The Karawi Sheikhs Series: The Complete Series

by North, Leslie

  “Her father was a traditional man. They would have disowned her. They did disown her.” Bahir swallowed hard as he read over the letters. How could Uncle Salah have kept this from him? His blood had begun to boil with anger as he shifted to the final letter.

  It wasn’t from Amalia, and it was dated three years later.

  Addressed to His Highness, Sheikh Bahir Karawi of Haamas. I’m writing to inform you of the death of my niece, Amalia. She is survived by your daughter… While I have tried to keep in touch with Amalia, she was shunned by her family, and my husband will not allow me to take in her child. If you wish to right the wrongs that you made all those years ago, I beg of you to claim your daughter, protect her, and raise her. I’ve left her at the orphanage that borders our two kingdoms. She has her mother’s blue eyes and a heart-shaped birthmark on her abdomen. Her mother died with nothing, and I carry nothing but hatred in my heart for what you’ve done to her, but I know that Amalia forgave you, and I hope that you will honor that forgiveness and do what’s right.

  “She survived,” Bahir whispered in a thick voice. “My daughter. She’s still alive.”

  Iman leaned over and took the letter from his hand. After scanning it, he shook his head. “The ink with her name is smeared.”

  “Tears,” Bahir said dully. “The woman was crying when she wrote it. I can’t believe Uncle Salah would keep this from me.”

  Iman closed his eyes. “He did what he thought he was right. Protecting this family. He kept Natalie and my daughter from me.” He shook his head. “It looks like he’s done the same to you.”

  Seven years. For seven years, his daughter had lived in shame and poverty, and Bahir had done nothing. Amalia must have thought that he had abandoned her. How could she have forgiven him for that? “I will never forgive him for this, Iman. Never,” he said, his voice shaking.

  Iman reached out and squeezed his shoulder. “No one understands more than I do. When I think of all those lost years.” The older brother’s voice cracked uncharacteristically, and he stepped back. “What are you going to do now?”

  “Find her,” Bahir said grimly as he stood. “I’m going to find my daughter.”

  “There are several orphanages along that border, Bahir, and after four years, you have no guarantee that she’s going to be there.” Iman held up a staying hand as Bahir opened his mouth to speak. “I’m not trying to stop you, but I need you to understand that this might not end the way you want. You don’t even know her name.”

  “It doesn’t matter.” Bahir clenched his fists and stared at his older brother. “Nothing will stop me from finding her. Nothing.”

  “You may not be welcome that far away from the palace. You’ll need protection.”

  In that moment of heartbreak and rage, he’d forgotten about the rebels, but they weren’t going to stop him, either. Bahir had let his daughter down all those years ago. He wouldn’t let any more time pass without a reunion.

  “However many guards you can spare. I’m going to start my search in the morning.”

  Collecting the letters, he clutched them in his hands as he headed to his suite.

  One of the palace maids was cleaning the bedroom when he entered. Her eyes widened, and she bowed her head. “My apologies, Sheikh Bahir. I’ll come back.”

  “Don’t bother. I’m not staying,” Bahir said roughly as he placed the letters in the drawer by the nightstand and turned toward the door. “Go back to your work,” he said sharply, not waiting to hear her acknowledgement as he strode from the room. He needed to take a walk to clear his head, and then he needed to plan his search.

  By the end of the week, he would have his daughter in his arms.

  4

  Aisha’s vomiting was only the beginning. Two days later, the diarrhea set in, and she was still feverish. Late that night, Amy held her close while she read the little girl a story. The doctor couldn’t make it until the end of the week, and the orphanage had no funds to take the child to the hospital. Shatha was almost certain that it was rotavirus, and so far, none of the other children were sick. Hoping for the best, they’d wiped everything down with disinfectant, and Amy was diligently using hand sanitizer.

  A coughing fit wracked Aisha, and Amy stopped reading and reached for the honeyed tea.

  “No.” Aisha wrinkled her nose and shook her head. “Too hot.”

