Читать книгу Nader Shah. Historical novel - Yunus Oghuz - Страница 3

…In Daragoz there began a clamor, the people were yelling at the top of their voices, because there were no armed men to fight against the Uzbeks of Khorasan who had all of a sudden attacked because there remained only old people, women and children in the winter quarters. Usually when the brave men of the Qirkhli branch of the stock of Avshar were in winter quarters, they would either go to battles foltowing the order of the Shah of Qizilbash or would guard the eastern borders of the Empire of the Safavids. The Uzbeks of Khorasan knew it very well, by attacking the Qirkhli of Avshars they wanted both to get plunder to increase their wealth and to force the women and children they captured to work like slaves.

The Uzbeks of Khorasan knew exactly the time when to attack.

In the streets of Daragoz one could hear nothing be t cause of the noise of crying, screaming, and shouting, wailing and neighing of horses. The Uzbeks of Khorasan killed the old people and captured the boys, beautiful girls and women and filled the prisoners into the cart which they had brought with them.

The mother embraced fourteen year old Nader and ten year old Ibrahim and sat close to the corner of the shack built from earth-bricks. In the shack there was nothing except kitchen utensils and threadbare bedding put on the old chest. Nader considered himself to be the head of the family and wanted to show his manly features to his mother and little brother. That was why he had taken the only knife and was ready to attack:

– When they enter inside, if I don’t cut them I am not the son of my father, – he said and drew back into the arms of her mother.

His mother embraced him:

– Nader, I beseech you, hide that knife! The brave men of Qirkhli are not here, the Uzbeks consider themselves stronger. Calm your mind! Let us be out of danger… As soon as our brave men come they will take vengeance on them.

But Nader had no patience:

– Mother, what are you saying? If they harm you or my brother, I shall never absolve myself!

Just at that moment somebody kicked the door of the shack. Because of kicking, the frame of the door broke into pieces and fell on the floor. It raised clouds of dust. The Uzbek of Khorasan who rushed into the shack had a Damask sword in his hand, on his shoulder hung a bow and an arrow. He had worn boots made of skin. Firstly, he could see nothing. He waited for the dust to settle. After some time he saw one woman and two boys squatting in the corner sitting close to one another. In that poor shack there was nobody except them. The Uzbek screw up his courage seeing the shack without a man:

– Hi, woman, where is your jewelry? – The Uzbek of Khorasan shouted.

– What? What jewelry? Don’t you see our poor shack? We have no jewelry, – mother said.

The Uzbek of Khorasan cried:

– Don’t speak stupidly! I know that even a poor Avshar has jewelry. You can’t deceive me, – he said and approached the woman. – Let me see your neck!

The Uzbek had a sword in his right hand; he wanted to take the kerchief off the woman with his left hand. Just at that moment Nader stood between his mother and the Uzbek.

– Don’t touch my mother or I shall kill you! -Nader shouted and got ready to fight.

The Uzbek of Khorasan, who didn’t expect such kind of courage from a teenager, remembered the Damask sword in his hand and came to himself. “Shall I kill children of the Avshars?” – he thought for a while and calmed himself. Firstly, he decided to punish and frighten the child. He smacked the face of Nader by the back of his left hand:

– Don’t interfere, whelp! Or I shall kill both your bitch

mother and you!

Nader staggered because of the blow, and he leaned his hand against the wall for support and could stand with difficulty.

The Uzbek of Khorasan again wanted to take the kerchief of the woman and touch her breast.

– Hi, you bitch, show me whatever you have! If I wrangle with everybody so much I shall return to Qayin without plunder. Be quick!

At that moment he felt pain on one side. Firstly, he supposed that the pain was the ache of hurt from wresiling. It gave Nader a chance to thrust the knife three times into his side. It was too late when the Uzbek of Khorasan understood what had happened. He was losing his strength, Nader said scornfully:

– But I had told you not to touch my mother or I should kill you!

The Uzbek of Khorasan crashed onto the floor. Mother, who stiffened in astonishment seeing the scene before her eyes, began to tear her hair:

– What did you do, my child? Now they will come and kill all of us!

Nader didn’t change his posture:

– Let them come, I shall kill them too!

Mother said anxiously:

– You get into trouble not only me but yourself and your brother. What must I do now? My God, help me!

