Rahim’s jaw tightened, his impassive eyes focused on the horizon ahead. ‘He did, but in many ways he was dead long before he drew his last breath.’
She wanted to ask what he meant. Then deny that they had anything in common. But Allegra was reeling from the overwhelming realisation of just how much she’d bared herself to Rahim Al-Hadi in so short a time. And none of those revelations had got her closer to completing the task her grandfather had set her.
She was grappling with a way to tackle the subject when they soared over a steep hill.
‘What’s that?’ She indicated the construction site beneath her.
‘The new racing track to be completed by the end of the year. We host our first top-tier race here next spring.’
Allegra struggled to keep her emotions in check. ‘Did I read somewhere that you were a racer?’ she bit out.
‘Only on amateur circuits. The situation of my birth precludes me from placing myself in such a dangerous profession,’ he replied with a shrug of acceptance and regret.
‘But you own supercars, don’t you?’
He nodded, then glanced at her with a slight frown. ‘Several. What’s your point? And don’t tell me there isn’t one, because I hear an ocean of judgement in your voice. Are you going to accuse me of not caring about my people again?’
‘Do you?’ She searched his face, wondering why his answer meant so much to her.
‘Of course,’ he replied, his voice deep and unwavering. ‘I don’t believe in throwing money at a problem until I know the root cause of it.’
‘From where I’m standing the root cause of your country’s problems is very easy to see. You may be doing something now, but it begs the question why no one outside of your precious palace has cared enough until now. If they had, your kingdom wouldn’t be in this state.’
A grunt of disbelief echoed through her headphone, followed a deathly silence where she only heard the echo of her own voice. A quick glance behind her showed degrees of horror on the faces of the bodyguards before they quickly averted their gazes.
God, what had she done?
Clenching her fists in her lap, she tried to scramble for something to mitigate the bomb she’d just thrown in her own way.
Chagrined, she took several deep breaths. Rahim Al-Hadi got under her skin with an ease that was frightening. And yet she knew she’d stepped over the line. Way over the line. ‘Your Highness...’
‘You’ve said enough for now, Miss Di Sione. While I do not wish to bore you with the protocols of my country, I need to warn you that further insults aimed at me will result in your arrest, or worse. So perhaps you need to curb any more observations until we’re alone?’
Before she could attempt to bumble her way through yet another explanation to excuse her runaway tongue, he banked the chopper, this time heading west and away from the dazzling waters of the Arabian Sea.
The terrain below swiftly changed from lush greenery to shrub land before merging seamlessly into the undulations of the Dar-Aman desert. Silence fell within the aircraft as the rotors whipped through the hot air.
When one of the bodyguards leaned forward and pointed, Rahim nodded and started to descend towards the convoy of sturdy SUVs lined up on a flat clearing.
The moment they landed a group in traditional Berber garb, led by an old man who was clearly the elder, strode forward. His wizened face creased in a smile as he hugged Rahim, then kissed him on both cheeks, before touching his hand to his heart several times.
Slowly stepping down from the chopper, Allegra observed the welcoming gestures—which she knew from her cultural interactions were reserved for revered guests and family. After several minutes, Rahim looked over to where she stood. In an instant the cordial expression melted from his face.
Without speaking, he nodded to one of his men, who came forward and indicated that she get into one of the many SUVs.
The realisation that she wouldn’t be travelling with Rahim brought sharp, disconcerting disappointment that threw her for a stunned second. She plastered a smile on her face when she noticed curious eyes turned on her. Silently, she took her seat. The smile was quickly wiped from her face when the convoy raced away from the choppers, taking a terrain that convinced her she’d broken more than one bone in her body by the time the rough, turbulent half-hour ride came to a halt on the fringe of a group of canvas-brown Bedouin tents. From either side of the settlement craggy mountains rose, and Allegra understood the need for ditching the choppers to make the final leg of the journey by land.
The scene was spectacular, if more than a little rough on her bones. Gingerly she got out of the car. And found Rahim standing in front of her.
‘Are you all right?’ he asked.
His large frame vibrated with an icy anger that told Allegra her outburst in the chopper remained very much an issue between them. It surprised her that he was going out of his way to enquire about her comfort considering he was very displeased with her.
‘I’m fine. Listen, about what I said...’
He gave a firm shake of his head. ‘We will discuss this later.’
Rahim bit out instructions in Arabic and all but two women and the elder remained. At his further instructions the women rushed forward and bowed. ‘Laila and Sharifa will take you to get cleaned up and serve you some refreshments. We will return to the palace once my meeting is over.’
He started to walk away.
‘Your Highness...’
He whirled abruptly towards her. ‘You seem intent on drawing quite severe conclusions about me. Am I really so irredeemable?’
The direct question and the fact that he seemed genuinely puzzled by her observations took her aback. Since she had no answer that would be diplomatic enough, she countered it with one of her own. ‘Why are you so keen for me to take an interest in you?’
He tensed slightly, but then shrugged. ‘How else will you set aside your prejudged bias and see the light?’
‘I’m not reacting to anything that’s not right in front of me.’ Knowing her response was directed more at him than at his kingdom sent a wave of shame through her.
His dark brows clamped beneath the shade of his keffiyeh. For several heartbeats he just stared at her. ‘Perhaps this wasn’t a good idea after all,’ he mused darkly. He nodded to the ladies hovering nearby. ‘I will be done in two hours and we’ll return to the palace.’
He was gone before she could reply.
When the women stepped forward and indicated that she follow them, Allegra sighed inwardly and summoned another smile.
An hour later, after an attempt to ride a disgruntled camel, and a short trail up several sand dunes to a point between two distant mountains to witness the most spectacular sunset, she washed her hands and feet, and sat cross-legged on a plump, richly embroidered cushion in a cool, stunningly decorated tent.
The half a dozen women who crowded around her spoke varying degrees of English, and Allegra was shocked to find that most of them had been pursuing academic careers at one point in their lives. Careers that had come to an abrupt halt around the same time about fifteen years ago.
Her tentative queries as to why drew dismissive shrugs, then furtive glances and lapses into heated Dar-Amanian when Allegra probed further.
Realising she’d broached a touchy issue, she attempted to change the subject only to clamp her mouth shut when her nape prickled with the keen awareness that she was under scrutiny.
The finger she’d been absently licking froze on her lower lip as her head snapped up and her gaze collided