Chapter 25: Help is coming

Roksolana looked up to see Lady Miriam looking at her with a smug look on her face. Roksolana stared at her, gauging her reactions. Had Lady Miriam found out that she told the Sultan about her and her lover? The Sultan must have told her about it. Was that why she had been so happy to see Roksolana tied to some board and getting roasted by the sun like a sacrificial lamb?

"This is what happens when you make the Sultan's favorite mistress angry at you. Next time I ask you to fetch me a meal, you will do it right," Miriam told her.

Roksolana heaved a sigh of relief. Lady Miriam didn't know anything about what she and the Sultan talked about. The woman was merely angry with Roksolana over her late meal. She watched as Lady Miriam climbed up to the board, standing in front of her. Miriam lowered her head to Roksolana's ear, then whispered into her eyes in such a low voice that even Roksolana nearly didn't catch all her words. All she heard was pay, Sultan and me.