Princess Sultana's Circle

forgo having birds of any kind in his
ridiculous paradise. That should make Amani happy.”
    “ Prime real estate for a
bunch of bedraggled songbirds! Oh, Allah. We will become a big
joke!”
    “ No. Faddel will not speak
of this. Not only is he greedy, he is a coward. I will make it
clear that it would not be in his best interest to spread news of
our private business.”
    “ He is an evil man,” I
agreed, suddenly remembering what Maha had claimed to have found
out. I was tempted to ask Kareem if he knew anything about Faddel’s
private harem, but I quickly decided that my poor husband had
already heard enough problems for one day.
    As we sat under the trees,
suddenly, at the same moment, every bird in the garden began to
sing. Kareem and I sat quietly listening, overcome by the beauty of
the sound.
    Later, after enjoying our
coffee, we retired to our quarters. The long day had finally come
to an end, and for that I was most grateful. When I remembered my
promise to Maha, however, I had difficulty getting to sleep.
Today’s events had drained me of all energy. What would a new
morning bring?

Chapter Seven
    Heavenly Harem
    When I opened my eyes the
following morning, I found myself alone in bed. I called out
Kareem’s name, but there was no response. My mind was so disordered
that it took some minutes for the events of the previous day to
come flooding back. Amani—and her birds! It was for this reason
that Kareem had awakened so early. This bird business with Faddel
would certainly be his first priority today.
    I slipped on a simple
cotton dress before leaving my suite. First, I paused at Maha’s
door and listened. There was no sound, which was a good sign. If
Maha were awake, earsplitting music would reverberate through the
door. It was my wish that Maha would sleep through the noon hour. I
needed time alone to work out an appropriate response to the
alleged captive girls’ plight, and to prevent our household from
plunging into yet another crisis that involved Faddel.
    With a sigh, I pushed that
unpleasant thought out of my mind as I walked toward Amani’s room.
My youngest daughter was still sleeping. One of the six Filipino
housemaids that I had assigned to watch over her was sitting by her
bedside, and reassured me, “Ma’am, your daughter slept peacefully
throughout the night.”
    I retraced my steps back to
my own quarters before ordering coffee and a light breakfast of
yogurt, cheese, and flat bread from the kitchen. In contrast to
yesterday’s dreadful upheavals, there was time for delicious
idleness. I lazily stirred my coffee while sitting on our private
terrace and enjoyed the spectacular view over the Red Sea which our
Jeddah palace offered. It was a day fit for a God. The sky was
cloudless and blue, and rays of the sun were warm, not hot, at this
hour. Bands of sunlight penetrated deeply into the crystalline
waters of the Red Sea. Watching the slow-moving waves lap softly
against the shoreline, my body soon fell in rhythm with the sea. If
only all days could be as peaceful as this.
    Before I had finished my
breakfast, Kareem returned.
    He settled down in the
chair beside me and began to pick at my food with his
fingers.
    In silence, I examined
Kareem’s handsome face, stretching out the minutes of tranquility
as long as possible.
    “ Tell me,” I finally
said.
    Kareem brought his eyebrows
together and then wearily shook his head. “That bastard, Faddel,
claimed to have developed a special affection for those damn
birds.”
    “ He would not trade the
birds for land?” I asked in disbelief.
    Kareem’s eyebrows lifted.
“Of course, he would, Sultana. But, he was deliberately
difficult.”
    “ Tell me
everything.”
    “ I do not wish to relive
every detail, Sultana,” he said impatiently. “All you need to know
is we now own cousin Faddel’s birds, or rather, Amani does. And I
have Faddel’s assurances that songbirds will no longer be brought
into his earthly paradise.” Kareem lowered his voice slightly. “I’m
convinced the man is a lunatic. Can Faddel truly believe that he
can outwit God by experiencing paradise without death?” Kareem
shook his head back and forth in wonder, “A lunatic.”
    I smiled gratefully at my
husband. “At least Amani will be consoled. Not many fathers would
go to such extremes for the happiness of their children.” I leaned
toward my husband and playfully kissed his lips.
    But Kareem’s expression
hardened. “Sultana, those cousins have