Shadows of the Spotted Swordsman - Chapter 3, The Spice Merchant (Naji) (Patreon)

The morning brings a slow gentle awakening, and I roll over in the bed, feeling Zayn against me. Even though we showered yesterday, there’s the subtle tickle of male arousal in here, although I wouldn’t be surprised if the room smells like that naturally. Fadel has the staff clean the rooms thoroughly, but it’s obvious what often happens in them.

A little light filters around the shuttered window, but in the dimness, I can tell the sun is up, and I can see the rise and fall of Zayn’s gentle breathing. I reach out and gently trace the line of his shoulder and side. He shifts around, but he doesn’t stir, and he lets out a gentle sigh.

Why can’t it just be like this?

I feel the beginning of a growl in my throat, but I catch myself. There’s no point in arguing this right now, and with who could I argue with? Zayn certainly didn’t cause my issue with the grand vizier.

I frown. No, he did, but he did it for me. He’s paying for the consequences for my own stupidity. I should never have trusted Rigel. I should have seen the trap, but I know why I followed him. Deep down in my heart, I had hoped things between us would be right again. That we’d at least be friends again. I had hoped that the years of estrangement were finally over. I should have known they weren’t.

I sigh and swing my footpaws to the wooden floor. I can’t change what happened. Rigel, Isim, they’re in my past. My future is with Zayn.

“You didn’t have another nightmare, did you?”

My ears swivel at his voice, and then I turn back to the jackal. I thought he was asleep. “No…why do you ask?”

He yawns wide, and I can see all the teeth in his muzzle. “You were whimpering in your sleep again last night.”

My ears droop, and I search my mind. “I don’t remember anything disturbing. I do though have a lot on my mind.”

He reaches out to stroke my side. “It’s going to be okay, Naji,” he says softly.

“I know”—I lean down to get closer to his face—“and that’s because I have you.”

He sits up. “That is a lot of pressure…”

“And Fadel, and Naima, and Ales.”

He laughs. “You just want Ales to have his paws all over you.”

“Who around here doesn’t?”

“Mmm…okay, that’s fair,” he says, as his tail thumps behind him. “He does have wonderful handpaws.”

“That man is a gift. I have no idea how Fadel was able to hire him, but he just is.”

“Well, he hired us both.” Zayn’s ears give a playful flick. “His taste obviously isn’t always spot on.”

“I don’t know. Khalil is pretty great dancer.”

Zayn scowls. “Oh, I see what you just did there.”

I lean closer and give him a playful lock. “It’s true, but you’re still a better dancer.”

He wraps paws around me. “Perhaps, but I’m still only worth a few silver dirhams.”

My ears flick. “Shh… don’t say. You are my golden dancer.

His ears lower as he looks away. “Back in Zaptu, if I was worth more, would we be together?”

I realize I shouldn’t have said that. “Zayn…”

He looks back at me. “It’s something I think about sometimes.”

“It’s not a good thought,” I say softly.

“No…” He shakes his head and his ears flick back and forth. “Shall we get some food?”

“We should, and after I’d like to go the Grand Market. I wouldn’t mind talking to Naima,” I say as I get off the bed. I go over to fetch my clothes.

“I figured you’d want to. You think she’s heard something useful?”

I shake my head. “About this Takula? No. She told me she didn’t know anything about her previously. She might know something about the grand vizier though.”

Zayn nods. “Let’s see if Fadel wants to get some breakfast, and then we can head over. While you and Naima are talking, I’ll see if Safiya has any new books in stock that pique my interest.”

The fact he doesn’t want to go see Naima about this catches me off guard, but maybe it’s better I keep him out of this. “Sure,” I say, pulling on my shirt. It is my burden. I can do this. I know I’m betting on desert sand being cool in the afternoon sun by hoping Naima has useful information she hasn’t told me already, but she might know what my next move should be.

#

After breakfast, Fadel has me cover the entrance of the Blue Door for him while he leaves to go order some wine from a supplier. It’s not till midmorning, after he’s returned, that Zayn and I can leave the Blue Door and head to the Grand Market. It is always busy, and today is no different. The crowd ebbs and flows like the Zahrani, and while the square isn’t full with stalls today, there are certainly quiet a few shoppers out.

Naima’s spice stand is in the souk behind the market square, and that seems bustling as always. As we walk toward the souk, Zayn and I talk.

