7

Khaled: "Where is Saud?"

Mona: "He hasn't come back from his work yet."

Walid: "And where is Waad? We hardly see her at all."

Nawal: "She's in her room, only leaves for the institute and then goes straight back to it."

Mishal: "Dad, what are you going to do about him? It really annoys me every time I see him standing outside."

Ibrahim: "Just give me a couple of days until we find out why he's following her."

Walid: "He told you, dad, he loves her and wants her."

Nawal: "Love? If he's doing these things, we won't give her to him even if he comes to propose."

Mona: "He's immature, doesn't understand."

Khaled: "Today, when I picked her up from the institute and saw him following us, I almost hit him with my car, he's so infuriating."

Ibrahim: "If you can't control yourself around him, don't pick her up, Khaled. Don't do something wrong."

Khaled: "I'm frustrated, dad, seeing him follow us and we just ignore him, until when?"

Rahma: "Until God makes a way out."

Waad: "Good afternoon"

Everyone: "Good afternoon"

Without greeting anyone, showing them her phone: "He's annoying me and now he's sending threats that he'll enter the house."

Ibrahim took the phone from her: "Did you reply to him?"

Waad: "No."

Ibrahim reads the messages that came and are still being sent ("Waad, reply, don't make me enter your room, I swear I'll make your family mourn you in the morning")("If you don't reply, I'll kill one of your brothers because of you")("Or do you want me to kidnap one of your sisters?")("Or arrange a neat accident for your father")("Just choose, my dear, and if you don't reply, I'll do all of them"): Despicable.

Khaled sat next to his father: "Show me, dad."

Ibrahim gave him the phone and turned to his daughter: "Are you happy now that we've reached this point?"

She stuck her tongue to the corner of her mouth, not wanting to reply.

Ibrahim: "if I killed you, no one would blame me."

Waad: "I didn't follow him for you to kill me."

Ibrahim: "Don't reply to me because I really don't want to hear your voice, so I don't actually kill you."

Khaled: "Dad, please, let's deal with him."

Ibrahim: "And what are you going to do?"

Khaled: "Let's go bury him in the ground."

Ibrahim: "And dirty your hands with such people?"

Khaled: "How are you going to frame him?"

Ibrahim: "It's not me who will frame him; he has framed himself completely."

Khaled: "What do you mean?"

Ibrahim: "You'll get the news."

…

Saud's office.

Saud: "Sir, here's the report you requested."

Assaf: "Who could it be but Ziad."

Saud: "Yes, I thought I'd review his file, maybe we can catch something on him." Saud reads the name and the report, hadn't finished reading when a message arrived on his phone (I will take revenge on you, Saud, through your sister Waad, and even if she's strong, I'll bring her down and make you bow your heads) He was shocked and his face changed: "Oh, soldier…"

The door opened and the soldier saluted: "Yes, sir."

Saud: "Take this number, see who it belongs to, I want all the information you can gather about him. I even want his car's number, the smallest details, you understand."

The soldier: "Yes sir…" he saluted and left.

Assaf was surprised: "What's up, Saud, a new threat?"

Saud, angry: "This time it's different."

Assaf:" How so?"

Saud: "He's threatening me through my sisters."

Assaf, filled with cousinly fervor to the utmost: "He dares to touch a hair on their heads. I'll kill him and drink his blood."

Saud remembered the man who was following her, how could he forget him in such a situation: "How did I forget him!"

Assaf: "Who is he?"

Saud: "Someone who's been following Waad since she started attending."

Assaf's face turned red with anger: "Waad?"

Saud: "Yes, Waad."

Assaf: "And what does Waad have to do with it, what does he know about her in the first place."

Saud: "Obviously, he'll harm her because of me... he's been following her for a while."

Assaf: "Why, where does she go?"

Saud: "The institute."

Assaf: "Since when has she been attending?"

Saud: "Just now, it's her second week."

Assaf: "And why Waad specifically, Saud? Why her and not the other girls, it would be easier for him, all of them attend, and she just started and he's following her, how did he even know she would be going to the institute, she hasn't been attending for long."

Saud: "I don't know, Assaf."

Assaf stood up and hit his hand on the desk: "Saud, does Waad know him?"

Saud: "No, Assaf, Waad doesn't know him, she doesn't even know why he's following her."

Assaf: "Is that what she told you?"

Saud: "Yes."

Assaf: "Then how did he know she would be attending the institute at this time?"

Saud: "If I knew, Assaf, I would have told you."

Assaf, trying to piece things together: "It means someone close to Waad is dealing with him."

Saud pacing around, unable to rest: "You think?"

Assaf: "There's no other explanation, how else would he know she's attending."

Saud: "It's not just that, Assaf, he's parked his car in front of our house."

