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Mahira blinked once blankly, then immediately covered it up by a vehement nod. “Oh, yes! Yes, of course! True love, indeed.”
Keisha laughed a little nervously. “You… you think so?”
Naiad smiled sweetly and nodded. “Oh, of course,” she answered casually, glancing down at her fingernails, manicured to perfection. “My brother has always been so romantic. Do you remember Jahan?”
Mahira frowned, thinking, then her eyes brightened and she grinned widely. “Oh! Jahan! Of course, I remember her.”
“She was such a lovely girl, was she not?” Naiad continued, now talking mostly to her younger sister rather than Keisha.
Mahira nodded. “Oh yes. Very lovely. And so young.”
Glancing between the two women, Keisha felt herself begin to frown. “Who is Jahan?”
“I am sorry,” Naiad apologized, though her tone suggested that perhaps she was not so very sorry in reality. “I thought perhaps my brother had already mentioned her.”
Keisha shook her head. “No. Should he have?”
“Well, it is not my place to say one way or the other, of course,” Naiad continued, glancing at her sister. “But I would have thought it were important to know something of the sort.”
Keisha’s frown deepened. “What sort?”
“The romantic sort, of course! What have we been talking about?”
Keisha felt her heart skip a beat, then stutter as she tried to process the words. Romantic? Who was this Jahan and why would his sisters know of her and not of Keisha? More importantly, why did Keisha know nothing of her?
Feeling herself begin to tremble, she could not bring herself to ask another question, but the sisters continued to speak anyway.
“A little short, was she not?” asked Mahira, oblivious to Keisha’s growing unrest.
Naiad shook her head. “No, you are thinking of Dunya.”
“Oh, of course! I had all but forgotten her. Was she the one who loved the soft fabrics?”
“No, that was Fareeda,” corrected Naiad again. “But I understand the mistake. They did look so much alike.”
Keisha was shaking at this point. Who were all these other women? Why had she heard of none of them? Had Ahmed been keeping so many secrets from her? The sisters continued to chat about these women—all of whom had apparently been beautiful and demure, perfect for fitting in with the family—even as Keisha felt herself spiraling out of control.
She needed to see Ahmed. She needed answers straight from him.
Standing abruptly, startling both the sisters, she said in a breathless voice, “I thank you for your… your hospitality, but I must leave. I have… things to take care of.”
Naiad forced her expression to be politely sad, but beneath it the gleam in her eyes was obvious. She had intended for this reaction from Keisha. Mahira beside her sister had not even bothered to try and hide her glee at Keisha’s sudden announcement. She smiled like a cat, fierce and victorious.
Keisha knew then that they had set her up and did not want a single thing to do with her, but the damage had been done just the same. Clearly, they wanted her out, but had they used the truth to try and achieve that end?
She could not say. And the only person who could confirm or deny these things was Ahmed. She had to find him now and get some answers before she suddenly found herself falling apart amidst these awful, scheming people. His family.
Oh, what had she gotten herself into?
Keisha turned on her heel and walked pointedly towards the door. She could hear soft, barely disguised snickers coming from the bed, the two sisters already celebrating their victory, but she did not care. She only wanted to hear the truth from Ahmed now.
Reaching for the door, Keisha jumped a little when there was a knock on the other side of it.
“Keisha, my love? Are you in there?”
It was Ahmed. His voice immediately eased something within her and she felt better. More than better, she was suddenly absolutely certain that the words of his sisters were nothing more than carefully laid traps for her to step into.
She would ask him about these other women and he would provide her with easy, obvious explanations for all of them. He would put her mind at ease.
