But it was different now.
Even with the kingdom's highest officials watching and waiting for him to do what they believed was right—-
He could not and would not let their judgment sway him.
Even if it meant having everyone proclaim he had chosen a traitor's daughter over a woman who had laid everything on the line in service of the crown—-
Altair did not give a damn.
Because it was at that moment he remembered Hadwin's last words to him—-
Words that he had completely blocked out of his mind for years—-
One day, a woman will come into your life and make you feel weak. She'll turn your world upside down and make you want to run away like a coward. When that woman comes, son...love her.
The door slammed shut behind 53, and even as the sound made the people around the sheikh flinch and look at him with a mixture of condemnation and bewilderment—-
Altair didn't give a damn.
Because it was at that moment he knew.
His father's words had come true, and the woman who would make him weak and turn his world upside down—-
The woman who had made him want to run away like a fucking coward so many times—-
That woman was Safiya, and for her he would not merely lay his life on the line.
For his princess, it wasn't just his heart and soul that he offered to her.
For Safiya, even his honor was hers.
But by the time he sought to let her know this...she was already gone.
SAFIYA GAZED OUTSIDE the window in stunned dismay. She had pleaded with Altair not to take her to the palace. Had meant every word when she promised she would never hold it against the sheikh if he chose to maintain a distance between her and his family.
And yet—-
She shook her head as the military vehicle she was in slowed down in front of the palace steps. "I think there's been a mistake—-"
"Our commander's instructions were pretty clear, hamira," the soldier answered gruffly. "You are to be escorted straight to the palace for your safety."
She had no chance to reply, with the older man already stepping out to open the door for her.
"The media has already caught wind of Sheikh Mahmud's disappearance," Major Asad said gently. "While we would like to think that the public knows better than to hold you accountable for your father's actions, it is also best not to leave anything to chance."
Safiya swallowed back an instinctive protest and reminded herself that the older man was only doing his job. She forced a smile instead and bowed her head. "Khalis alshukr, Major Asad."
The words translated to 'my sincere thanks' and, the formal expression of gratitude had Major Asad grunting and coughing in an effort to hide his embarrassment. He was not used to having a princess thank him so, and to distract both of them, he gruffly suggested that he take Safiya to the sheikh. That was the plan at least, but both of them came to an awkward halt when a woman burst past the palace doors before crashing into a stop before them.
Safiya could only blink when the woman's gaze turned venomous at the sight of her. There was something...something about this woman that was vaguely and vividly familiar at the same time. She was absolutely certain she had seen this woman before, but when and where, she couldn't quite remember.
Major Asad, on the other hand, had no trouble recognizing the other woman. Agent 53 worked for the palace's secret service, and the only reason he knew this was because they had once been assigned to the same case.
It was, however, all he knew about her; everything else had been beyond his pay grade, and since Major Asad came from a strictly middle-class family, neither did he recognize 53 from her days as a private citizen. Oblivious as he was to the relationship between 53 and the sheikh, the older man did not see anything to worry about when the female agent volunteered to escort the princess to the war room.
53 could feel herself shaking with barely-controlled rage as she strove to keep her face expressionless while the soldier bowed and took his leave.
Safiya became uneasy when the other woman suddenly started to walk without saying a word, and she was forced to hurry forward to catch up. In moments, the woman whom Major Asad simply referred to as "53" had led her down a hallway and straight into an empty drawing room.
Her uneasiness grew when she saw 53 lock the door. "Eafi?" Excuse me? While her instincts told her the woman was in no way evil, Safiya also knew that something was not completely right—-
"Don't you fucking think you've won, you bitch!"
53 saw the princess whiten, and her lip curled in disgust at how pathetic the other girl was. "He was mine before you even knew him," 53 snarled, "and he's going to be mine again. The only reason Altair is keeping you around is because he thinks he can still find use for you. But once your father and the people he's working with are behind bars, Altair will—-" 53 saw the tears start to fall down the princess' cheeks, and the sight just made her fucking snap.