Chapter 4—Sheiks IX
Doctor Stacy Chen was nothing if not persistent. Last night, Prince Rafee Armanjani had given her the brush off and left her hospital without allowing her to check for further head damage. He had also left without giving her any information on his mysterious “resurrection” from death. If it was mysterious, that is. And Stacy was determined to find out.
She knew where the Villa Serena Estate was. Only problem, a giant hulking man halted her at the gated entrance. A two story gate house was located there and the huge gates were metal and locked. She pushed the buzzer to be let in, but instead of a voice coming back at her from the box, a man appeared from the gate house.
He was huge. Literally huge and scary as hell. Perhaps not as scary as Rafee had been, but still intimidating. His English was greatly accented and he glared at her through the fence and said, “I do not know you. Who are you and why are you here?”
“I’m uh…Doctor Stacy Chen. I’m an acquaintance of Edgar Reynolds. I also treated Mr. Armanjani last night,” she announced.
“You mean, you treated Sheik Rafee,” the man corrected. “Why are you here?”
“Follow-up visit.”
The man glanced at his watch. Indeed, it was early. Stacy had just gotten off of the night shift and instead of going home to sleep—because she did very little of that—she had driven directly here.
“It’s very early and Sheik Rafee is resting with his family,” the man declared.
“I understand,” Stacy replied, then fibbed with, “but I told him I would stop by this morning to check over his condition.”
The man eyed her warily and said, “I find that difficult to believe. He does not usually like doctors.”
“Well, heck, I’m better than a lawyer,” she teased and just like last night with Rafee, her humor was lost on this giant.
“How about you give Edgar a call? He can vouch for me,” she urged and the man disappeared back into the gate house and returned five minutes later.
“Edgar will meet you at the stables,” the man said, but gave no mention of Sheik Rafee or anyone else.
Stacy took the opportunity to drive her four-door Toyota up the winding gravel path and parked at the stables. A small cottage house was nearby and the stables were grand, yet not ostentatious. Beautiful horses raced through pastures in the near distance and Edgar came out of the cottage house dressed in jeans and a flannel shirt. He was pulling his baseball cap on his head as he neared her.
“Doctor Chen, what can I do you for?” he inquired.
“I need to see Mr. Armanjani,” Stacy answered, remembering how she was corrected by that beast at the front gate, but knew Edgar wouldn’t mind her more informal title for Rafee.
“Why? You just saw him last night,” he reasoned.
“Yes, but a follow-up visit. He wouldn’t let me keep him for observation…in case of a head injury.”
Edgar chuckled and shook his head. “Doc, the only head injury that boy has is stubbornness. He’s not hurt, I can guarantee you that. And I know he only went to the ER last night because that wife of his made him.”
Stacy lifted an interested eyebrow. So, the man actually had a wife who could get him to do things? It was surprising.
“Look, its early, but Shawna often wakes up with the dawn because of the baby,” Edgar threw out. “Go on up to the house, knock, if Shawna answers, you can tell her your concerns. She has some control over Rafee. If you’re really that concerned about his health, she’ll let you in.”
“Shawna?” Stacy asked. “That’s his wife, right?”
“Yes, Shawna Patrick-Armanjani. Her family’s from these parts. Has a couple of brothers running around too. Heard of them?”
Stacy shook her head. She was from San Francisco, originally, and such a huge city meant she knew few people. Not like here in the country-side where she was beginning to get to know everyone.
“Well, hurry along, before Omar calls the house and has Rafee up and storming about. I’d hate to see him have to toss you off the estate. He’s just the sort of man who would, too. Ornery, I say. Down-right ornery.”
**
Alexi was nursing and Shawna sat with him in the living room, the light filtering in from the large front windows and she watched as he started to drift off again. He had awoken early, wanted his breakfast, and now was right back to sleep.
“Typical man,” Shawna whispered as she gently set the baby in the portable playpen. He never stirred.
She leaned over the padded rail of the playpen and watched him sleep soundly for a moment when a light knock resounded off the front door. At first, she startled. Who would be knocking on the door so early and why hadn’t Omar called ahead? What if it was bad news, what if someone from Johar had come…?
That was insanity for Jabbar was dead and the war was over. No one from Johar was interested in her or Rafee or their children any longer.
She walked to the front door in her yellow pajama bottoms and white tank-top. The morning had been chilly in the house, so she’d donned socks and a white hooded zip-up. She mused her hair a bit, hoping she didn’t look totally awful and glanced out the side window. Standing at the door was a young woman dressed in gray slacks and a button-up white Oxford shirt. Her long black hair was pulled back into a loose pony-tail and she shifted nervously from foot to foot. Gauging that this was no threat, Shawna opened the door.
