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Suheera looked up as the doorbell chimes tinkled softly. A woman and two small boys entered the shop. “Welcome, come in,” she said, smiling. After graduating from cooking school, Howie helped her set up a small catering company which specialized in westernized versions of tradition Persian foods. So far the business had been a huge success; she already had a waiting list.

The woman entered hesitantly, looking around to see if anyone else was in the shop. Satisfied they were alone, she approached the counter. “I do not know if you remember me…”

“Of course, Soraya, I have seen you at mosque many times. What can I do for you?” Although Suheera no longer attended the same mosque as Fareed’s family, she still was active in the Muslim community and knew many people, some of which were also her customers. Suheera came around the counter and guided her to a table. She thought the woman looked frightened to death. The boys sat at a nearby table, fidgeting with electronic toys.

“I never got to tell you how much I admired you for standing up to Fahada,” she said softly.

“About time someone did,” she snorted. “The woman surely needed it.”

“You are right about that! She is a nosy, interfering old hag,” she said vehemently, then seemed ashamed of her statement. “I have no right to ask you this…”

Suheera waited for her to continue but Soraya seemed too shy to finish her request. “It is ok, you can ask me anything.”

“I…I need a job – so that I can get away from that house,” she admitted, looking around again.

Caught off guard, Suheera didn’t know what to say. “Is something wrong?” she asked.

“I cannot stand living a lie any longer. It is making me sick to my stomach. I have to leave, but Fahada will not let me go.”

“I will be right back,” she said softly. Suheera got up and flipped the open sign to read ‘closed’ and then locked the door. She went into the back room and came back with a large plate of food, which she placed in front of the boys. They dug in with relish, for once putting down their electronic toys while they ate. “That will keep them busy for a while. Tell me what is going on,” she urged softly.

“I want to marry someone else, but Fahada will not arrange it. She said she would never let Fareed’s children out of her house.”

“Fareed’s children? I thought they were Roshan’s…”

Soraya glanced at the boys but they were too busy eating to pay the adults any attention. “Roshan was incapable of fathering children, every child he started ended in miscarriage.” Soraya shuddered at the memory.

“That is not what Fareed told me…” Suheera stuttered.

“I am sure Fareed told you many lies. You got away from him in Baghdad; he was not going to let you get away again. I overheard him on the phone one day, they were talking about you.”

“He must have been talking to Roshan; he was running the ring in Baghdad.”

Soraya shuddered. “I had no idea he was still alive! It came as a huge shock when he was killed trying to kidnap you.” She was quiet for a moment. “I am sorry you had to go through that. Something was wrong with Roshan, something evil lived in him.”

“I will not disagree with you,” Suheera said. “I think there is something wrong with the whole family. I felt uneasy around Fahada as soon as I met her. And for some reason, I never felt really comfortable around Fareed either. Maybe I sensed he was lying to me.”

“He was never interested in marrying you, Suheera. He told Fahada that he was going to marry you, so of course she researched your background thoroughly. He knew that she would rip you to shreds – and he wanted you to feel like you had no other option than to be his mistress. Fareed does not want to get married again, he only wants to party. His business gives him the money to buy the girls he needs to party with the celebrities. After he got out of prison, he was a changed man.”

“Prison?” Suheera’s voice went up an octave.

“I think I had better just start at the beginning, it is a confusing tale.”

“I wish you would. I am sure that everything Fareed told me must have been a lie,” Suheera said, her voice shaking.

“Fareed’s family and mine have been friends for many years. They came to the US from Iraq together, went to school and started a business together. The parents pledged their two eldest children to marry, but both mothers had two sons before finally one had a daughter. As an infant, I was promised to Roshan as a way to keep the families together. No one knew about the promise until it was time for us to marry. There was only one problem – Roshan was in love with someone else, my younger sister Mahveen.”

“So Mahveen was your sister?”

Soraya nodded. “My parents refused to let them marry so Mahveen foolishly slept with him. She thought that would force our parents to let them marry. Instead they sent her to boarding school back east,” Soraya said. “At the time, I was not told why Mahveen was sent away. I knew she was in love with someone, she confided that much in me, but I had no idea she had given her virginity away to the man I was to marry.”

“If you had known she and Roshan had slept together, would you have still married him?”