“Are you sure you don’t want to come and see Naima?” I ask as we’re rounding a corner onto a street leading to the souk.

Zayn nods. “I don’t know what I could offer in that conversation. I’d rather look for a new book in Safiya’s store.”

“She’ll take all your coin if you let her,” I remark.

Zayn’s tail wags. “It’s not the worst use of coin.”

I chuckle. “You are hopeless.”

“Then why do you keep reading the books I’ve been buying?”

“They’re taking up space in my lodgings.” I respond. “Since you moved in, you have added an entire shelf of them.”

“It goes with your shelf of books.”

“We must now have almost thirty dinar in books now. We could have hired a scribe for that rate to copy books ourselves.”

“There’s a reason new copies always cost quite a bit more then used copies. Anyway, you still need to get access to a book in order to copy it. Certainly a few of the ones I’ve bought are best handled by a skilled paw with…discerning tastes,” Zayn says, giving me a coy look.

I laugh heartily as we enter the souk through arched entrance with a carved relief decorated with geometric designs. It is at the first intersection where our paths diverge, and we pause. “Do you want to come to Safiya’s stall when I’m done?” Zayn asks.

“I can, but how about we meet at that dolmas stand you like in three quarters of an hour? Naima either will have time to talk to me or she won’t. It’s better to meet somewhere where we’re not in her way.”

His tail wags. “Sounds good,” he says, turning down a street. I instead continue straight ahead for a bit before I reach a shop with an open door and a rich tapestry of scents rolling out of it. While some merchants in the souk prefer to pile their wares outside their arched shop facades, Naima keeps hers inside. Instead, just a simple sign is leaning outside, and the doors under the arch that lead to the shop are wide open. Inside, sacks are piled high and left open so Naima can quickly fulfill the orders of clients.

I find the leopard inside, weighing out what appears to be mint. “Naji,” she says, walking up to me, and exchanging cheek kisses. “Where is Zayn?” she asks me.

“He wanted to do some book shopping.” Her assistant, Femi, appears to be refilling a container that has turmeric in it by one of the doors. “We need to talk and privately,” I say, softly.

She tilts her head slightly and her whiskers twitch. “Now?”

“Now would be really good.”

Naima can read the hardness of my expression. She glances at Femi who has stopped doing what he was doing. The two leopards exchanges glances. “How long should we be alone?” Naima asks me.

“Thirty minutes, maybe more.”

Her whiskers twitch and I can see her eyes narrow. “Femi, why don’t you take a break.”

He flicks his eyes at me and then nods to Naima. “Yes mistress.”

“Come back in an hour, and close the doors on the way out.”

He nods and closes the door behind himself as he leaves, and Naima then walks over and bolts it shut. Finally, she turns to me.

“What did you do? Why isn’t Zayn talking to you?”

I have to laugh. “If only that was it. What do you know about the grand vizier?”

She frowns at me. “Yasar?

“Yes, Yasar.”

Nima gives me a more serious look. “Besides that he’s the grand vizier, nothing. I don’t deal in that circle at all. Why?”

“He came to the Blue Door to speak to Fadel.”

She chuckles. “Ah, well that is business you don’t want to be involved in.” My ears obviously betray me because she pauses. “You’re involved in this, aren’t you?”

“He wants me to find that Takula who was on the bridge. He told me I needed to look for her.”

Naima sits back on her stool and just looks at me. Her tail flicks behind her.

“You being silent about something is never reassuring,” I say.

“How does Fadel even know the grand vizier?”

“Apparently, Fadel worked with him, fifteen years ago. I think they might even have been lovers once.”

Naima blinks. “Oh that sly little shit. The grand vizier, really? Quite the catch I guess, if you would like to find yourself trembling before the sultan because you fucked something up.”

“Fadel is a fennec, just like Sultan Ghazi.”

“Oh, I know, but the sultan is not less harsh to a fennec than he is to anyone else. Fadel’s at least not stuck up about being a fennec like some people are, but the grand vizier, in the Blue Door? He brought guards with him?” She leans forward. “That must have been quite the sight.”

“Not to the Blue Door, but he left them somewhere nearby.”

“Interesting. He’s not afraid of getting his paws dirty it seems.” She considers. “Yasar is said to be resourceful, but I had no idea he was this resourceful. Still, why did you agree to this?”