Nader took the knife which was covered with the blood of the Uzbek and hid it under his shirt without wiping the blood. Then he raised the Damask sword:

– What had to happen has already happened, mother! Now I shall defend you better!

Mother cried anxiously:

– What are you saying, my son, throw away that sword, don’t seek death for yourself!

Nader didn’t want to throw away the sword. Mother came nearer to him, pulled the sword and threw it to the corner of the shack:

– Didn’t I ask you to throw away the sword? Now, we need not to fight but leave immediately. There are a lot Uzbeks in the mountains and valleys! My God, help me, if one of them comes here he will kill us! She raised her hands up and prayed the God. My God, help my poor children!

The woman passed through the broken door and looked outside. The Uzbeks were busy with plundering. It was good that the horse of the dead Uzbek was tied to the neighbor’s gate, or after finding the dead body it wouldn’t be difficult for them to find out his murderer. Suddenly it thundered. As if the black clouds in the sky couldn’t bare the screaming, shouting, wailing and wanted to become free of pain. It began to rain hard, as if it would wash away all the pain. Rain helped the mother and her two children to run. The Uzbeks of Khorasan who wanted to escape from the rain, stopped plundering and looked for a place to hide themselves.

Mother turned towards her children and said:

– Be quick! Hurry up!

The children looked round the street; there was nobody there. The rain was not going to stop. They ran along the street about fifty meters and then they turned to the left. After fifty meters there was empty land, thorns-and-shrubs. If only they reached there, they could be able to reach the mountains and hide themselves. But they didn’t have any luck. From behind, somebody was shouting at them: “Stop!”

Mother wanted to look behind and to see who was shouting. But she lost her balance in the slippery and muddy place and fell. She wanted to stand up, but she couldn’t. Apparently, her foot was sprained. The running boys looked behind and didn’t see their mother following and they stopped.

– Nader, I beg you, don’t stop, run!

Mother couldn’t finish her words. The Uzbek of Khorasan appeared unexpectedly above her head and kicked her:

– Where are you running? You won’t be able to save yourselves.

The woman lost consciousness because of the blow. Nader looked at his brother and said:

– Let’s return! Our mother is in trouble and that scoundrel will kill her with his kicking.

When the children came nearer to their mother the Uzbek said to them furiously:

– Come, bitch ones, where were you running? – He shouted.

The children kept silence.

– Is she your mother?

The children nodded their heads affirming.

The Uzbek of Khorasan faced Nader:

– You seem older than your brother. Take this woman and drag her towards the cart. If you think about running once more I shall kill both of you. You are my slaves from this day.

Nader lifted his mother who had lost her consciousness and whose face and clothes were covered with mud. Then he took her on his shoulder and told his brother: “Follow me!”

The Uzbek left them behind. Though it was difficult to go in the mud and rain, Nader wasn’t tired carrying his mother. When they reached the carts in the outskirts of the hamlet the Uzbek turned to Nader and asked him:

– Aren’t you tired?

– The son who carries the load of the mother can never be tired.

Nader’s answer surprised the Uzbek:

– You look like a bright fel l ow by your clever answer. Whose son are you in Qirkhli?

The sudden question of the Uzbek was heavier than the load on his shoulder. Nader didn’t want to show his feelings: -Now it makes no difference, our father died long ago. The Uzbek of Khorasan shouted with laughter:

– Well, very well! It is better if my slaves are without a father.

Nader preferred to keep silence because they had reached the carts. He placed his mother in one corner of a cart. He tied the muddy kerchief round her head. The rain was soon going to be over.

…On a rough road the carts were going towards the city of Qayin in the province of Khorasan. The fighting Uzbeks had already galloped their horses and were not seen. There were nine or ten fighters in the carts. They were laughing and didn’t pay attention to the moaning of the captive people they had taken like plunder. They knew that no one could be able to run, because except Nader’s mother they had tied the hands and feet of all the captivated women. They didn’t need to tie the hands of Nader’s mother because of her losing conscious ness.

Mother awoke when the cart fell on the next pot-holes. She groaned, and when she came to herself her first word was: “Where are we?”

Nader bent to the head of his mother:

– I understood from their talking that they are taking us to Qayin, mother!

– Where is Ibrahim?

– He is also here.

– Did they beat you?

– No, mother!

The woman mourned noisily when the cart fell into the pot-hole again:

– It feels as if the bitch Uzbek has broken my bones with his kicking. Nader, my son, raise me up and give your ear to me!

