INTO THE FIRE
Twenty-one
As the first traces of dawn crept into Bane's room, he slowly awoke in his bed. Was it the gabble of birds atop the guesthouse roof that had stirred him or the gentle touch of Talia's finger trailing lazily down the jagged scar on his back? He gave a low growl of pleasure and turned his head on the pillow to see her lying on her side, only the bed sheet covering her nakedness, keeping away the morning chill. Her sleepy eyes met his, and they both smiled. She withdrew her hand as he rolled onto his side, closer to her.
Bane caressed her cheek. "I can't tell you what it means to me to find you still here, in my bed."
Talia kissed his hand. "I should be getting back to the palace before Jiddah finds me gone, but…" She brushed the sheet away from his torso. "I don't want to go. I want to stay with you. Not just today, I mean—I want to go back with you and Barsad."
His fingers combed through her wild hair. "As much as I would love that, you must return to your studies. You have come so far. This is not the time to abandon your education."
"But I'm so tired of it, Bane."
"I know, habibati. But it's a necessity if you are to one day lead the League."
"Me?"
Through her surprised frown, he realized Talia had never truly considered the legacy her father's eventual death would bestow upon her.
"No," she said. "Once Papa is gone, you will take command. And as Papa's heir, I will have authority over our brothers to see it done."
Bane gave her a small, indulgent smile. "Let's not talk of this now, habibati. Our time together is too short to waste on debating such things. Besides, your father has many years ahead of him." And, he thought, I could be dead long before Rā's al Ghūl meets his demise.
"Of course, you're right." She returned his smile as he drew the sheet away from her breasts. "But if you won't let me leave with you, then at least promise me you will stay one more night." Her probing hand easily rekindled the fire that had burned in him all night. "I will make it worth your while."
Bane chuckled deep in his throat. "I have no doubts of that, my love."
"Then won't you promise me?"
"What will I tell Barsad?" he teased.
A slight rosy hue colored her cheeks. "Unless Barsad is a deaf man, I think he'll understand your motivation for staying."
Her emboldened strokes drew another pleased growl from behind the mask. "You do have the power of persuasion, little mouse. But I told your grandmother that I would be leaving today. What will I say changed my mind?"
"Tell her the truth."
Bane lifted a skeptical eyebrow at her, and she softly laughed. "Not that truth. But just tell her you want to see more of me."
Now he drew the sheet completely off her. "I believe I have seen it all."
Talia gently pressed his shoulder back toward the bed, sliding over to straddle him. "No, habibi," she murmured with a sultry smile, "you have only seen the very beginning."
###
Bane finished his morning coffee then replenished his mask's crystals. Before putting the apparatus back on, he stared at it for a moment, absently turning it over and over as he remembered Talia's invitation for him to remove it last night. Of course he had not done it, even when she encouraged him a second time, after the fire had died in the hearth and darkness consumed the bedroom. Perhaps it had been cowardly to deny her. Maybe exposing his wounds would not have repulsed her but instead would have given her strength, knowing that he had accepted them enough to lay himself bare to her. But he only frowned at this speculation, for he knew he could not take the chance of seeing even a hint of revulsion in her beautiful eyes, nor the familiar specter of guilt. And he would not spoil their next night together, for who knew if they would ever see one another again?
After Talia had slipped away this morning, he had taken his time getting up. Hopefully her delay in leaving would not lead to any repercussions with her family. Bane sighed as he donned the mask once again, knowing he would have to endure repercussions of his own from Barsad. But the thought was not entirely unpleasant. He rather delighted in surprising Barsad with his behavior, as he had done on many occasions over the years, and this would be one of the more significant ones. As a man who regularly enjoyed the company of accommodating women, Barsad often puzzled aloud Bane's restraint. Perhaps now his friend would understand.
Barsad had arisen shortly after Talia's departure—Bane had heard his door open and footsteps trail away down the stairs. A morning run. Perhaps to clear his head of what he had heard through the walls last night. Bane wondered if the sounds of his lovemaking to Talia had made Barsad think of his affair with Maysam. Bane frowned, for he hoped his own pleasure had not been at the expense of his friend.
After Barsad returned from his run, he retired to his room. Bane expected his lieutenant to join him for breakfast, but surprisingly he did not. So, after eating, Bane took advantage of his solitude and went back to bed, for he had gotten little sleep and figured he would get very little tonight as well. The prospect made him smile, his thoughts tripping happily over memories of last night.
