There were stalls selling orange juice and water. Food and flowers. Acrobats performed on colorful mats. A snake charmer caught her eye and she watched for several moments as he mesmerized crowds with his ability. The atmosphere was festive.
"Is it a holiday or something?" she asked.
"No, it"s always like this. It was when I was here last."
They walked around, ending up in a sidewalk cafe on a side street that was just a bit less noisy and hectic. Ordering cold drinks, they sat in companionable silence for several moments.
"Thank you," she said.
"For?"
"For today."
For a moment she feared she"d shattered the mood, but he quickly looked away and she wasn"t sure she"d seen a flash of anger in his eyes.
"Today has been enjoyable. Tonight we dine with al Benqura."
"I still don"t have a dress," she said, sipping her iced drink.
"One will be at the hotel when we return."
She gazed across the amazing square. "It must be nice."
"What?"
"To wave your hand and have things taken care of. You live a charmed life, Rashid."
He stared at her for a long moment. "No, Bethanne. You see only the surface. I live a life like others, maybe not the majority of the world, but others of my station. We have heartaches and disappointments like any other men."
"Like what?"
He hesitated, took a sip of his own drink and then put the gla.s.s down.
"I thought I was in love when I was in my early twenties. Marguerite was beautiful, sophisticated and fun to be with. We shared so much-or so I thought. I told you before that my father bought her off. That taught me forever that love is an illusion. I cannot depend on it."
"Wrong. You may have loved her. She didn"t love you. But that doesn"t negate love. You are the better person for having loved her. I know it must have hurt when she left. But would you trade those feelings for money? Would you pretend to care for someone and be only out for money?"
"People can pretend and be out for other things."
She nodded. "Or maybe they don"t pretend. Maybe things become real. Love is not rationed. It is available for all. And I don"t believe there is only one love in all the world for each of us. I think we have the possibility of falling in love with the wrong person as well as the right person."
"So how does one know who is the right person?"
She shrugged. "I can"t say. It"s just there." She knew Rashid was her right person. She wished she was his.
"Never in love?" he asked.
"Only once. For me it was the right person," she replied slowly.
"What happened?"
"He doesn"t love me back," she said, her gaze on her gla.s.s. "But I wouldn"t trade a moment of being together. I can"t make someone love me. I will always have memories of happy hours spent together. And just maybe, because I loved once, I will love again and be happy."
After a long silent moment, he said slowly, "I wish that for you."
She nodded, blinking lest the tears that threatened spilled over. She"d told the truth. She loved him and would have happily spent the rest of her life with Rashid. But if that was not meant to be, she hoped some day in the future she"d find another man to love.
Though she wondered if it would ever be the same.
True to his word, a lovely dress awaited her when they returned to the hotel. It was white, shot through with gold. A golden necklace and golden slippers were part of the package. She felt like a princess in the lovely clothes. No matter what, she"d go with her head held high. She really wanted to meet the father of the woman Rashid might have married. Would there be any mention of that tonight?
The dinner surprised her. She expected only another couple or two, but there were thirty couples. The dinner was a lavish affair with servants scurrying to carry in the dishes, remove dirty plates and make sure everything went smoothly.
Because she could not speak Arabic, Bethanne sat next to Rashid. But she noticed other couples were separated to mingle with the other guests.
"I"m content to eat and watch. You don"t have to translate everything for me," she said softly after about ten minutes of his commenting on what others said.
"You"ll be left out."
She looked at him in exasperation. "Rashid, I would never fit in here. I"m delighted to taste some more dishes and watch the other women in their finery. But I don"t expect to become friends with anyone. Enjoy yourself. Truly, I"m happy enough."
Sheikh al Benqura was not like Bethanne"s image. To her he looked like a father who had been disappointed in his only child. His gray hair was worn a bit long. His wife looked sad-especially every time her gaze landed on Rashid. Bethanne knew they had both wanted the marriage. Still, they were doing their best now to smooth things over. Rashid had told them he and Bethanne had a special friendship. It was true to a certain degree, but not to the level they suspected. Clever use of words, she thought.
After dinner, they stayed for only a short time, claiming an early departure time in the morning as a reason to be the first to leave.
"That went better than I expected," Rashid said as they settled in the limo for the ride back to the hotel.
"Did it?"
"Yes. You played the part perfectly. Madame al Benqura wished me happiness in our marriage."
"Which you denied."
"Of course, but in such a way she didn"t believe me. I wonder why."
"Because she"s also embarra.s.sed by her daughter"s running off. And I think she believed your heart might be involved. So she would be relieved if you were involved with someone else. No matter how unsuitable."
"You are not unsuitable," he replied.
Bethanne didn"t respond. He still thought her the daughter of a thief. She was tired and wanted to go to bed. Tomorrow they"d return to Quishari and the goodbyes that waited.
