,” Ezair said, “I said every legend tells that the djinns are evil. Well, I lied. Sometimes they’re depicted as mad and vile, burying cities under sand, that’s true, but sometimes they make wishes come true and guide the faithful towards treasures and power.”
He looked at me. “Which one are you?”
It caught me off-guard. So far, it had been easy for me to pretend to be a simple human living in this world. I thought no one knew about me. But I was wrong and nothing could ever go back to how it was.
“Well, I certainly don’t do wishes,” I said, after a while. “But I don’t go crazy either. If there’s a city under the sand, I didn’t put it there. I don’t think I’d be capable of that. Sorry to disappoint you, but until yesterday, I was convinced I had no more power than any human.”
I wasn’t sure if it was a good idea to be so honest with him. But if things got heated, it would be better if he didn’t expect miracles from me.
“Who knows, maybe it will come naturally when the time’s right. Your kind is mysterious, and I’ve learned that some things are better left unquestioned. At least for now,” Ezair said, then got up to leave.
“Wait,” I said, fighting the inexplicable urge to touch his arms. The crowd of questions in my head finally took shape, and if we were to go our separate ways and do our work, I could never ask them. “You mentioned something about Vipers. Who are they?”
“Sellswords,” he answered, pausing mid-step and turned back to me. “Nothing special.”
“Aylea wouldn’t agree without a word for nothing special.”
“Well, some consider us famous. We’re numerous enough to catch and collect every rumor, threatening enough to scare anyone who doesn’t come with money, and notorious enough that a few words of praise from the Vipers can elevate the number of patrons in any brothel. That’s my deal with the Lady, really.”
It was very well presented, but at the end of it all, it meant he offered protection and advertising. Clever, although kind of bold without the consent of these ‘Chiefs’. But I didn’t know him well yet, maybe he really was such a big deal that he could make vows like this.
“Are you just mercenaries, or whatever pays best?” I asked.
“Only honest fighting. The Chiefs have a strange but solid honor that doesn’t allow Vipers to do jobs unworthy of the guild, like assassination or theft.”
Honor. I thought it was a legend that solely existed in fables and stories.
Like the djinns.
“And who’s paying you? I mean, this time. It’s hard to believe that a member of a notorious mercenary team would act on his own, completely free of charge.”
I had had it on my mind for a while now and despite the disapproving look on Ezair’s face, I had to ask.
“Why? Even a mercenary loves his family, and injustice hurts everyone.”
“Maybe. But you killed that soldier without blinking.”
Ezair settled back on the stool and stretched his legs out. I was grateful that he took the time to explain and didn’t shrug me off.
“I did. That’s the only way you can kill. When you choose between two lives, you can’t have any concerns. That only causes unnecessary suffering.”
“But who are you to decide that his life isn’t important? He was following orders and unfortunately managed to find us. Is that something you deserve to die for?”
“There is nothing you deserve to die for. If I was thinking like that, no death would be fair, every soldier is a murderer and every officer is an executioner. Anyone who takes on such a profession must get over it. You have to accept that it is never going to be just or rightful. It’s a decision that’s been made long ago by everyone who takes up arms.”
I stopped staring at the ceiling and took a long look at his features.
“You bargain with life quite carelessly. Don’t get me wrong, I understand what you’re saying... It’s just that all I can think of is that maybe it could have been different. Maybe there was a way for everyone to return home at the end.”
Ezair smiled, but his eyes harbored some deep sadness. Something was charming but still painful about the gesture that made my heart skip a beat.
“Maybe if you had just knocked him out, clobbered him with the hilt of your dagger or something. We could’ve been miles away before he came to his senses.”
“It’s not that simple. I don’t know how many people you’ve had to tussle with, but trust me on this one. Charta’s soldiers may be blunt as a brick, but they know how to fight. He was standing in front of us, and even I couldn’t have stunned him quickly enough. And if I tried and failed, it could have given away our position.”
“I’m sure you’re right,” I said, staring at the floor. “I never had to fight anyone. I guess I just feel sorry for the soldier. He had nothing to do with us, he was just doing his job.”
“Which includes the danger of getting killed. He knew. We all know. The soldiers, the mercenaries, the assassins, and we’re all prepared for it.”
“Even you?”
“Yes, even me,” he said, letting the weight of the word push down on us. I didn’t understand who would voluntarily choose to live in perpetual uncertainty. Everyone could meet someone better than him. I wanted to know what Ezair was thinking, but we both felt that for now, we had reached the limit of how close we let each other.
“If you need me for anything, Aylea will probably know where I am,” Ezair said, then stood up and walked out the door without saying anything more.