Sabır (Patience) - Kurulus Osman

Chapter 52

Oh my baby angel 🥺

Osman ordered Dumrul and Ayaz to tie up Dundar and Bahadir while he made his way to Balgay to inform him of their victory. Boran returned with the horses and prepared them while Konur built a small fire and rested his dagger in it. Meanwhile, Ceyda sat by a tree near the captives and undid her bandage, pressing the rags on it as she waited for the dagger to heat up. She glared at Alisar as he smirked.

"The nerve of this dog..." she muttered, then eyed Dundar and Bahadir from the corner of her eye. Dundar looked broken while Bahadir maintained a straight face.

People change, Bahadir had once told her. Though it was just a week ago, it seemed like a lifetime had passed since. "Seems like only some people change," she mumbled.

"Bacim."

It was Bahadir's voice. Ceyda ignored him and brought the dagger to her leg, cauterizing it before he could say anything more. The pain was a good distraction. She groaned through her teeth as the dagger sizzled on her skin. Gasping when it was over, she grabbed the new bandage Konur put out for her and wrapped it around her shin, knotting it at the end to keep it in place. She leaned her head back against the trunk of the tree and stared.

"Listen to me."

Ceyda cringed and clenched her fist to keep herself from throwing it at Bahadir; he would not accept his mistake or apologize, that was for sure. He always had an ego issue. After going over to tighten the captive's knots, Konur sat by Ceyda, putting out the fire he built.

Instead of cursing her cousin, Ceyda watched Konur, noticing that however many times she annoyed, disappointed, or angered him and however many times he promised never to speak to her or tried avoiding her, he never left her. He always stayed by her side. He always returned. Ceyda was grateful she had Konur and promised herself she would never leave him. She smiled. But it quickly fell with Bahadir's next words.

"I was only being an obedient son. Try to understand, I-it's not my fault ...please, talk to me. I-I had no choice-"

Ceyda inhaled sharply and lunged forward, ignoring the searing pain in her leg as she jumped on Bahadir, throwing her fist into his jaw then grabbing his armour. "You always have a choice! And you chose to betray your tribe! You chose to betray Turk tradition, our cause! You chose to betray by blindly following what you know is wrong! Because you are wrong. You tell me about change, but some people, Bahadir Bey, cannot change! Some people are doomed to be ignorant! Go to Hell for all I care but never speak to me about this not being your choice." Shooting Bahadir one last furious look, she pushed him away and started back to her spot when she heard Alisar chuckling under his breath. She turned sharply and gave him a hard punch, making his head fling to the side. "That's for everything you did to the tribe." She threw him another punch, using all her strength, and his head flew to the other side, blood and spit splattering to the ground. "That's for my Batur Abi!" Then, she threw him the hardest punch she had ever given anyone. "And that's for burying my Aygul in your bed!!" She panted in fury as Alisar's head dropped to the side, his mouth and nose dripping with blood and his eyes closing.

She turned around and stomped back to the tree, the wound in her shin, hand, and her heart, feeling much better. She sighed in relief, then noticed the Alps staring at her uneasily. She smiled, "Always wanted to do that."

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After Osman Bey returned, they headed for the tribe, Dundar and Bahadir on horses with their hands tied and Alisar being led by a rope that Osman held, looking as if he would faint any second.