The Desert Sheikh

Chapter 2

“Please, step this way.” The sheikh led her towards a large group of tents made of coarse black camel hair in the middle of a vast expanse of desert. Tethered next to the tents were a group of camels and several fine-looking horses. Sarah knew how to ride a horse, but even if she managed to get hold of one, or the keys to the Jeep, she had no idea where she was, or how to get back to the city.

They had been travelling for more than three hours through the desert and after the first thirty minutes, the sheikh had driven the Jeep off the road and headed out across an empty expanse of land. Initially, Sarah had tried hard to focus on possible landmarks so she could orientate herself and work out where she was. However, after the first hour, she became completely lost and knew that she would never be able to find her way back again on her own without a guide. As she stepped out of the Jeep, she knew that she was walking into what would be her new home for the foreseeable future, or at least until the embassy or the Women’s Hospital managed to negotiate her release.

As well as being scared, Sarah was also exhausted. Without air conditioning in the Jeep, hot dusty air had blown through the windows so that she was now covered in a fine layer of sand. She desperately wanted a shower, but there was no sign of even the most basic sanitary provisions in this Bedouin encampment. However, near the camels was a long bank of palm trees. Their leaves looked like clusters of needles stabbing the bright white sky around them. Sarah wondered whether there was some kind of well or pool of water behind them.

“As my honoured guest, you will stay here.” The sheikh gestured towards one of the larger tents. “Girl, come!” he called out.

A woman came rushing out of one of the tents. She was almost fully veiled, but Sarah could see her eyes and guessed that she was a teenager, or a young woman. The woman bowed down in front of the sheikh and kept her eyes focused on the ground. He spoke to her for several minutes, but he was so quiet that Sarah couldn’t hear what he was saying. He then turned to Sarah and said, “Lady Amanda, this is my niece. She will look after you. If you need anything, please tell her.” He touched his forehead and then his broad chest to salaam Sarah, before walking off in the opposite direction.

Sarah followed the woman into her tent. It was hung with heavy tapestries and on the floor were ornate carpets. Sarah had been in the country long enough and knew enough about Arab culture to remove her shoes before walking in. Her feet were covered in dirt from the journey; however, an older woman, possibly of African descent, came forward with a bowl of water. She gestured to Sarah to sit so she could wash her feet. Once the serving woman had finished, the sheikh’s niece invited her into the heart of the tent for some food.

Sarah hadn’t eaten since breakfast and didn’t realise how hungry she was until she saw the spread that was laid out in front of her, which consisted of feta cheese, freshly baked flat bread, hummus, and tabouleh, a finely chopped salad of parsley garnished with tomatoes. She knew that if she was going to get through her stay here, she had to eat and keep up her strength.

Once she finished, Sarah sat back on one of the heavily embroidered cushions and drank a glass of very sweet mint tea. The African woman cleared away some of the dishes and went outside with them. The other woman, the sheikh’s niece who had brought her into the tent, sat silently in the corner. She had taken off her face veil and Sarah could see that her estimation of the girl’s age was correct. She was an attractive teenage girl with thick black hair and soft, delicate features. Sarah tried to talk to her.

“Thank you for the food. My name is Sa—” Sarah stopped just in time and corrected her error. “My name is Lady Amanda Bolton. Can I ask you your name?”

“My name is Minna. I am the daughter of Sheikh Omar Al-Zafir,” she replied, looking up for the first time. The girl was obviously proud of her lineage, so Sarah tried to look suitably impressed.