“That’s why we need to time this carefully.” Rania turned the wheel. “We encourage Ally to take a trip to Jordan, a little holiday. Once her exit documents are ready, we reveal what we know to Kareem. Hopefully, Ally makes it out before the opposition feeds our information to the regime.”

“Hopefully?”

“In the worst-case scenario, we make an anonymous call to the embassy and tip them off. Ally can take refuge there. The regime is not going to drag her out.”

“How do you know that?”

“We don’t have time to debate this.” Rania slammed her palm against the steering wheel. “Any moment, Uday could decide he wants Hanan. He’s a rapist. A torturer. A murderer. And by this time next year, Khalid could be in the fedayeen, learning to slice innocent women’s heads from their bodies. Is that what you want?”

“Of c-course not,” stammered Huda.

“Ally will be all right. She has diplomatic status. She has money and options in life that our children will never have. My daughter is my priority. Khalid should be yours.” Rania guided the Volvo away from the slum and accelerated toward the freeway. “Besides, Ally is not as naive as she pretends. If she’s a journalist, she’ll probably end up writing a book and making a fortune out of this.”

* * *

Huda waited at her desk, trying to appear relaxed even though sweat was beading on her palms. She’d already set two cups of coffee on her desktop, hoping steamy tendrils of cardamom would convince Ally to join her after she finished up in Tom’s office. The girl’s smile had grown stiff after their row over her sightseeing, and over the past couple of days, she seemed even more distant and gloomy. Guilt poked Huda in the ribs. She took a deep breath and reminded herself, the girl was a liar, just like her.

Huda checked her watch again. As if on cue, the door to Tom’s office opened.

“Ally, my dear friend, how are you?” Huda motioned at the two cups on her desk. “Please, join me. I’ve got coffee for us.”

“Maybe next time.” Ally kept walking. “I’m afraid I’ve got a few chores to knock out.”

Huda hurried out from behind her desk.

“Please, stop for a while.”

“I’d love to, but I need to stop at the market on my way home.”

Something in her voice made Huda wonder if Ally was lying again.

“How about I do a reading for you.” She gestured for her to take a seat. “I can take a look at the grounds. Perhaps they will have some secrets to share.”

The young woman eyed the two coffee cups.

“A reading?”

“It would be fun, don’t you think?”