One Night

Chapter Twenty Three

Alara

Nawaz.

He looks like he is possessed. His head is tilted up. Sweat beads his brows and his eyes are nearly rolling into the back of his head. Short, pained gasps come from him.

Zayen instinctively steps forward but the two guards behind him keep him in place. He is bigger than both of them.

"Lovely for you to finally join us," says a deep, kind voice. He's got light, sagging skin and a stark white beard that matches his hair. It contrasts the dark brown of his eyes.

The kindness in his voice immediately puts me on edge, reminding me of how the Hakeem smiled and acted kind as long as it was for his gain.

Until he trapped my mother and sent me on a death mission.

"Let him go. You're making a mistake. If you harm him, there's going to be a war!"

"Harm him?" The man chuckles. His laugh is hoarse. "I won't harm him. I am simply asking him a few questions."

"Making him unconscious." Zayn gestures with his hand to Nawaz's dazed look. "Is harm."

"And you're suddenly the caring older brother, I see."

His statement leaves a deafening silence in the room. Zayen stills, like a cat that turned a corner and found the most vicious looking dog.

Older brother? The way Zayen is acting . . .

But that would mean that Zayen is royalty, so why would be be working as a guard? I know the Hakeem isn't very nice, but to treat his own sun that badly doesn't seem likely. Surely.

If he has a strong, capable son, why would the Hakeem hide that? And there is no way that nobody knows that he exists. This land of Ahlam watches their ruler, and would know if there was more than one prince. We would have seen it posted on the news boards.

Zayen.

A prince.

No, it's not possible. My mind spins and it makes me nauseous. "Zayen?" I ask. I need to know if it is true, to stop the mess that is being built in my mind.

His head turns to me slowly, as if he momentarily forgot that I existed. He's eyes are pained. There's something dark and unknown swirling in them. It creases the sides of his eyes with pain and disappointment.

The look alone tells me that what is being claimed is true.

Oh. My heart jumps into my throat.

Slowly, his eyes turn back to the man. "You're lying."

He sighs, as if he had expected this reaction from Zayen. His expression looks like he is not enjoying the pain on Zayen's face. Usually evil people enjoying seeing pain, don't they?

"It is a grave sin to lie. You and I both know what comes out of my mouth is not a lie."

Zayen tries again to jerk forward, out of the grasp of the guard. A low groan leaves his lips. It reminds me of a beast trying to escape its shackles.

It's as if Zayen knows this information but does not want to hear it out loud—as if in silence the truth is not real.

"Your brother knows," the man says. "He confirmed it." The man turns his head to Nawaz, who stares blindly at the ceiling. "Tell them what you know, prince."

Nawaz's eyes suddenly shift to us. His voice is monotonous when he says, "I found a letter that our father wrote. He wrote it to your mother, explaining that he agreed not to kill you but that you will never be royalty. It said that you knew about who you are. That made me angry because we always used to play together. I thought we were friends." His voice lowers, emotion filling his voice. "But you're a liar. You knew and you never told me. If you don't want to be my brother then I'll never treat you like one."