“Why not? Prince Mazen was possessed. He injured people too.” She approached him slowly, fingers trailing the wooden rails.
“Injury is not permanent. Death is.” His throat bobbed at the last words, and he paused to stare at their reflections as he composed himself. Loulie yearned to reach out and… pat his shoulder? Draw him into her arms? She didn’t know. The thought of trying to comfort him terrified her. She was good at fanning flames, not putting them out.
“I’m to visit Madinne in a few days’ time,” he said, breaking her from her thoughts. “I’ve already sent a letter to the sultan. I leave my fate in his hands.”
Loulie did touch him then—grabbing his sleeve and yanking him toward her so she could glare into his face. “You don’t mean that. You aren’t a criminal, Ahmed.”
Ahmed blinked at her, mouth agape. Loulie wanted to shake him until he murmured, “You said my name.” There was wonder in his eyes.
Given the circumstances, there was absolutely no reason for her to be blushing. But damned fool that she was, she was blushing anyway. “Yes, I did. But your name was not the point.”
Her fingers were still clenched when Ahmed pulled her hand from his sleeve. He loosened her fist and laced his fingers through hers. Loulie stiffened. They had held hands like this before, but Ahmed’s grip had never been so tight, his hold on her so desperate.
Normally, this was when she pulled away. Ahmed had always given her space when she became overwhelmed. He had never chased after her. He’d simply smiled and waited for her to return.
But the man holding her hand now was a shattered version of himself. The least she could do was be here for him. No, she wanted to be here for him. So this time, she did not pull away.
Ahmed smiled at her—that broken smile that made her heart sink—before turning his gaze to the water. “A criminal is charged by their actions, not their intentions.” When he saw Loulie’s reflection grimacing at him, he sighed and said, “I will tell the sultan what happened. Nothing more, nothing less. He is a just man; I trust his sentence.”
Just. It was the last word she would use to describe the sultan.
Loulie didn’t know how long they stood there, watching ripples spread and break on the surface of the water, before Ahmed broke the silence. “I’m sorry. I didn’t want to hurt you. But the jinn…” His hand shook in her grip. “I couldn’t move. I…”
“I told you already. It wasn’t your fault.”
“I could have killed you.” His voice was whisper soft now. “I almost killed you.”
“But you didn’t.”
“Loulie.” She startled when he turned toward her. There was an urgency in his eyes that had not been there before. “That relic—you don’t truly plan on taking it with you, do you? It will consume you.”
“No.” She hesitated, and then, because the situation seemed to call for it, she squeezed his hand and said, “I’m the Midnight Merchant. Relics don’t possess me; I possess them.” She had meant for the remark to lighten the mood, but Ahmed’s expression only dampened further at her words. “You remember my bodyguard? He has a means of neutralizing the relic; I trust him.”
“Your bodyguard…” Ahmed furrowed his brow. “He wasn’t there last night, was he?”
“No, he was…” Tracking rumors of a killer. She had sent him away because of her own bravado, and probably doomed Ahmed in the process. No. She squashed the guilty thought. She had not been the one holding the relic. That had been the prince…
“Wali.” Loulie startled at the voice, which came from a guard who had materialized out of nowhere. Behind him, as if summoned by her thoughts, stood the high prince. In true high-prince fashion, he walked past the guard without waiting for his presence to be announced.
“I hope I’m not interrupting.” Omar looked pointedly at their joined hands.
Loulie pulled her hand away with as much pride as she could muster. Ahmed seemed to deflate without the contact. He sank to his knees and pressed his forehead to the ground. “Sayyidi,” he mumbled. “You have my sincerest apologies for what happened last night. I did not mean—”
“Please, I require no excuses. You are a victim, Ahmed.” The prince crossed his arms. “I came to offer my condolences for the loss you suffered and to reassure you that I will personally write to my father and vouch for your innocence. And…” He looked away, brow furrowed. “I came to apologize for my carelessness. I will make sure the sultan knows I was the one to leave the relic in your manor.”