Authors: Eboni Snoe
“Let me come with you. It is fine now, everyone has gone.”
Felicia accompanied Imam Jabar down the streets of A1 Kharijah past villages and booths. Cafes dotted the colorful avenues, the aroma from their foods calling to all who came near. A rather large group of people had gathered at one of the more expensive establishments. The men’s headpieces blew in the wind, resembling sails in motion on the sea.
“Could it be Anwar?” a masculine voice questioned with disbelief in its tone.
Imam Jabar turned when he heard his name, looking for the person who had spoken it. A well-built Egyptian with laughing eyes rose from his seat to single himself out from the crowd.
“It is I who have called you, Anwar. Ahmed.”
“Ahmed! I cannot believe my eyes. It is you! Well, Allah
be praised. It has been such a long time, my friend.’ ’
The two men embraced heartily, the tiny priest and his towering friend looking quite awkward.
‘ ‘What brings you to Egypt? Why did you not tell me you were coming? I could have offered you the comfort of my home during your stay.’ ’
‘ ‘Do not worry. My visit here has been a very brief one. I just arrived today and I am now on my way back to the plane to return to Mauritania. Felicia, I would like you to meet an old friend of mine, Ahmed. Felicia is the reason I am here. Because of her, your villages are now rid of a major threat to your homes. No longer will you be troubled with Hassan or his son. The poor fellow killed his son while defending his own life.’ ’
Looks and hushed words of shock passed between the entourage of people with the tall Egyptian.
‘ ‘A group of women and children from my country in need of a home were transported today to Falam. I accompanied them, along with some government offi
cials.”
“Well, this is a surprise! I am so grateful to you, your country, and this young woman. You remember my wife, don’t you? Yasmin?”
‘ ‘How could I ever forget someone so beautiful, physically and otherwise. It is so good to see you both.” Felicia couldn’t believe her luck. These people couldn’t be Na’im’s parents. But as she looked at the two of them, she had a sinking feeling they were.
‘ ‘This is Felicia Sanders.”
‘ ‘Hello,’ ’ Felicia managed to choke out ‘ ‘Felicia Sanders, my wife Yasmin.’ ’
“It is a pleasure to meet you. It is impossible for me to express to you how grateful I am personally for what you have done. My gratitude goes beyond words.”
Gold eyes the color of Na’im’s showered her with thanks as his mother addressed her.
‘ ‘We must be on our way now. It is so good to have seen the two of you again. We must write each other, Ahmed. There are so many things we need to share.”
The two men hugged once again. Jabar then took Yasmin’s hand and said goodbye.
“Why did I get the feeling, Felicia, that you were not happy to meet my
friends. Have I caused some problem for you?”
“No Imam Jabar. You have done nothing wrong.”
There was no need to burst his bubble. They had accomplished what they had set out to do. Now she would have to face the music back at Karib once Na’im found out what she had done without his knowledge.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
The household was buzzing with activity when Felicia returned. Everyone was preparing for the sheik’s arrival.
The ride back had given Felicia time to psyche herself up for anything Na’im might say. She told herself she had done the right thing; something that was good for everyone concerned, and if he didn’t like it because she didn’t consult him, it was just too bad. Now if only she could keep this vein of confidence flowing until she actually had to deal with Na’im.
Fatimah came out of Kareem’s room, just as Felicia was passing on the way to her own.
“You are back. Did everything go okay?”
‘ ‘Everything went perfectly.
At least, almost perfect. The women should arrive in Falam at any time now, and hopefully they’ll live happily ever after.”
‘ ‘Well, why do you not look happy, Felicia? It is a good thing that you have done. And now that we have received word that the sheik is in A1 Kharijah, there will be cause for celebration.”
‘ ‘Yes, I know the sheik is in A1 Kharijah, and that’s the reason I don’t feel so good. Can you believe I was
introduced
to the sheik as the person responsible for the whole thing?”
“Oh no! It is not true.”
“Yes, it’s true. It appears Imam Jabar and Ahmed, as he calls him, are old friends.”
“Do not feel too bad. Maybe Na’im’s anger will pass quickly once he finds out.’ ’
“Fatimah,” a small, weak voice called from inside Kareem’s bedroom.
“Is that Kareem? Is he sick?”
‘ ‘I don’t know what is wrong with him. Recently he has been having very bad dreams. After the one last night, he seems to have very little energy. He tried to do his work this morning, but one of the servants found him collapsed outside in the garden.”
‘ ‘Maybe it was the heat.’ ’
“Karib’s heat is not a problem for one who has lived here all of his life. It cannot be so.”
“Fatimah, is Felicia there?” Kareem managed with effort.
Felicia entered the small but adequately furnished room.
“I’m here, Kareem.”
Kareem had always been a thin boy, but tucked in under the sheet, his small body looked as if it belonged to a child no more than five years old. Felicia placed her hand to his forehead. His head was not even the slightest bit warm. It was almost cool to the touch.
“How do you feel? You’re supposed to be running around pestering everyone while they prepare for the sheik’s arrival,” she quipped.
“I no feel good. I feel very tired.”
Felicia looked up at Fatimah who still stood in the doorway. ‘ ‘Have you called a doctor?’ ’
“He left not long ago. He said he could find nothing wrong with Kareem. He told him to stay in bed and rest, and then he left.”
‘ ‘Felicia, would you bring me one of the animals in the lab to keep me company?’ ’
‘ ‘Kareem, do not bother Felicia with such unimportant things.”
“It’s all right, Fatimah,” Felicia assured her. “Which one of the animals would you like me to bring, Kareem?”
‘ ‘The guinea pig with the black eye. He say he afraid to die. Like my mother. She say she afraid to die.” Felicia threw a questioning glance at Fatimah. ‘ ‘Your mother?”
