Meanwhile, Miriam unwillingly becomes Richard’s mistress in order to spy for the Saracens. Realizing that Conrad murdered Rachel, Maimonides hatches a plot to kill the marquis and implicate Richard in his death.

Maimonides is alarmed when he recognizes, in Conrad’s possession, an amulet which belonged to Rachel, Miriam’s mother.

Stung by Richard’s contempt, Conrad defects to Saladin. After their affair is exposed, Miriam, on her way to sanctuary in Egypt, is captured by the Franks. Lovely, green-eyed and erudite, Miriam captivates Saladin, and the infatuation is mutual. Conrad is now the leader of the small group of Christians encamped on the coast-once Richard helps him retake Jerusalem, he expects to rule that city. Maimonides’ niece Miriam has been his ward ever since she narrowly escaped death at the hands of brutal Frankish marquis Conrad, who, years before, brutally raped and killed her mother before her eyes. Maimonides, rabbi, physician and renowned author of religious and philosophical treatises, serves as Saladin’s doctor and most trusted confidant. Richard, a ruthless warrior still battling rumors that he is homosexual, is a virulent anti-Semite and shows no compunction about slaughtering women and children in the course of his campaigns. Back in England, young king Richard the Lionheart vows to retake Jerusalem for the Cross and for his own self-aggrandizement. Saladin manages to beat the Christians back to a small coastal encampment, where he keeps them contained. Saladin, a charismatic sultan of humble Kurdish origins, succeeds in the nearly impossible task of driving out the Christian Franks from Jerusalem, where they have ruled for decades after conquering the city with their trademark ferocious barbarity. While we’re still allowed on YouTube, please don’t forget to verify that you’re subscribed, and to like and share this episode.TV writer turned novelist Pasha offers this miniseries-ready recapitulation of the Third Crusade. The best way to follow Unsafe Space, no matter which platforms ban us, is to visit:

He has worked as a writer and producer on TV shows such as Sleeper Cell, Kings, Nikita, Reign and Roswell New Mexico, and has two historical novels published through Simon & Schuster, “Mother of the Believers” and “Shadow of the Swords” set in the Middle East.

Shadow of the Swords by Kamran Pasha