บท 61: Chapter 61: Shadows, Part 1

Binhadi stared down at Cemal, fast asleep, draped in silk sheets and dying candlelight. He could not remember the last time he'd had someone in his bed who felt like a lover. Fucking had long ago turned into one more weapon in his arsenal, and being reduced to that, losing the last and simplest pleasure in his life, had been what truly turned him into the man everyone feared or loathed.

His hands struck something hard as he shifted, and Binhadi grasped the object, pulled out Cemal's prayer beads where they'd somehow gotten lost in the bedding. He'd woken before and found them in his hands, and the despair that had made him want to die receded enough he'd been willing to face the world again. It had receded even further when he saw Cemal fast asleep beside him.

Sule had lost all faith in him. Mahzan—

Binhadi swallowed, fingers clenching the beads.