by Leslie North
“Are you telling me the Prince isn’t paying the ransom?” Abia was very irritated and impatient.
“Abia, you've given your demands. The Prince has until sunset.”
“I had asked for a modest amount. You know what, just for delaying, the amount has changed. Tell the Prince the price has been doubled. I know he can afford it.” Abia snapped her phone shut. She went to the kitchen to speak with her sons. She told them of the change in plans. They had to leave as soon as possible.
Aman and Anwar went to get Saja and Mona. They dragged them out. “What is going on?” Mona demanded. Saja was walking calmly. She suspected that something had gone wrong with their plans.
“Shut up!” Anwar said to Mona and kept pulling her along.
Mona and Saja were surprised to see the soldiers when they got outside. They had no idea that the house was guarded. An unfamiliar man approached them and asked them to get in the car. Anwar and Aman returned to the house to start packing up.
“And who are you?” Saja asked the man. He simply started at them.
“Get in the car,” the man ordered.
“How can you talk to the princess like that? You are going to regret this,” Mona said. The man continued to stare at her unaffected. He gestured for them to get in the car. Saja got in the car and sat in the back seat. Mona slowly got in after her. “The Prince will not forgive you,” she added. The man got in the car and sat next to Mona. She frowned and moved closer to Saja.
Anwar and Akeem came out and loaded the boot of the car. Anwar got into the driver’s seat and Akeem joined him on the passenger’s side. El-Tamar, Abia and Aman got into another car. Guadalupe and three other men got in the third car. They were going to escort El-Tamar and his family to Umad. The other men were to follow shortly after.
Anwar put the key in the ignition and started the car. “Where are we going now?” Saja asked calmly.
“Stop talking,” Akeem said to her. She laughed softly. “What is so funny?” he asked.
“Earlier, I told your mother that Basil was not going to pay. I guess that is exactly what happened. Something else is also happening. All of you are panicking,” she said.
“Just shut up!” Akeem screamed. This was all too much for him. He could not wait for the ransom money to come in. He did not want to have to deal with Saja any longer. They all hated seeing her face and hearing her voice.
Chapter 12
The roads of Noor City were damaged and very hard to drive on making the ride bumpy. Anwar was doing his best to keep the car on the road. He was not used to driving in such conditions. “We are definitely in Noor City,” Mona whispered to Saja. Saja looked out of the window and analysed the environment. There were not many houses around. They were all spaced out. She turned to Mona.
“Is that good or bad?” Saja whispered back.
“Good, the Prince is very familiar with the area.”
“What are you two whispering about?” the unfamiliar man asked. Mona and Saja both frowned at him.
“Who is this guy anyway?” Saja asked and folded her arms over her chest.
“Some creep,” Mona replied.
Saja looked straight ahead. She noticed Anwar was not looking so good. She creased her eyebrows as she watched him. Something was off. He wiped sweat off his forehead. He blinked a couple of times.
“Hey! Are you okay?” Saja called out.
“Who?” Akeem snapped.
“Not you.”
“I'm fine,” Anwar replied quietly.
Moments later Anwar nodded off at the wheel for a few seconds losing control of the car. Mona and Saja both screamed out. The roads were too bumpy. He was not able to regain control and they flipped over and over a few times. When the car stopped, they all remained still, too shocked to move.
El-Tamar heard the noise and looked in the rear-view mirror. His eyes flew open and he stopped immediately when he realised it was their car. He got out of the car and ran to them with his wife and Aman following closely behind. Guadalupe had been driving behind them. He quickly pulled up when the car flipped over.
Saja opened her eyes. She looked around and realised what had just happened. “Are you okay?” she asked Mona.
Nodding, “Are you okay?” Mona asked her.
“I am.” Saja unbuckled her seatbelt. She tried to open the door but it was jammed. She had to crawl out the window. She reached her hands in to help Mona out. El-Tamar and Guadalupe had already pulled out Anwar and Akeem. They had not even bothered to check on the others.
“Anwar! Speak to me,” Abia cried out her. His eyes were blinking as he was drifting in and out of conscious. After a few seconds, he passed out. Akeem was unharmed. He stood with his family, trying to wake up Anwar. Mona and Saja helped the creepy man out of the car. No one had even bothered to see if he was ok. He had a cut in his side. Saja ripped his shirt and used it as a bandage. “Press hard on the wound to stop the bleeding,” she said to Mona. She nodded and did what she was told.
“Son, wake up!” El-Tamar called out. Saja walked over to see what was happening. Abia pushed her away.
“This is your fault,” Abia said.
Saja was not even paying attention to her. She crouched down next to his body. She placed her fingers on his neck to check his pulse. “He has a pulse, but it’s weak,” Saja said.
“You can get away from him now,” Aman said to her. She ignored him and carried on inspecting his body. He was not badly injured from the accident. He had a shallow cut on his arm. She paused for a moment as she remembered his earlier symptoms.
