Heroes Never Die (18 page)

Less than thirty minutes after her conversation with Marcus, there was a knock on her door.  “Greetings, Mickey.”  Ayub usually wore a friendly smile, but now his expression was noticeably distant.  “His Highness would like to see you at once.”

“Of course.  But I don’t have much time.  Something unexpected has come up.”

“Oh?”

“My editor has given me an emergency assignment.  I have to leave immediately.  Will you be able to take me to the airport after I tell His Highness goodbye?”

“Come.  I will have the bell captain carry your luggage to my car.  But we must hurry.”

***

“Good morning, Your Highness,” Stephanie said as she entered the receiving room at the palace.  “You asked to see me?”  Her bright smile only seemed to agitate him.

“Why do you insist upon calling me by my title when I have repeatedly asked you to call me Abdullah?”

It was not the greeting she had expected.  “Out of respect for you,” she thoughtfully replied.

“Do you respect me?”

His tone was threatening.  “Yes, of course I do.”

“Then don’t disobey me again.”  He was a difficult man to please, and Stephanie had offended him without even trying.

Abdullah stepped up close to her.  His dark eyes were bearing down on her.  “Is there something you want to tell me?”

“Actually, there is,” she said, relieved that she was finally going home.  “My editor called to terminate my assignment here.  An emergency has come up, and he is sending me to George Town to interview Governor David Marshall.  I have to leave right away.”

“You will not be on that flight,” he ordered.

Stephanie tried to remain calm.  “I have to be on that flight, or I won’t make it to George Town in time.”

Her excuses would not work this time.  “Have you forgotten your promise to give me your decision today?”

“My decision no longer matters.  I have to leave.”

“You are wrong, Mickey.  Your decision matters very much.  You told me you didn’t want a broken heart.  Were you lying to me?”

She felt cornered.  “No,” she nervously replied.  “No, of course not.”

“Then you will not leave with a broken heart.  You will stay in Saudi Arabia and become my wife.”

What!  Her insides screamed with alarm.  This can’t be happening!  “But I have to go to George Town,” she insisted.  “We can talk marriage when my assignment is over.”

“No,” he thundered.  “I will not allow you to put me off another day.  I will marry you right here
, right now.”

“But
, but,” she trembled.  “I can’t marry you.  My editor expects me to go to George Town.”

“Your editor will not be disappointed.  I will take you to George Town in my private jet, but you will no longer be at your editor’s beckon call.  You are going to be a sultana, and a sultana does not work.  I will permit you to finish this job, but when we return to Saudi Arabia, you will abide by Sharia law.”

Stephanie was too frightened to think clearly.  “No, that won’t work.  I have to fly back to the United States for my new portfolio, and I have to hand in my story.”

“You will air express your story, and your editor can do likewise.”  He had a solution to every problem, and she had just run out of problems.  He had definitely outsmarted her.

Abdullah held her face in his hands.  “I have decided upon a more suitable name for you.  From now on you will be called Sultana Jahan Aara.  It means ‘adornment of the world.’  The name becomes you.”  Then he kissed her.  Stephanie pulled away.  She didn’t want to be a sultana, she didn’t want to be his wife, and she didn’t want him to ever touch her again.  “You belong to me now.  No other man is allowed to approach you.  And I expect you to obey me at all times.”

Every cell in Stephanie’s body pulsated with terror.  She had been promised all along that nothing could go wrong with the plan.  But something had gone terribly wrong.  She was on her way to George Town without receiving her weapon.  Her every movement would be constantly monitored, making an escape impossible.  And if she didn’t escape, she would never see Brian or her dad again.

Chapter Sixteen
:

The huge 330 airbus, expressly designed to meet King Hamid’s every extravagant desire, landed at Owen Roberts International
Airport in George Town on Grand Cayman Island.  Abdullah and Stephanie were greeted in a private room at the airport by Governor David Marshall’s press attaché, John Mark.  John Mark had greeted Abdullah during his other visits to the island.  Abdullah was a big spender, and indulging him not only boosted their economy, but it was sound diplomatic courtesy.