  “I know that it’s hot, baby, but it’ll help with the coughing. We’re going to finish the story and try to go back to bed, okay?”

  Nodding, Aisha sipped at the hot liquid. It was nearing midnight. The rest of the children had gone to bed hours ago, and Natasha and Shatha were finishing up the chores for the day along with another round of wiping everything down in the children’s play area with disinfectant. Shatha had checked in on Aisha an hour ago, but Amy wanted to spend the night with the child.

  After finishing the story, she tucked Aisha back in bed and kissed her forehead. She was almost out of the children’s cough medicine, and she’d need to make a run in the morning to get more. She also wanted to get more children’s aspirin to keep the fever down.

  Heading to the main house to grab a pillow and blanket, she took a moment to appreciate the night sky. The lack of city lights meant the night sky sparkled overhead. A few weeks ago, the full moon had been brilliant, but it had waned to a sliver, and the stars now stole the show.

  She felt small. So very small. After graduating, she’d put in her application to the Miami Herald. She’d had a plan. Put in a few years at a city paper. When James finished his dissertation, they were going to travel the world. She was going to make a difference.

  Then James dumped her, and she started to wonder what kind of impact she could make at all. She’d grown up in the foster care system, so there was no family to encourage her, and James’s words had hurt her more than she could say.

  You’re not really mother material, are you?

  The truth was that Amy couldn’t have kids, and James knew that. He’d never talked about wanting children, assuming that their life together would be filled with adventure and romance. It wasn’t until he’d left her, alone and humiliated, that she’d felt real pain about her infertility.

  Maybe that was why she’d latched on to Aisha. She saw some of herself in the girl. A fighter, alone in the world.

  Quietly pulling open the door to the back of the house, she tiptoed in so she wouldn’t wake up any of the children. When Shatha had converted the house to an orphanage, she’d had some of the inner walls knocked down to make two sleeping dormitories, one for the boys and one for the girls. While they were a bit Spartan, the rooms were so clean they shone, and each child had a comfortable bed and space to keep their clothes and a few possessions.

  Not wanting to wake either of the women in case they’d gone to bed, Amy crept to the closet at the end of the hall and grabbed a pillow and a blanket.

  As she started to leave, she heard voices near the front door. Hugging the pillow and blanket to her chest, Amy went to see what was going on. Leaning up against the wall in the darkened interior, she peeked around the corner to see Shatha arguing with two men at the front of the house. When she glimpsed the guns holstered around their necks, she slammed her back heavily against the stucco wall and let out a small gasp.

  “We don’t know what you call her,” one of the men snapped. “She has blue eyes and a heart-shaped birthmark. She’s my sister’s child, and I demand that you bring her to me now.”

  Aisha! Amy hugged the pillow and blanket tighter. Did the young girl really have family?

  The older woman’s voice was calm but firm. “I’ve already told you that I cannot divulge personal information about any of the children here. You have to go through the proper channels. If you have a problem with that, you can return with the authorities at a decent hour.” Shatha stood her ground. There wasn’t the slightest trace of fear in her voice, although Amy’s heart was pounding in her chest. What was going on?

  “We will be back,” the
spokesman threatened. “Don’t think this is the end of it.”

  Amy peeked around the corner again and watched them slowly back out of the house. Their eyes glittered with anger, and when they were gone, Shatha shut the door firmly behind them and collapsed against the wall.

  “Shatha!” Dropping the pillow and blanket, Amy hurried to her side. “Are you okay?”

  “I am well.” Shatha nodded and righted herself. “I didn’t realize that you were here, Amy. You shouldn’t have heard that.”

  “I’m not sure what I heard,” she began slowly but then burst out, “but they want Aisha! Do you really think that it’s her family?”

  “No.” The older woman narrowed her eyes. “If they had been her family, they would know her name. Aisha was three years old when she came here; old enough to know her name.”

  “Then why would they want her?”

