The Sheikh Surgeon's Proposal

Jay joined their two internists in their exam. He joined her in examining the youngest two children.

He prepared the ECG machine while she did her exams. She lowered her stethoscope and beckoned to him as she cooed to the two little girls with a smile. He wheeled the machine forward, started joking with the little ones, who Jay informed him were Zahrah and Azzah, making a game of applying the gel to their emaciated chests. Jay joined in, turned placing the ECG electrodes and leads into more fun.

When they had the tracings they dressed the girls and he rushed to his bag, came back with huge chocolate bars to the delightful sound of the little girls’ giggling. Jay was performing magic tricks for them!

With his heart booming at yet another of her surprises, being the Arabic speaker, it fell to him to be the one to disappoint the little girls by telling them they’d have to eat the chocolate after they got better, but that it would be soon, and there’d be way more then. They agreed to stay in bed until their friends were examined, then they’d take care of them all.

As they waited for the others to finish, he took Janaan aside. “How did you do that trick with the tongue depressor?”

Jay gave him a look of exaggerated self-importance and mystery. “You expect a magician to reveal her secrets? Tsk.”

“I know you’re a sorceress.” He believed it. Look how she’d enchanted him, enslaved him. “But that was a trick—for a change. I’ll trade you its secret for a rundown of my plans.”

“No deal. I can find out your plans on my own.”

He sighed. “Tormentor. Zain, I concede I’m no position to bargain.” He soaked up her triumphant smile, smiled back. “So—my plans. I have definite ones for the communities under Damhoorian sovereignty. I’ll provide them with comprehensive medical insurance and set up centers close enough to be within reach but far enough away so as not to encroach on their way of life, to serve as permanent medical and community services facilities. GAO will handle the logistics. I’ll provide what they recommend.”

She gave him one of those glances that made him feel he could spread his arms and fly.

“What about the communities outside Damhoor?” she asked.

That brought him crashing back to earth. “Those are another matter,” he growled. “For instance, the Ashgoonian government welcomes my efforts as long as they’re in a crisis or when they think it’s those of a pampered royal playing at philanthropy. Once I put forward plans for the widespread reforms I have in mind, I doubt they’ll be as grateful. Beyond medical services, these people need aggressive development programs to make their neighborhoods habitable, livestock, farming and small projects to help them become self-supporting, vocational training to provide them with desperately needed job skills and educational projects to break the cycle of ignorance and poverty.”

Her eyes now made him feel as if he could single-handedly do all that. If he had her at his side, he knew he would.

“Skeikh Malek, we’re ready to review our findings.”

Malek shook himself from another attack of searing longing, turned to Mel Kawolski, their sole GAO cardiologist. “Go ahead.”

“All six children are suffering from serious congenital heart defects and congestive heart failure,” Mel said.

Malek nodded. “So are Zahrah and Azzah over there. Both are suffering from severe Fallot’s tetralogy.”

The other internist, Hal Zuckerman said, “We diagnosed two cases of severe coarctation of the aorta, three quite large ventricular septal defects, and one total mitral valve prolapse. They’re all conditions necessitating surgical treatment.”

Malek took one more look at the children who lay on their beds, fragile, helpless, looking at him as if they understood he was the one who had their fates in his hands.

He gritted his teeth. “Get me films, prepare the children and transfer them in order of severity to surgery.” Mel nodded, got busy at once. Malek looked down at Jay. “Coming?”

She tore her gaze from the children, turned glittering eyes up at him. “Try to stop me.”

She fell into brisk step with him as they exited the tent, traversed the clearance they’d made for their camp in the crowded, squalid mountain community. It was a fifteen-minute hike down to the valley where they’d left their convoy. Only the Jeeps had made it up the narrow, unpaved mountain roads.

As they reached the surgery trailer she paused at its steps. “I’ve been thinking, Malek. Maybe the Ashgoonian government will resist you now, but once you’re king you will have far more power, and even if you can’t influence them to put an end to these people’s ordeals, you will be able to pressure them to let you intervene yourself. God—what a blessing that kind of power will be in your hands.”

The permanent spasm behind his ribs sank talons into his heart, almost drove him to his knees.

“Janaan, this was a horrible idea …”

He bit his lip, barely stopped himself from ramming his head against the trailer’s steel side.

Of all the stupid, insensitive things to say.

“Not letting me go when I asked to?” she completed for him. “Probably. But I stand by my words weeks ago. Coming here, getting to know you, is my life’s most incredible experience, and I wouldn’t wish it away for the world. I only hope you don’t regret it too much.” She suddenly poked him in the arm, grinned. “Now, lighten up, and power up on that healing magic of yours.”

He swallowed the burning coal that had replaced his larynx as he followed her inside the trailer.

She hadn’t fooled him with her levity. Every second she was beside him kept breaking her heart into smaller pieces. By the time she left it would be pulverized. As would his be.

It was five days later when their last batch of post-operative patients was airlifted to Halwan. Malek believed all the kids would make full recoveries. Now, with the rest of their medical and community services targets reached, it was time to move on to their next destination.

As they waited for the Jeeps to come down from the mountain, Jay watched everyone gearing up for the move.

She’d loved every heart-wrenching, fascinating, exhausting second of the past three weeks, had come to know so much about the region and the people, had made friends and gained invaluable experience and knowledge. Then had come being with Malek. It had made everything that had happened between them before pale by comparison. She hadn’t lied when she’d said the whole experience was and would remain her life’s high point.