CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Fatima breezed through her studying. Her first exam was biology, her favourite subject. She kept good notes and always reviewed after classes, so preparing for exams was less difficult. After lunch she put the girls down for a nap, with the intention of doing the same herself.
"Can we go see Papa?" Masuma asked before her head hit the pillow.
"After you wake up," Fatima replied. She was truly grateful for the loving and supportive extended family that she had. There was no way she could get through each day without them. When they all woke up from their naps, they went across the street to see Ali’s parents.
“There she is.” Mama’s friend, Nargis, was visiting and her face lit up when she saw Fatima. She was a nurse and loved anything to do with babies. It was her son, Abbas, that was getting married the following week and the two women were discussing the final details of the wedding.

"Come darling, sit." Nargis motioned to a cushioned chair next to her. Mama and Nargis sat in the sunroom, surrounded by unassembled wedding favours.
"As-salaam alaikum, Auntie." Fatima kissed Nargis on both cheeks.
Nargis belonged to a large Khoja community in the city. The Khoja’s were an ethnic community of Indians, some of whom had travelled to and settled in East Africa. She was uncommonly kind and welcoming. She had become fast friends of the Abatis soon after their arrival in Canada. She was thrilled that Ali had agreed to recite Quran at Abbas’s wedding.
"His voice just moves me. He must be the best reciter in the province, maybe the country,"Nargis said.
Fatima squeezed Mama’s hand. "The best male reciter."
"Of course, of course," Nargis agreed. "So Fatima, how have you been doing?"


Fatima knew that the question was about more than her pregnancy. The lawsuit was all over the news. She was surprised reporters were not outside her house. Maybe photographers were lurking in the bushes. Anyway, she couldn’t worry about that. So far they had received enormous support from friends and neighbours. Everyone seemed to believe in Ali’s innocence. If anyone didn’t, they kept it to themselves. Fatima’s phone had been ringing almost non-stop. She often turned the ringer off as a result. Call after call came from Ali’s present and former teammates, coaches and managers. They all expressed their support. Ali had told her he would need to do a press conference soon. She remembered the conversation well.

“I guess I’ll be expected to be there.” She had dreaded the idea of being in the spotlight.
"Absolutely not," Ali had said.
"Why? I know in cases like these it usually looks better if the wife stands by her husband’s side." Fatima mentally recalled countless cases of women, smiling or stoic, standing by the sides of their husbands while the men faced some scandal or another. She always wondered how the women could do it.
"I don’t care how things look. I'll do what's best for my family. I’m not going to parade you in front of cameras just so I look innocent." Fatima had been through enough, he had said. He wouldn’t dream of putting her through such a circus. Papa had already warned him about succumbing to the pressure of press agents and managers. Fortunately, everyone knew Ali was his own man, and no one expected to be able to browbeat him into doing anything.
Fatima turned to Nargis.
 "I’m fine. It’s Ali’s last week on the road. He has three more games, and then he’s home until the fall."
 "Perfect timing.‛"Nargis smiled and raised her eyebrows.
"It is. I couldn’t have planned it better myself," Fatima added, as she reached for one of Nargis’s sweets. She always travelled with some kind of treat. Children loved her because of it. Today she had almond baklava with maple cappuccino syrup.
"Do you miss being out there?" Nargis asked.
"Yes and no. I love watching him play, and I always watch the games on TV when I’m home, but these days I would rather avoid the crowd. And I certainly don’t miss hanging out with the other wives. They’re a piece of work."
"So when are you due?"
"Next Friday." Fatima bit into her baklava.
"The day of the wedding?" Nargis looked from Fatima to Mama and back to Fatima. "How do you plan to swing that?"
"Well, the other kids were past their due date, so I just figure I’ll keep going until I can’t."
"You are amazing. I would be sitting at home with my feet up from the beginning of eight months! Are you ready for four children?"
"I guess I'll find out." Fatima smiled and her eyes sparkled. She really loved these last days of pregnancy. She never felt anxious to give birth. She enjoyed each of her final moments to the fullest.

Mama interjected, "She doesn’t have a thing to worry about. We are all ready and waiting to take care of her and those four babies."
"Do you know what the baby will be?" Nargis asked.
"No, I didn’t want to find out." Fatima slipped a quick look at Mama, who didn’t say a word.
"Whatever it is you just be grateful. A healthy baby is the most important. When you have worked in the hospital as long as I have and seen all that I have you understand that." Nargis was a neonatal nurse, so Fatima understood exactly what she meant.
"Have you been reading Surah Yusuf?" Nargis continued.
"Every day." It was said that reciting this chapter in the Quran by a pregnant mother would make her baby pious, intelligent and beautiful.
"What about names?"
"Ali is going to choose this time. He hasn’t told me what he’s thinking about." Fatima adjusted herself on the chair.
Nargis’s eyes widened. "I would never trust my husband to pick my child’s name! I don’t even let him pick which restaurant to eat at!" she exclaimed.
All three women laughed. "I trust him," Fatima replied.
Mama smiled silently.
Being with these two women made Fatima miss her own mother even more. Dana was currently in Malaysia working on two buildings that had recently been discovered in northern Kedah state. She wasn’t due home until September. Fatima had been fighting the desire to call her; she couldn’t bring herself to broach the topic at hand. She just wished Dana could be with her. Fatima knew if her mother could just hold her, everything would feel right. "Oh Mom, where are you?" Fatima whispered under her breath as she looked out on the backyard.

