Arta - the last princess

Chapter - 38

"Don't you wanna say anything?" Osman said as they were walking back to their chambers.

Arta was silent the whole time, and Osman was a bit confused about how to react.

"You don't think that I'm actually going to agree to any marriage, right?"

Still no reaction from Arta.

Osman stopped and grabbed Arta's hand and forced her to stop. He grabbed her shoulders "You trust me, right?"

"I trust you, but I don't trust your family, I'm sorry!" she said and looked the other way.

Osman did not trust his family too, but what could they do? They cannot force him into marrying someone. He will not accept this.

He gently grabbed her chin and looked into her eyes "Just believe in me, I will never disappoint you! I will never betray our marriage. We have come a long way Arta. I can imagine how you might feel being in a foreign land and under the pressure of my family... but I just want you to trust me and believe me that I will always protect you and our love, don't even forget that for a second, ok?"

"Ok!" Arta said softly and hugged him. She knows in her heart that Osman is sincere, and she should not be unreasonable with him, but she still feels threatened by Noor and Jamila. She also did not like the way Rashid looked at her.

***

The next morning Arta was woken up by Nahla. Osman had already left early in the morning.

"Good morning Princess!"

"Good morning, where is Osman?"

"I did not see him, I guess he has left very early!"

Nahla helped Arta to get dressed.

She was about to start eating her breakfast when a maid came in and told them that Noor is asking to see the princess.

Nahla rolled her eyes "Oh my God, give me a break!"

"you can tell her to go if you don't want to see her."

"Do you think she will stop bothering me if I don't see her now? No, I don't think so! Plus I don't want to give her the feeling that I have felt threatened by her."

Arta and Nahla left the room to meet Noor.

They entered one of the rooms on the first floor. Noor was sitting on a cushion drinking tea.

They entered the room but Noor did not pay any attention to them, Nahla cleared her throat to grab her attention.

"Finally the almighty Persian princess is here! What took you so long? Don't you say your prayers in the morning?"

"To what do I owe the pleasure of meeting you again?" Arta asked calmly.

"We need to talk."

"I don't have anything to talk to you about! Please leave after you had your tea!" Arta turned to leave the room.

"Aren't you curious to know why Sultan wants me as Osman's wife?" Noor said while playing with the drink in her hand, without looking at Arta.

Arta stopped and turned her head toward Noor.

"Come sister, let's talk!"

"You can leave," Arta told Nahla.

Nahla was about to protest but Arta shook her head and sent her out.

Arta sat in front of Noor. "I'm listening!"

Noor took her time to finish her tea. She put the teacup down and looked at Arta.

"Do you know who my father is?" Noor asked.

"What does it have to do with the Sultan wanting you as his daughter-in-law?"

Noor laughed "It has everything to do with it."

"Just cut it short and tell me what you came here for to tell me."

"Be patient princess!" Noor was enjoying this. She was feeling empowered and happy.

Noor continued "My father is Abdulaziz, you can say he is the second most powerful person in Arabia. And you may heard of my brother Azim who is one of the most influential generals in the army."

"Ok I got it you and your family are very important persons, so what?" Arta said a bit nervously.

"I'm getting there." Noor smiled. "You know Osman is the eldest son and he is the crown prince and next one to take the throne. But he lacks something." Noor paused, leaned forward, and looked Arta in the eyes "He lacks the support of the elders of the clans and generals. This is something that my father and brother can give him. Without them, it won't be easy for him to sit on the throne." She now sat comfortably and poured another cup of tea for herself, looking at Arta and enjoying making her nervous and worried.

Arta was silent, she did not know what to say. She was thinking about what Osman told her last night, to trust him and believe him. But now with this information, what should she do?

"But don't worry. I'm not a bad person, as long as you leave for Persia and never come back to Arabia and never see Osman again, I promise not to meddle with you too, you can continue to be his wife but without him." Arta was still silent digesting all she told her. Sitting on a throne was not something that anyone could easily turn down because of a woman. Why should Osman be any different? But how can she part from him, this is too painful.

"Well, that was all I wanted to tell you, I know you love Osman enough not to overlook what is best for Osman. He may not like me now but he has no other choice. Take your think carefully, Sultan is not going to live much longer, and Osman needs allies to survive." With that, she stood up and left the room.

As Noor left Nahla came in and found Arta cupping her face with her hands. "Princess?" Nahla approached Arta but she did not respond.

Nahla stayed silent by her side until Arta suddenly looked up at her and asked "How powerful is Abdulaziz?"

"Abdulaziz? Noor's father? Oh, he is the second most powerful person in Arabia if not as powerful as him. Why? What did she tell you? Did she threaten you?" Nahla asked looking concerned.

"No no, nothing like that." Arta did not want to talk about their conversation with Noor to anyone yet, she still needed time to think.

Arta was feeling tired and her head was spinning. She did not have breakfast, but she did not have the appetite for it either. She went back to her bed chamber and lay down on the bed. She suddenly felt a sharp pain in her belly and gasped for air. The pain was unbearable, she screamed and Nahla rushed in "What happened?" she tried to help Arta to sit as she was flinching in pain but that was a wrong move and she screamed more.

"I'm going to bring a doctor" She was about to leave when Arta grabbed her arm "No," she said as she was clenching her teeth. "But..." Nahla looked concerned. Arta pressed her arm harder and shook her head "I said no..."

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