Part 11 (2/2)
”Bear it?” she asked, nestling into his arms.
Much later. She sat up in bed. Drawing her knees up, she pulled the bedclothes to her chin and turned to look at her husband. She reached out and traced a pattern over his cheeks and down to his neck. He caught her hand.
”I wish you could stay longer,” she said.
”Not this time. But when, if, I get the ministerial post, I will be able to spend more time with you in KL.”
”Have you considered that if you did not get the ministerial post, in fact if you were not involved in politics at all, you could stay in KL and find something else to do?”
He turned away. He raised his arm and placed his thumb and index finger, a miniscule distance apart.
”I am that close to achieving what I have always aspired to do. Would you deny me that?”
”Of course not!” she conceded.
He failed to notice the catch in her voice. He buried his face behind the small of her back. She could feel his sharp intake of breath. Her body responded.
”Shall I give up my job and come to Kemun to be with you?” she asked. She was drunk with recklessness and the emotion of the moment.
”Yes!” he said without a second's hesitation as he pulled her to him.
Chapter 24.
An Mei and Hussein returned by car to Kemun. The driver stole a glance at his rear mirror then quickly looked at the road ahead. What a tale he had in store for his friends, he thought to himself, one man and two wives, one on either side, in harmony. He looked again. Perhaps not quite in harmony, he surmised. He had gone to fetch Tengku Shalimar the day before. He had met up with the servants of the household. Tengku Shalimar, they had told him, was not happy. No wonder, he thought to himself. The other wife, Noraidin, was a picture of contentment and it had done something for her. Changed her appearance! He had never seen her looking so beautiful before. Next to her, perhaps Tengku Shalimar was a tad pale.
Hussein caught his eye on the rear mirror. The driver quickly averted his gaze to the road ahead. Five hours later they arrived in Kemun.
They drove into the driveway. Ghazali and the security guard in the escorting vehicles were already striding towards them. They opened the door.
”Do you wish me to accompany you sir?” asked Ghazali, brief case in hand.
”No! Not now. Business can wait. Just arrange to have the suitcases sent up to our quarters and please instruct the servants to prepare Puan Noraidin's rooms. We will go to see my parents now and break the good news to them.”
”Shall I send someone to run ahead to tell them that you are on your way?”
”No! We'll surprise them,” Hussein replied.
They made their way slowly up the stairs, walked through the hallway, pa.s.sed the maze of staterooms and entered the private gla.s.s-covered courtyard. An Mei recalled the earlier scene she had witnessed there; she breathed deeply to calm her nerves.
”Do we go to your parent's quarters now or should we first go to ours?” she asked Hussein hoping to postpone meeting with her in-laws.
”I am sorry,” said Shalimar. She had not spoken throughout. ”I wish to go to my room. I don't feel well.”
”Then go. Rest,” Hussein said not unkindly, ”but, An Mei, we should go straight to my parents and let them know. We should not give them too much time to prepare their confrontation with us.” He took An Mei's hand. ”Come along,” he coaxed, leaving Shalimar standing on her own, totally oblivious to the distress on her face.
They walked through the gla.s.s-domed courtyard with the potted ferns and bamboos and entered another part of the mansion. An Mei had never been to this part of the house before. She had never been invited to the private quarters of her in-laws. She slowed her pace, her trepidation increasing by the minute. A maid spotted their entrance.
”Good afternoon,” she said. ”Welcome back. I'll tell Datuk and Datin.”
Hussein stopped her. ”Shhh,” he mimed with a broad smile, ”we want to surprise my parents.”
Hussein held on to An Mei's hand and together they entered the room. It was a large room that spanned the entire length of the wing. Light flooded in from the windows. Rahim and Faridah were in deep conversation with Ahmad. They did not hear their entry. An Mei stumbled, her toe caught the corner of a chair; Hussein reached out to steady her. All three turned: Faridah's eyes widened; she was surprised to see An Mei with Hussein. Rahim, rose from his chair; Ahmad followed suit. To An Mei, their movements were a record in slow motion, a film reeling slowly forward.
”Mother, father. We are back,” said Hussein, his voice shattering the silence. ”And we have good news. I've got the post. I am now a Deputy Minister. An Mei, Noraidin, has resigned from the bank and has come to Kemun to be with me. Isn't that great?”
They stared at him, speechless.
”Aren't you going to congratulate me?”
Ahmad was the first to recover. He extended his hand. ”Of course! What good news though we knew from the start you would succeed. Even then, the speed with which you have advanced is outstanding. Everyone is talking about it.”
Faridah and Rahim took Hussein in their arms, taking turns to whisper words of praise. No one commented on An Mei's presence. They ignored her completely.
”And Shalimar?” Ahmad asked. ”Where is she?” He kept his smile firmly on his face, but he was furious. His sister had once again failed in her responsibility.
Once Hussein and An Mei had left the room, Faridah turned on Ahmad furiously. ”Send for your sister, this very moment. Where was she when all this happened?”
Ahmad bl.u.s.tered. ”Don't ask me. I thought she was with Hussein all the time in KL.”
Faridah turned impatiently to the hovering servants. ”Tell Tengku Shalimar to come here at once!” she said.
”Hussein and Shalimar had looked so in love when they were here in Kemun. What happened?” asked Rahim. He too was bewildered by the speed his son seemed to have switched his allegiance from one wife to the other.
”Noraidin, that Chinese minx put a charm on him, that is what happened,” replied his wife. ”That brazen hussy. Otherwise, how could my son change so completely?”
”I am not keen to have An Mei, I mean Noraidin, here,” said Rahim. ”She will distract Hussein from his work and I am not at all sure that his popularity with the electorates will not suffer as well. It would be a shame; the people have responded so well to his marriage to Shalimar.”
”I will have to consult my bomoh. I'll get him to undo her charm,” said Faridah.
Her belief in magical powers was not a thing that Rahim would like the public to know. He did not believe in them and he did not approve of her use of what was tantamount to witchcraft. He had left her to her own devices just for peace.
”Maybe it has nothing to do with magical charms,” he muttered. ”Remember the potions you gave him? They did nothing for our cause; they did, however, make him very ill. Hussein had such extreme changes in mood, fluctuating between elation and depression, smiling and laughing one minute and in a cold sweat, the next. Leave him alone. For goodness sake!”
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