I stop in the cupboard and listen to make sure the Shehzada is alone before I make an appearance. The journey underground wasn't a pleasant one. I open the false back and enter the original cupboard which had been cleaned. In the place of all the brooms it had when I last visited there where princely suits. So, the Shehzada had already settled down in this room like how his brother had told me. I dust off the dirt and knock the cupboard from within and give the Shehzada enough time to prepare himself to meet me. I find him sitting on the bed.

"Assalamualaikum warahmathullahi wabarakatuh, Saeed", he greets me.

"Walaikumassalam warahmathullahi wabarakatuh, Shehzada", I reply.

"So this is how you enter the palace! Now I know why you asked me not to move the cupboard. Where does this underground passage open?" He moves to the open cupboard and I pull the latch that reveals the false back.

"It used to open 2 km outside the palace grounds, but now that entrance is caved in. We excavated a new entrance deep in the forest and merged it with what was left of the original passage", I explain.

"Clever", he mused. "But you said 'we' excavated, who are all included in 'we'?

"We includes me and my trainer". He looks at me amazed. "How many people out there are exactly involved in this plan?", he asks.

"Just me and my trainer know every detail, we do take help from random people in between but they either know nothing or very little of the plan".

"Who is your trainer Saeed?"

"I think you had better eat first, I'll answer your questions once you are done". I place the packed food in front of him. He opens it and stares at the naan and daal. "This is not what I eat!", he says exasperated. "This is what you are going to eat till the palace food is deemed safe", I say.

He punches a pillow on the bed. "I am a damned prince", he mutters still punching. His face getting redder by the minute, his anger building. "Where do I get to stay? In a servants room! What do I get to eat? Naan and daal! Who wants me to take over the throne? No one! No one!" He shouts the last sentence and sends a tumbler of water flying across the room. Ok, so this is what the palace inhabitants call Shehzada's anger tantrums. I stand there as cool as cucumber surveying the damage he had done with folded hands.

"What do you think? I have a Shahi kitchen back home where I can prepare Mughlai Kebabs for you? You are going to eat what I eat. Be thankful for the bread on your plate for almost all houses in Gharib Kothri go to bed empty stomach". I am back in my strict teacher mode. I motion for him to sit on the chair and place the food and water on the table and command, "Eat!".

He sits down reluctantly like a stubborn child and starts eating. Meanwhile I have a good look around the room. Shehzada had cleared everything except for the cupboard. A new bed had been put up, no where as luxurious as the one he had in his royal chambers. A small round table, a hard chair and a trunk were placed in the corner. The floor was covered in a thick rogue. It was adequately lighted. Though the room was moderately furnished there was no splendor and grandeur in its looks. It was comfortable and served it's purpose well which was more than enough. Life away from easy comfort will do the Shehzada a lot of good.

I spin around and find myself facing the tapestry with Quranic verses that I had seen in the Shehzada's royal chamber on my first visit. It sparked my interest again. "Where did you get this?", I ask pointing to the tapestry. "It was among the stuff that was being cleared from the palace. I found the servants carrying it away for disposal. It gave me a sense of peace when I read it and I felt drawn to it so I had the servants hang it in my chambers. When I shifted here this morning this is one of the few things I carried here with me". His tone is off, he is still upset.

"Do you happen to know how this tapestry came to the palace? Was it bought? Or gifted? Whom did it belong to?"

"I have no idea". He finished his meal and washed his hands. "Had I not been desperate with hunger I wouldn't have been able to swallow a single morsel of that".

I choose to ignore his comment. "Where is the food that was served to you?" I ask. He points beside the door where the plates are placed untouched on the floor. "I'll carry it back with me so that there are no doubts as to how you are surviving without food". He nods. "Did you buy the slave Ali?" I ask. "Yes, he is standing just by the door".

"How did the talk with the ministers go?". "Completely against my favor" he says. I could sense his anger rising to the surface again. "Tell me everything", I say taking my place in front of him.

