Girl, Serpent, Thorn - Melissa Bashardoust Page 0,25

in exchange for her knowledge? Would she be willing to endanger Golvahar—endanger her family—for the chance to save herself? She remembered again that Parvaneh had attacked Sorush. And how did she know that Parvaneh would tell her the truth? The risk was too great, the reward too uncertain. “No,” she said at last, without any doubt in her voice. “I won’t do it.”

Parvaneh shrugged and resumed pacing. “I didn’t think so, but I had to ask. But don’t worry, I’m willing to negotiate.” She stopped in front of Soraya again and said, “I want you to bring me the simorgh’s feather.”

She said the words as if they were simple, but Soraya felt hollow, like Parvaneh had reached inside and torn whatever remaining hope she had out of her body. It was unthinkable, the most disloyal act she could imagine—against both her brother and her people. She would still be a curse on her family if she did such a thing, only in a different way.

And besides that, no one but the shah and the high priest knew where the feather was.

“I can’t do that,” she said, her voice hoarse.

Parvaneh shook her head. “That’s my only offer. Bring me the feather, and I’ll tell you how to lift your curse.”

Soraya’s skin prickled. She was suddenly too aware of everything around her. The smell of esfand in the stale cavern became overwhelming, and the smoke blurred her vision. In the dim light, the div’s eyes were too bright, too piercing. I should never have come here, Soraya thought. I should never have trusted a div to tell me anything true. Because this was a trap—she saw it now. Parvaneh would try to buy her trust by making her think her mother had lied, and then she would lure Soraya into betraying her family. Why else would a div ever agree to help her?

And the worst part was that she was still tempted to accept.

But she had to be wary. She couldn’t let the force of her wanting overcome all reason. “How do I know you’ll keep your end of the bargain? Or that you even have the answer at all?” She had meant to sound determined and authoritative, but she only sounded defeated.

Parvaneh hesitated, and then the lines of her face sharpened so that she looked like she was made of the same stone as the walls that imprisoned her. The cold blaze of her eyes shone as brightly as the torch, and in that moment, there was no mistaking her for human. “I swear on the lives of the pariks, my sisters, that if you bring me the feather, you will have the answer you seek.”

There was nothing mocking or sneering in her voice as she spoke, and Soraya found to her surprise that she believed her—which made this impossible bargain even more frustrating. “Why do you even want the feather?” she demanded. “Are you planning to destroy it?”

“No, I have a use for it. Don’t bother asking—I won’t tell you.”

“Would you be able to return it to me, when you were finished with it?”

“If I’m successful, then yes, I believe so.”

Soraya shook her head. She shouldn’t even have asked. She shouldn’t be considering this trade at all or trusting anything Parvaneh told her. “It doesn’t make sense. Why wouldn’t you destroy it? You tried to kill my brother. Any div would want to destroy it.”

“I’m not any div,” Parvaneh snapped. “I’m a parik, and my purposes are my own.”

The answer took Soraya by surprise, and she wondered if she could still emerge from this conversation with something useful. She tried to keep her voice light as she said, “And yet I heard the divs were more united than ever. Or is there discord among you?”

A slow, knowing smile spread over Parvaneh’s face. “You heard that, did you? And I’m sure whoever told you that is currently waiting to see what answer you bring back. Is that why you were allowed to come back here?”

Soraya answered with silence, and Parvaneh nodded. “Well, I can’t send you back empty-handed, can I? You’re my favorite visitor. Here’s something for you to take back with you—you’re right that the divs are more united now than they have been. The question you should be asking is who united them.”

“Who—”

“That’s all I can tell you. But I want to make something clear. Whatever you choose to report back, you will not speak a word of our arrangement. If you tell anyone I asked for the simorgh’s