“He knows Zayn killed Aziz.”

Her tail stops lashing in amusement, and it slowly droops down. “He blackmailed you.”

“Yes.”

She looks past me. “Were you followed?”

That gets me to pause, and my ears lower. “You think he has someone tailing me?”

She gives me a stern look. “It’s quite possible. If the grand vizier knows you’re here, this could put both of us in danger.” She gets up from her stool to go over to the front to listen. “I hope Femi is going to be okay.”

“Naima, he already knows Kiya is investigating what happened. The fact you came to get us after the attack is already something he knows about. I think us talking isn’t a major concern, but is there something you should be telling me?”

She pauses. “I don’t want him digging into my past.”

I frown. “Is there something you stole that the grand vizier is going to care about?”

She walks away from the entranceway. “I’d rather not answer that,” she whispers.

I sigh. “I thought you had gone legit.”

“I have, I just know there are things in my past I don’t want coming out. Remember, there were jobs I didn’t want you involved with back in the day.”

That certainly further dampens my mood. “Yeah.”

“Like you, I have my own secrets,” says Naima.

Obviously my expression is not pleased because she reaches out to put a paw on my shoulder. “Hey. I know what that look means. We’ll get through this.”

“Right now, this is just my concern.”

“Yeah, but I got you that job. On that, I imagine you would like to talk to Sirius.”

I nod. “I would. I’m hoping he knows something useful.”

“He might. Sirius knows a great many people, but he’s fairly aboveboard in his dealings.”

“How do you know him?”

“I worked for him a few times. He didn’t care I was a woman, just how sharp my sword was. That was reason enough back then for him to keep in touch. Good man too. This was before he went all the way to east to the lands of silk and tea. I didn’t see him for years, but he came back and that’s when he settled down. He said he didn’t want to be on the road anymore after that.”

“I take it he was paid well for that.”

She shrugs. “Enough it seems. Lazy bastard has set himself up as an institution in a local cafe. One of his friends has tempted him south a few times with caravan work, but now Sirius is only gone for a month or two, not the years he was gone before.”

“I know you never did caravan work, but it’s not easy. You sleep under the stars, and who knows what you encounter. Bandits, sandstorms, floods, it’s all out there.”

The leopard gives me an amused grin. “That’s for men like you who think you’re worth is enduring extreme periods of deprivation. My worth has always come from my quick reflexes.”

I cross my arms. “It got me away from you and your schemes.”

She laughs. “Fair. You’re quick, but you’ve never been as quick as I am with your blade. You’ve got more follow-through though than I can put into a strike. That’s why I strike first.”

“I don’t know. You might be out of practice now. It’s been a few years since you’ve lived by the sword.”

Naima chuckles. “It would be nice to spar again. We could both go home limping.”

“I’m not sure your customers would appreciate it if you suddenly showed up with bruises.”

“Who said I would be the one with bruises?” Her tail lashes. “Remember, I strike first. I’m not the one with a big scar across his stomach.”

I reach down to touch it. “I had much to learn then.”

She laughs. “You should have been a farmer.”

“You know I didn’t have a choice in that. Plus, tilling fields gets boring.”

She waves her paws at the merchandise in her shop. “You think selling herbs and spices is exciting?”

“I’ve seen your passion for saffron and cardamom.”

“Neither of which have ever come to me with problems like they need a job, or they need to find this person and such. I’ll speak to Sirius. Do you have any other leads?”

I shake my head. “I could talk to Kiya I guess, but I can’t imagine she’s not investigated every angle she’s aware of.”

“I’m sure she has. She’s sharp.” Naima goes over to her sales counter and pulls out a piece of paper. “When he gets back, I’ll have Femi take this note to Sirius and see when he can talk to me.”

“Shouldn’t I just go myself?”

“No. Let me arrange this first. If he can’t find him, Femi will leave the note with the cafe owner, so this will be vague. In the meantime, I’m pretty sure I know who does know who our mysterious Takula is.” She pauses. “Rigel.”

I feel my ears flick and my teeth bare. “He probably does.”

She notices my reaction. “You haven’t come to regret your decision to show him mercy, have you?”

“No…I just don’t want to talk to him again. I don’t know if I can trust whatever he would tell me either. We don’t even know if he’s still alive.”

“I suspect he survived. That was a bad wound, but he had it treated. I’m also sure Kiya is looking for him.”

