Free The Book of Wonders by Jasmine Richards Page A

came to stand by their side. He stood stiff and silent, chewing on the end of his long braid. Zardi got the distinct impression that he was just as nervous as she and Rhidan were.
    A water buffalo was sitting on the muddy riverbank, its tail slowly swaying back and forth, its broad face peaceful. The beast didn’t have a care in the world, not one single worry. Zardi sighed with envy. If a djinni appeared right now she’d wish to swap places with the buffalo in a heartbeat. Then there would be no pain, no fear—just mud.

9
The Pirate Ship
    I n no time at all the ship’s anchors had been raised and the Falcon was sailing downstream.
    â€œThat didn’t take them long,” Rhidan said, looking over at the pirates who had changed out of their wet black clothing and were now dressed in white linen tunics and softly flaring trousers. “They’re not half as scary now,” he continued, sounding bolstered. “They reminded me of giant bats before.”
    The young guard beside them snorted with laughter, but quickly tried to disguise it with a coughing fit.
    Zardi frowned. She didn’t expect laughter from these criminals—it didn’t fit. She irritably picked at the wet clothes that clung to her skin, then berated herself for even caring. Wet clothes were the least of her problems.
    Up ahead, she could see Sinbad talking to an older man with a shock of thick white hair and skin the color of polished mahogany. Sinbad’s companion looked over at her and Rhidan before nodding his head at something the captain said.
    Zardi’s body stiffened as the man started walking toward them. At her side, she could feel Rhidan thrumming with tension.
    The old man stopped in front of them. “My name is Mustupha, but everyone calls me Musty.” He held out a calloused hand. “I’m the shipmaster, Sinbad’s second-in-command.”
    Zardi looked down at the hand with bemusement. A polite handshake? Musty laughed, his dark brown eyes crinkling at the corners. “Is it not customary to shake hands when you meet someone for the first time?”
    â€œNot when you’ve been kidnapped,” Rhidan pointed out coldly.
    Musty dropped his hand. “Ah, yes, that is unfortunate.” He looked at their guard with the long braid. “Zain, you can go. I’ll look after these two.”
    Zain bowed his head and left.
    Musty turned to face Rhidan and Zardi. “I’m sorry events have unfolded in this way. We’re not a bad lot. Hopefully, after spending some time with us you’ll see that. Sinbad is busy at the moment but hopes to talk with you later.” The shipmaster looked uncomfortable. “You have a choice. You can sit here under guard or you can help me out onboard. Which is it to be?”
    Zardi looked around at the sailors who were busy sluicing water off the deck and hanging their wet black clothes on the rigging to dry. The Falcon might be a pirate ship but it was a ship, and a big one; she couldn’t help but be intrigued by how it operated.
    Rhidan sighed. “From the look on my friend’s face, I think you’d better put us to work.”
    The rest of the day swept by like the river. Zardi found herself helping the crew to darn holes in the spare sails, while Rhidan discovered his seasickness had abandoned him altogether now that he was on a bigger ship. Finding his sea legs gave him new reserves of confidence, and he even had a go at climbing the mast, albeit rather slowly. At points Zardi almost forgot she was a captive. The twins who manned the tiller, Mo and Ali, were always making jokes, their smiles identical right down to a chipped front tooth. Only the turban that Mo wore made it possible to tell them apart. And Musty had even showed her how to use a navigational instrument called a kamal. He explained that the rectangular board with its trailing cord was used to keep records of the latitudes of different ports. His soft