Page 179 of Shâhzâdeh

“Zhe women are blameless. I’m sure your wife will be fine to live somewhere on zhe widow’s pension she lowered for the rest of zhe women wizout husbands. I wouldn’t harm my aunt, but she is just as bad as you are. She blamed all zhe women zhat you slept wiz because she refused to hold you accountable. Shame.”

That woman was just as prejudiced as her husband, probably because she had been forced to marry my uncle and he never respected her. She felt as though she had been robbed of joy and instead of being a good princess, she was more than happy to mirror his behavior of snobbiness as though it was something they could bond over.

“Karman is zhe one who started zhis. When you get toJahannam, make sure that you take your ire out on him.”

“He’s right here! Vhy are you acting like he’s dead already?” Ibriham had clearly not been paying attention to what was happening around him.

“Because he was zhe one who started all of zhis shit. At least zhe recent shit. And zhose two men back zhere are going to ensure zhat he dies efficiently because one is fueled with zhe same love for his woman as my fazer and the ozer—” I turned to look at Nate curiously. He grinned broadly reminding me of the male version of Jada. He was still wearing his cowboy hat with a long braid down his back, jeans and an A-shirt. “Zhe ozer is a loose cannon who I zhink frankly just likes zis shit.”

“You’re not wrong,shâhzâdeh.”

“Shâhzâdeh? Zhey call you a prince? Zhey do not even call you by the right title. You are a King’sgrandson. I am zhevali’ahd(crown prince)! My esons are zheshâhzâdehsof our land. My daughters zheshâdokhtswho vill be married to furzer our influence.” Ibriham’s chest puffed back out and I was ready to cave that shit in.

“You ever vonder vhy your daughters are so much older but no alliance has been made?” Afshin rubbed his chin having the type of confidence that money couldn’t buy and they’d tried to ridicule out of him. His raw umber colored skin a testament to his heritage seemed richer as he stepped into his future role as head of the family.

Ibriham looked embarrassed but we all knew he wasn’t going to tell the truth. “Zhere are issues—”

“Because no one wants an alliance zhat makes zhem beholden to you. Maybe, after your death, zheshâdokhtscan break free from zhe curse of your failures. I will see zhat my nieces, zhe ones who desire it, are married to men who will respect and love zhem.”

Ibriham sucked his teeth and looked like he would’ve spit on Afshin if he was closer. Ibriham’s disgust was too great for a man showing emotion. Empathy was a weakness he refused to entertain as a virtue. “Respect and love. You’re even vorse zhan Bijan wiz zhis nonsense.”

“Not all Mahdavis see zhe beings zhat created us wiz such contempt. How you can abhor women when you came from one is beyond my understanding.” I was glaring at Ibriham but his idiot son just couldn’t shut up to save his waning life.

“Is zhis about Reza’s sister? He procured her for me like he does everyone else. Reza was eager to secure his position especially after you left him to still work in zhe stables. He vanted a taste of zhe life we lived and his esister’s purity is vhat he used to bargain wiz it. If you vant to be mad at someone, find him and be angry viz him.” Kamran spoke like people were disposable and I vas ready for him to meet his end.

“It isn’t possible because I am not a necromancer.”

“Vhat?”

I was wondering how hard Sampson hit his ass because this muthafucka’s memory was shot. “Zhe man is dead, remember? How am I supposed to be mad at him? He’s gotten his penance for his crimes—”

“Barely.”

Sampson interjected for the back sounding like a man who wanted to travel to hell and fight the man he put there again. No wonder we liked him so much.

“So, vhy are you bozering with me? It vas him who offered her up. Vhy vould I not indulge? Ve all did.” He motioned to his brothers who were glaring at him in disbelief. I assumed they thought they might leave here with their lives. Their inability to read the situation made me chuckle.

He did no work and he would never take responsibility for any of his actions.

“You really did not pay attention at all did you? When zhe horses were moved, you zhought zhat was on his authority? You did not even bozer to pick up zhe phone and call me to see why it happened. ”

“Kamran you didn’t monitor zhe horses?” Babak, Ibriham’s oldest but least favorite son, now seemed to understand how little his brother did.

“Vhen you all said zhey vere being moved. I assumed zhey were being sold.” Kamran shrugged as though it was their fault that he hadn’t done anything more than assume.

“And you didn’t look into it?” Farhad, their middle brother, reached out for Reza but with his bound hands couldn’t do much. It was humorous watching them turn on one another like this.

“NO! I’m to sell zhe horses not to keep track of zhem. Zhat is Reza’s job.”

They started to argue amongst themselves before their father interrupted them.

“WHO IS DEAD AND YOU DID NOT EVEN KNOW!” Ibriham screamed at his son as Karman’s brothers looked at him in disgust. My cousins weren’t going to be exempt from this because they were more than complicit in other behaviors. Having them on the throne would be like putting a spoiled child there and telling them to rule. They’d followed their father’s footsteps and hadn’t attempted to be more than their last name.

“Who cares about him? He vas zhere to do his job. Zhis is his failure.” Even on the brink of death, he was a child. Shrugging his shoulders indifferently and having no desire to atone.

“And yours will be zhe impetus of our death. Xerxes,pesar amoo. Zhere has to be somezing zhat we can do to make up for zhis. We did not know about zhe girl. Ve assumed she wanted to be zhere. You have been in zhe palace and see how zhey vie for attention. Even zhe girl who was selected for you has been happy to lose her virtue.” Farhad was speaking on Farah who they’d bought to my wedding but it seemed she’d become a toy for my cousins.

“Happy to lose it or feeling like she had no other choice now zhat I’m married?” They’d attempted to prove a point but solidified the fact that they consumed whoever they were in contact with.

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