The Abati house had a similar set-up as Fatima’s, except for the huge sunroom that the Abatis spent so much time in, and the magnificent backyard. Mama’s garden was the envy of the entire neighbourhood. The previous summer they had put in a small pond with a waterfall. In the morning or late evening it was the most soothing sound to hear the trickling water. Mama had even added a few tropical trees to her nursery. Sometimes, if Ali and Fatima had the opportunity to get out at night, they would come and sit in the backyard to enjoy the beauty.
"Ok ladies, let’s get these favours wrapped," Nargis said. The women spent the rest of the afternoon filling and wrapping monogrammed mint tins for the wedding guests, chatting, laughing and, of course, eating. Fatima had invited Rachel to meet her at the house after work and Mama was looking forward to seeing her and spending time with her.

The hours flew by quickly. By the time Rachel rang the doorbell Fatima needed to stretch her legs. When she opened the door Rachel rushed past her to greet Mama and Papa, who had recently emerged from his study, and then quickly excused herself. Fatima was still standing at the doorway with her hand on the door knob when Rachel returned.
"What was that?" Fatima asked referring to Rachel’s whirl-wind entrance. "Where are Joshua and Jonah?"
"Come, come." Rachel closed the front door and pulled Fatima into Papa’s study.
"What is it, Rachel?"
 "Oh, are we allowed to be in here?" Rachel asked as she looked around the room.
"It’s fine, but what has gotten into you?" Rachel just hopped from one leg to the other. "Here Rachel, sit down." Fatima guided her into the large arm chair.
"Nice chair." She twirled around.
"It’s Ali’s."
"He has his own chair in his father’s study? Phew, they love their son."
"Rachel, the news?"
"It’s Jamie! He’s been arrested," she whispered forcefully.
"How do you know?"
"I have sources, too." Rachel had a few friends who were good at unearthing information and kept her updated on important community happenings.

"Ok, what was he arrested for?" Fatima pulled up another chair and sat beside Rachel.
"Illegal possession and misuse of a firearm!"
"Surprise, surprise. He’s a thug," Fatima said matter-of-factly.
"There’s more."
"Rachel, will you just spill it?"
"He escaped from police custody!"
"What?! How is that possible?" Fatima hit the arms of her chair.
"I told you he has connections." Rachel’s face was blank, but her eyes were moving. It was clear she had more on her mind.
"Ok, so what are you thinking?"
"A man with nothing to lose has nothing to lose."Fatima was getting very frustrated with Rachel’s communication. "The point, Rachel?"
"What if he goes off and comes here or something?‛"
"You think he will?" Fatima folded one arm across her chest and put the opposite hand under her chin.
"No, I don’t think so. The neighbourhood is pretty tight." Rachel was starting to sound erratic.
"What do you mean?" Fatima was having trouble keeping up with her.
"Oh, you don’t know?" Rachel put one hand on her hip. "There are security people all over the neighbourhood."
"You’re kidding?" Fatima was astonished.
"Did you doubt? Don’t tell me I know your husband better than you do? I’m sure Ali has at least three men watching your house alone."
"I had no idea."
"Didn’t you wonder why the street was so quiet? Normally, you would expect the press to be hounding you guys, under the circumstances."
"This is really heavy." Fatima dropped her hands in her lap.
"Yes, it is." Rachel said, as much to herself as to Fatima.
"Ok Rachel, everything is going to be fine. I have no idea what Jamie is up to, but Allah is greater than all these things. All we have to do is keep praying and take action. It’s time, Rachel."

"I don’t know where he is. What am I supposed to do?" Rachel answered, with attitude.
"Talk to Shawn and see what steps you need to take to protect yourself and your sons. You’re afraid of Jamie and with good reason, I might add. You have enough on him to get a restraining order. Then you have to file for sole custody. It’s pretty simple." Fatima waited for Rachel’s response.
"Ok, ok," Rachel agreed, but the look in her eyes said something else.
Fatima stood up and pulled Rachel to her feet. "Let’s get some food into you. We’ll get started after dinner. Where are the boys?"
"They went into the backyard. I’ll go get them." Rachel left the room, slipped outside and around the side of the house along the cobblestone pathway to the backyard.

Rachel, Fatima and their children had dinner with the Abatis in the sunroom and stayed until the sun set. Papa lit the large candles that stood on tall stands in each corner. The room was flooded with hues of red, orange and gold. The children wrestled and rode on Papa’s back, jumping and rolling around until they were exhausted. By the time they were ready to leave, Rachel was feeling much better. Fatima had spoken to Shawn, who had agreed to meet with them the next evening. Finally, something was taking shape.
"So Rachel, I’ll see you in the morning?" Fatima knew she was pushing it, but she hoped Rachel would be open to another prayer session.
"Sure, I’ll be there."
"Great. See you then."

They went to their own homes and turned in for the evening. Naomi was at a church retreat and was scheduled to return on Thursday night. Rachel spent the rest of the evening cleaning and organizing her house. She figured she could focus on one area of the house each day until her mother returned. Knowing that Naomi was expecting guests on Friday, Rachel started thinking about what food she could prepare for them. With Rachel’s help, Naomi would have nothing to do when she returned. By the time Rachel turned in, well after midnight, she found Jonah in her bed. "Nightmares again?" she whispered to herself. "What am I going to do, Lord? What am I going to do?"