Princess: Stepping Out of the Shadows, стр. 64
‘High risk?’ I asked. ‘I was unaware that Zain’s pregnancy was high risk. Were you aware of this, Kareem?’ I would be very angry with my husband if he had been forewarned of possible danger and had failed to share that information with me.
‘No. No, of course not,’ he said, while shaking his head. ‘I believe that this emergency occurred only a few hours ago.’
The Egyptian administrator became even more uneasy at my sharp tone. Not many men in the Middle East are accustomed to assertive women. The man had just then developed a facial tic and his voice grew high-pitched. He spoke low to my husband, telling him, ‘I just arrived in Riyadh, Your Highness, and this is my first month in this position. Please do let me know if I satisfy your needs.’
‘You are fine,’ Kareem assured him. ‘Just get me to my son as soon as possible.’
‘Yes, Your Highness.’
‘Just call me Prince Kareem.’
‘Yes, Your Highness.’
‘Just call me Prince, then.’
‘Yes, Your Highness prince.’
Slightly exasperated, Kareem raised his eyebrows and exhaled, but said nothing more.
I would have laughed, but under the circumstances nothing was quite amusing enough to generate such gaiety from me. In our country, only the king is referred to as ‘Your Highness’, but the poor man was so tense being around a member of the royal family that Kareem’s instructions did not transmit effectively to his brain.
After walking down some long corridors, we finally saw our son, who was sitting in the waiting area designated for members of the royal family. My heart fluttered when I realized that Abdullah was cupping his face in his hands. Was my son weeping? Had we lost Zain, or the babies?
I hurried to my son, happy that I had forgotten my abaaya in the car, for surely I would have tripped over, with that flowing gown floating around my feet.
‘Abdullah! Son! We are here.’
Abdullah looked up. My son looked dazed. ‘Mother. Father. I am glad you are here. Zain is in trouble. The babies are in trouble.’ He stood and hugged us both. ‘The doctors are with Zain now. I do not know what is actually occurring at this moment. It is all so confusing!’
‘What did the doctor tell you was happening when you last spoke with him, Abdullah?’ Kareem asked.
‘I wrote it down.’ Abdullah pulled a small notepad out of his pocket. I saw that my son’s fingers were trembling, as he fumbled with the pad. He cleared his throat. ‘Eclampsia. They said she has eclampsia. Something to do with uremic poisoning. The doctor says that some women do have this problem, and that it can be a true crisis unless diagnosed quickly.’
My son’s voice broke. ‘Because they started treatment quickly, Zain is going to be all right.’ Abdullah exhaled, and once again his voice cracked. ‘She has to be all right.’
With Kareem on one side and me on the other, we encouraged Abdullah to sit once again. The three of us huddled in a corner, waiting, praying that all would be well. We were alone. Abdullah told us that Zain’s entire family was on holiday in France. They had taken their holiday early so as to be in the kingdom when the twins were expected to arrive. Now they were in France, frantically booking flights to return home.
The next twenty-four hours were the most harrowing of our lives. We were helpless and could do nothing more than anxiously wait for medical updates. First, we were told that Zain and the twins were all in a precarious situation and that it would be hours before we would know the outcome. Later an assistant physician gave us the welcome news that Zain appeared to be out of danger and that the twins had been born, although the distressing news was that there were no guarantees that either baby could be saved. The emotional roller-coaster threatened to weaken my already depleted reserves of strength and energy. If I did not take care, I might find myself back in the hospital.
I noticed Kareem studying my face. ‘Sultana, your eyes are barely open. You are not yet fully recovered from your own health issues. Sweetheart, I will stay with Abdullah. I believe it best for you to go home and rest. You will need your energy once we can see Zain and the twins.’ Optimistic as ever, my husband refused to acknowledge that we might lose either of the babies.
‘Never. Never. I will not leave. Do you think I could go home and sleep? No. Never.’
Kareem nodded with understanding. He knew that he could never convince me to leave my son before we had the news that his wife and newborn babies were going to survive this nightmarish health emergency.
‘All right. I will find more comfortable quarters for us.’
And that is what my husband did. Soon I was attempting to relax in a comfortable easy chair, with Kareem and Abdullah within arm’s reach. Suddenly my eyes popped open as I realized we had failed to question the physician on the sex of the twins. Were the babies boys? Girls? One of each?
‘Son, did the doctor say whether you are the father of twin boys or twin girls?’
‘Mother, I forgot to ask,’ Abdullah said with a shrug, indicating his indifference as to the sex of the twins. ‘I do not care if the babies are girls or boys. I only pray that they will live.’
‘You are right, son. You are right. We only want them to live, nothing more.’
Abdullah shook his head sadly. ‘Yes, I will be the happiest man in the world if only they can live, Mother.’
I stroked my son’s arms and shoulder, but he did not react.
‘Try to sleep for a while, Sultana,’ Kareem urged.
Although it was impossible