He did not awaken until he heard Barsad's door open and close and his steps retreat from the guesthouse once more. Bane glanced at the clock on his nightstand. Barsad was expected at the palace for lunch, with Bane to arrive a short while later. As with yesterday, Bane would not subject Maysam to seeing him eat without his mask. Surprised at how long he had slept, Bane finally crawled out of bed to shower, reluctantly washing away Talia's lingering scent.
Lunch was a long, leisurely affair, just the four of them again, this time sitting outside in the shade of a veranda that overlooked the inner courtyards. Conversation was much lighter and easier than yesterday, and Bane found himself uncharacteristically animated and jovial, so much so that he reined himself in out of concern that Maysam might somehow suspect the reason for his happy state. It was a foolish concern, for she did not know him well enough to be able to read such things, not like Barsad.
Bane's good mood seemed to amuse his lieutenant, though of course Barsad refrained from openly commenting about it in front of Maysam. But the curious, mischievous glint in Barsad's pale blue eyes could not be hidden, especially from someone who knew him as well as Bane.
Like Barsad, Talia seemed to have taken note of her lover's improved demeanor, and she often teased him, making them all laugh. Fortunately, her more private glances were flashed discreetly, when her grandmother was talking to Barsad, glances that had a wonderful yet uncomfortable physical effect on Bane. Sometimes she was so distracting that he avoided even glancing her way, though at such times she put forth even greater effort to capture his attention. Although she had dressed conservatively for her grandmother's sake, her blue and white dress had just enough cling to it that his thoughts often ran wild, and he could not wait for their night together.
"I'm so pleased that you are staying one more day, Haris," Maysam said when he and Barsad were about to head back to the guesthouse. "Are you sure I can't convince you to come with me and Talia to Jaipur this afternoon?"
Bane smiled. "I'll leave the shopping to you ladies. No need dragging a man around when the two of you have so much to do, especially a man who looks like me. You will enjoy it more without me."
"Yeah," Barsad said with a grin, "I'm sure they have a lot to talk about."
Bane's spine stiffened at the remark, but he made sure the reaction never made it to his face. He allowed a look of caution in Talia's direction. Talia, however, seemed quite pleased with Barsad's inference, and the beautiful smile she gave Barsad as a reward managed to make the American blush.
Bane and Barsad headed out of the palace, leaving all conversation behind. Striding loosely across the largest of the courtyards, which stretched away from the rear of the palace, the contentment from their conversation waned. Two women and several children were in the courtyard, enjoying the beautiful weather. Siddig's relatives, Bane figured, for they bore no resemblance to Maysam or Talia. The children, having grown less fearful and more curious about their masked visitor, continued their games of chase and wrestling, keeping a wary eye on him as he passed, but no longer running away.
The silence between Bane and Barsad lengthened, took on an altogether different feel, causing Bane's fingers to twitch.
Reaching the end of the courtyard, they passed through an ornate, green archway with a golden door that led to another courtyard, this one much smaller and empty. Their footfalls echoed around the square.
"Speak your mind, brother," Bane said at last. "There is something you wish to say."
"Maybe it's none of my business to say."
"I will be the judge of that."
Barsad gave a small snort. "Who you sleep with is your affair, not mine. However, I have to admit it worries me."
"And why is that?"
"To not tell me about Talia's relationship with Maysam is somewhat understandable, considering the circumstances. But last night…" He gave Bane a sidelong, almost incredulous glance. "You told me who she is, but you couldn't tell me the rest?" He waved a dismissive hand. "Like I said—you don't have to tell me who you're sleeping with, but your…behavior makes me wonder what else you're hiding from me."
"You have told me all your secrets?" Bane challenged.
"Damn near. And the ones you don't know about aren't relevant. But Talia…I have a feeling she's beyond relevant to who you are. And I don't just mean in the sack."
Bane kept silent until they had turned right and passed through another archway, its colorful peacock frescos familiar to him from his previous visit. In this next courtyard, the square, two-story guesthouse commanded the center, bordered on one side—the side facing the main palace—by an elaborately landscaped garden where Hisham was at work, cutting flowers, to freshen the vases throughout the palatial guesthouse.
"Let us continue our discussion in the privacy of my room, brother," Bane quietly said.
"Fine. And, God damn it, I'm smoking."