Protecting the Desert Princess(9)

                Reluctantly Jamila went to her adjoining room. Layla looked at the lock on the door that stood between them and wanted to turn it.

                She wouldn’t have to turn it, Layla reminded herself.

                A few hours from now she would be free!

                Layla looked down at the streets below. Soon she would be down there amongst the noise and people.

                She could see yellow taxis everywhere.

                It was going to work!

                ‘Enter,’ Layla said when there was a knock at the door.

                ‘Layla, you have to open it from the inside!’ Trinity called.

                ‘Oh!’

                Fancy that.

                Layla was ready to go, but Trinity seemed to have other ideas.

                Zahid’s last words to Trinity had been, ‘Watch her.’ She looked at Layla, dressed in a long silver tunic and jewelled slippers. Her black hair had been taken out of the bun and was loose and glossy. Her absolute beauty would turn heads everywhere they went.

                ‘Would you like…?’ Trinity hesitated—she was still very new to being Zahid’s wife, and sometimes she simply didn’t know how to speak to Layla, who was so different from Trinity’s serious, rather more grounded husband. ‘Would you like to borrow some of my clothes to wear while we go shopping?’ Trinity offered.

                ‘Borrow?’ Layla screwed up her nose.

                ‘I’m just concerned that in what you’re wearing you’ll stand out and people might stare.’

                ‘But I always stand out,’ Layla said, ‘and people always stare. Come on—let us go shopping. I have been looking forward to this for a long time.’

                They passed the guards and took the elevator down, and then stepped out onto the hot, busy street. Layla was more than used to heat, and walked quickly ahead.

                ‘Slow down,’ Trinity said. ‘There’s no rush.’

                They wandered into boutique after boutique, but Layla was not really looking at the clothes—instead she was wondering how she could shrug Trinity off, for she was watching Layla like a hawk would watch its prey.

                ‘I would like to try that,’ Layla said, pointing to an ice cream shop.

                ‘Sounds good.’

                Still Trinity clung to her, and Layla’s impatience was increasing. Yes, the ice cream was refreshing, but would Trinity ever just give her five minutes to be alone?

                ‘Where to now?’ Trinity asked once they had finished their ice creams.

                ‘I might go for a little wander,’ Layla said casually.

                ‘Layla…’ Trinity swallowed. ‘Zahid said that I wasn’t to leave you alone.’

                ‘I am not a baby,’ Layla said, ‘I am twenty-four…’

                But she went to cross the road without so much as looking and Trinity grabbed her back just in time.

                ‘You have to wait for the lights to change before you cross.’ Trinity pointed to the traffic lights as they turned green and they started to cross. ‘I’m not leaving you alone, Layla. You can take it up with Zahid this evening if you want to, but for now…’