Princess Sultana's Daughters

him as she had, refused the tempting offer,
asking the girl what benefit could come from such temporary bliss,
for when the relationship ended, unbearable mental torture would be
the result of his loss.
    Fayza gleefully confided to Connie that Jafer
was snared, that she was certain she would soon see him, for their
telephone conversations had become hot with passion, Jafer warning
her that if he ever had her, he would never give her up. His words
were delightful to hear!
    Fayza persisted. After two weeks of
increasingly intimate telephone conversations, which only served to
further their desire, Jafer’s resolve weakened. They agreed to meet
at the Al Akariya, a large shopping mall in the city of Riyadh.
    At last, a veiled Fayza, masquerading as a
relative of Jafer’s, walked beside the man she had sought. The two
walked from shop to shop, getting to know one another. They aroused
little suspicion, for an Arab man with a veiled woman was a common
sight in our city.
    Their walking relationship was unnatural, but
they were too fearful to seat themselves at a restaurant to share a
meal, for they knew that restaurants were the principal target of
the active and increasingly familiar morals committees, which
harass people of every nationality who live in Saudi Arabia.
    Such committees are composed of menacing men
who unexpectedly surround and enter eating establishments,
demanding identification of the restaurant patrons. If proof is not
forthcoming that the men and women sharing a table are husband and
wife, brother and sister, or father and daughter, these frightened
people will be arrested and escorted to a city jail, with
punishment freely given. The legal penalties vary according to the
nationality of the “criminal.” Muslim offenders can be flogged for
their social misconduct, while non-Muslims are jailed or
deported.
    In the beginning, Jafer and Fayza adjusted
their morals to the situation.
    Over time, Jafer located an apartment,
offered by a sympathetic Lebanese friend, where they could meet in
privacy. Since Fayza, as a woman, was not allowed to drive, she was
forced to trust a family driver. Knowing that his participation
could result in deportation or worse, Fayza lessened his hesitation
by offering the man a large sum of money.
    Out of this tempting attraction a great love
blossomed. The lovers knew that neither one of them could ever love
another. Jafer asked Fayza to marry him. Then, just as they were
building up their courage to make their love known to their
families, a crisis occurred. One of Saudi Arabia’s wealthiest men
approached Fouad for the privilege of asking the beautiful Fayza to
wed his oldest son. Pressure mounted for Fayza to agree. Fouad
declared that the perspective bridegroom was matchless.
    “How long I have toiled to build a perfect
relationship, which my father would so readily destroy!” Fayza
cried out to Connie.
    The desperate lovers made their decision to
flee the country. Fouad had been tricked, his honor tarnished, and
now he would stop at nothing to find his only daughter! Knowing how
difficult it was for females in Saudi Arabia to travel freely, I
asked, “How did Fayza manage to leave the kingdom alone?”
    “She did not,” Kareem replied, “leave
alone.”
    I was pleased to hear that Fayza did not
commit the sin of traveling alone. Saudi women are forbidden by our
religion to travel without a male member of the family as escort.
This particular restriction is taken directly from the words of the
Prophet, who said: “She who believes in Allah and the Last Day
(meaning the Day of Judgment) must not travel any distance that is
normally covered by one day’s and one night’s traveling unless
accompanied by a mahram .”
    A woman’s mahram is any relative to
whom she cannot be married, such as her father, brother, uncle,
nephew, stepfather, father-in-law, or son-in-law. She is allowed to
travel with her husband as a matter of course.
    I discovered that Fayza had talents in the
art of treachery. She told her parents she needed some time away
from mounting pressures. She hinted to her mother that a positive
response would be forthcoming to the marriage proposal if she could
only enjoy a small holiday. She thought she would like to visit her
cousin, a girl who married a man from Dubai. Could she be rewarded
with a weekend before she pledged herself to marriage?
    Samia was bedridden with a sprained back, so
Fayza’s younger brother went along as his sister’s required