“Was he sick? Does he have a condition?” Saja asked.
“He had a slight cough that's all, why?” Akeem replied.
“He did not look so well when he was driving, and earlier today, he seemed pale.”
“It's not like there is anything you can do. Just get…” Abia said. Before she finished speaking, Saja cut her off.
“I am a doctor, now shut up if you do not have anything useful to say,” Saja snapped. Abia really got under her skin and she couldn’t focus with her blabbering.
“You're lucky she is not letting him die,” Mona called out. After everything they had done to her, she was still trying to help them. Anwar regained consciousness for a few seconds and then started seizing. Saja quickly held his head to stop him from hitting it against the ground. “Is there a first aid kit?” she shouted out. Guadalupe's three men were standing at a distance watching.
Guadalupe scrambled to his car. He had brought a few medical supplies. He returned with them and placed them next to Saja. El-Tamar and his sons were startled to see Anwar seizing. They had never seen him like that. He passed out again after the seizure. Saja opened the bag of supplies and looked through it. She grabbed the sphygmomanometer and took his blood pressure. It was very high. She checked his pulse once more, it was irregular.
She took a moment to think what was wrong with him. Her eyes flew open. “Does anyone have a knife?” Saja asked. Her tone had changed. She sounded panicked. Guadalupe reached in his pocket and pulled out a pocketknife. He handed it to her.
“What is that for?” Abia screamed out and held Saja's hand.
“I think he has a raised intracranial pressure and I need to reduce it now,” Saja replied.
“You think or you know? I do not believe you!”
“It's either I drain out the CSF or he dies. Your call.”
“What is CSF?” El-Tamar asked.
“Cerebrospinal fluid,” Saja replied. They all looked at her questioningly. “There is no time for that!” she screamed out and yanked her hand away from Abia. She held Anwar's head. She started feeling his temples with her fingers. She moved her fingers slightly towards his forehead. She had to get the right place otherwise, things would get worse.
“What are you doing?” Akeem asked her. He was getting impatient. She was taking too long.
“If I cut the wrong place, he might haemorrhage,” Saja said. Her eyes widened when she found the place
she needed. “I need a tube or something like it,” she called out. Everyone was looking at her nervously. They did not understand what she was doing. Mona asked the creepy man to keep pressure on his wound. She got up and ran to assist Saja.
Mona started looking through the medical supplies. She found a plastic tube. She handed it to Saja. Saja closed her eyes and said a quick prayer. She had only done this procedure twice. She did not want to get it wrong and kill him. She opened her eyes and made a small incision. She put the tube in to drain the fluid from his brain. Abia burst into tears. She did not want to see her son like this, laying in the sun unconscious with a tube in his head. Her son's life was in Saja's hands right now and it did not sit well with her.
“The fluid is clear,” Saja said with relief.
“What does that mean?” Mona asked.
“It's a good thing.”
Anwar opened his eyes. “Mother, why are you crying?” he asked her. Her jaw dropped open. She rushed to his side and held his hand.
“You're okay,” she said and kissed his hand. Saja fell back and sat on the ground.
“Thank God,” she said quietly. It was so scary to do that there. She did not have enough medical supplies. If something went wrong, he could have died right there in her hands. Saja took a bandage and started dressing his head. “He needs to get to a hospital,” she said to them.
“Isn't he fine now?” Guadalupe asked.
“I only bought him time. He needs to get the wound sterilised and stitched. He also needs to get the intracranial pressure under control. It may rise again,” she replied.
“Would it?” Akeem asked.
“Yes, there was something that caused it to rise in the first place. The underlying problem needs to be fixed.” Saja finished dressing his head and got to her feet. Akeem stared at her. This person that they had kidnapped and mistreated had just saved his brother's life.
“Now that he is fine, we need to move,” Guadalupe said.
“Where to?” Akeem asked.
“Our original destination. He can seek medical attention there. It is not safe in Basrat.”
El-Tamar and Abia agreed with Guadalupe. They helped Anwar to his feet. “We will take Anwar into our car and you take Saja with you,” El-Tamar said to Guadalupe.
“What about her?” Guadalupe asked pointing at Mona. He still wondered why she was even there in the first place. They should have either left her or killed her. She served no purpose what so ever. She was extra baggage.
“Leave her here,” Abia said. She too saw no use for Mona. There was no reason to keep dragging her around with them. Might as well leave her in the desert to fend for herself or die. Saja's jaw dropped open. That woman was truly evil. After all this, she was still heartless. She was not willing to grant Saja her freedom nor was she willing to spare Mona. She was evil and greedy. There was no hope for her. In all this, El-Tamar did nothing. It seemed like it was his wife who called the shots.
“Leave us both here,” Saja said. It was either both of them or none of them.
“Not a chance,” Abia replied. She hadn't risked her life to kidnap Saja for nothing. If she let Saja go now, all of their efforts would be in vain.
