“We have to leave,” El-Tamar replied.
“Why?”
“Prince Al-Qadir's men have been spotted in town,” Guadalupe said. Abia's eyes flew open. She had not expected them to be so quick. Clearly, she had underestimated him. It made sense now, why they hadn't wired the money yet. Abia stormed out of the room and headed downstair
s.
She picked up the phone and called the Prince’s palace. The call was transferred to Badir's phone. He picked up the call. “Abia,” he said.
“Where is the money?” Abia demanded. She did not even bother to say hello. She got straight to the point. Her patience had run out.
“It is not sunset yet,” Badir replied calmly.
“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.