"Unfortunately for the princess, her royal husband-to-be had a beautiful but evil concubine who had secretly left her harem and ridden out with the soldiers to get a look at the royal bride. This woman wielded great influence over the king. She feared that a younger. more beautiful and intelligent girl-especially a queen-could destroy her power. She decided to see the bride before her lord did, and, if necessary, dispose of her.

"Greeting the princess warmly and with honeyed words, she found her worst fears confirmed. Not only was the maiden young and exquisitely fair, but she was highly intelligent Acting swiftly, that evening the concubine slipped a powerful sleeping draft into the princess's cup, and in the night two soldiers, bribed by this wicked woman, took the princess, whom they believed to be a slave, overland to Baghdad, where she was sold in the poorest slave market.

"Fortunately, the princess was purchased by the agha kislar of my father's household. He was pa.s.sing by on his way out of the city, and immediately recognized a priceless pearl among the common stones. Meanwhile, the concubine subst.i.tuted the bride's slave girl as her lord's bride."

At this point the Persian queen began to wail and rip her garments.

"Miserable p.a.w.n of dog offal," hissed Zuleika in their Chinese dialect "control yourself! You would be a queen, now act like one-if not for your son's sake, then for my family's name, which you have usurped!"

"Oh, mistress," wept the woman in the same dialect "she "she made me do it! She said I would die a horrible death if I didn't I was alone in a strange land, and frightened. I did not want to die." made me do it! She said I would die a horrible death if I didn't I was alone in a strange land, and frightened. I did not want to die."

"And you thought we should never meet again, eh, Mai Tze?"

"I have suffered for my evil. The old shah hated me and my plainness. Our marriage was not consummated for almost five years. Only when he became convinced by his advisers that his people would accept only a legitimate heir did he come to me. Then he returned to her her bed! She even wields more influence over Ismail than I do. Do not I beg of you, kill me!" bed! She even wields more influence over Ismail than I do. Do not I beg of you, kill me!"

"Do you think I would avenge myself on so insignificant a creature as you?" snapped Zuleika. "It is Shannez I have come for. And, in Allah's name, get off your knees and stand up!"

The queen struggled to her feet and stood cowering before the sultan, who now took up the thread of his story.

"When I was twenty-five, my father honored me by allowing me to choose six virgins from his own harem so that I might set up my own household. One of the maidens I picked was Princess Plum Jade-called Zuleika by our people-the very Zuleika who stands before you now, the mother of three of my sons. This woman you call 'queen'-the wife of your late king and the mother of Shah Ismail-is nothing more than a baseborn slave named Mai Tze!"

The throne room exploded into an uproar, and the queen fell into a faint as the Persian courtiers moved angrily toward her. Selim's soldiers forcibly restrained the threatening crowd as two slaves rushed to revive the fallen woman with rosewater.

"Silence!" thundered the sultan. The room quieted. "You owe this poor creature a great debt She is not the villain here. Slave or no, she was your king's legal wife and is the mother of Shah Ismail. Had she not gone along with the deception, Cathay would have destroyed you, and the old shah would have died childless. thundered the sultan. The room quieted. "You owe this poor creature a great debt She is not the villain here. Slave or no, she was your king's legal wife and is the mother of Shah Ismail. Had she not gone along with the deception, Cathay would have destroyed you, and the old shah would have died childless.

"She will retain her place in this court with all its honors. I, Selim Khan, command it" He glared down from his throne at the roomful of muttering Persians. "Now I shall deal with the one truly responsible. Bring the lady Shannez to me."

Proudly she entered the silent room, walked to the foot of the throne, prostrated herself, and then rose to face Selim boldly. She was tall for a woman, slender, and although well into her forties, looked like a girl in her mid-twenties. Her skin was a clear, light olive. Her hair, which was dressed high on her head, giving her a queenly look, was blue-black and showed no gray. Her eyes were glowing jets. She wore a simple plum-colored silk robe, no jewelry except heavy gold earrings, and was unveiled.

Selim gazed at the cold, sensuous face. His eyes moved slowly to the faintly visible pulse in her throat to the high, cone-shaped b.r.e.a.s.t.s, the glimpse of a slim leg.

Zuleika, noting her lord's interested gaze, leaned forward and whispered, "Do not deny me vengeance, my lord. Remember our two sons dead by Persia's hand."

"It shall be as you wish, my tigress." He smiled grimly. "Lady Shannez, I present to you my bas-kadin, the lady Cyra. You have, of course, met my third wife, the lady Zuleika."

"The sultan is mistaken," came the smooth, cool voice. "I have never met either of his wives."

"It is you who are mistaken, Lady Shannez. I imagine it gave you great pleasure to dispose of Princess Plum Jade. No doubt you thought her dead these many years, or perhaps some desert savage's slave. Zuleika, my love, raise your face to the lady Shannez so she may better look upon you."

