Siege by Jack Hight Read Free Book Online

see you, they will know that you are the true sultan, not that weak old man who will not even leave the palace to lead his armies.’
    Her words were dangerous, treasonous even, but Mehmed did not correct her. Gülbehar had voiced his own thoughts. Maybe now that he had led the armies of Islam to victory on the field of battle and killed one of the Christian commanders in single combat, his father would finally step aside.
    ‘Go and prepare yourself. My father will want to examine you,’ Mehmed told Gülbehar. ‘And send in Halil and the generals.’
    Halil entered first, wearing a ceremonial robe of brilliant serâser – a heavy cloth of white silk woven through with gold – with an interlocking pattern of sharp teeth etched in scarlet silk at the cuffs. The ageing vizier was tall and bony, with a long face and narrow lips encircled by a moustache and the faint outline of a beard. He would have been handsome were it not for the ugly scar that marred the right side of his face. Ulu, the supreme aga of the janissaries, followed. He was as tall as Halil, but thick, with bulging arms and a bull-like neck. Like all janissaries, he was clean-shaven. The other generals trooped in together: Mahmud Pasha, the bazibozouks’ short, fiery commander; Boghaz Pasha, the proud commander of the Anatolian cavalry; and his second-in-command, Ishak Pasha, an older man with greying hair and the scars from many battles lining his face.
    ‘Your Highness,’ Halil pronounced and bowed profoundly.
    ‘My Lord,’ the generals said and knelt.
    Mehmed motioned them to their feet. ‘Halil, all is ready in Edirne for my arrival?’
    ‘Word of your glorious victory has preceded you, My Lord. The people will fill the streets,’ Halil replied, then smiled, wolf-like, his thin lips stretching back from sharp teeth. ‘Gold has been distributed. The crowd will cheer.’
    ‘The people do not need to be paid to cheer,’ Ulu barked.
    ‘Peace, Ulu. Halil has only done as I asked,’ Mehmed said. He turned back to Halil. ‘And has my father sent any word from the palace?’
    ‘None, My Lord, but I am sure he only awaits your return to greet you properly.’
    ‘I am sure,’ Mehmed said. He turned to the generals. ‘We will leave immediately. I will ride first, alone. My guard will come next, followed by the Anatolian commanders and then Halil and my servants.’
    ‘Forgive me, My Prince,’ Boghaz Pasha said, although there wasnothing humble about his tone. ‘But should I not ride with you? As the commander of the Anatolian cavalry, it is beneath me to ride in the rear, following a prince as if I were his servant.’
    ‘A prince, you say?’ Mehmed asked, his voice controlled and calm, although inside he felt the old anger begin to boil. It was never far from the surface. ‘Perhaps you have forgotten, but I was proclaimed sultan in the mosque of Eyub four years ago. Nothing can change that, even if I now rule beside my father.’
    ‘There can be only one sultan,’ Boghaz Pasha replied. ‘And he sits in Edirne.’
    ‘I see. Thank you for enlightening me, Boghaz Pasha,’ Mehmed said coldly. Boghaz smiled and bowed. ‘Ulu,’ Mehmed called. ‘Cut off his head.’
    Boghaz laughed, but when Ulu drew his sword, the mirth faded from his face. He backed away, but Ulu stood between him and the only exit. There was nowhere for him to run. Boghaz turned to Mehmed.
    ‘You cannot do this, I fought with your father at Varna. He appointed me pasha of the Anatolian cavalry. He would never allow this.’
    Mehmed turned his back on Boghaz as Ulu advanced upon the Anatolian commander. Neither of the other generals made a move to help.
    ‘My Lord, I beg you …’ Boghaz began again, then stopped. In one fluid motion he unsheathed his sword and swung it at Mehmed’s back. The sword stopped just inches short, blocked by Ulu’s blade. Mehmed turned as Ulu stepped between him and Boghaz.
    ‘How dare you!’ Mehmed hissed.
    Boghaz’s only reply was to