The jealousy and possessiveness now fully possessed him, standing in front of her room's window, his beloved, enchanted, how could he allow himself to monitor the details of her life, how could another man know what she does every day, he said angrily: "Let's go to your house."

Saud: "Let's go…" The two of them left with fiery blood, passed by Salman's office: "Salman."

He stood up for them and was shocked when he saw them: "Yes, sir."

Saud: "Take this car number, I want you to send a patrol to our house, I don't want anyone but my father and brothers entering, Salman, and this car, I want it under constant surveillance."

Salman: "At your command, I'll send the patrol now."

…

Saud and Assaf entered together: "Welcome, Assaf, come into the guest room, I'll go see Waad." Assaf entered the guest room, and Saud went inside to find everyone sitting as if they were angry: "Where is Waad?"

Ibrahim: "What do you want with her?"

Saud: "Father, I need her..." and he walked upstairs.

Ibrahim: "Saud."

Saud stopped in the middle of the stairs: "Father, I just want to know from her."

Ibrahim: "What do you want to know?"

Saud looked at his phone; Salman was calling: "One moment, father... Yes, Salman... Yes... You told me about Salah... Which case?... Ah, I remember it... What did you say? The same number... Okay, Salman, did you send the patrol I told you about?... As I instructed you, surveillance 24 hours a day, I don't want him out of your sight for a moment... If you find anything new, call me or call Assaf... No, you're not bothering... Goodbye." And he hung up.

Mona, with fear: "Son, I hope you don't have a new case."

Saud: "Mother, the one after Waad is only after her because of me; he wants to take revenge on me through her."

Mona: "What?"

Ibrahim, startled: "And how do you know?"

Saud sat on the stairs: "He sent me a threat that he would bring her head and make us bow our heads to the ground, and I asked the guys to bring me a report about him; it turns out he has the same car that was parked outside."

Nawal: "And what does it have to do with you?"

Saud: "I put him in jail nine years ago when I was in my last years of college. I reported him and testified against him in court, and they sentenced him to eight years, and now he's out and he holds a grudge against me."

Nada: "Why? do you expect him to thank you for making him spend years of his life in prison?"

Saud: "The important thing now is that he doesn't harm Waad."

Ibrahim: "He sent a threat that he would enter the house."

Saud stood up angrily: "He wishes! If he steps on the gate, I'll bury him under it so I can step on him every time I go in and out."

Khaled: "Ooof, where did this guy come from? Can't you send him back to jail?"

Saud: "Why? Is it up to me? The most important thing is to stop him... Father, don't let her attend the institute; it's not in her interest to go."

Waad, who was standing near the stairs and heard everything: "It's not up to you, Saud."

Saud: "Waad, it's for your own good."

Waad: "If you really cared about me, you wouldn't have sicced them on me."

Saud: "What do you expect me to do when I see him standing with you and talking to you? Do you want me to stay silent or close my eyes as if I didn't see anything?"

Waad: "I didn't tell you to do that, but you could have asked me calmly instead of getting angry and yelling at me."

Saud: "I asked you a hundred times, but you never answered my question."

Waad: "Yes, I did answer and told you I don't know him and I don't know why he was standing outside, but your anger blinded you and suspicion filled your heart, and you made everyone suspect me. And since the matter is about me, there's no need for them to wait for a signal to start fighting with me."

Ibrahim: "Are you referring to me?"

Waad: "All of you. And you're the first one. So, you don't trust me, as if you didn't raise me."

Nawal, sternly: "Waad, show some respect. The one in front of you is your father, not someone else."

Waad went down to the bottom of the stairs: "Weren't you the one who didn't want to get involved between us and didn't care if they killed me? Why are you silencing me now when I respond, and this is the truth? He doesn't trust his upbringing."

Nawal: "Don't make me do something I don't want to."

Waad: "What are you going to do, mom? On top of abandoning me, are you going to hit me? It's okay, you might as well kill me. Actually, I'm waiting for my life to end so I don't have to bear any more torment from you."

Nawal slapped her, and Waad kept her hand on her cheek, then looked at her mother: "I didn't feel the slap as much as when you abandoned me."

Nawal: "Don't say I abandoned you. Your actions are enough to turn anyone's hair white, and only your father can deal with you. If he doesn't knock some sense into you, you won't behave properly. Ever since you graduated, you've been reckless, not caring about anything, throwing everyone's opinion against the wall, not caring for anyone or fearing anyone."

Waad: "And you all want me not to make mistakes because I'm afraid of you, not because I see them as wrong, not because you raised me to see them as wrong. The mistakes that you don't stop except with hitting and anger and quarreling."