The kadin obeyed her lord's command. Shannez blanched deathly white but, recovering quickly, looked Zuleika straight in the eye, laughed softly, and said, "So, you're not dead. Your kismet must be very strong, and here you are to take your vengeance. Very well. I have lived a good life."

"I shall not kill you. Oh, no, Shannez! I shall show you the same mercy you snowed me! However, I shall leave nothing to chance, as you so foolishly did." Zuleika gazed at the woman coldly, then turned to a guard. "Bring the man!"

Every eye in the room turned toward the door through which the guard had exited. He returned quickly, bringing with him an incredibly ugly, powerfully built little man, deformed by a hump on his left shoulder. The creature wore nothing but a loincloth and a small, dirty turban which perched on his head like a fallen cake. He was missing one eye, and the other eye moved swiftly to and fro in his head, taking in everything around him The heat of the crowded room had already brought forth the stench of nervous bodies, but the misshapen man brought a far stronger odor with him. Flinging himself on his face at the foot of the throne, he cried in a harsh voice, "Oh, lord, may you reign over us forever!"

"Rise," commanded the sultan.

The man scrambled to his feet "Your name?"

"Abu, my sultan."

"You are my slave?"

"Yes, most gracious lord."

"What is your work, Abu?"

"I sweep and shovel dung in my lord's stables."

Selim glanced quickly at Zuleika, an expression of gleeful admiration in his eyes. "You have done your work well, Abu. Your diligence has not gone unnoticed. The head groom tells me my stables are a place of beauty." Here Selim stopped and m.u.f.fled a laugh. "Such devotion shall not go unrewarded This day I grant you your freedom on the condition you remain in my service for one year. At the end of that year, you will be paid twelve gold pieces and may go where you please or continue to remain with my household"

Abu fell to his knees and, clutching the hem of the sultan's robe, kissed it "Wait Abu. There is more. A free man needs a woman to look after his needs. This woman was the favorite of the old shah. Many years ago, she caused great harm to the lady Zuleika."

"The mother of little Prince Nureddin?"

"You know my son?"

"Yes, great lord He comes to the stables to ride his pony. He gives me sweetmeats and figs. He is my friend. Shall I kill this woman for you, lord?"

"No, Abu. I have graciously granted her her life, but because you have been loyal to me, I give her to you as a slave. She is yours forever. Teach her your loyalty, and use her as you will."

In his whole lifetime Abu had possessed a woman only on a few occasions. His lowly rank, his occupation, and his own personal appearance left precious few who were willing to a.s.sociate with the sweeper of dung. His good eye took in the beautiful woman who his lord had said was his. Selim was not known for practical jokes, so it must be true. "Oh, great sultan! The ages will speak of your generosity toward your humble servant Abu."

He turned to Shannez. "Come, slave!"

"Approach me, vile animal, and I will kill you," she hissed The humpback raised an arm and smashed her to the floor. Grasping her limp arm with his talonlike fingers, he half dragged the woman from the room.

For a moment the hall quivered in stunned silence, then Selim spoke. "You have seen my mercy toward one who would betray an emperor's true daughter. I granted her life. My vengeance is far more terrible to behold.

"There is but one true G.o.d, Allah, And Mohammed, may his name be blessed, is His true Prophet Is there any of you who would deny this? Who among you mourns Husayn and follows the teachings of the Shia?" No one spoke. "I will strike down without mercy those who mock the one G.o.d and His Prophet be it man, or woman, or child!

"I will spare you, Shah Ismail, because, having led your people from the true path of Allah, it is up to you to lead them back. Those who will not publicly recant this heresy shall die. I, Selim Khan, have spoken!"

The sultan then rose from the throne and walked from the room, followed by his two wives. Out of hearing of the others, he turned to Zuleika. "Are you satisfied, my blossom? Your vengeance was quite diabolical. I never knew you to be quite so ferocious. Have you been so unhappy with me?"

The Chinese woman caught the sultan's hand and brought it to her forehead, her lips, and finally to her heart "For twenty-two years I have lived for you, and then for our children. Never have I known an unhappy moment with you, never have I had an unkind word from you-but never have I forgotten what that woman did to me. That her treachery brought me unspeakable happiness mattered not-only that she dared to lay hands upon a daughter of the emperor of China. My family is as great in their land as yours in ours. Would you not have done the same thing had you been in my place, my dearest lord?"

Selim put his arm about Zuleika, drew her close, and kissed her gently. "Yes, my tigress, I would have done the same. And now is your soul purged of its bile?"

"Not quite, my lord, but that small bit that remains I can exorcise quickly."

