Chapter 8

Savior

After col. Barnes's arrival, captain Eugene was blessed with headaches every day. He had to take back all the firearms he had sold to Owais before the inspection and promised to return them later. Owais too, didn’t like the young stubborn legate and was very much displeased about the recent events. But captain Eugene’s plan to return the firearms didn’t go as planned because, col. Barnes issued back only three hundred rifles and pistols for three hundred soldiers and stored the rest of the spares in the garrison at the legation office. Captain Eugene came up with a lot of excuses to release the spare firearms from the garrison, but all in vain. At last, he had no other choice than to concede to colonel's order.

When this news reached Owais, he was so furious that he rushed over captain Eugene’s office and made a fuss. Captain Eugene tried his best to calm his only ally in Belgarath.

' I will give your money back, Owais. The all of it you spend on buying the firearms. I am totally helpless in this current situation. ‘ Captain Eugene said in a voice of defeat.

‘ Then what about my daughter? Can you and your men give her back just as she used to be, captain Eugene? ‘ Owais asked furiously.

‘ Owais, I never asked for your daughter. All I wanted was the money, I am sorry but I have to say that your daughter was a bonus plus you are the one who send her to us.’ Captain Eugene said nonchalantly.

‘ What? You sick Bastard!!!! ‘. Owais grabbed captain Eugene’s collars and stared into his eyes furiously.

Captain Eugene chuckled at him.

‘ You act before you think, Owais. Who made you the most powerful person in the whole Belgarath? Me. Who made you the richest man in this whole village? Me. Who made you untouchable by the law or police? Me. And yet you are thanking me this way? ‘. Captain Eugene asked Owais who slowly released his hold on captain Eugene.

‘I am sorry. I was so furious. I felt like I lost everything when I heard that I lost those weapons'. Owais explained himself.

‘ I will let this go, this time. Also, don’t get too disheartened, we will find a way to take back those firearms from the garrison. ‘

Captain Eugene said.

‘ That bastard is getting out of our control. Don’t you think it’s time to show him who is in control of this land, captain Eugene? ‘.Owais asked, the urge to harm col. Barnes budding in him.

‘ I will make the plan and you and your men .will execute it. There should be no mistakes, Owais. If he finds the truth about us from any of the villagers, we both are finished. We have to take care of him before he finds the truth and report it to the US government'. Captain Eugene looked at Owais gravely.

‘ I promise, there won’t be any. ‘ Owais promised captain Eugene.

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‘ Are you ready? ‘. Farah asked from the courtyard.

' Yes, let’s go. ‘ Tamina said covering her face with the niqab.

Both of them were wearing a burqa and every single inch of their skin were covered expect their amber eyes. It was really uncomfortable due to the heat, but it was there only option to keep them out of the foreigners eyes.

‘ I will walk you both to the hospital. ‘ Kamran said putting his shoes on.

As the new military hospital came into existence, they took in natives as trainees in nursing and realising it as an opportunity to protect their daughters from sending them to the soldiers, most of the fathers sent their daughters as trainee nurses. Since the hospital was under the direct control of the American legation, Owais or captain Eugene didn’t dared to mess with people associated with it. Tamina and Farah alone with their other friends Laila, Saya and Fathima also enrolled into the hospital for training as nurses under the head nurse Martha. Martha was Dr. Amir's assistant and being the only nurse in the hospital, she really needed assistance from the new trainees.

‘ This is how you cleanse a wound using antiseptic'. Martha was demonstrating lessons to her new students.

The trainees were gathered around a bed in which the patient lied and those standing behind , strained their necks for seeing the procedure.

‘ Now you will get a lot of similar cases. Try it on your own. Always remember, don’t apply too much force on the wound or it will hurt the patient, and not too little force either, or otherwise the wound won’t get cleaned properly. ‘ Martha instructed her students.

After taking lessons, Tamina and her friends gathered around an empty bed to conduct their daily ritual of gossiping about everything happening in the village.

