Chapter 26 · Untitled Chapter

The heavy cedar doors of the central majlis stood open, revealing the assembled elders seated along the low, gilded divans.

My uncle sat near the head of the room, flanked by two senior cousins from the broader branch, their crisp white thobes and crimson-and-white ghutras immaculate, their expressions hardened by the quiet scandal of an unresolved transaction.

On the silver tray between them, the brass dallah steamed beside a porcelain bowl of Sukkari dates, though none of them had touched their cups.

I stepped past the threshold, the hem of my black abaya brushing the edge of the woven wool carpet. My shaila was neatly pinned, framing my face without faltering. In the majlis of men, a guest in this house was expected to wait behind screens, to receive the news of her fate once the signatures were dried and the coffee poured.

But the ledger had shifted, and the silence that fell over the room as I entered was cold, sharp, and entirely deliberate.

My uncle looked up, his brow furrowing in immediate disapproval. "Maha. This is not the room for you to linger in. The men are reviewing the covenants."

From the entrance behind me, Saud walked in.