"I made no impact on them with my speech. They were silent when I was done and gave no response. Wazir-e-aala, Mir Jafar, stepped up and said I was neither educated nor trained to take up the throne. He said the throne deserved someone better like the Army general", he says with gritted teeth.

And the Army general was none other than Mir Jafar's eldest son! So this is what Mir Jafar had planned. To rule from behind his son. "What did you say to that?", I ask. "I challenged the whole court! I said that in 15 days if I don't prove myself to be capable enough to become a king, by Allah! I will leave the kingdom myself!" He banged his fist on the table. "I mean it Saeed! I am going to fight for my birth right. If education and training is what I lack then that's exactly what I will learn in these 15 days."

Finally his anger was being channeled in the right direction. A man without anger is not even a man. Anger is a part of being human but being able to use it for benefit and not for harm is a feat that many fail to accomplish. Shehzada's anger and his boiling blood is what had kept his fear alive in the palace. Had he been a cool man by nature he would have been run down by now. In a way it was boon as much as it was a bane. Now it was my duty to tweak it a little so that the bane in it vanishes.

"Saeed, the person you warned me about is Mir Jafar, isn't it?". The seriousness never leaves his voice. "How can you be so sure Shehzada?" I ask. "Because he did not like it at all when I shifted my room and was even more angry when I assigned patrolling duty to my bodyguards and bought Ali instead. Why would he be bothered until and unless I have eliminated all the ways that he could keep an eye on me? When he spoke of crowning the army general, Mir Faseeh, who is his own son, I was certain that he is the man playing to usurp my throne!"

Shehzada's brain had started stirring and I was thankful for that. The boy who barely took interest was finally sitting up to take notice. "You have hit the nail on the head Shehzada", I say. "It is Mir Jafar. Would you have believed me had I told you on my first visit that Mir Jafar is your enemy?"

"I would have never believed you for Shehenshah trusted him a lot and I considered him as my well wisher". "That is why I didn't tell you his name Shehzada for I want you to believe things that you see with your own eyes and with definite proof and not just because I am asking you to believe in them".

"You never fail to amuse me Saeed. Your way of working is appreciable."

"Alhamdulillah", I reply. "Call Ali inside, we need to discuss a few things with him". Shehzada orders Ali to enter. " Assalamualaikum warahmathullahi wabarakatuh", he greets us. "Walaikumassalam warahmathullahi wabarakatuh", we reply.

"What information have you gathered?" I ask. "Each and every section of the palace is infiltrated, there are around 50 spies, maximum being in the royal chambers and kitchen. All these men and women report to Mir Faseeh. Mir Jafar spends most of his time in his administrative office on the ground floor, even sleeping over there for days together without leaving for home every night like other officials do. It is but Allah's will that has helped Shehzada Sher Shah survive so far, Mir Jafar had planned to kill him even before the Shehenshah died. Somehow it didn't work and he had wrongly judged that the Shehzada will be least bothered about the throne and even if he did Mir Jafar felt it would be easy to silence him. Today he came to realise that Shehzada is a man of valor even if he appeared to be....", he looked at the Shehzada afraid to complete the sentence. Great! Even Ali, the man who used his dagger before his brain was afraid of Shehzada? Was I the only one who ever speaks back to him? "Complete your sentence", I command him. He clears his throat, "even if he appeared to be good for nothing", he finished. Fortunately Shehzada remained quiet but anger was evident on his every feature. I was thankful that looks couldn't burn or I and Ali would have turned to kebabs by now. His eyes were red and the vein running over his temple had become prominent and was pulsating. His hands were balled into fists and his mouth was a tight line. This figure made it easy to understand why he inspired terror in people.

"So this is what people think of me? Good for nothing, am I? I will show each and everyone what I am. A little patience is all it needs. Is there anything else Ali?"

"Yes, Mir Jafar is suspecting that you are being guided. He is on his guard."

"We can take care of that. Ali, you may leave", I say.