The Shah had the urge to spit out the truth about Gold Dust’s fall and make an ass of this insolent acrobat who spoke of strange matters. The king was comfortable with the tangible, the flesh, and needs of the body. The soul belonged to the realm of Allah, and he preferred not to tread unknown terrain.

The Shah waved a silver-capped finger. “We won’t need you any longer.”

Soleiman the Agile started toward the door. At the threshold, he turned on his heels as if he were a graceful sculpture gyrating on a carpeted platform. “The real remedy, Your Highness, is sunshine. Light to the soul is like air to the lungs.”

“Our immense love for the favorite is sufficient.”

Raven gathered her skirts and breezed out of the hall.

Moon Face crushed the pearl between her teeth and spat out the shreds. The Shah had sneaked away from behind the bushes as if he were a squeaking eunuch, guilty of fondling women. He had hardly glanced at any of the sultanas, nor acknowledged her efforts to please him. Holding her breath, she dived down to the glazed bottom of the pool and picked more pearls. Her lungs bursting, she shot back up. Even with silent bones, Gold Dust held magical powers over the king. Like vicious mills, Moon Face’s teeth ground the pearls in her mouth until the fine powder was about to choke her. The pain in her throat was easier to bear than the rage in her veins.

She coughed up the pearl dust and climbed up the steps of the pool. Gulf Lily rushed to wipe off her running makeup.

“My bladder’s bursting,” she whispered.

Gulf Lily, the color of the Persian Gulf on moonless nights, glanced around, bewildered. His hand flew into the air in a wild, pleading dance: My lady, you can’t leave now. The gates might be open; there might be men around.

Moon Face shifted from one foot to another. “I can’t hold it. I’m going to die from shame.”

He threw a veil over her body and clasped her hand in his.

“No, you stay here and cover for me. I’ll be back soon.” She crawled behind the jasmine bushes and ran past the courtyard and beneath the silk underpass. She recognized the burnished curls and the lithe body of the man leaving the harem. Securing the chador around her face, she sped toward him. Two fingers in her mouth to change her voice, she barked through puckered lips, “By Allah, it’s the acrobat from the Jewish Quarter!”

Soleiman turned his pale gaze to her one dark eye, visible from the parting of her veil. He bowed slightly, a palm against his chest. He did not like the murky shadows inside this woman’s head.

“Have you come to perform for her?” Moon Face coughed in her manly voice, her eye combing him from head to toe. “So that’s why we were banished to the pool! Did she enjoy your acrobatic feats?”