“Hello,” the woman immediately said and thrust out a hand, “I’m Doctor Stacy Chen from the local hospital. I’m Mr. Armanjani’s doctor.”
Shawna smiled with some amusement and glanced the young Asian woman over. Her face was cute, her eyes a deep brown. That black hair Shawna had glimpsed earlier was heavy and silky straight. And the woman was of medium height with an athletic build—slim hips, slightly wider shoulders—as if she worked-out. But her face was very approachable, very sweet and calm.
“Mr. Armanjani? Do you mean Rafee?” Shawna clarified.
“Yes. I treated him last night,” the doctor answered. She held out her hospital credentials to Shawna. Shawna looked them over and handed them back. “He left against my orders.”
Upon hearing that, Shawna rolled her eyes and opened the door. “Great. Just great,” she complained. “Come in, Doctor Chen, and let’s talk. I’m Shawna, by the way, the impossible patient’s wife.”
“Edgar Reynolds said you’d be more reasonable than your husband,” the doctor announced. “And I’m concerned because Prince Rafee left before I had a chance to observe him for a concussion.”
“I’m sure he did,” Shawna drawled as she motioned for the woman to follow her into the kitchen. She watched as Doctor Chen smiled down at Alexi in the playpen, then continued behind her. “And did he even mention any of the injuries he recently suffered in the war?”
“No.”
“I told him to tell you. But yet again, if I’m not there, he won’t do it,” Shawna explained as she held up the coffee pot. “Coffee, doctor?”
The doctor shook her head. “No, I have to sleep after this. I don’t need any caffeine in my system.”
“Breakfast then? Have you eaten?”
The woman said she hadn’t eaten yet and so Shawna got to work cutting up fruit and toasting bagels. While she worked, the doctor inquired about Rafee.
“So, uh…Mrs. Armanjani…”
“Shawna,” Shawna corrected.
“Call me Stacy, then, Shawna. How did your husband feel when he returned last night?”
“He just got into bed, mumbled that everything was fine, and that was that.”
Shawna remembered how she’d worried while he had been gone, then finally sleep had overtaken her. Rafee had been quiet when he’d returned home, leaving lights off and silently undressing. The pile of his clothes was still in front of the closet. Then he’d crawled into bed. She’d rolled to him, he’d wrapped an arm around her and two hours later Alexi had screamed. Since then, she’d been up with the baby.
“Do you think he’ll wake up soon?” Stacy then inquired. “I mean…I don’t want to pry into his personal business and surely discussing much more of his medical issues without him present is borderline unethical…”
“Then what in the hell are you doing here, Doctor Chen?” came Rafee’s voice and both women snapped their heads in his direction.
Rafee was standing in the doorway to the kitchen dressed in khaki cargo shorts and a dark blue T-shirt. Kess was still in her PJs and riding in his arms. Both had hair that was standing up in every direction.
“I see you’re wide awake this morning, darling,” Shawna drawled and Rafee obviously wanted to glare at her, but because he owed her big-time for what had transpired during the war, he remained stoic.
“How’s your head feeling?” Stacy then asked as she slid out of the chair and stood. She didn’t waiver under Rafee’s harsh glare, but she didn’t exactly look entirely confidant either.
“My head is fine. Just like I told you so last night. And I don’t remember ordering a house-call,” he grumbled as he set Kess down. The little girl climbed into a kitchen chair and Shawna served her orange juice and some fruit.
“Rafee, are you hungry?” Shawna asked and he ignored her, his eyes glued to the doctor in a challenge.
“Yes,” he replied but never moved and never took his eyes off Doctor Chen.
“Look…you left against my orders…” Stacy began.
“And I signed your damned form,” Rafee added.
“Yes, but I was…concerned.”
“Concerned? Why? Did I seem so frail that you worried over me all night instead of over your other patients?” Rafee grumbled.
Stacy’s face heated some and Shawna felt sorry for the kind doctor. Rafee could be brutal, yet she had a feeling Doctor Chen had some fight in her and wouldn’t back down too easily so Shawna stood back and watched, not interfering.
“No, but still…Edgar told me some things and…”
Quickly Rafee cut her off with a curse. He glanced at Kess, gave a frown because she had heard him and was laughing declaring, “Dada said a pooh-pooh word.”
He covered Kess’s ears, cursed again for good measure, then declared, “Edgar has no business talking about me.”
“I think he was just trying to warn me,” Stacy offered.
“Warn you? Why would he have to do that?”
Shawna coughed from behind and Rafee looked at her and defended, “I am not that horrible to doctors, Shawna.”
“On certain days. Besides, I told you last night that I wanted you to get checked over by a real doctor in a real facility since you’ve been holed up in a cave for so long,” Shawna explained as she set a plate of fruit in front of everyone.
