Kidnapped by the Arab

Carlo finally had one of the men who had kidnapped Mía in his grasp. The poor man trembled uncontrollably, causing the chair to vibrate under his obese body, which was already bruised from the many beatings he had received. The gag around his mouth prevented his screams from being heard, and thick tears streamed from his eyes.

Carlo approached and lowered the gag slightly from the unfortunate man’s mouth. “Have you remembered anything yet, or should we keep helping you?” he asked calmly.

“I don’t know where they took her, I swear. My friend didn’t tell me,” the man stammered.

Carlo calmly placed the gag back over the man’s mouth. “Fifteen nails left,” he said, then pulled out some pliers and started removing the man’s fingernails one by one. He paused for a moment to take off the gag again.

“No more, please! I remembered that he mentioned the person who gave the order is now a Sheikh. That’s all I know, I swear!” the man pleaded.

“So, someone who’s now a Sheikh. Interesting information. Rest in peace now,” Carlo nodded to his men, indicating that they should finish off the unfortunate man. A single bullet to the forehead ended his suffering.

“You know what to do with the body. That’s what happens to people who can’t keep secrets. If only he had kept quiet, I wouldn’t have found out, and he would still be alive, at peace, and perhaps even happy.”

Carlo removed the gloves covering his hands and made a disgusted face when he noticed his white shirt was stained. “Disgusting. I’ll go home to change; clean up this place immediately,” he ordered.

Vittoria, who was in an advanced state of pregnancy, looked horrified when he entered. She was having tea with her mother-in-law in the living room.

“Are you hurt?” she asked.

“Not at all, it’s just a little bird I made sing,” Carlo replied.

Vittoria understood what he meant and covered her mouth with her hand. Her mother-in-law shook her head disapprovingly.

“Does this have to do with your obsession with that woman?” Greta asked.

“You got it right, mother. Soon she’ll be with me, and Vittoria and her son will have to move to the guesthouse.”

“If you don’t want them here, I’ll take them with me.”

“No way! I’ll ask for a divorce, but since she insisted on being with me, she’ll have to attend to my wife properly.”Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.

“I won’t allow you to humiliate her like that.”

“I won’t allow you to interfere more than necessary.”

Seeing Carlo raising his voice, Greta decided to remain silent; she wanted to beat her son, but she knew Vittoria would pay the consequences.

Carlo went upstairs to take a shower. Afterward, he called his trusted man, Zaro.

“Zaro.”

“Yes, boss. What do you need?”

“I’ve investigated; Mía was kidnapped by someone who’s now a Sheikh. Find out who the possible suspects are.”

“Right away, sir.”

“It has to be someone who recently took power, someone who was in the United States, as they had to know Mía to order her kidnapping.” Carlo didn’t suspect Ahmed at all; he considered him a friend since they had been partners.

In Dubai, after much consideration, Aisha decided to stop taking birth control pills. She walked to Ahmed’s office and entered after knocking.

“Do you need something?” Ahmed asked.

“I’ve decided to stop taking birth control pills.”

Ahmed was surprised; he stood up and walked towards her, never taking his eyes off her. “Did I hear correctly?” His heart was racing.

“Yes, I hope to see a little one running around the palace soon.”

He embraced her tightly, filled with joy. “Thank you, my love. You have no idea how important it is to me to have an heir.”

Amira, passing by, approached when she heard them. “Has something happened?”

“Yes, something wonderful. Aisha has decided to get pregnant.”

“That’s great; congratulations!”

“Calm down, guys. I’m not pregnant yet.”

“Let’s pray to Allah that you will be,” Ahmed said.

“You guys pray, and I’ll do my best,” Aisha replied, blushing.

“Ahmed, don’t say that in front of your sister, how embarrassing,” she said as her face turned red.

“Haha.”

The news made Ahmed happy throughout the day; he hurried through his tasks to return home early to be with his wife.

At dusk, he entered their room, approached her, and hugged her tightly. “Thank you, my love. You have no idea how important it is to me to have an heir.”

“Your mother can forget about the idea of a second wife.”

