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now occupied by the merchants who had arrived earlier in the day. The innkeeper was vaguely
apologetic, but unwilling to turn his guests out; moreover, the special meal Cait had arranged was now
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being prepared for the merchants. 'I begged to be excused, but they insisted,' he said, spreading his
hands in a gesture of abject helplessness. 'They paid in gold dinars. What could I do?'
'I suppose honouring your promise to me never occurred to you?' enquired Cait tartly.
'Exalted lady, you must try to be reasonable,' protested the innkeeper in his rough, marketplace Latin.
'These are very important men from the East. It is said that one is the supplier of pepper and saffron to
the Sultan of Rhum, and the others are the owners of caravans that carry silk and spices from Kush to
Samarkand. They are celebrating a royal commission to provide the court at Baghdad with damasc cloth
and cinnamon.'
'Spare me your mealy mouthed excuses,' snapped Cait. 'These merchants who cannot be denied -
where are they?'
'Cait, no,' murmured Alethea; she had been watching for her sister's return and hurried out to meet the
knights, who, having eased themselves from the carriages, stood gazing at the evening sky with the
transparent delight of children.
'The merchants, my lady? But -' He looked to Alethea for help.
'Cait, please ...' Thea tugged anxiously on her sleeve.
Ignoring her sister, Cait demanded, 'Where are they?'
'Why, they are resting in the inner court. But -' began the innkeeper.
'As it is our meal they propose to eat, they will not mind if we share the celebration.' Turning to Abu,
Cait said, 'Come with me, we will secure our invitation to the feast.'
The horrified innkeeper started after her. 'My lady, this you cannot do. It is -'
Cait turned on him, and let fly. 'You will not presume to tell me what I can and cannot do! I have five
noblemen who require beds tonight. Not merchants: noblemen. Knights! They are newly released from
captivity and are not of a mind to sleep in your stinking stable. So, if I were you, my oily friend,' she
jabbed a finger into his flabby chest, 'I would not waste another moment worrying about my precious
propriety, but would start trying to save my worthless skin. For unless you find rooms where my men will
be comfortable, I will give them leave to peel you like a grape.'
With that, Cait turned and marched directly into the inner courtyard to a flurry of protestation from a
red-faced, horrified innkeeper. The courtyard had been spread with rugs and cushions for the comfort of
the merchants and their guests, who were reclining around large brass trays filled with cups and jars, and
bowls of olives and roasted pine nuts.
At her sudden appearance, all conversation ceased. The merchants looked up to see a woman livid with
rage sweeping into their midst. For a moment they merely stared, and when it appeared that she was not
about to leave, one of them rose to his feet and addressed her courteously. Abu translated.
'Most gracious lady,' he said, 'you honour us with your radiant presence.' A swarthy man of middle
years, his ample form swathed in costly robes of glistening blue and black and crimson, he touched his
fingertips to his forehead and made an elaborate flourish with his hand - a flash of gold from the rings on
every finger. 'I am Ibn Umar al-Farabi, purveyor of rare spices from the Orient. How may I be of service
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to you?'
'It seems the rooms which I have engaged for my party have been given to you and your friends.'
'Indeed?' remarked the merchant with mild surprise when Abu had relayed her words. 'Nothing was said
of this to me. I am sorry, but I fear there is little to be done about it now. We have already paid for the
rooms, you see.'
'Also, the meal which you will be served was bespoken by me,' she told him bluntly.
'Again,' replied the trader, 'it is unfortunate, but we were not told of this - otherwise we would certainly
have made other arrangements. As it is, we have paid for the meal and it is even now being prepared.
There is no remedy, I fear.' He inclined his head sympathetically. 'Please accept my deepest regrets.'
The other merchants were listening now; she saw one of them smile with a smugness that brought her
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