"a heart that forgives lives a longer and a much more peaceful life- hafsa."

Afra had to bite back her remarks when Kat dropped a necklace with three diamond pendants from her hand into Afra's palm .

There was - Afra made out - three diamonds . A black one , a pink and a exquisitely shiny white heart . She felt very hesitant in accepting these because they felt heavy in her hand which inturn made it a fact that those were real diamonds .

"Er , girls ," She pulled her legs underneath her and adjusted closer . "Are these real ?"

Jazz snickered , and Afra found it a little unsettling . That expression gave her the answer she was not meaning to hear .

"Of course they're real ."

Kat and Dandelion adjusted with their gowns while Jazz extended her legs in front of her .

Afra flinched . Even when she had topped the most onerous of the country exams , becoming a figure of significant status , she had hardly celebrated owing to the fact that she had been summoned urgently to the palace . Otherwise too , all she would ever do to celebrate was either eat a chocolate or taunt Faaris and Inaya .    To have been gifted three real diamonds , with such extraordinary colours , was too unrealistic . She did not even know the reason for why she was being presented with such luxurious diamonds .

"Girls , can I know why I am being gifted these ?" She pointed at the diamonds in her palm . The heaviness was making her feel burdened and under their gaze , she carefully let the necklace slip into the carpet .

"One reason we can't tell you ." Dandelion spoke , looking at her sisters who nodded in agreement .

"The other reason is the main one and it is that we've had no one around in this place always . Rarely our family came over to discuss some important matters and that was it . Silk was the only one who played with us ever ." Kat sighed , pouting a little . "But now , he hardly does so ."

"But you came ukhti . And we have so much fun with you . You don't ignore us like others ." Dandelion smiled widely , her eyes twinkling .

Afra smiled back . "I'm so very glad . I love you girls a lot ."

Afra pulled all of them in for a huge hug . Jazz of course fought against it but Dandelion and Kat along with Afra's help , held on to her . When she finally managed to free herself , her face was red with fury .

While Afra sort of regretted making her angry , Dandelion and Kat tackled her to the floor . Kat sat on top of Jazz in addition to tickling her . Dandelion on the other hand , was holding onto her legs and hands in a very awkward position .

Over their loud giggling , Afra heard Jazz shout them to stop . Reluctantly they let go and rolled over to lie down on the carpet .

"Ukhti , lie down ." Kat exclaimed .

"Hmm....girls , can I remove my abaya and scarf ? Or do you think anyone will come here ?" Afra asked , feeling a little constricted . They were going to play a lot and run about . Which meant she needed to feel comfortable . And she ddi not think anyone would walk their way about an hour away from the living room to the girls room anyway .

"Of course you can . And nobody will come here . Not even Silk ." Dandelion reaaured her , standing up and offering to take her abaya and scarf .

Dandelion balled up her scarf and abaya together , aimed and threw it on the bed which Afra made out landed on the edge of the bed , hanging down .

"So much for the offer !" Afra chuckled slightly , before running a hand through her hair and pulling at her pyjamas and shirt .

When she figured the girls staring at her , she raised her brows at them .

"You're the most beautiful , ukhti !" They replied dazed , watching till she fell down on the floor . The girls , later lay down and Afra was surprised at how calm and serene it felt .

A day with the Triplet Princesses had turned out better than she had looked forward to .

"Mama , where is Miss Afra ? I've been searching for her ." Sulaaymaan asked his mother who was cuddled up on the living room couch , flipping through the channels on the television .

She looked up at him . "Oh Habibi , I saw her go with the triplets . I suppose she's playing with them ."

Sulaaymaan smiled . "Jazak'Allah mama . You continue now ." He kissed her head and hurried up the stairs to his room .

Once inside , he walked back and forth hastily , almost unsure of his plans . He was thankful that Afra was outside the territory for a while , since he had called upon Mr Haamid to shed some light on the recent happenings . Things were starting to take a nasty turn and if Afra would b anywhere around him , he was sure that he would break down a lot more severely than he was presently .