“Kareem says his mother comes to him during his dreams.”
“She come to me. I want to be with my mother. She is so beautiful in my dreams. Her voice is like the flutes in the oasis.”
Fearfully, Fatimah warned Kareem against saying such things. ‘ ‘You must not speak of joining your mother, Kareem. It is dangerous to want to join the dead.”
“My mother not dangerous. She is kind. She like helping others. She say I should help others too. Like Sheik Rahman.”
‘ ‘That is enough of that talk, Kareem. Be quiet no w and rest until Felicia comes back with your animal.”
Kareem’s eyes closed with ease before Felicia could rise from her seat on his bed. Talking of his mother seemed to take a lot out of him. Felicia and Fatimah left Kareem’s bedroom together.
It was dark before Felicia returned to the house with Kareem’s companion. She had stayed in the lab a while, discussing the next day’s scheduled activities with Phillip, William and George.
She lit an oil lamp upon entering the child’s room, and placed the cage in a chair she pulled near his bedside. Felicia tucked the sheet around Kareem’s narrow face. His breathing was extremely shallow against her hand.
“Kareem?” she called softly, trying to awaken him. She wanted him to know she had brought his pet. Felicia didn’t want to admit his shallow breathing frightened her. By waking him, she would be reassured of his condition.
Kareem did not respond to Felicia’s voice, nor to her gentle shakes.
“Kareem!” she shouted, panic in her voice.
“What is wrong, Felicia?” Na’im had entered Kareem’s room without Felicia’s knowledge.
“It’s Kareem. He won’t answer me. The doctor said he just needed to rest, but I know something else is wrong. He spoke of wanting to join his mother. His breath is so weak Na’im. I’m afraid he’s dying.”
Na’im knelt and held Kareem’s small hand in his. It was extremely cool, as if the warmth of life had almost left it.
“Na’im, I think we need to send for Aisha. There is something abnormal about this. A perfectly healthy little boy turns deathly ill in one day
?!”
‘ ‘Aisha?’ ’ Na’im repeated distractedly, his brows knit
ting together in concern over Kareem’s condition.
“She is the woman I told you about who helped me after the accident. She lives in a very small village about three hours outside of A1 Kharijah.”
“The only village I know of that close to the oasis is Bada, a tiny little settlement where most of the villagers are elderly people. I will send for her tonight. Do you think she will come?”
“I believe she will if she knows she’s really needed.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Felicia awoke in Kareem’s bedroom late the next morning. Fatimah was sitting across the bed from her in a chair, sipping cinnamon tea.
‘ ‘When I came in to check on Kareem last night, I found you sleeping here. I was frightened because I could see he had become worse and I decided to stay.”
‘ ‘I guess I was more tired than I thought. Na’im is back. He is sending for a woman I met named Aisha. She knows about these kinds of things, and I believe if anyone can help Kareem, she can. I decided to wait with Kareem until she arrives.”
“Yes, I met Na’im on his way to meet his father, and he told me about her. She has not come yet I hope she comes soon.”
‘ ‘Fm sure his father will tell him about Hassan and the women that were brought to live in his village. But I told myself I’m not going to dwell on how Na’im will feel about me afterwards. Things haven’t been going too well between us lately anyway, so I guess one more strike against me won’t really matter.”
“I am sure that will be discussed along with several
other things. I understand the sheik received an announcement from Waheedah’s parents from Khartoum this morning. Actually, the letter arrived from a special messenger last night.”
‘ ‘Do you know what it said?’ ’
“No. But I believe it has something to do with the proposed marriage of Na’im and Waheedah.”
The thought of Na’im marrying Waheedah was like a bombshell. Even though Felicia knew their
marriage had been prearranged by their parents, she had always dealt with it in the realm of possibilities. Now Fatimah’s words brought it into the sphere of reality. The pain of it was too much to think about, so Felicia changed the subject. “How are you and George coming along?”
Fatimah recognized Felicia’s need to talk about some
thing else. She didn’t want to hurt her friend, but she didn’t want her to be in the dark either.
‘ ‘George is wonderful, Felicia. He brings me such joy. Last night he told me he would talk to the sheik this morning about us. But I told him to wait. There will be other business more pressing that the sheik will need to attend to first. George wants to marry me.”
Felicia couldn’t help but feel a little envious toward Fatimah in her happiness. Everything seemed to be working out the way she wanted it. Neither she or George cared about the differences in their backgrounds. They loved each other and that was all that mattered.
“What about Ilyas?”
“George wants me to tell him. He said that if I do not tell him, he will. I told him it is not wise to do so. Felicia, I know that Ilyas can be very violent, and it frightens me. I told George he should talk to the sheik first, and then I would tell Ilyas.” A look of deep concern crossed her
young
features. “It was the only way to stop him from going to Ilyas. Ilyas would not dare harm anyone who had the sheik’s blessings, no matter what the circumstances.” “Well, definitely, I think you did the right thing.” Felicia rose to her feet. “While you’re here with Kareem, I’ll go bathe and change my clothes. I have a very important meeting with the guys today. I can’t believe how fast these five weeks have gone by. Before you know it, we will be leaving Karib. I’m going to miss you all, Fatimah.”
“We will miss you as well, my friend.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“You look well rested, my father. Your absence from Karib has been good for you.”
“Yes, it has been good for me. But it is also good to be back, my son. I hear fortune has smiled on us.’ ’ “Things have gone well, yes. But you speak as if you talk of something in particular.”
“You do not know, then? Women volunteers from Mauritania were brought to A1 Kharijah to live in Falam. But in the midst of this Sheik Hassan had to defend his life, which was threatened by his son. Now Abdul is dead.” “Is that true? How did this happen without my knowledge? And how do you, my father, know of this when you were only in A1 Kharijah one day?”