Soraya shook her head. “I knew Mahveen too well. Growing up, any time I had something she wanted, she took it from me.” She sighed; it was obvious her childhood with Mahveen hadn’t been pleasant. “Roshan and I were married as soon as I graduated high school, and I went to live with him. Fahada made my life miserable but I had my own family close by and they helped me emotionally.”

“With that woman as a mother in law, I would think you would need all the support you could get,” Suheera chuckled. Soraya agreed.

“My parents arranged a marriage for Mahveen and brought her home just two days prior to the ceremony. Two days was all it took for her to turn everyone’s world upside down.” Soraya sighed, shredding a paper napkin on the table as she talked. “I miscarried my first pregnancy at six weeks and was pregnant again; just praying to Allah that I did not miscarry this one, so I was not allowed out of bed to go to the wedding. Mahveen came to the house to see me; I was shocked to see just how beautiful she had become. Roshan and Fareed were both home at the time and saw her. After Mahveen left, they argued over her. Fahada reminded Roshan he was married and Fareed that she was to marry someone else the next day. Roshan was so angry he came upstairs and reminded me that we were married. He took me so roughly I miscarried right then and there.”

“Oh Soraya! I am so sorry!” She reached out and took the woman’s hand.

“Roshan did not care. He left the house and no one saw him until the next morning when my parents found him having sex with Mahveen.”

Suheera cringed at the hurt on the woman’s face. “What a bastard.”

Soraya didn’t disagree. “Just before the ceremony, the groom’s mother brought in a doctor to prove Mahveen’s virginity. It was a surprise, they had not asked for proof when the arrangements were made.”

“Not hard to figure out it was Roshan who tipped her off,” Suheera said, Soraya nodded.

“After my parents found her and Roshan together in bed, my mother insisted that the wedding take place anyway, she did not care that they were in love. They threatened Mahveen and Roshan, telling them they had to keep their little affair a secret. When my mother heard that the doctor was there, she arranged for Mahveen to bribe him. Of course Mahveen refused, instead letting the doctor examine her. Not only was she not a virgin, but it was quite obvious she had very recently had sex.”

“Nothing like throwing it in the groom’s face,” Suheera said. “What an immature thing to do, she could have just called off the wedding.”

“Oh no, not Mahveen. Of course the groom and his family were outraged and threatened to go public with the news. My family somehow found the money to pay the groom’s family so that no hint of scandal would leak out.” Soraya piled the little pieces of napkin up in the middle of the table. “If Mahveen had just told me she wanted Roshan, I would have divorced him and let her have him. I did not love him, he was cruel to me and I would have gladly walked away. But no, that was not Mahveen’s way. She had to hurt everyone around her.”

“So what happened after the wedding was cancelled? Did they send Mahveen away again?”

“No, before they could find her a different husband Mahveen discovered she was pregnant. My family knew Roshan had slept with her, thankfully no one else knew it. I offered to walk away from Roshan but my parents would not let me, they did not want the disgrace of having a daughter who was divorced.”

Suheera snorted. “Instead they had the disgrace of a daughter who was an adulterer.”

“But no one knew that, it was a secret they thought they could keep.” Suheera could tell the story was a hard one for her to tell, tears threatened to fall at any moment. “Roshan went to Fareed and convinced him that Mahveen wanted to marry him. My parents were desperate to cover up the pregnancy and agreed to the match, even though they knew it would be dangerous to have Mahveen living so close to Roshan. They thought that Fahada could keep Mahveen in line. They were married a couple days later in a very hush-hush ceremony.”

“Fareed must have thought he won the lottery,” Suheera snorted. “He did not know she was in love with his brother and carrying his child.”

“Fareed was in love with her, there was no denying that. He would have done anything to have her; Roshan just played her right into his hands.” She looked over at the boys, they were busy playing with their toys. “Not long after the wedding, Fareed announced Mahveen’s pregnancy. He was ecstatic, grinning from ear to ear. To the outside world, they were a couple very much in love and really looking forward to their first child.”

“But you knew differently?”

“Only my family knew the baby was not Fareed’s. Roshan took great pleasure in reminding me daily that his lover was having his baby – and that I was unable to carry a child.”

“That is unfair! It was because of him that you could not carry a child.”

Soraya just shrugged. “Roshan continued to sleep with my sister. They would sneak around to meet, sometimes in our own home. We pretended everything was fine, I could not bear the humiliation of everyone knowing Roshan was sleeping with Mahveen under my nose. Fareed seemed happy, so he must not have known she was cheating on him. Personally, I think Mahveen was sleeping with them both.”

