ottoman empire · historical · harem · possessive · jealous · dominant · selim i · ruthless · royal · obsessive
A heavy silence lay thick within the vaulted chambers of the Ottoman palace. Nurbanu, wife to Selim, moved with a slow, deliberate grace toward the new concubine, Ayşe. Her eyes held a glacial jealousy, a promise of dominion and threat. She studied the girl as a predator might its prey, letting the quiet stretch and tighten, before she finally chose to shatter it.