‘ Have you heard, the new legation officer send back Owais and warned captain Eugene not to associate with the natives?. ‘ Laila asked.

‘ How did you know that?’. Fathima asked, being the meanest in the group.

‘ My uncle is an interpreter at the legation. I heard him talking to my father about the new Legate officer. Heard he was young and very handsome. ‘ Laila said.

‘ From what I have heard about him, he is not on the same side as that of Owais.’ Laila continued.

‘ That doesn’t mean that he is on our side too’. Farah said.

‘ Keep your voice down. We don’t know if Owais had planted his spies in this hospital too. What if they hear us and have our fathers beaten up and send us to the soldiers?.’ Tamina warned her friends looking around the room.

‘ Oh come on, it’s just us. Nobody is here, Tami. ‘ Farah said calmly.

Dr. Amir who was reading peacefully till the girls started talking, overheard thier conversation, sitting behind a curtain which hid him from the girls view.

‘ Beating our fathers and sending us to the soldiers? ‘.Dr.Amir processed those words in his minds and suddenly the image of a patient who was brought to him a few days back appeared in his mind.

The patient was a man in his forties, beaten to pulp beyond recognition. He was carried to the hospital by four bulky men who said that the man was involved in a fight at the market place. But being an experienced physician, Dr. Amir knew that the man was being confined and then beaten, probably by those bulky men who arrived with him in the hospital. Dr. Amir decided to let col. Barnes knew about this and visited him telling everything he heard from the trainee nurses. Col. Barnes decided to investigate what was really going on between Owais and captain Eugene, discreetly.

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Col. Barnes approached the natives for collecting information about Owais but it was not an easy task. The natives either ran away when he approached them or kept their mouth shut out of fear of Owais.

‘What had these soldiers done to these natives that even talking to a foreigner makes them shook in fear?’. Col. Barnes thought to himself.

They were bewildered at his presence and it made him feel somewhat guilty. One day, he was walking through the market place hoping he would get some information regarding Owais from there and accidentally bumped into someone. The person at the other end cursed at him in Arabic as his bag containing groceries fell on the ground.

‘ Where the hell… , oh! Forgive me. I didn’t see you there. I apologize, sir'. Sartai lowered his voice when he found that the person who bumped into him was a foreigner.

‘ No, I am sorry. It’s my fault. Let me help you. ‘ Col. Barnes said picking up the things that were scattered on the ground.

‘ No sir, please be on your way. I will call somebody else. Please don’t mind me. ‘.Sartai insisted.

‘ Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you.’ Col. Barnes assured him in his broken Arabic. As they were chattering, Kamran came to help his friend.

‘ You don’t have to help, sir. I am his friend and I can help him. Please be on your way, sir. Don’t mind us.’ Kamran said to col. Barnes.

He stood their wondering what to do and then took a closer step to both the men.

‘ Can you help me out? I am the new Legate, col. Barnes from the American legation and I want information regarding your village chief , Owais. I heard some bad things about him and one of my own officer. I want to know the truth. ‘ Col. Barnes said in a low voice.

Both the men looked at each other. The news of Col. Barnes collecting information about Owais had already reached his ears and he had warned all the villagers to keep their mouth shut. Those who defied him were beaten and their daughters were send to the camp. Knowing this, both Sartai and Kamran remained quiet. Col. Barnes was disheartened as no Belgarathians cooperated with him, but he was determined to find the truth about Owais and captain Eugene. Owais men stationed at the market reported this event of two natives speaking to the Legate and Owais called them for interrogation. When he found out it was Kamran and Sartai, who opposed his rule and always questioned his ways, he was reluctant to believe what they said about keeping their mouth shut. He didn’t trust a word they had said and ordered his men to beat both of them till they confessed selling him out.