“That does not surprise me; she sounds like the type of woman who would do that.”

“Mahveen miscarried at five months. The baby was horribly deformed, it was traumatic for everyone. Fahada nagged us constantly about trying to get pregnant again. Not a single day went by without her reminding us of our duty. Secretly we went to a fertility doctor. He discovered that we both were perfectly capable of carrying a child to term. He thought it was the sperm, but there was no way to confirm that without testing and there was no way Roshan would do that.”

“That would be like admitting something was wrong with him,” Suheera said. “It was easier for him, and Fahada, to blame you both.”

Soraya nodded. “Mahveen was not the least bit ashamed about sleeping with my husband. She never tried to hide it from me, nor did she ever apologize. I put up with it because I did not know what else to do. One day she came to me and confessed that she did not want to get pregnant again by Roshan. I said I did not want to either. She suggested that we both sleep with Fareed and when we got pregnant, to say it was Roshan’s.”

“Oh no, Soraya! Tell me you did not do it…”

Soraya hesitated. “No, not at first, but Mahveen did. It became a game to her, she started playing the two men against each other. You could feel the tension in the house.” Soraya looked to the boys, they weren’t paying any attention to the women but she lowered her voice anyway. “Fareed came to me one day, broken hearted because he had discovered that Mahveen was sleeping with Roshan. He said he was concerned about me because Roshan had been beating me, I was covered in bruises. One thing led to another and I ended up in bed with him. All I knew about love making was pain, but Fareed was so tender. I fell in love with him.”

“Was he was just using you to get back at Mahveen and Roshan?” Suheera shrewdly asked.

The look of softness in her eyes melted away to anger as she nodded. “Mahveen played them both, making promises and breaking them. As the months went by, Fareed changed before my eyes. He became so angry and resentful, not the kind hearted man he used to be. Day by day he was becoming more like Roshan.”

Suheera’s heart went out to the woman who so clearly had been caught in the middle of a bad situation.

“When I did not come to the big house for breakfast one morning, Fahada came looking for me. She found me beaten half to death on my bedroom floor. Fareed was home so he carried me to the car and they took me to the emergency room.” She closed her eyes; it was a difficult story to tell. “Fareed caught Roshan with Mahveen. He wanted to hurt them, so he told them he had been sleeping with me. Roshan came home in a rage, raped me and then beat me.

“While I was at the hospital, the doctors discovered that I was pregnant. And it could only be Fareed’s as I had not been with Roshan in months. I was going to tell him but then I overheard him talking to Mahveen, she had just told him they were going to have a baby together. I realized then that Fareed did not love me; he loved her despite everything she had done. I knew that I had to pretend the baby was Roshan’s in order to hide my shameful behavior from the family. It would not be hard because everyone knew what he had done to me the night before.”

“Did everyone believe you?”

“Of course, I was not the deceitful one. Everyone wondered about Mahveen’s baby but no one questioned mine.” She swallowed hard and continued. “I spent the next six months alone in my house. It was over with Fareed and me. He was too busy with his graduate school anyway. Roshan took the opportunity to spend every moment with Mahveen, fussing over her like she was some porcelain doll.

“Everything was fine until Mahveen was about seven months along. Fareed was supposed to be at school studying but he was concerned about Mahveen and came home early to check on her. He found her with Roshan and flew into a rage. Fahada urged Roshan to leave, but Mahveen refused to let him go so she ran to his car and they left together. Fareed got into his car and followed them. Roshan tried to lose him in traffic but Fareed kept catching up, he tried to run them off the road. Roshan came to a light just turning red and thought about running it but changed his mind at the last instant and stopped. Fareed didn’t stop; he rammed the back of the car, pushing it into the intersection. A pickup truck slammed into the car, it rolled several times.”

Suheera gasped. “What happened?”

“Neither one had been wearing their seat belts. Roshan was thrown from the car and severely injured; he lay in a coma for months before he supposedly died. Mahveen was trapped in the car; it took them hours to free her. By the time they got her to the hospital, she had lost so much blood that they had to deliver the baby by c-section. She did not survive the surgery; the baby was healthy although small.” Soraya looked over at the boys. “I had my baby six weeks later, about the same time Mahveen’s baby was ready to go home. Fareed showed no interest in him so I took him.”