Nader raised his mother and bent his ear close to her.

– My son, don’t they know anything about your killing the Uzbek? – She asked.

– No, they don’t know…

– As soon as they reach Qayin, they will know without fail, -the woman moaned again. At that time no one will be able to save you from their revenge. You must run together with your brother before reaching Qayin. Then it will be too late.

– I can’t leave you here, mother! – He whispered in the ears of his mother.

– It is the end of my life, my son! I can’t run even I want to. My foot has been sprained; one of my bones has apparently been broken.

– We shall be together, mother!

Mother got angry:

– Don’t argue with me, my son! Listen to my words! It is getting dark. Qayin is far from here. They will without fail spend the night somewhere. Darkness won’t let them come after you. Darkness loses the traces quickly. While you are running go on the right side of the road. That road will lead you to Kalat. The Shah of Avshars, Baba-ali khan lives in Kalat. Go to his palace and speak about what had happened. Baba-ali khan has always been the rescuer of us, the Avshars. If it is fated we shall meet again, if it is not fated to meet, you may revenge me with on our enemies. I am proud of you, my son!

– Mother, but…

Nader couldn’t finish his words.

– It is enough! Hide yourselves in the corner of the cart; show yourselves as if you are sleeping. If they feel you are awake, they will tie your hands and feet.

Nader couldn’t say a word because the woman had already closed her eyes because of the pains…

…After some time they stopped near the city. They encircled the carts in order that they would not be attacked while sleeping, and they made a fire…

…It was the middle of the night. The Uzbeks ate the jerked meat they brought with them and drank a wineskin of wine after eating. They were drunk. The squint-eyed one who seemed to be the head of the group couldn’t stand on his feet. Without doubt he was sexually excited. In the cart he was looking for the most beautiful of the captured women. They didn’t think about giving food to the prisoners. At last, the head of the group shouted: “Won’t they dance for us?” Another Uzbek fighter could say stammering: “It is a good idea” and stood up with difficulty and approached one of the carts. Though he was drunk, he could untie the cord of the hands and feet of a fifteen-sixteen years old girl and helped her to get off the cart. He pulled her arms and brought near the fire. The girl was so weak that she couldn’t put up any resistance; her body had grown numb because of remaining tied for a long time, which was why she couldn’t move.

The head of the group approached the girl stammering:

– Now we shall sing a song and you will dance for us.

The girl said nothing. The strange singing of the fighters didn’t make her move. The head of the group stopped his singing and approached the girl taking out his poniard:

– Dance or I shall kill you. All of you are my slaves.

The fighters again began to sing strange songs. The girl raised her hands being helpless… That merriment continued till the morning. The tired fighters fell asleep by the fire…

…Nader was watching all what was happening. When all around was silent mother said to her children: “Stand up, it is time!” Mother and children embraced one another in tears. Mother was feeling that it was the time of parting and she wouldn’t see her children any more. Nader and Ibrahim got off the cart quietly. They couldn’t walk without their mother. But the woman hastened them:

– Be quick, the lights of my eyes! Hurry!

Nader and Ibrahim left the cart in a hurry.

The Uzbek fighter who had broken the bones of Nader’s mother by kicki ng, was in Nader’s opini on someone to be dealt with…

The fire couldn’t be seen. Nader stopped and whispered to his brother:

– Wait for me here! I shall return after a little time.

He returned the same way as silently as he had come. He took the knife that he had hidden under his shirt with which he had killed the Uzbek of Khorasan. He readied it in his hand and approached the fire. He cast a furtive glance at the place where the Uzbek who had kicked his mother was sleeping. Nader approached him carefully. The noise of the snoring of the drunken fighters mixed with the noise of the dragonflies. Nader closed the mouth of the fighter with his left hand and began to thrust the knife into the Uzbek’s throat with his right hand:

– Didn’t I tell you beforehand that I shall kill anyone who touched my mother? – He whispered in a low voice that couldn’t be heard. The fighter struggled a little and then he died. Then Nader disappeared in the darkness of the night. The darkness swallowed and made him unseen.

Their mother was watching that scene in tears and was saying in her heart: “Well done, my son!”

After some time the beams of the Sun began to be seen through the skyline. It was the first night that the teenage Nader spent without his mother.