“I did see a real doctor while in Johar. Ali was a real doctor,” he argued.
Stacy was listening intently.
“Sure, he was real, but he didn’t have the facilities to run tests. You were given blood transfusions and had a broken arm and internal injuries. Just let Doctor Chen give you the once over…please,” Shawna asked.
Rafee’s eyes narrowed on his wife for a moment, then he switched his gaze to Stacy. He glared at her and relented, “Fine. But just some blood tests and a check-up. If only to get my wife to quit nagging me.”
**
Jenny had kept it together while Nik and John had talked. Tara had sat next to her, holding her hand and now that the news was sinking in, Jenny just wanted to be left alone.
John was her father. How utterly strange! She wasn’t sure what to think or how to react, but her first instinct to run away and cry was suppressed. It took much effort, but she was determined not to be a cry-baby anymore. The old Jenny would have done that, the new, older Jenny would handle it with poise.
Standing and biting back all emotions, Jenny said, “I’d like a moment, please. John, could I use the phone?”
Everyone was silent for long seconds and just looked at her like she was insane, then John quickly held his hand out toward his office across the hall and answered, “Certainly, Jenny. Use my office.”
Jenny made it inside, closed and locked the door and leaned against it, heaving with sobs. Walter Malone was not her real father! It made her sick, it made her want to scream, it made her want to call Emir and hear his reassuring voice.
She made her way to the desk and pulled the long-distance, international number for the Johar palace from her pocket. Communications were being repaired quickly in Johar, she’d heard, and she prayed the land-lines were functioning better than the last time she’d tried to call Emir. They’d barely been able to hear one another and had only spoken for two minutes before giving up. It had been a few days since then; Jenny prayed the phones had been fixed.
She reached the same person who operated the phones as before at the palace and as soon as she gave her name, she was immediately transferred. Emir’s voice came on the line and this time it was clear.
“Jenny?” he asked with some surprise. “It’s good to hear from you.”
“Em,” Jenny was able to say before a sob broke through again and she was rendered mute.
Immediately Emir’s voice grew concerned and he asked hurriedly, “Jenny, are you all right? Is something the matter?”
“Em,” Jenny tried again, “I just got the worst news.”
“Tell me,” he insisted and Jenny was so happy for his calm understanding.
“I just found out that my father wasn’t really my father, Emir. My mother…she had an affair with my dad’s friend, John Banes. He’s my father. That’s what they’re all telling me. I’m…devastated.”
She broke out into more sobs, knowing that she was sounding like a baby, but she had to cry to someone. She wasn’t going to cry in public, she wasn’t going to whine to her family, but she was going to cry to Emir because she could, because she loved him and he loved her.
“Jenny,” Emir’s voice said gently, “do not cry, my love. The news could be worse. You could still be stuck here in Johar.”
She laughed slightly and reasoned, “Yeah, you’re right. Things could be much worse. The war could still be going on, Rafee could still be dead. I suppose this isn’t the end of the world.”
“No. But to you, it may feel like it is. Do not let this affect you so. I will come immediately if you wish. I will not allow you to be grief-stricken without me.”
“Oh, Em, I love you. I love you dearly for your loyalty,” she admitted.
“I love you too,” he told her.
“But I…I can manage now. I just needed to hear your voice. After all, I survived living with King Jabbar, didn’t I? I can survive Senator John Banes being my father. No problem.”
“Jenny,” Emir said seriously, “do you need me there?”
“I want you here, but I do not need you here for this. You stay in Johar. Your country needs you more. I have Tara and Nik and…I’ll be fine.”
“Are you certain?”
“Yes,” she said with a smile. “You will visit me later, won’t you? Once things are less hectic in Johar?”
“I will visit,” he assured her.
The lines began to crackle again and Jenny cursed them.
“I should go, I can barely hear you,” Jenny said.
“I’m sorry…bad lines,” Emir said, sounding like he was talking from inside a wind tunnel. “Take care, my love.”
“You too, Em. I love you.”
The line was dead and Jenny sighed. She wiped at her eyes. Her sobs were gone now and she felt a surge of renewed strength. So, John Banes was her father. Big deal! She could handle this, she could handle it with no trouble.
**
Emir slammed the phone down and pushed his hands through his hair. Damn, stupid communication lines. If this had been
Emir wasn’t upset about the state of his country, however. Surprisingly, the citizens of Johar had been handling the change well. They’d been relieved to see Jabbar go and were patiently waiting to see how Abdul would rule as king. They had high hopes, and so far, Emir knew Abdul was meeting their expectations.