“So why did Fareed tell me both boys are Roshan’s?” Suheera asked.

“He did not want to admit it because it was to his advantage financially. By denying paternity of any children, he was not liable for child support. I did not want to force the matter because then he could have taken them away from me, and I certainly did not want him, or Fahada, raising my children.” Suheera shuddered; she knew just what kind of care the boys would get under that awful woman. “And he thought that his having children would scare you away. Not many women want to care for another woman’s children.”

“So Fareed went to prison?”

“An off duty policeman witnessed Fareed chasing Roshan’s car and the accident. Fareed was arrested but his parents bailed him out a couple days later. While he was waiting for his trial, he finished school and, using money his parents gave him, started his own architecture business.”

“So he was convicted?” Suheera asked.

“The case never went to trial. Everyone in the family lied to protect Fareed. They told the police that Roshan was rushing Mahveen to the hospital as she was in early labor – and that he ran into the back of the car because he was in such a panic over the birth of his child. They were on the main road, the route they would take to the hospital, so that was a feasible explanation.” She looked over to the boys, they were getting restless. Suheera went to the back and returned with dessert. When they settled down again, Soraya continued. “Fareed took a plea bargain his attorney wrangled for him, involuntary manslaughter. No one would know he was trying to kill his wife and brother over their sordid affair.”

“Wow, that story is so different than the one he told me!” Suheera took a small bite of the dessert she’d brought out for them. “What happened after he got out?”

“He spent two years in prison, and when he got out he was a different man. He used to be sensitive and caring, now he is all about pleasure and his self importance. He built a magnificent house for himself, one that he had designed in prison, to showcase his talents. Once it got into the magazine, business boomed. He was able to have the lifestyle he wanted – lots of loose women, drinking, drugs, and celebrity friends. Fahada hated it but she had little control over him. She wanted him to remarry, settle down, have more children – but he refused to end his party lifestyle, he said he was having too much fun.”

“He certainly had me fooled though.”

“He pretty much had everyone at mosque fooled, no one knew of his wild parties and prostitutes. That is what he had planned for you, you know.”

“He picked the wrong girl,” Suheera said with a laugh.

“Fareed thought you were weak and vulnerable. He saw that you did not have any relatives to support you, so he thought you would be easy to lure into his little stable of girls once Fahada had broken your spirit. Little did he know what he was getting into,” she giggled. “Which brings me back to my reason for coming here. I met a man I want to marry…” She let the sentence hang.

“Fahada will not let you marry him? He is Muslim, right?”

“Yes, although he does not attend the same mosque.” She sighed, fiddling with her fork. “I wanted to move back home after Roshan died, but Fahada would not let me. She said she would miss seeing the boys.”

“But your family just lives down the street!”

“Exactly. She wants to be able to control how the boys are raised, and she cannot do that unless they are living under the same roof as her. Suheera, I swear if I have to spend much more time with her I am going to go insane.”

“I can understand that. How can I help you get away from her?” she asked quietly.

“The man I met does not have a lot of money. Although he has a steady job, he does not make enough to support all of us. He only has a tiny apartment. I need a job so that I can help pay the bills, help pay for a larger place to live. It is not right to ask him to get a second job to support my sons.”

“Do you have legal custody of Mahveen’s child?”

She blushed. “Yes. I went to see Fareed in jail, before Fahada bailed him out, and told him that I would not lie for him unless he gave me custody of Imir. In order to save himself, he gave up his parental rights to his son. Imir is mine. Fahada fought tooth and nail to get him back, but in the end I was able to adopt him.” She looked with pride at the two boys. “They could be twins, they look so much alike, only six weeks difference in age.”

“They are half brothers, born of sisters,” she reminded Soraya. “Of course they are going to look a lot alike.”

“They are much alike in temperament as well. Thank goodness more like me than anyone else,” she said softly.

“A lot depends on how a person is raised, not necessarily on the genes,” Suheera said. “And I am sure you are a wonderful mother to them.”

“Thank you, I try very hard. And I keep them away from Fahada as much as I can.”

“I will give you a job, Soraya; it will be my pleasure to work with you.” Soraya’s face lit up with joy. “And I will give you a loan so that you can find a place to live now and get started on your new life.”

“Oh thank you! You were my only hope…”

Suheera took her hands and squeezed them gently. “Someone rescued me when I needed it, gave me a new life. It is only fitting that I do the same for another woman in need.”