"Mr Haamid ," he spoke on his phone , settling down on his bed . "Yes yes , I need you here in five . Yes , I know your already here . But still make it more quick ."

He disconnected the call and threw the phone across his bed . Putting his head in his hands , the message he had a few hours ago clouded his mind with anxiousness for the umpteenth time that day . 

For your girl reminds me of her
And because of your mistakes
She'll be mine soon .

Under the dewy rays ,
Do her eyes glisten
Within the glow of the night
Does her hair shine down her back

Wait till you see
As I steal her
Right from
Under your gaze .

Sulaaymaan sighed loudly , feeling his eyes burn with unshed tears . The message had a much stronger impact than he had anticipated . All because it involved Afra and not him . All because as always he had taken to victimize someone who had grown closer to his heart .

That was not the end though . The guy had the nerve to somehow be able to watch her in his house , even under the strict protection he had installed . What puzzled him was how in the world did he see Afra without her Hijaab ? Or was it just that he was using those words to frighten him ? Did he actually see her ?

Because Sulaaymaan was confused .

"Our walls are several feet higher than the heights of the balconies . Plus the walls are fitted with electrical wiring that is always switched on . Besides me and Mr Haamid , the electric wires are in control of the guards — " he scrambled to his feet , walking slowly in deep thought .

"There definitely is a traitor in my group ." He threw his arms up in defeat , feeling his heart hurt with the betrayal . "Ya ALLAH why ? Why , when I've had them by my side for years ?"

Afra was already been watched by him , each day and night . Sulaaymaan could not guarantee Afra's safety anymore while she stayed alone , especially without her Hijaab on . Which posed the greatest risk to him . He absolutely could not let that threatener see her uncovered . Not with his indecent mind and risqué intentions .

How disgusting !

Sulaaymaan slammed a fist down on his table , settling down on his bed once again .

He almost jumped with fright when someone's knuckles rapidly knocked on his door . Shaking his head with realization that it would only be Haamid , he went to open the door .

"Assalaamualaikum sir ." Haamid's stoop was a little lower than what Sulaaymaan had been used to seeing . The fine lines that showed his ageing body pained him . Haamid had been more of a fatherly figure to him than a minister who ran secret errands . His presence had greatly motivated Sulaaymaan in times of his downfall .

"Please come in ." Sulaaymaan shut the doors behind him , urgently moving to stand by the man's side . "Mr Haamid , what's wrong ? Are you alright ? You look stressed ."

Mr Haamid only shook his head vigorously ."Oh Allah . Oh Allah . Sir , indeed there's some bad news ."

"What's wrong ?" Sulaaymaan asked desperately , looking deeply into Mr Haamid's concerned eyes .

He was a man made of iron . Durable and dynamic . Through the years — and during the times his own mother was incapable of providing him relief — Mr Haamid had held onto him and had showed him ways out of everything he had found compelling . But today , the marks of worry and concern lining the features of a man as formidable as him broke his heart and shattered the bits of hope he had gained . 

"Haroon , one of our guards , was.....— wa.....s fou....— found , dead ."

« Assalaamualaikum Princesses .

Alhumdulillah , we've reached 10k reads and I'm going insane . It's like a dream I had once visioned . Today , I can't express how much it means to me to let you all know that you were the ones who helped me achieve it . I am nothing without you all . ❤❤❤❤ . Jazak'ALLAH and thank you so so so much . No words can ever be enough .

Also , I've seen that , I , I , like me , I have , I guess silent readers ? I guess . Because I do get a lot more reads per chapter in comparison to the votes .

My dear readers , I don't want to burden you all . All I ask is for you guys to drop in a vote to show your appreciation and support . A lot goes into writing these chapters and I want to know if it's worth the time . I don't want you all to comment , my dear silent readers ( if I have any ) . Because I , MYSELF am a silent reader most of the times . Nonetheless I don't hesitate to vote .

Btw , do let me know if I do have silent readers in the first place .

So , please please do let me know what you think of this book ? Is it even worth reading or do you all just give it a glance and ignore it ? ❤❤❤ .

Much love ,
A.J. ❤ »