Janahara turned and examined the two men, one her brother and one her future son-in-law, finding herself astonished by their credulity. Somehow, she told herself, the hand of Jadar lies behind all this. The coincidence was just too great. First, he had succeeded in raising troops from the southern _mansabdars_. And now the Deccanis could not be armed. Could he possibly still forge a peace in the Deccan. Still, after the wedding he would be isolated. Then what he did would no longer matter. But if the _firman _were signed, there would no longer be leverage with the Portuguese. Janahara looked directly at Nadir Sharif. "If His Majesty signs the _firman _before the wedding, you will be held responsible." "I understand, Majesty." Nadir Sharif shifted. "When will the wedding be?" "I think it would be auspicious to hold it the week following the birthday celebration. Which means the preparations must begin now." "Hold the wedding immediately after the hunt? There's scarcely time." "There will be time. For that and more." Janahara turned to Allaudin. "And you would do well to start spending more time with a sword and bow, and less with your pretty slave girls. I will know before long if you are a match for Jadar. I pray to Allah I don't already suspect the answer." CHAPTER TWENTY "There, on that hill, Inglish, is where I was born." Arangbar pointed to the high sandstone walls of a distant hilltop fortress, outlined against the midday sky. "It's called Fatehpur Sekri. It was a great city during the time of my father Akman, but now it's abandoned. It's romantic, but it's also forbidding. I've only been back once in my life, and that was enough." Hawksworth's elephant was half a length behind those of Arangbar and Allaudin, even with that of Nadir Sharif. It was the second morning of their ride, and they were nearing the locale of the royal hunt. It seemed to him that half of Agra had traveled along. The queen and her retinue were behind them, as were many of Arangbar's favorite women, his guard, his eunuchs, the entire palace staff. The location of the hunt was a two-day ride from Agra. "What's there now?" "It's abandoned, Inglish. Except for a few Sufi Muslims. They were there before, and I guess they'll be there forever." "What do you mean 'they were there before'? Before what?"