  “When we were constantly at war with each other, the orphanages would be pillaged for able-bodied boys who could be taught to fight, so I’m no stranger to men like that.” She shook her head, her eyes troubled. “But I can’t fathom why they would want Aisha. I do know that it’s not for anything good.” Lifting her head, Shatha changed the subject, asking, “How is she?”

  “She’s getting worse, but I don’t think we need to be worried yet. She’s resilient.”

  Shatha smiled. “That she is. I want to keep her there, and I want eyes on her at all times. Until we know what these men want, she’s not safe.”

  “I won’t leave her side,” Amy promised as she went back to gather her things. “Should we call the authorities?”

  “No. Not until we know what’s going on. I’ll send Natasha out tomorrow and see if she can’t talk to some people and identify the men who came here.” Her voice hardened. “You let me worry about them. You keep your attention on Aisha.”

  Slipping across the back area, Amy quietly stole into the guest house.

  Aisha was still sleeping in her bed. There were no locks on the door, but Amy didn’t want to take any chances. She rolled the blanket out on the floor in front of the door. No one was coming in without her knowing about it.

  * * *

  “But I don’t feel good,” Aisha wheedled as Amy put her textbooks on her bed.

  Amy smirked. “That’s interesting because not more than thirty minutes ago, you told me that you were feeling great and wanted to play when the other children were outside,” she pointed out. “And now, suddenly, you’re too sick to read?”

  Aisha was quiet for a minute as if she were contemplating her options before she nodded solemnly. “Yes.”

  “I’m so sorry that your health has suddenly taken a turn for the worse. I guess you should take a nap.”

  Aisha immediately reached for the textbooks. “Fine,” she said with a sigh. “I’ll read.”

  “That’s what I thought,” Amy laughed. “I’m going to make you some soup for lunch.”

  Two days had passed since the midnight visit from the strange men. Shatha had relaxed, so Amy did the same.

  Natasha had discovered nothing about the men. All whispers were focused on some information saying the rebels had found something they could use against the royal family.

  Amy felt a little uneasy about the rumors swirling around. She’d chosen Haamas because it was a relatively peaceful kingdom, and she wasn’t sure that she wanted to be here if the kingdom was on the cusp of a full-scale rebellion. Still, she’d made a promise to Aisha, and she wasn’t about to abandon the child now.

  Aisha was still fighting the fever and diarrhea, and Amy was concerned about dehydration, but the doctor was due to pay a visit this afternoon. It was about time. While Shatha had assured her that if it was rotavirus, there was nothing they could do but treat the symptoms, Amy wanted to be sure. Not for the first time, she wished for the modern health-care conveniences she was used to, sure that Aisha would be back on her feet in no time if she were seen in a proper hospital.

  A large black sedan kicked up sand as it pulled up to the orphanage. Assuming it was the doctor, Amy walked out to meet the car, only to stop in dismay.

  Three armed men and a fourth unarmed man stepped out of the car.

  It wasn’t the gun-toting individuals that made her heart skip a beat. It was that fourth man who looked familiar to her. Where had she seen him before? He was well-dressed and devastatingly handsome, but the look on his face set her on edge. He was obviously the man in charge, and his eyes betrayed simmering anger.

  Amy stiffened at the feeling of danger that radiated from him.

  When his eyes finally settled on her, she thought she could read surprise and distrust in his gaze. “You work here?” he demanded.

  Amy didn’t exactly work there. She wasn’t getting paid, but she wasn’t about to explain her circumstances. “Can I help you?” she hedged instead.

  “You’re American,” he stated.

  “I am,” she said slowly. “How can I help you?”

  “I’m looking for a young girl. Age seven. Blue eyes and a heart-shaped birthmark on her abdomen. Do you have a child like that here?”

  Fearing for Aisha’s safety, Amy chose her next words carefully. “That’s an odd request. Why are you looking for her?”

  “That’s none of your concern,” the man growled, and the guards immediately touched their guns as if to remind her how easily they could overpower her.