"I will leave you to do so." He turned and strode off down the tiled corridor.

Cyra had been standing quietly in the shadows. Zuleika moved to her side and asked, "Will you come with me? What I must see may be horrible, but I must know that Shannez is completely humbled before I can be satisfied."

Cyra nodded. They moved through several corridors, down a flight of stairs, finally reaching a small door that opened into the stableyards of the shah's palace. Here, Abu, the sweeper of dung, had been quartered. Immediately on entering the open court, they heard screams of outrage. Zuleika smiled.

"This way," she said, and Cyra followed her across the open yard to an almost-hidden staircase cut into the side of a wall. "Up here," said Zuleika, moving up the stairs and across the flat roof of the building. They came to a small opening in the roof. Here Zuleika stopped and motioned to Cyra. They lay down and peered into the stable below them.

Cyra's eyes widened, and she trembled at the sight A naked Shannez lay spread-eagled upon a filthy blanket Her arms and legs were held by means of leather thongs to four small pegs which had been driven into the dirt floor. Abu stood nearby, shaking his loincloth preparatory to rewrapping it about his hairy body. "A mighty weapon for so small a man," mused Zuleika.

Bending, Abu loosed the thongs about the woman's ankles and wrists and tossed her the now-soiled silk robe. "I'm hungry. Forage for food." He punctuated his words with a well-placed kick.

Shannez scrambled to her feet clutching the robe about her and, hurling invectives at her tormentor, ran out of the stable. Cyra and Zuleika rose and moved to the edge of the roof. Below them the woman stood hesitantly for a moment then, spotting an open cistern, made for it From the shadows a soldier loomed.

"Halt woman! Where do you go?"

She paused. "To seek food."

"In a cistern? Come! I will show you."

"I will find my way."

"I will will show you. Orders of Zuleika Kadin. I am to guard you at all times." Shannez stared at the man. "You're not a bad-looking wench," he said. "Perhaps we should go the long way." Leering, he moved toward her. show you. Orders of Zuleika Kadin. I am to guard you at all times." Shannez stared at the man. "You're not a bad-looking wench," he said. "Perhaps we should go the long way." Leering, he moved toward her.

"Get away from me!" she shrieked, flailing out at him.

Abu appeared in the stable door. "What's all this noise? Where's my supper, you lazy s.l.u.t?"

"h.e.l.lo, Abu," said the soldier. "Who's the woman, and how did you get so lucky, you ugly son of a she-camel?"

"She was the old shah's favorite," said the sweeper of dung proudly. "The sultan gave me my freedom, and the woman as a slave to care for my needs."

"By the beard of the Prophet," replied the soldier, "old Selim gets generous with the pretty goods." He thought for a moment "Say, Abu. How would you like to make some money? Now you're a free man, you've got to think of the future."

"What do I have to do?"

The soldier drew the little man aside, then whispered to him.

"Well, it's fine with me, but I warn you, all she does is kick and scream. I had to tie her down."

"A fighter, eh? It adds more spice. Wait here while I get my comrades."

He returned in a twinkling with five other soldiers. Each placed a small purse in the dung sweeper's hand. Abu turned to Shannez. "Get back inside."

"But your food-" She stopped and looked wildly about for a means of escape. There was none.

"I'll fetch my own food. Get inside!"

Shannez tried to run, but the soldiers laughingly caught her and dragged her into the stables as Abu walked away.

The two women stood on the roof for a moment; then Zuleika spoke over the screams coming from below them "Let us go. I am satisfied."

Silently the kadins moved down the stairs and across the stableyard. The little door closed with a quiet click on Shannez's shame and anguish. Zuleika Kadin never again spoke of her past.

31.

THE SULTAN RETURNED to Constantinople with eight hundred and fifty camels and five hundred donkeys laden with gold, silver, precious jewels, and other booty. The slaves numbered over ten thousand. The boundaries of the Ottoman Empire had been widened by the annexation of Diyarbekir and Kurdistan. The Persian campaign had been very successful. to Constantinople with eight hundred and fifty camels and five hundred donkeys laden with gold, silver, precious jewels, and other booty. The slaves numbered over ten thousand. The boundaries of the Ottoman Empire had been widened by the annexation of Diyarbekir and Kurdistan. The Persian campaign had been very successful.

In his wake, Selim left the bodies of forty thousand Shiites who had been ma.s.sacred because they refused to return to the pure form of Mohammedanism. The young shah was so horrified by this act that he was never known to smile again.

The Turks had wintered in the shah's capital of Tabriz. The annexation of Persian territory had occurred in the spring of the year 1515, with the return to Constantinople coming in early autumn of the same year. with the return to Constantinople coming in early autumn of the same year.