“Absolutely, I’ll take care of telling her.”

In Italy, Zaro communicated with Carlo.

“Almost there.”

“Sir, we’ve investigated all the Sheikhs and their children, the only one who was in the United States and was named Sheikh shortly after the date of his wedding-”

“Get to the point, tell me who that wretched man is.”

“Your former partner, Sheikh Ahmed Khan Assad.”

“That can’t be; I was just in Dubai, and he welcomed me into his palace. I met his wife.”

“Perhaps he has taken her as a concubine, as there’s no record of a second wife. We’ve investigated the marriage certificate, and it states his wife’s name as Aisha Assad.”

“Investigate if he has any concubine.”

“Sir, now that I think about it, when a foreign woman marries an Arab man, she must convert to Islam and change her name.”

“Now that I remember, the Sheikha never showed her face to me.”

“By tradition, some Sheikhas never show their faces to anyone.”

“Investigate that woman; I understand she comes from a desert tribe.”

“Right away, boss.”

Carlo was thoughtful; he didn’t want to jump to conclusions. There had to be some mistake. He hadn’t noticed any negative reaction from the Sheikh and his wife. If it were otherwise, he would never forgive such mockery.

For over a year, he had been searching for her, tormented by the thought of another man being with her, caressing her body, sleeping beside her every night.

“She belongs to me and only me. It will be that way until I die.”

Greta worried about Vittoria’s and her grandson’s fate if Carlo found Mía. She decided to talk to her son.

“What’s going on, mother?”

“Since you won’t allow Vittoria to move in with me, I’ll move in with her to be more at ease and help her take care of my grandson.”

“I won’t allow that, mother. Vittoria will fulfill her duties without anyone’s help.”

“I’m not asking for permission; I’m informing you.” Greta turned around and left without giving him time to respond.

“She’s more like my mother-in-law than my mother, damn it!”

He ordered some modifications to the house, adding several extra cameras. He wanted to be prepared for when he finally had Mía by his side.

Thara and Cambell decided to return to New York. They would have liked to stay longer, but Ibrahim needed help in the company since he didn’t get along with some partners. Ahmed bid his friend farewell with a strong hug.

“Thank you for visiting us, my friend.”

“I hope everything is resolved soon, and you can visit New York for a few days.”

“I hope so too, my friend.”

Thara and Aisha said their goodbyes similarly. The Sheikha held Thara’s little son.

“I’ll miss you, baby,” she said, kissing his chubby cheek.

Thara tried to pick him up, but the baby made a gesture and clung tightly to Aisha.

“Haha, I think he doesn’t want to leave,” Ahmed laughed.

“I think so too, haha,” Aisha replied, amused.

The couple boarded the plane, leaving their friends with sad looks. Aisha felt like a part of her true self was leaving with her friend; with Thara, she could be herself without masks or lies.

“Don’t be sad; Cambell promised they’ll be back soon.”

“I’d love to live near our friends. Only they truly know us.”

They returned to the palace, where Basima was arguing with the guards, bringing with her the daughter of one of her friends, a girl named Fariha.

Ahmed and Aisha got out of the vehicle and approached the woman and the girl.

“What are you doing here, mother? I’ve told you several times that you’re not welcome.”

“You’ll never stop being rude to your mother. If your father saw you now…”

“And this girl?”

“Let me introduce you to your second wife. This is Fariha, the daughter of my friend Dounia. You know they’re a prominent family.”

Aisha looked at Ahmed, surprised by her mother-in-law’s audacity. She knew she wasn’t liked, but this was too much.

“I’ve told you; I won’t take a second wife. Aisha will be the only one.”

“I have no problem sharing you; your mother told me she refuses to have a family. I can give you all the children you want.”

Ahmed tried to contain his anger, took his wife’s hand, and walked into the palace, ordering his men.

“Get them out of here. If this girl comes near me or the palace again, give her a hundred lashes.”

The girl’s eyes widened in disbelief at what she heard. She turned around and practically ran away while Basima tried to stop her. Ahmed and Aisha laughed at the sight.