Chapter 24 · Untitled Chapter

Tariq did not immediately withdraw the tray. Instead, he signaled quietly, and the younger man standing by the archway stepped forward, unfolding a second sheet of cream parchment—an addendum stamped with the blue seal of their arbitration counsel. It was laid beside the original settlement, the lines dense with revisions of the last four years, reframing every defense we had mounted as a domestic dispute resolved in their favor.

"Look at the language, Noura," Tariq said, keeping his tone measured, though his fingers betrayed him by tapping once against the gilded trim of his cane. "It clears the ledger. It records that your silence was voluntary, that the land transfer was mutual, and that no censure attaches to the gate. It is an honorable exit."

"Honorable for those who wrote it," I replied.

Bandar did not touch the paper, nor did he shift his weight. He remained standing at the corner of the low mahogany table, his thobe immaculately creased, his presence imposing a stillness upon the majlis that made the crackle of the embers in the mabkhara seem loud.