Chapter 34 · Untitled Chapter

The silence settled over the vast carpet like fine dust after a desert wind. Across the low table of polished cedar, my elder brother sat with his jaw clenched, the white fabric of his ghutra falling rigid over his shoulders. Between us lay the heavy, calfskin-bound ledger of our family’s settled obligations, flanked by the notarized inheritance deed bearing the official wax stamp of the notary in Diriyah.

"Take what is yours, Maha," he said, his voice flat with forced composure. "The deeds return your share of the northern palms and the estate plots along the valley. The ledger is marked paid in full by our council. No man of our tribe will ever say you remained here because you had no roof or title among your own kin. Stand, take the papers, and walk out of this gate with us."

Not a single elder stirred along the perimeter of the hall. The scent of burning oud from the mabkhara curled between the carved plaster arches, drifting above the heads of men who had measured pride and debt in silver and land for three generations. Saud did not utter a word.