He was upset, however, about being separated from Jenny. It felt wrong. It especially felt wrong now that she was suffering such a devastating personal crisis. Although, she had sounded strong and determined to him. She had more inner strength than people gave her credit for. He had seen it so many times during the war and he had heard it in her voice as their conversation had come to an end. Jenny would survive for she was strong and she had a circle of family that loved her. A circle of family that he was not included in. Prince Nikash had made that perfectly clear when he’d glared at Emir and insisted Jenny must return to
**
Razi sat in his office staring at all the orders for work and repair that was needed in the capital city. The stacks of reports on the state of the other regions, he hadn’t even touched yet. His country was a mess, the economy was non-existent and Razi was still heartbroken over Nida’s death.
“This sucks,” he mumbled as he placed his head on his desk and groaned. He wasn’t ready to be king, he wasn’t cut out to be a leader. He didn’t want to do this, not now.
Anika entered the office with a tray of food and set it noisily on a side table. He looked up at her and she was glaring at him, a graceful hand upon her slim hip.
“Quit feeling sorry for yourself, Razi,” she declared. “Eat something.”
“I’m not hungry,” he insisted.
“And you haven’t been hungry since Nida died.” She moved toward him. She wasn’t angry, Anika understood his emotions. She had been one hell of a wife to him since the war had begun and he appreciated her more than she would ever know.
“I’m sorry she died, honey,” Anika added as she placed a hand on his cheek and forced his eyes to meet hers. “I would have liked to have known her. I would have loved for her last days to be spent in comfort with us caring for her instead of her dying in the same spot as Jabbar. But she did right by her country, she sacrificed a lot and the people of Johar recognized that. Didn’t they?”
“They were very warm at her funeral. Everyone in the city came out,” he agreed.
“And I don’t want you to feel guilty because you left all those years ago. Had you stayed, you still would have never married her. Your brother would have taken her anyway.”
“I’m not sorry I never married her. I’m sorry she had to suffer with Jabbar. I never would have wanted to marry anyone but you, Anika. I know that now.” He took her hand and pulled her onto his lap. “You saved my life…in more ways than you know.”
“And,” Anika said with a mischievous smile as she kissed his lips, “I’m going to save your country’s economy. I have a business plan to show you.”
“Ah, that intelligent mind of your never stops, does it?” Razi asked as he knocked gently on her forehead.
“Oh, it’ll stop long enough for me to have my way with you. I’ve always wanted to make love with a king in his stately office,” she teased as she kissed him again and ran a hand down his chest.
That was all it took for him to grow hard with need. Anika always knew how to turn him on, how to make him want her with a desire so strong that it burned in his gut.
Her hand slipped under his military T-shirt. Since he spent so much time working physically as much as he did mentally, he had yet to abandon his military uniform. He didn’t want people to think he was a military dictator of any sort, but since so many things were destroyed, he did want to convey he was a working-man of the people. He had to keep the people on his side or he wouldn’t last more than a month before his country fell into civil war. But so far, violence and disunion had been non-existent because the people saw their king in the streets and they saw the results he had produced thus far. And because of that, they were being patient.
He, however, was not going to be patient with Anika. He lifted her onto his desk, pushed her shirt up her chest and landed his lips on her stomach. She giggled, then moaned as his hand clamped over her breast. Then the door to the office opened and Anika sat up so quickly, she knocked into Razi’s head and he groaned and slid back into his chair.
“My king, I am sorry to disturb you,” the newly promoted General Bishr said, averting his eyes slightly, yet showing no other signs of embarrassment over his interruption. “But I wanted to warn you that the newly elected provincial representatives are arriving.”
“Already?” Razi asked as he helped Anika off the desk and rubbed his forehead where she had hit him.
“They are eager to get started at drafting a new constitution and electing a parliament. It will be a first for this country.”
“I know,” Razi said with a sigh. He looked at Anika, he glanced at the food he had yet to eat and all the paperwork on his desk and asked, “General, could you please get them settled and entertain them for a while? I need to eat and change. I need to hear my wife’s business proposal, then I will attend to them.”
“Of course, Abdul,” the military commander answered and then backed out of the door.
“Does that man do anything but work?” Anika inquired.
Razi sighed. “No. He’s a damn machine. But I love that damn machine for he’s my most trusted advisor and a wonderful military commander. Without him, I wouldn’t be king.”
“We need to get him a woman,” Anika drawled. “Then perhaps he’ll quit interrupting us.”
“A woman for General Bishr?” Razi shook his head. “I doubt the man would know what to do with one unless she followed military orders.”
Anika giggled at Razi’s joke. “I’ll find him someone. Just so you and I can have our sex life back.”
Razi glanced at his watch. “I can fit a sex life into my schedule for the next five minutes. What do you say?”
Anika slid down to the floor, grabbed Razi by the shirt and pulled him along with her. “I say, pencil me in.”
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The Sheiks of Kumar IX: Family Reunion – Chapter 5