Before she knew it, the meal was over and most of the family had excused themselves. Zeynep and Demir had gone and Volkan was sitting with his mother beyond the French doors that opened onto a patio. They were sipping from liquor glasses and Volkan held a cigar loosely between his fingers, his leg crossed over his knee, his posture relaxed. They seemed to be deep in conversation. Yasmin had a vague recollection of Volkan telling her he was going to step outside for some fresh air.

“I hope we’re not being rude,” Yasmin said, glancing at the empty chairs around the table. She hadn’t thanked Narin for the wonderful meal, though she assumed a chef was the real brains behind the food they ate.

“Not at all,” Defne assured her with a smile. “It’s so nice to have a new person in the house with us. It’s not very often that we get to mix up the conversation. Volkan is always interesting, of course. I love hearing about his travels when he comes home.”

Yasmin caught the hero-worship on Defne’s face and her heart sank a little. As much as Defne seemed like an ally, she clearly adored her older brother. It was unlikely that she’d help Yasmin get away from him, or even believe Yasmin if she tried to explain her situation. Still, she had to try.

“Has your brother brought anyone home before?” Yasmin asked tentatively.

“Oh no,” Defne said, shaking her head. “Only Caria, and she was a terrible mistake. We don’t really talk about her.”

Yasmin nodded, not wanting to push, but also quite curious about the lookalike woman who no one wanted to talk about. “Why do you call Volkan’s ex-wife a mistake?”

Defne stared at her, then glanced at Volkan, before saying in a hushed voice, “He told you about her?”

She hated deceiving the young and obviously naive girl, but if she was going to find a way out of there, she needed all the information. “He did.”

Defne looked relieved but continued speaking in a low voice. “We all knew she was no good the first time he brought her home. She was wild and had no respect for anyone other than herself. She took off at all times of night and came back drunk or high. Volkan was so frustrated, but he loved her, so he put up with it.”

Yasmin was surprised. Hadn’t Volkan said his marriage was arranged? Maybe Caria’s party-girl side came out after the wedding. Although Volkan was such a controlling man that she couldn’t picture him allowing his wife the freedom to go out and get drunk and high. She snuck another look his way and caught his gaze on her. It held warning, though he continued to sit with his mother where he couldn’t hear Yasmin and Defne’s conversation.

“How old was he when he got married?”