“It is a pleasure to see you again, Your Highness.”  John Mark graciously lowered his head.  “As always, we are delighted to have you on our island.”

Stephanie stood to the rear of Abdullah’s left shoulder and watched as both men greeted each other.  Abdullah put his arm around John Mark’s shoulder and firmly slapped his back.  It was a power play she had been trained to watch for.  Abdullah was definitely the one in control, and she wondered whether the play was intended to warn John Mark to keep his distance from her.

Abdullah had already told Stephanie that under any other circumstance, he would not have introduced one of his wives to another man outside of the royal family, but he was making this single exception.  “May I present my wife, Sultana Jahan Aara.”  John Mark took a step backward and acknowledged her with a polite nod of his head.  S
tephanie knew not to reach out to shake his hand, and John Mark obviously knew that if he reached for hers, he wouldn’t have a hand left.  “She is here to interview David.”

“Interview?” John Mark questioned, visibly trying to make the connection between Abdullah’s wife and Governor Marshall.  “What interview?”  Stephanie felt her face grow red with nervous heat.  The interview with Governor Marshall was never to take place.  It had only been fabricated in order to mislead Abdullah.

A press attaché was always the first to know about an interview.  “She represents Minute Magazine.

“Minute Magazine?” John Mark floundered, his face laboring to recall the scheduled interview.  Then his eyes suddenly sparked.  “Yes, of course,” he apologized.  “With all the commotion going on, the interview completely slipped my mind.”

“Commotion?” Abdullah questioned.

“Yes.  David was poisoned.  We believe that someone made an attempt on his life.”

Abdullah seemed genuinely concerned.  “Is he all right?”

“He will be.  But he is still very weak.  I’m afraid that he is not up to an interview.”

“That is most understandable.  Please give David my wishes for a speedy recovery.”

“I will.  And again, I apologize for my oversight, Your Highness.”

Stephanie was relieved.  She wondered whether the poisoning was purely coincidental or whether it was part of Kyle’s plan.  Either way, the unfortunate poisoning worked to Abdullah’s advantage.  His wife would not have to talk to another man.  But then a chill ran down her spine.  They could now return to Saudi Arabia way ahead of schedule.

John Mark ushered his visiting dignitaries to his limousine, and then they made the short drive to the Ritz-Carlton Hotel on Seven Mile Beach.  The entire top floor had been reserved for King Hamid and his entourage of guards, servants, his press attaché, his favorite son, and three of his wives.  Abdullah never denied himself his favorite pastime.

Stephanie paid close attention to her surroundings.  The layout of the hotel was exactly what she had expected, and she was able to easily identify her route of escape.  Then she rode the elevator to the ocean-front suite on the fifth floor.  Armed guards were already in position exactly as Matt and Zach had anticipated.  The only thing missing was her weapon.

Abdullah’s suite was exquisitely decorated.  Huge vases of fresh flowers had been placed in the living room, and there was a large basket of fruit in the dining room to welcome him to the island.  Stephanie stood in the dining room and looked toward the large outdoor terrace that was right off of the bedroom.  The bedroom was the one room she wanted to avoid, but Abdullah was grumpy from the long trip, and she knew a romp in bed with his new wife would be just the relaxation he needed to fall asleep.

He stood in the living room and dismissed the last of his servants that had been coming in and out of the room, and immediately focused on his young bride.  “Come here, Jahan.”

“Why?” she asked with frightened eyes.

“Because I want to have sex with you.”

“Why?” she questioned to put him off, wondering how she was going to get out of sleeping with him.

He walked into the dining room.  Her apprehension increased as he stepped closer to her.  “I think I have a nervous bride.”

“Nervous?  I’m not nervous.”  She was terrified.

“You do know about marital relations?”

“Oh, yes,” she said, pretending to be stupid.  “I learned about that a long time ago when my class took a field trip to a farm.”

His brow twisted with frustration.  “Let’s go to the bedroom.  I am anxious for midkhal.”