“Probably.” Naima pulls out her ink and considers for a moment. “I’m trying to think who would know that. The Aragvi Clan are scattered, so I don’t know if any of them would.”

“They’re in jail.”

“Some of them, but I doubt they found the Pad. He would know if Rigel is still alive or not.”

I screw up my muzzle. “The Pad?”

“The Pad of the Aragvi.”

I give her a blank look.

“Here, give me your hand.”

Most people would probably ask a follow up question, but I just walk over and place my hand in hers. “Okay?”

She opens her other handpaw, and I can see her claws extend. That’s one thing I do like about cats. My claws are always out. “Abu was a claw. Each leader of the Aragvi is a claw in their plans, but the hand holds the claws, and what is the center of the hand?” She retracts her claws and then brushes the rough pawpad in the center of my hand. “The Pad. It’s the center of the hand. From it, the digits and claws extend.”

“So they call their leader the Pad?”

“The Pad of the Paw is the formal title.”

“I am not going around asking for the Pad of the Paw. That’s ridiculous.”

“It is!” she laughs, “but that’s why they use it. We each have four paw pads, but the Aragvi have just one. It is the Pad that controls the entire clan. As for his birth name, I’ve never heard of it. I’m not sure even most of the Aragvi know it.”

“I never heard anything about this. How do you even know this?”

Her ears flick. “I met the Pad once. He had a job, and he needed my talents.”

I frown. “Who did he have you rob?”

She lets go of my hand. “That’s not important. Just know that the Pad is very secretive. He spoke to me from the shadows and the clan members who brought me to the meeting made sure I couldn’t catch his scent.”

I process this. She’s being evasive. “Naima…”

“Yes?”

“What did they have you steal?”

She’s silent for a moment. She just blinks at me, but I can read that expression too well.

“You didn’t…”

“I did the job.”

“Was it war fire?”

She shakes her head. “No. This was eight years ago also, but your suspicions are correct.” She sighs. “I stole plans from the palace for the Fennec’s Fang fortress.”

I can feel my heart sinking. “Is that where the Aragvi got the war fire from?”

She shrugs. “I have no idea, but it’s possible. I can’t see see why they’ve waited this long to strike though.”

My mind races. “Naima….” The thought makes me sick, but I have to get it out. “If I tell Yasar you did this, he might consider my debt paid.”

“He won’t.. He needs to find the war fire, but you would I’m sure buy yourself a great amount of leverage. I’d ask you not to tell him,” she says softly.

“You…” My mind spins. So much of this is beyond me. “By the stars, Naima.”

She clears her throat. “We find this Takula, and we get Yasar back his war fire. That settles your debt to Yasar, and mine to the Sultanate.”

I go over to the counter and lean against it. “If that’s it. I have so many questions now.”

“I think it’s best I not tell you the details of what I did, but I will tell you this. Kiya knows I did it.”

I blink. “How are you not in jail?”

She smiles. “That’s also a secret, but Kiya is at least happy with me.”

I pinch the bridge of my muzzle. “Why though Naima, did you even take a job like that? It had to be very dangerous.”

She gives me a wry smile. “Why did you take the jobs you did? I needed money, and I had charges under my wing. I needed to make sure they would be okay. To do that, I needed extra coin in my paws. Not that much coin I admit, but that’s how I was able to buy this shop later.”

My jaw falls open, when I realize what she means. The leopard gives me a sheepish smile. “It wasn’t my best decision, but it gave me the money to buy you and Rigel your swords.”

“We are both going to end up back in the prison at this rate,” I mutter.

Her tail lashes. “I have never met a cage that could hold me.”

“Many swordsmen will tell you they’ve never met an opponent who could best them, but it is the last one, the one who does best them, that is the end of many people’s stories.”

She chuckles, and she flashes her fangs at me. “This is why we will stand together.”

“Naima?” I reach out to her, trying to take one of her paws.

“Yes?” she says, caught off guard as I take her left hand in my own paws. Her pads are coarse against mine. “Who are you doing this for,” I ask gently, “because I don’t want to be doing this. You seem excited at the prospect.”

“Is just you not enough?” she asks. “Can’t I want to see you and Zayn happy?”