The news spread like wildfire and Tamina stayed at the hospital as it was now more safer than her own house as it was under the direct control of the legation. She knew that Owais’s men had already started searching and will soon come for her. She asked Martha to allow her to stay in the hospital as a excuse of helping her and Martha agreed since she was short of assistance.

Two days after the incident, Col. Barnes was brought to the military hospital being shot in the chest by an unknown man. Fortunately, he survived as the bullet barely missed his heart. Dr. Amir did his best to save his friend and after hours of dedication and patience, he took the bullet out from his friend's chest. The news of assassination attempt of the new legate spread through out the village. Minister Alan was furious and send hundred US soldiers to the Legation, solely for the protection and security of his representatives and the Legation. Now, col. Barnes had four hundred men under his command.

The local police was asked to investigate the assassination attempt and col. Barnes stayed at the hospital for his recovery. He knew that it was either captain Eugene or Owais who had tried to kill him but waited for the police to finish the investigation. Col. Barnes kept fifty of the soldiers at the hospital while the rest were sent to the legation office for protection.

Nurse Martha and Tamina did their duties in shifts. She stayed at the hospital in fear of Owais and had to attend to Col. Barnes during her shifts at night. Col. Barnes during the first few days were busy with his duties and didn’t notice Tamina. Soon as he settled in, he noticed the nurse who came with supper and checked on him three times every single night. Even though she was wearing a white uniform, she had her face covered with a niqab and only her Amber eyes were visible. What made col. Barnes notice her was her eyes that glistened under the yellow incandescent bulb of his room.

At first he found it creepy, but slowly it fascinated him. He had heard about the bewitching eyes of the Belgarathian people, but it was the first time he felt curious about it. He really wondered if they could see clearly with those eyes as any other human beings as he had read that amber eyes are very rare and usually animals like wolves had this kind of eyes. Days passed and the wound started to heal in his chest. Dr. Amir came everyday and chatted with col. Barnes and knowing the news, professor Edward Lee also visited him. When he was brought to the hospital, captain Eugene had visited him, but couldn’t meet him as he was undergoing surgery. Captain Eugene tried to visit again, but Dr. Amir declined it as col. Barnes was unconscious that time.

During daytime, col. Barnes concerned himself with his duties as a legate and spend his nights reading. Tamina attended him at nights, to change his wound dressing or to bring him supper. As days passed, a silent friendship developed between them, a friendship without any words but merely of presence. Every time Tamina enters his room, col. Barnes would greet her with a nod and a smile, close the book he was reading and watch her, either setting the table or closing the curtains. There was no communication between them as Tamina didn’t know his language and Col. Barnes's Arabic was broken. She would set the table, change his wound dressing and leave the room without a word. This eventually became a routine for both of them.

One day, Tamina was busy attending her patients and the heat was making everything difficult for everyone. Suddenly, she heard commotions at the lobby and saw a group of men heading towards her. From the first look itself she could tell it was Owais’s men and luckily they were unarmed. She stood there frozen not knowing what to do as they came closer to her. Owais’s men were headed by Abir and he walked up to her and took a closer look at her name tag on her uniform.

‘ If you don’t want me to drag you out of here, come with me quietly, Tamina, daughter of Kamran. ‘ Abir said holding a small pistol in his hands.

‘ I am not coming with you. ‘ Tamina finished her sentence trembling as she knew he had identified her even in her niqab.

‘ Your father, he betrayed Owais and master will never forgive him for that. If you don’t want your father dead, come with me. ‘ Abir warned Tamina.

She had no idea how to handle the situation. She was trembling from head to toe and didn’t notice her colleagues and Nurse Martha had gathered around them. Farah came upto her and stood beside her. Tamina looked around for help, but all she could see was the fear in every ones eyes. She knew that it was all over and she couldn’t hide from Owais anymore.

‘What’s going on here?. ‘ Suddenly, Dr. Amir’s voice echoed through the room.

‘ Stay out of this doctor. This is between two natives and we don’t want a foreigner to meddle in our matters. ‘ Abir warned him.