“Midkhal?”  Her voice trembled.

“Yes – midkhal.  I want to enter inside of you.”

“I prefer that you didn’t do that.”  She backed away from him.

“That’s enough,” he thundered.  “I won’t be put off any longer.”  He grabbed her hand and pulled her into the bedroom.

Stephanies
heart raced with terror when she saw the bed.  Her stomach convulsed with queasiness.  She pulled her hand from his grip and refused to take another step.  “I have to vomit,” she blurted as she bent over and wrapped her arms around her stomach.  “I’m sick.”

“Go,” he ordered, completely revolted, as he nodded toward the bathroom.  “I’ll call the doctor.”

Stephanie hurried to the bathroom and leaned over the lavatory.  She heaved but the cramping only intensified.  The pain finally subsided, and she went to the sink and washed her mouth.  Her strength was gone from heaving and she slowly made her way into the bedroom and lay across the bed.  Abdullah walked inside and stood by her side.  She noticed another man with him.

“Sultana, this is Dr. Sami Adham.  He has served the royal family for over thirty years.  I want him to examine you.”  S
tephanie looked up at Sami.  He was much older than Abdullah, with greying temples and a thick mustache that reminded her of an old picture she had seen of Teddy Roosevelt.

Dr. Sami touched her forehead with the back of his hand, and then he reached into his medical bag for a thermometer.  While she held the thermometer under her tongue, he took her pulse and listened to her chest with a stethoscope.  He removed the thermometer and read her temperature.  “It’s up slightly.  Probably just a touch of flu.  She should be fine by tomorrow.”

Dr. Sami closed his bag.  “Make sure to drink fluids,” he told her.  Then he left the room.

Stephanie looked up at Abdullah.  He looked thoroughly disgusted.  Then he left without saying another word.  She curled up in a fetal position and held her stomach.  I’m safe.  At least for another night.

Chapter Seventeen
:

Stephanie sat down at the dining room table in the luxurious suite.  Aromatic yellow and white jasmine decorated the table.  She poked at a bowl of cornflakes and tried to plan her escape.  The suite door opened and Abdullah charged in.  She dropped her spoon and it clinked in the cereal bowl.  “Ah, I see that you are feeling better.”

Before she could answer, the king’s favorite five-year-old son, Barraq, came bounding into the room to show his father a starfish he had found.  Abdullah sat in a cushioned chair and pulled his son onto his lap.  He showed an active interest in everything his son said.  Then Barraq suddenly noticed Stephanie, and he seemed to be just as fascinated with her long blonde hair as he was with his starfish.  He asked his father for permission to touch her hair.  Permission granted.

Barraq slid off of Abdullah’s lap and approached Stephanie.  She smiled at him so that he wouldn’t be afraid to come closer.  His face filled with awe when he ran his hand over her silky hair.  His curiosity satisfied, he ran back to his father and jumped onto his lap.

Stephanie focused on Abdullah.  She had been trained to ignore tenderhearted emotions that might prevent her from assassinating him, but she was almost relieved that she didn’t have a weapon.  She could kill the enemy, but she didn’t have enough guts to pull the trigger on a loving father.

Barraq’s mother walked into the suite looking for her son.  She was breathtakingly beautiful with stylish black hair, stunning dark eyes, and a flawless complexion.  As she waited for permission to take her son, she gave Stephanie a brutal inspection, as though she resented being replaced by another woman.

Barraq slid off of Abdullah’s lap and ran to his mother.  As she left the suite, she gave Stephanie one last hostile stare.  Stephanie turned away.  It was just too bizarre being in the same room with another wife, something she would need to get used to if she didn’t escape.

When the door closed, Abdullah rose and walked over to Stephanie, never seeming to give his way of life a second thought.  Stephanie picked up her spoon and poked at her cornflakes again to avoid eye contact with him.  “Do you think I could go shopping today?” she asked without looking up from her bowl, hoping the shopping trip would give her an opportunity to escape.