Read Sold! A Romance In The Sudan for Free Online Page B

all been sex and
brownies; they’d also talked too. And although Hafiq had been
careful, he’d been unable to disguise how differently they
thought.
    Lilly was brought up to cherish all mankind;
Hafiq divided the world into winners and losers. As a winner, he
despised those who were weak.
    Lilly believed that hard work had moral
value; Hafiq wouldn’t lift a finger unless he thought he was worth
it - and then he would work like the devil.
    Lilly knew women were equal to men; Hafiq was
equally certain men were put on the planet to guide, guard and
cherish their womenfolk.
    A few weeks ago, she would have argued
furiously with him but her experiences had changed her forever. She
used to think she was quite worldly wise but now she acknowledged
that she was still innocent in many ways. Hafiq was gentle and
sweet but he lived in a violent society she could barely
understand.
    Although she was passionately grateful to him
and smitten to her toes with love, Lilly knew Hafiq wasn’t an
angel. They’d been enjoying a moonlight dip in the ocean when she’d
realised that Hafiq hadn’t been prompted to rescue her from pure
altruism.
    “We’ll go diving,” he’d promised her. “It’s
beautiful and deserted because all the tourists have been
frightened away.”
    “By the war?”
    “Not exactly. The war made it cheap to get in
but it also means you have to pay a ransom to get out!”
    He hadn’t been joking. In the turmoil of the
conflict that had engrossed two generations already, kidnapping,
terrorism and gunrunning had become staple industries.
    Lilly suspected that Hafiq had originally
planned to demand money from her family or her government but
clearly he had changed his mind. She didn’t really know much about
him.
    Although he claimed to import household goods
from China and had the best-equipped kitchen Lilly had ever seen,
she suspected that he hadn’t been hawking electric mixers when he’d
found her in Atbara. He toted that rifle of his with too much
efficiency.
    When she analysed her situation, Lilly was a
little surprised to find that she wasn’t worried. She knew in her
bones that Hafiq would never harm her.
    “ Shai?” A boy was holding up a tray
with a large mug inscribed with the words, “You don’t have to be
crazy to work here - but it helps!” The boy pushed it into her
hand, bowed and walked off.
    Clearly Hafiq was going to be some time.
Lilly examined the mug and giggled at the incongruity. It was the
sort of gag gift that always ended up in jumble sales.
    After an hour’s wait, Hafiq materialised
again. He was grinning.
    “Come on, Green Eyes.”
    He shepherded her into an office where a
tired looking official in a khaki suit gave her a half-hearted
smile and presented her with a sheaf of papers.
    Unable to read Arabic, Lilly didn’t realise
she was looking at them upside down until Hafiq laid them on the
table in front of her.
    “Fill out your name here, your birthday here
and your place of birth here,” Hafiq instructed her. “This space is
for your father’s name, this for your mother’s. And sign here, here
and here.”
    Lilly filled out the form mindlessly. “Is
this a police report?” she asked. “Did you tell him what
happened?”
    “Sort of,” Hafiq equivocated. “You are here
illegally, you know. You entered the country without a visa. Apart
from that, everyone has to register with the police within 24 hours
of arrival. So you’re doubly at fault.”
    “This is crazy,” Lilly protested. “It’s not
like I meant to come here. I was abducted!”
    “Doesn’t matter. The law is that illegal
immigrants are jailed and it can take years to get a court to hear
your case.” He saw the look of fear in her eyes and patted her
comfortingly. “Don’t worry, this fixes everything “
    Lilly shivered. She didn’t want to know what
a Sudanese jail looked like.
    She finished signing hastily and watched with
a sign of relief as the official stamped the papers, grinned