"You are a kind man, Rashid. It was good of you to save face for them. It will make the working relations run more smoothly in the future."
The next morning they took off early, leaving Marrakech just awakening in the dawn. Once again the plane was refueled in Cairo. Then began the final leg of the trip. It was growing dark as they flew over the Quishari western border. Before long scattered lights speckled the landscape below them. The skies were full of stars, so much clearer at this elevation. Bethanne loved flying at night. There was something special about rocketing through the darkness with only the stars as a guide.
She checked her coordinates and contemplated her next move. If Rashid wasn"t going to help, she"d have to do it herself.
Rashid rested his head on the sofa cushions. He was tired. The dealing with his new a.s.sociate had been long and more difficult because of Haile"s actions. To pretend things were fine when they weren"t went against his grain. He was all for openness and honesty-where it didn"t hurt anyone. Having Bethanne along, pretending he was involved with her, had given his host a way to save face. The deal was too important to end up contentious because of a willful woman"s actions. But the strain of being with her and yet not wore on him.
The airplane shifted slightly. Rashid opened his eyes. Glancing at his watch, he saw it was too early to be landing in Alkaahdar. Yet it definitely felt as if the plane was descending. Was there a problem?
He rose and walked to the c.o.c.kpit just as Bethanne spoke into the microphone, "Fasten up."
"Is there a problem?" he asked.
She shook her head, concentrating on the task at hand. "You need to sit down and fasten your seat belt," she said.
"Why are we descending?"
"We"re landing."
He slipped into the copilot"s seat and looked out. The blackness below went on for miles, with only a speck of light here and there and a small glow in front of them. Ahead was an array of lights-a runway.
"Where are we?"
"Buckle up, Rashid. We"re going to land in about five minutes and if it"s b.u.mpy, you don"t want to be tossed around."
He snapped on the belt and reached out to take her arm.
"Where are we?"
"Airborne over Quishari, soon landing in Quraim Wadi Samil."
"No."
"Oh, yes," she said softly.
He heard the determination in her tone. Unless he knew how to take control of the plane, there was nothing he could do.
"I"ll call your office and have you fired."
"Go for it." She flicked him a glance. "I came to Quishari with two purposes. To deliver the plane and to find my father. I"m not going home when I"m so close. Now, I would like to concentrate on the landing, so kindly keep quiet."
Rashid was struck by the novelty of having someone telling him to shut up. Did she know who he was?
Of course she did, and was not a bit intimidated by the fact. She claimed to love him. Yet she had not repeated that statement once he"d shown her he couldn"t be persuaded. Had it been a gambit?
With a resignation that the truth was probably she had tried that to get his cooperation, he settled back and watched her bring the jet in with a perfect landing.
It was not so late the airport wasn"t still functioning. But late enough they were probably the last plane to land this evening. Quraim Wadi Samil didn"t qualify as a hot spot in the world of travel.
She taxied where directed and shut down the engines.
"We"re here," she said.
"Do you plan to go to the cemetery in the dark?"
She shook her head. "I plan to find a room somewhere, sleep until morning and then go. After you get the location from your a.s.sistant. If you want me to, I"ll take you to Alkaahdar before leaving for Texas."
"And if I call your home office to have you dismissed?"
"As I said, go for it. I may never get this chance again. I need to know for absolute certain." She rose and went to get her small suitcase and open the door. Walking down the steps, she turned toward the terminal.
Rashid was tempted to call her bluff. She had openly defied him. He sat down in the seat and considered his options.
He knew why she had landed here. If it had been his father, wouldn"t he do all he could to find out the truth? To learn what happened?
He reached in his pocket for the cell phone and called his a.s.sistant at home. It was late, but he needed answers now.
Rashid checked into the hotel they"d used when last in Quraim Wadi Samil. He verified Bethanne was already there before heading up to his room. He had a lot of thinking to do.
The next morning, he waited in the lobby until she came down. Crossing to her, he took her arm and pulled her aside.
"I"ve ordered a car to take us to the cemetery near the older part of town. I know where your father is buried."
She looked at him in astonishment. "You"re kidding. Have you always known?"
"I learned of it last night. Come, we have time before the car comes to have breakfast. Have you eaten?"
She shook her head.
They sat in the sunshine in the small courtyard off the main restaurant adjacent to the hotel. Once their orders had been given and the waiter left, Rashid began.
"I called my a.s.sistant last night. He had talked with Hasid. Then I called Khalid."
"Khalid?" Bethanne said, puzzled.
"He is the sheikh Hasid spoke with, not me."
Of course, both the twins were sheikhs. Hasid had nodded toward where Rashid and Khalid had been speaking. In his mind he probably thought she knew who he meant.
"And?"