  “These children are under the protection of this home. It is my concern,” she countered, standing straighter. Maybe he was used to the other villagers cowering under the weight of his obvious wealth, but she wasn’t going to be one of them.

  The man finally relented a little. “The child is a relative. I’ve only recently learned of her existence. She should be with her family.”

  It was all Amy could do not to snort. This man wanted her to believe that he was going to claim some poor little child as family?

  She wanted to believe that he was lying, but there was something unsettling in his dark, penetrating eyes. And why was he so familiar to her? Maybe she’d seen his picture somewhere. It wasn’t as if she spent all her down time on the internet. No matter what, she wasn’t about to hand Aisha over to him until she knew more about him, but she also knew that she couldn’t merely send him on his way and naively believe that he wouldn’t come back.

  “All of the children under the age of ten are schooled here on the premises. If you promise not to disturb the children during their studies, you’re welcome to take a quick peek and see if the child that you’re looking for is there.” She eyed him narrowly, “but there are only two girls in class, and neither of them are seven.”

  The man jerked his head in assent, and Amy gestured to the armed guards. “The guns will frighten them. I’ll have to ask that you leave them out here.”

  All three of the armed men moved toward her, emanating an unspoken threat, but the other man held up his hand to stop them.

  After regarding her closely, he nodded his head. “They’ll stay here. Lead the way.”

  Flickering an uneasy gaze over the armed guards, Amy prayed that they wouldn’t start snooping around the property and happen upon Aisha.

  She led their leader around the front and into the main house. The children were reading out loud in unison when Aisha eased the door open. They immediately stopped and stared at the newcomers, and Aisha gestured for Natasha to continue the lesson. By the time Amy closed the door again, the class had returned to reading.

  “Well?” Amy prodded as they walked away. “See the child you’re looking for?”

  “No,” the man said, his disappointment written all over his face.

  “I’m sorry you haven’t been able to find her, but you’re obviously a man of means. Maybe now that you’ve seen the conditions in which these children live, you’ll be motivated to do more than look for one girl.” Her eyes prodded him. “You’ll want to help out.”

  His eyes moved up and down her body, and this time, the flutters in her stomach had no
thing to do with fear. His open interest was obvious. “Most people speak to me with more respect,” he said in a low voice. “Next time that I come around, I suggest that you change your tone.”

  “If you come back to help, I promise that I’ll be as pleasant and docile as you please,” she mocked in a higher-pitched voice, adding a flutter of her eyelashes for good measure.

  A ghost of a smile flashed over his face, and he twirled his finger in the air to rein in his men. They led him back to the car, and in a cloud of dust, they peeled away.

  Immediately, Natasha hurried out to her. “Amy. What was he doing here?”

  “He’s looking for Aisha,” Amy said in a grim tone. “He gave me some bullshit story about her being family.” She could feel her resolve growing as she added, “I don’t know what’s going on, but I’m not going to let him or anyone else take that child away.”

  Her friend’s eyes widened. “Oh, you didn’t recognize him.” She pressed a hand over her chest. “Amy, he’s not part of the rebellion. He’s Sheikh Bahir Karawi. He’s one of the Crowned Sheikh’s younger brothers. Don’t you remember him from the aquarium?”

  Amy stared at her in disbelief. That was where she’d seen him. “Why would he want a poor, orphaned little girl?”

  “I don’t know, but you’ll have to give her to him. He’s got more power and money than you can believe. With a single command, he’ll have his guards tear this village apart to get to her.”

  “I don’t care.” Amy shook her head. “She is an innocent child, and I’ll be damned if I’ll hand her over so she can be in the middle of some political struggle.” She stood to her full height, radiating determination. “If he wants the girl, he’s going to have to go through me.”

  Natasha took a deep breath. “You say that like you think that would be hard for him.”

  She had a point, but Amy wasn’t about to give up now. She’d promised Aisha that she wasn’t going to leave her, and she meant to keep that promise, no matter what it took.