‘ She is a trainee in this hospital and my assistant’s student. What you are doing now is obstructing her from doing her duty and I cannot allow that. ‘ Dr. Amir said without batting an eye.

‘ Ok fine then. ‘ Without further talking, Abir grabbed Tamina by her hair and she struggled to get out of his grip and in that process, her niqab came lose, exposing her face and Abir threw her to the ground.

A gunshot echoed through the room followed by the startled screams of the women gathered in there. Col. Barnes emerged from the crowd towards Abir and stood between Tamina and him. He was calm like an ocean on the outside, but deep down a storm was brewing inside him.

‘ You are not foolish enough to make mess in this hospital which is under the jurisdiction of Minister Alan himself. I don’t know your reason why you came here for this girl, but from the look of it, it’s probably not a good one. She is currently on duty here as Dr. Amir had said and you can’t disrupt it. Leave with your men, if you don’t want to get hurt. ‘ Col. Barnes said in a calm tone, but speaking those words in Arabic, he felt like rolling a rock up the hills.

‘ Ahh another foreign bastard!!!! ‘.Abir cursed in Arabic.

‘She is coming with me. ‘ Abir said without backing an inch.

‘ So have it your way, then. Soldiers!!! ‘.Col. Barnes shouted at top of his voice.

Fifty armed soldiers rushed through the door and circled them aiming their rifles at Abir and his other six men. Abir was stunned at Col. Barnes boldness and his eyes became red because of anger.

‘ The rest of them are stationed out. I can call them anytime if you want. So, listen well. You are not going home with the girl, today. Leave if you want to live. One more word from your mouth, I will ask them to fire. The mortuary is only two stairs down this floor.’ Col. Barnes said , his voice cold as ice.

Even the threat in his broken Arabic was scary. Abir knew he was at disadvantage here. It was fifty soldiers against seven of them.

' Never step into this hospital again. If you defy my order, you and your men will be arrested for crimes against the United States of America.’ Col. Barnes warned again.

Taking a last glance at Tamina, Abir threw her niqab on the floor,turned back and left the hospital with his men. A sigh of relief left Tamina's lips and she picked up her niqab from the floor and covered her face with it. Farah came to her side and hugged her. She was still trembling from the shock.

‘ Are you OK? Don’t worry, he won’t come here again. I will inform the police to file a case against those men. ‘ Col. Barnes said to Tamina who was hugging Farah.

She turned towards him to look him in the eyes, her amber eyes glistening with tears and her pink lips trembling because of the fear under the niqab. Col. Barnes froze at the site of her and suddenly he felt like time had stopped at that moment. He was bewitched by her eyes. Involuntarily, his mouth became dry and he gulped down. Her eyes felt familiar to him.

‘Thank you, for saving me. ‘ Tamina said in her mother tongue, her voice cracking.

‘ Are you the nurse who attends me during the night? ‘ Col. Barnes blurted out as in a spell.

‘ Yes, that's her. She has been staying at the hospital for the past one week and I think now I know the reason. She was scared. ‘ Dr. Amir answered for col. Barnes.

‘What’s your name?. Col. Barnes asked as it was the only sentence he could properly say in Arabic.

‘Tamina.’ She answered nervously.

‘ Martha, take her to the waiting room. She is still in shock. Calm her down. ‘ Dr. Amir instructed.

Col. Barnes stared at the retreating figure of Tamina. He couldn’t believe that a human eyes can be this beautiful and it really mesmerized him. Col. Barnes suddenly remembered the pistol Abir had in his arms. It was similar to the pistols issued to the US soldiers in Belgarath.

‘ I have some urgent work to do at the legation, doctor. I will come back after wrapping it up. I am totally fine now. ‘Col. Barnes assured Dr. Amir who nodded his head.

Bidding goodbye to his friend, Col. Barnes headed straight to the legation office along with his hundred men.