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Tartus , 1890

Alya :

My lungs were burning. I felt my heartbeat in every corner of my body. A cough scraped up my throat, sharp and dry, and I bit my lip to silence it.

We were hiding.

Amira sat beside me, knees pulled up, arms wrapped around her legs. Her shoulder pressed against mine, and I could feel how tense she was - like every breath might give us away. We hadn't spoken in hours. Maybe longer. Time didn't work the same when you were just trying not to be found.

Across from us, Ilham sat with her back against the wall, eyes fixed on the cabin door. She was the one who had urged us onto the ship. She had said it was our only chance. I didn't know her before the attack. Now, we breathed the same stale air in the belly of a ship neither of us had ever meant to board.

And Umm al-Kabīra - the Great Mother - sat quietly in the corner. She was not our mother, but she had become something close. We all looked to her, even without speaking.

We were hiding in the lowest part of the ship - four women crammed into a supply cabin that smelled of salt, rust, and oil. No one knew we were here. We hoped.

Above us, the men who had arrived after us moved freely. They had been from the village too - maybe. Or maybe they had come with the Qawm ar-Ru'b. Maybe they had led them.

We didn't know. We couldn't ask. So we hid.

Then I heard it.

A voice, rough and quiet, just beyond the boards. "There's food stored by the stairs. We won't need all of it."

My stomach turned painfully. I hadn't eaten since yesterday. I didn't even remember the last thing I had put in my mouth.

I looked to Amira. She met my eyes - frightened, unsure. Ilham was watching me now too. Then Umm al-Kabīra gave a slow, steady nod.

So I stood, drew my scarf tighter, and stepped into the silence. One wrong sound, one wrong breath, and they would know we were here.

But we couldn't survive hiding .

The hallway outside was narrow and dim. Wooden beams groaned with every sway of the ship, as if it resented carrying us all. A single oil lamp flickered at the far end, casting long shadows across the walls. I moved like a ghost, my steps slow and deliberate, barely letting my soles touch the ground.

I didn't know where the men were. They could be asleep. Or they could be watching. I had no way of knowing which was worse.

I passed a bucket, a broken crate, someone's discarded coat. Everything looked like it had a story - or a warning. My scarf clung to my face, damp with sweat, but I didn't move it. It had to stay on. Even if I couldn't breathe.

I reached the stairs. They creaked as I stepped down - not enough to echo, but enough to make my heart jump into my throat. I paused at the base of the steps, listening.

Silence.

Then - a voice. Faint, above me.

Two men talking. One of them laughed. The sound curled down the corridor like smoke. I froze, every muscle in my body tight.

Keep moving, I told myself. Quick and quiet.

Just to the right of the stairs, in the shadows between two barrels, I saw the edge of a sack. Grain. And beside it - wrapped in cloth - dates. A few pieces of dried meat.

Not much. But enough to matter.

I dropped to my knees, hands moving fast but careful. I didn't know how much I could carry without making noise. The cloth in my hands was stiff and smelled like iron. Maybe it had once held tools. I didn't care.

I bundled what I could - a few dates, two small rolls of bread gone hard with time, and a handful of grain wrapped in another scrap of linen.

Behind me, the boards groaned again.

I froze.

Had I made that sound? Or had someone stepped onto the stairs?

My body went cold. I turned slowly, every part of me screaming not to move - but I had to know.

No one.

Not yet.

I pulled the bundle close to my chest and stood. Every instinct told me to run, but I didn't. I walked, slowly, back the way I came.

The cabin door waited like a prayer at the end of the hall.

I slipped inside.

Ilham looked up first. Her eyes fell to the cloth in my hands and widened. Amira let out a breath like she'd been holding it the entire time. Umm al-Kabīra didn't speak, just reached to help me lower the food to the floor.

I sank back down beside them, heart still racing. The fear didn't leave me. But the silence was softer now.

We had food. For tonight, at least, we would not starve.

But the men were still here.

And I had been seen.

I didn't know how. But I felt it - the weight of someone's gaze. Watching. Waiting.

And I didn't know what that meant yet.

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Chapter 1 doneee . Let me know what you think , and if you have any ideas for the story please share them 🙌