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you. The sultan isn’t as lenient as I. I might not demand your head for such an insult, but the sultan would. Now, will you keep a civil tongue or must I gag as well as bind you?”
    Zara gulped convulsively. She wasn’t afraid of the arrogant sheik but at this point it might pay to practice caution, something she knew little about, or so her father had claimed. She nodded her head and he freed her mouth.
    “That’s more like it.” He pulled her to her feet and untied her hands and feet. “There are some trees yonder, if you have need of them.”
    Zara nodded vigorously. Her bladder was about to burst. She started to walk toward the trees, then stopped abruptly when she found Jamal falling in beside her.
    “Where are you going?”
    “With you, of course, unless you’d like one of Hasdai’s men to accompany you.”
    “There’s no need.”
    Jamal grew weary of Zara’s belligerent attitude and told her so. “You would do well to obey me. Your life depends upon my good will.”
    Once again Zara employed caution and withheldher sharp retort as she continued walking toward the trees Jamal had indicated.
    “I’ll wait here,” Jamal said as he leaned against a thick tree trunk. “Hurry, or I’ll come after you.”
    Zara did as she was told, wishing for a long, leisurely bath and something to eat other than olives and cheese. With Jamal and an army around her, there was virtually no way she could escape. She had to trust her father and his people to rescue her. And if that wasn’t possible, she’d accept Allah’s will with stoic resignation.
    “It’s about time,” Jamal complained when Zara came out from behind a tree. “The men are anxious to be off and I am eager to go home. I’ve been away a very long time. If not for the sultan and his need to rid the world of the Berber horde I would be riding upon my own land, enjoying my women and eating food fit for a king.”
    “I pity your women,” Zara said with a hint of contempt.
    Jamal stared at her. “Why do you say that?”
    “Are they not confined to a harem? Do you not summon them into your exalted presence so that you may use their bodies to ease your lust?”
    Her words were harsh and condemning and didn’t sit well with him. Who was she to tell him what to do and what not to do with his women? Not that there were all that many of them. He kept only three concubines and an older woman to see to their needs. He spent so much time at sea that he saw no reason to fill his harem with women. Neglected women would only make trouble in his absence. But when he returned he happily availed himself of their lush young bodies.His women were cosseted and spoiled; they lacked nothing in the way of material comforts. If they were lonely in his absence, he tried to make it up to them by bringing them back expensive baubles.
    “Did no one ever tell you that men punish their women for being viper-tongued? You speak too boldly for a woman.”
    “Berber women are allowed freedom to speak and act as they please. They show their unveiled faces and are not confined to harems.”
    “No wonder Berber women are so brazen,” Jamal muttered, sliding Zara a look that conveyed his contempt. Allowing women that much freedom was dangerous.
    When they reached the main camp, the men were already mounted and waiting for Jamal to return with his captive. Jamal tossed Zara atop his horse and leaped up behind her. Moments later they were racing toward the imperial city of Meknes.

Chapter Two
     
    The
medina
teemed with throngs of noisy people and animals as Jamal entered Meknes with the sultan’s soldiers. Holding Zara possessively against him, he passed through the narrow streets which led to the
Kasbah
and imperial palace, a mighty fortress built on the crest of a hill overlooking the
medina
.
    Zara gazed in awe at the wondrous sights and sounds surrounding her. The
souk
, a central marketplace within the
medina
, was a kaleidoscope of vivid colors and pleasing scents. Children