Sweet Revenge

business.” Ignoring the tea, Abdu folded his many-ringed hands. “You deal in the buying and selling of gems.”
    He’d worked with that cover for years. With Interpol’s assistance, it was solid. “Yes. It requires a good eye and a flair for bargaining. I enjoy handling stones.”
    “Arabs are natural bargainers, and we have always understood the value of stones.”
    “Of course. The ruby on your third finger. May I?”
    With a lift of brow, Abdu held out his hand.
    “Seven to eight carats, Burmese at a guess—excellent color, what they call a pigeon-blood red with the vitreous luster you expect from a quality stone.” Sitting back, Philip picked up his cup. “I recognize, and respect, gems of great value, Your Highness. Which is why I want your daughter.”
    “You’re frank, but there is more involved in a marriage of this nature than your wants.” Abdu said nothing more for a moment. He’d given Adrianne’s marriage some thought, ashe would any minor social or political matter. If she had been of pure blood, he would never have sanctioned her marriage to a European, and certainly not some pale-skinned British gem merchant. However, her blood was tainted. She was of much less value to him than a good horse. In a small way, she could be a link between Jaquir and Europe. More important, he had no desire to have her in Jaquir.
    “I’ve had little time to explore your background, Mr. Chamberlain, but what I have learned is satisfying enough.” And perhaps unlike her mother she would bear sons. Grandsons in England could be of some use in the future. “If Adrianne had remained in my house, a different marriage would have been arranged for her, one that suited her position. However, since that is not the case, I’m inclined to approve—if terms can be agreed upon.”
    “I don’t claim to be an expert on your culture, but I understand that a settlement is customary.”
    “The bride price, a gift which you will offer to my daughter. This gift will be hers, and remain hers.” He didn’t think of The Sun and the Moon, but Philip did. “It is also expected that you will make a gift to her family, in recompense for our loss of her.”
    “I see. And what gift would recompense you for Adrianne?”
    He considered toying with Philip. The reports had indicated the Englishman was wealthy, but there were things more important to Abdu than money. The first of these was pride. “Six camels.”
    Though his brow shot up, Philip managed, barely, to conceal amusement. Thoughtfully, he tapped a finger on the arm of his chair. “Two.”
    Abdu was more pleased than he would have been with an easy agreement. “Four.”
    Though he wasn’t sure where he was going to get his hands on one camel, much less four, Philip nodded. “Agreed.”
    “So it shall be written.” Still watching Philip, Abdu barked an order to a servant. “My secretary will draft the contracts, in both Arabic and English. This is satisfactory?”
    “I’m in your country, Your Highness. We’ll do things your way.” He set aside his cup and longed for a cigarette. The tea was laced with some spice his British palate foundmildly objectionable. “As Adrianne’s father you would be concerned that she will be well provided for.”
    Abdu’s face remained impassive. There may have been a trace of sarcasm in Philip’s voice, or it may have been the British accent. “Of course.”
    “Of course. I had a million pounds in mind for her settlement.”
    It was rare for Abdu to be taken by surprise, rarer still for that surprise to show on his face. The Englishman was either mad or besotted. Perhaps Adrianne, like her mother, had the power to blind a man. But the Englishman’s fate was no more concern to him than that of the daughter who reminded him, just by existing, of a mistake. He wouldn’t give her the honor of bargaining.
    “It shall be written. We will have a meal this evening to introduce you to my family, and to announce the betrothal.” He rose in dismissal.
    “It will be my pleasure.” He’d been prepared to find Abdu cold, but the reality was more rigid, more dispassionate than any speculation. “Will you attend the wedding in the spring?”
    “The spring?” Abdu’s lips curved for the first time in what might have been a smile. “If you wish to have a ceremony in your own country, it is no concern of mine. However, the marriage will take place here, next week, as is fitting under the laws and traditions of Jaquir. You