The kadins had agreed on one thing-never again would they accompany their lord on campaign. They had missed Constantinople, they had missed Firousi and Sarina, but most of all, they had missed the children. With the death of three of Selim's sons, the family became more important to them than ever before.

For a time, the sultan's mood was as of old The treasury building, begun in the time of Selim's grandfather, Mohammed the Conqueror, had been completed to the sultan's satisfaction. It was ready to receive the vast treasure he had brought with him from Persia. The gold was put in huge iron coffers, which were then placed in a vault beneath the treasury. The jewels and other booty were placed in the main rooms. The silver was dispersed among the various palace treasuries for the payment of accounts. A register was made, listing everything brought back, and finally the door of the treasury was sealed with the imperial seal of Selim I.

Selim said on that day, "I have filled the treasury with gold. If any of my successors fills it with copper, let the treasury be sealed with his seal If not, let them continue to seal it with my seal."

The sultan now turned his mind to other matters, the first of which was his eldest son. Suleiman, Gulbehar, and their court were being sent to Magnesia, where the prince would govern the province for his father. It was to be a test of the heir and his abilities.

Prince Mohammed would go to Erzurum in the same capacity. Prince Murad, Cyra's third son, who was now sixteen, and Sarina's thirteen-year-old son, Bajazet, were sent to a distant army barracks for further training.

Of the sultan's living sons, there were but three left in Constantinople. Prince Karim, the baby, would remain with his mother; but Firousi's Ha.s.san and Zuleika's Nureddin, aged eleven and ten, were removed from the harem and given their own households.

The kadins were not happy at this last of the sultan's orders. They did not trust the morals of the younger eunuchs, and both princes were fresh-faced children. Spies from the harem were quickly introduced into the boys' quarters so their mothers might be kept fully informed and be able to protect their sons should the need arise.

The sultan's next move was in the direction of his daughters. Hale and Guzel were now sixteen and practically past marriageable age. However, in this area Selim was pliable. The girls would marry, but not a foreigner, and the choice would be theirs.

Selim, ever indulgent toward his twin daughters, allowed them, heavily veiled and concealed behind a viewing screen, to see the selection of prospective husbands. Half a dozen were picked from the chosen list, and the others dismissed. The twins were then informed in detail of each man's qualifications. Finally the sultan announced that his daughters would marry the eighteen-and nineteen-year-old sons of Pasha Ismet ben Orman, a valued servant and soldier of the Ottoman Empire.

The marriages were celebrated almost immediately. Pasha Ismet had grown rich in the service of the Ottoman government, and in his delight at having as daughters-in-law not just one princess but two, he provided his sons with adjoining white marble palaces overlooking the Bosporus.

Each palace-of one hundred rooms-was set in a garden filled to overflowing with flowering shrubs and trees of every known kind. There were simulated streams, ponds, and tiled pools. The mother of the bridegrooms obtained an audience with Firousi Kadin so she might learn the decorative preferences of the princesses. They must be happy.

At the marriage ceremony, Hale and Guzel were represented by the aging agha kislar, who took their vows for them. The wedding feast, which was held in a hall of the Yeni Serai, lasted three days. It was here that the sons of Pasha Ismet first met their brides.

After the feasting ended the first night, the two girls quietly left the hall with the other women of the harem. Only the kadins and the brides' personal slaves were permitted in the adjoining nuptial chambers, where the two maidens were bathed and carefully examined to be sure they were completely free of all body hair. Sheer night garments were placed upon them, and their hair was brushed and perfumed with musk.

The ladies then withdrew, each wishing Hale and Guzel the traditional blessing, "May you know only joy." In the anteroom outside, the bridegrooms waited, for they could not enter the wedding chamber of their royal brides until called. An imperial son-in-law had few privileges, and his position was firmly established on the wedding night Hale and Guzel had agreed that in defense of maidenly modesty they would keep their new husbands waiting two hours. So Hussein and Riza waited nervously for a summons from their new wives.

In Cyra's salon, Firousi wept The other kadins tried to comfort her. "They're so young," she sobbed.

"Nonsense," said Cyra briskly. "You were two years younger on your nuptial night Guzel and Hale have had the good fortune to choose their own husbands, and the young men are already enchanted and enamored of their young brides. They will all be very happy."

Firousi sniffed. "Do you really think so?"

"Yes! And I think you had also better stop weeping. What scandal there will be at tomorrow's feast if you appear with red and swollen eyes."

Later that night, Selim came to Cyra's apartment. He was happier than he had been in a long time and was feeling expansive and talkative. He was pleased with the wedding, pleased with his daughters, pleased with his sons-in-law, and considering marrying Nilufer off next.

Cyra protested, "My dearest lord, she is but twelve and has not even reached s.e.xual maturity. Surely you will not marry her off for a few more years."