“You can, but I recognize the gleam in your eyes. You told me once you never wanted to pick up a sword again, and yet there you were, a few months ago, like nothing had changed, ready to confront Rigel, your blade in your hand. I see that same look today. There is no hesitation in your words today.”

“No, there isn’t. You and Femi know me well enough to know when I am not wishing to hold back.” She steadies herself. “This is for you, this is for Zayn, but also”—she dips her head—“this is for Kiya.”

I want to ask why, but I see it clearly on her face. I see it so plainly now that I should have suspected it before, but I never asked Naima about her deepest, most intimate affairs. It was never my business.

“You and a city guard, after all the things you’ve done? That is quite a choice for a lover my friend. I would think Femi would be jealous.”

She smirks. “Who said he didn’t get to join?”

#

Standing outside waiting for Zayn gives me a few minutes to think. The fact Naima actually broke into the palace boggles my mind. I know there has to be a way in, but the Pad had to know what they needed was inside and where to have Naima go to get it. This was a carefully executed heist.

Then the matter of Naima herself. I’ve apparently underestimated how many friends Naima actually has. It does seem she’s been busier outside of work than I thought she had been. In a way, I’m glad, but I also wonder if it’s just my own stubbornness that made me not see it. Why did I cling to the blade when she decided to seek a quieter life for herself?

I sigh. Because fighting is all I had known. Because that’s what I had, and everyone I ever loved up to the point had been connected to the blade. Because—

“My friend, are you going to order anything or are you just going to stand there in the shade?”

I glance toward the man at the food stand. The mongoose stares back at me, waiting for me to say something. “I’m waiting for my companion.”

“Oh, the jackal. I should have guessed. It’s usually both of you.”

“He should be along soon. He’s probably lost track of time looking through the latest books Safiya has acquired.”

“Ah I know her. She’s a jackal with tawny fur that runs a store in the souk.”

“That’s the one,” I say, giving my tail a wag. “Do you buy from her?”

The mongoose shakes his head. “I can’t read, but my wife can. I know she’s bought a few books from Safiya, and she reads them to me and the children sometimes at night.”

I forget sometimes not everyone has had the luck of being taught to read. “Well, that’s kind of her.”

He nods. “She is making sure the children learn. Anyway, let me know when you’re ready,” he remarks, going back to his grill to flip over some eggplant dolmas he has cooking.

“Yeah, of course.” I wonder if Zayn has once again gotten himself lost in a book, and I need to go get him. “Hey, can you tell my friend if he comes by, I’ll be right back?”

“Oh, of course,” says the mongoose. “I’ll keep a watch for him, but you’ll probably find him in Safiya’s stand.”

“Yeah,” I say, turning to walk away. Everything going on through my head is just going to give me a headache. Naima’s history with Kiya, the war fire Yasar wants, all of it is spinning beyond me control. I’ve known Naima has things lurking in her past she doesn’t want to tell me, but this, is floors me. The leopard would have killed Rigel if I asked her to after he betrayed me, and yet how much that would have jeopardized her had I asked her too? Naima has pulled strings with Kiya to get me released from jail twice now. Kiya has never given me the impression she likes me, so the fact she’s let me out of jail twice now, that has been for Naima’s benefit.

There are three people I can trust with my life right now: Naima, Zayn, and Fadel. Our trust in each other is what matters now. If I can find the Takula this all goes away, we’ll be fine. We’ll be safe then. With Naima’s help, I can do what Yasar has asked of me.

That thought at least brings a spring to my step, but as I’m approaching Safiya’s stand my newfound good mood is quickly dashed.

I see Zayn off to the side against the wall of one the stands. A lion I don’t know is looking over him, talking him. The lion looks calm and collected, but Zayn's hackles are up and his tail is between his legs. I don't recognize the lion, but behind him, leaning against a wall on the other side of the hallway is a snow leopard who looks bored. Him I do recognize—it is Jalus, the snow leopard the Aragvi bought the missing war fire from. That means the person in front of Zayn is likely Jalus's boss, Sarda, the same Sarda who gave Zayn all those scars under his fur.

I pause to see if Jalus has noticed me, but he hasn’t. Zayn’s eyes are darting back and forth, and they fall on me, and in that moment, I see fear. There is a fear I have never seen before on his muzzle. The lion says something that draws Zayn’s attention back, and I can almost see Zayn shrink back into himself.

A low growl escapes my muzzle, and I move to intervene.