“Mother, she just saved Anwar's life. We should let them both go,” Akeem said. This whole situation had revealed a different side to his mother. It was not pretty.
“No one asked her to,” Abia replied. It was good that Saja saved his life but it was the least she could do since she had been the cause of all of this. However, twenty million riyal was too much to let go. That money would give them a new life. They could start over; a life without the problems Saja had created. Abia questioned herself if she had asked for enough money. After all Saja was the princess. The price on her head should have been higher. The Prince could afford it.
Chapter 13
Akeem stood there helplessly watching everything unfold. From the beginning, he was against kidnapping Saja and despite everything that they had done to her, she still saved Anwar. She was the only one to notice that there was something wrong with him, but no one listened. What was originally a very bad idea had devolved into madness.
“Mother,” he said. Abia put her hand up to shut him up. She did not want to hear it again. They had come too far and there was no way she was letting the money get away from her. She helped Anwar into the car as Aman ran around to the driver’s side and jumped in.
Saja grabbed Mona’s hand and they started running. They had no idea where they were going but they were not going down without a fight and Saja was not leaving Mona in the middle of nowhere by herself. Guadalupe ordered two of his men to chase them. The ground was rocky and Mona tripped and fell causing them to stop.
“Do not worry about me,” Mona said to Saja. “Run!” she shouted. She would stall them whilst Saja ran, but she was too stubborn and refused to leave her friend behind.
“No, I will not leave you,” Saja said. She started throwing stones at the two men chasing them. They quickly circled around them as they dodged the rocks and picked Saja up. She grabbed Mona's hands and held them tightly.
“Hurry up and break them apart. Time is pressing,” El-Tamar shouted. “Perhaps we should just leave them,” he added. He was starting to doubt their decision.
“Do not get soft on me now. If we leave her and are caught, we will be punished. If we take her, we still have a chance to get the money,” Abia said to her husband.
The two soldiers had to hit Mona and Saja because they would not let go. They both started kicking and screaming. Tears welled up in Saja's eyes as their fingers slipped away from each other. “No!” Saja shouted. One of the soldiers threw her over his shoulder and carried her back to the car.
Mona was held down by the other soldier and was screaming hysterically. It broke Saja's heart to see Mona like that. She had been dragged into all of this because of her. Saja's last few days were tolerable because Mona was with her. How was she going to go on now without her? The soldier threw Saja into the car.
El-Tamar's remaining soldiers arrived. They reported that there was nothing suspicious at the house. They covered their tracks and made sure no one followed. El-Tamar nodded his head. Just as they were about to leave, they heard loud noises.
“What is that?” Akeem asked. He searched in the direction of the noise.
“Horses,” Guadalupe said.
They could hear the sound of horses beating hard on the desert floor. The sound got louder and louder. They could not even run because they would not make it. Cars were too slow on those roads. The man who was holding Mona down let her go and ran to the rest of the soldiers. They all started loading their guns. Mona got up and limped towards Saja.
Saja jumped out of the jeep and hugged Mona. The men on horseback quickly approached. They surrounded them. Saja gasped when she saw them. Tears flowed down her face. She could not believe her eyes. She blinked a couple of times to make sure that he wasn’t a mirage.
“Basil,” Saja breathed. He had come for her. At last, he was here. It felt like she had not seen him in decades. She locked eyes with him. He looked at her and what he saw broke his heart. She had a few bruises and cuts. Her top was torn at the bottom and there were bloodstains on it. He jumped off the horse. Saja wanted to go to him but Guadalupe held her back. He grabbed her and pointed the gun at her head.
“Are you sure you want to point that gun at my wife?” Basil asked him. Guadalupe looked at El-Tamar to wait for his okay. Abia shook her head “If you value your life, you will let her go this instance,” Basil added as he stepped towards them.
“Do not try anything,” Guadalupe said to Basil. Saja was growing tired of being a hostage. She bit into Guadalupe's hand really hard. He cried out in pain. Mona punched him in the head a few times. It gave Basil enough time to run there. He punched Guadalupe. Mona and Saja jumped out of the way. El-Tamar's men started shooting at Basil's soldiers.
Guadalupe could not even fight back. Basil was blocking all of his punches. He
punched him a few times with his left hand. He kneed him in the stomach, grabbed his head and hit it against the car a few times. Then he threw one last punch with his right hand, which knocked him unconscious. Guadalupe fell to the ground.
Basil grabbed Saja. He searched her eyes. “Are you okay?” he asked her. She smiled and nodded. He ushered her and Mona to the safety of the jeep.
Basil looked at El-Tamar and started walking towards him. He administered fatal blows to anyone who stood in his way. One man on the ground grabbed his leg to stop him from getting to El-Tamar. He dislocated the man's shoulder and kneed him in the face. He carried on walking. El-Tamar quickly picked up a gun and pointed it at the Prince. Basil did not even flinch. “I dare you,” Basil said to him and kept walking towards him.
