Curious, she opened her wardrobe and made her way into her room.

“There you are!” a voice said. Durkhanai jolted and saw Zarmina in her bed.

“Zarmina?” she said, incredulous. “What are you doing here?”

“Waiting for you,” she replied. “I was worried. Where were you? Are you okay? You’re a mess. Did you tell the guards? They’ve been out looking for you.”

“I was down in the village, alerting the people,” Durkhanai replied. “I just got caught in the rain for a bit and fell.”

“And your hand?”

“Zarmina, it’s alright, I’ll get it checked come morning,” Durkhanai said. She needed Zarmina to go back to sleep immediately. Durkhanai hoped Asfandyar had enough sense to go to his room on his own, but she had a feeling he didn’t.

“Why is your face so florid?” Zarmina asked, taking in Durkhanai’s flushed complexion. “Don’t bother getting enraged over Rukhsana-sahiba right now.”

“No, that’s not it,” Durkhanai said, waving her off. She busied herself with cleaning up, going to her dressing room. She took off her muddy clothes, avoiding Zarmina’s curious gaze.

“Did you see Rashid?” Zarmina asked next, gasping. “Is that why you used the passageways to sneak into your own room?”

“No!” Durkhanai said, but she responded much too quickly. Her cheeks burned red remembering the boy she had been with.

She washed her hands and face with cold water, not removing the edge of Asfandyar’s kurta on her hand. When she left her dressing room, Zarmina’s face had widened into a shocked grin. She sat up.

“Chal jhooti!” she said. “You little liar! What were you guys doing? Everyone did see you together all night. But now so late! The scandal! Hai main margai!”

“Zarmina,” Durkhanai whined, getting into bed. “Kuch nahi. Let’s go to sleep.”

“Acha, acha,” Zarmina said. “You don’t have to tell me, but I can guess.”

She wiggled her eyebrows, and Durkhanai pulled the covers over her cousin’s face. She hoped Asfandyar had gone from the passageways by then . . .

“Sleep,” Durkhanai insisted, getting comfortable herself. “I’m tired too.”

“Someone’s a little exerted!” Zarmina teased, laughing.

“Zarmina!”

“Fine,” Zarmina said. “Shabba khair. Goodnight.”

Finally, her cousin nestled back into bed, and she was asleep in an instant. She always fell asleep in the blink of an eye.

Carefully, Durkhanai slipped out of bed, going to her wardrobe. She opened the door, brushed her clothes aside, and moved the panel to find Asfandyar leaning against the frame, wide awake.

“Rashid?” was all he said.

Hai Allah. She waved him off.

“Ja yahaan se—go,” she whisper-shouted. “Why are you still here?”

“I thought I’d wait for you,” he said innocently.

“Go clean up and I’ll meet you here again in fifteen minutes,” she whispered. “We can’t very well go down to the dungeon covered in mud.”

He nodded and left.