Nawal: "Oh, please teach us how to raise... Have you forgotten your mistakes? Your father scolded you because you didn't tell him about the issue from the beginning, not because he's chasing you. Now you're twisting the issue to suit yourself."

Ibrahim: "No, let her be. Why are you teaching her? What did she do wrong? Who does she take after? I want to understand. The lack of appreciation, respect, and manners that you're showing, where did you get that from?"

On the tip of her tongue, she wanted to say "from you," but it was her father she was arguing with, not someone else, so she couldn't say such a thing: "So now, what are you going to do to me?"

Ibrahim: "You won't attend the institute; you'll stay at home until we find a solution for the one outside."

Waad: "And what else?"

Ibrahim: "You'll hold your tongue, or I'll hold it for you."

Waad: "Okay, but you all don't bother me, and your sons won't talk to me, neither good nor bad, especially him (pointing at Saud)."

Ibrahim: "We won't bother you, and if you make a mistake, I'll put my fingers in your eyes. And your brothers will only talk to you because they're worried about you."

Waad: "They're worried about me?!"

Khaled: "If you don't like what's being said, why do you think we're doing all this? Isn't it to protect you?"

Waad: "No, it's to make your words stick because you're men and you have the right to impose your words on us, and no one tells you to look in the mirror, even if what you're saying is wrong."

Saud: "Waad, don't get yourself involved in unnecessary matters... The most important thing now is that you don't step out of the house, not even to the garden, neither you nor your sisters."

Waad: "What do you think about tying me up? Wouldn't that be better?"

Ibrahim grabbed her hair: "I'll do it, Waad, I swear by God, if I see you stepping out of this door (pointing to the inner door of the house), I'll tie you up in the middle of the living room... Do you understand me or not?"

Waad, feeling utterly defeated, her breath started to fade, and her lips turned blue. She turned around, gasping for air, about to die, her breath was gone, she couldn't feel anything, she fell to the ground gasping and trembling.

They took a moment to realize what was happening; she had been in this state before.

Saud jumped to her and held her head: "Waad, Waad."

Ibrahim: "Nada, bring her abaya, we need to take her to the hospital."

Nawal Raised her head and put it on her lap, slapping her face: "Waad, Waad."

Walid: "I wish Ahmed was here; he would know what to do. She can't breathe."

Her trembling subsided, and she opened her eyes, looked at herself, and saw them all around her, remembering what had happened last.

Nada handed Waad's abaya to her father: "The abaya."

Ibrahim took it and placed it on Waad's legs, which were almost stretched out in front of him: "Wear it."

Waad: "Why?"

Ibrahim: "We're taking you to the hospital."

Waad: "I don't want to go, and don't make me think that you're worried about me because if you were, you wouldn't have done all this to me." And she got up and went to her room.

Mona put her hand on her lap: "She scared me, I never expected her to respond."

Saud: "Assaf is in the guest room, I'll go see him... Nada, prepare some coffee for us with your own hands, don't let the maids touch anything, it looks like we're going to be up all night." And he went out to the guest room.

Khaled: "Father, you need to have dinner, take your medicine, and rest."

Ibrahim stood up: "Where do you expect me to rest with that fool outside threatening my daughter?"

…

Saud entered the guest and saw Assaf sitting there, fiddling with his phone, "If I knew you had stepped through the door of the house, I would have erupted in anger at you." She was surprised by the message and replied, "And who might you be?" "Assaf, your cousin," he replied. "What a disappointment." Yes, these are the typical responses exchanged between them, Assaf and Waad.

Assaf: "So, what happened?"

Saud: "Salman called me saying that Salah, the one I testified against in court when you had just started working in the military, you know."

Assaf: "Yes, I remember when you went to court and testified against someone, but what was his case?"

Saud: "Theft... Anyway, the one who sent me the threat today is the same one who is after Waad, and my father says he sent threats that he would enter the house if she didn't respond to him."

Assaf: "He should be ashamed, and it will be his downfall."

Saud: "I won't be at ease until he is completely out of our lives."

Ibrahim: "Good evening"

All: "Good evening"

Assaf stood up and kissed his uncle's head: "How are you, my uncle?"

Ibrahim: "I'm fine, what about you?"

Assaf: "Thank God, I'm fine."

Ibrahim: "Where have you been? I come to your house every day and don't see you; it's been a week."

Assaf: "We're really busy with work these days."

Ibrahim: "May God protect you and help you."

Assaf: "Amen... Uncle, what are you going to do about Salah?"

Ibrahim: "I want to tell you something I found out, and I want you to handle the matter until we throw him in jail."

Assaf: "Tell us, we're listening."

Ibrahim: "I've asked two of my employees to watch him, and I found out he's involved in suspicious activities, but I'm not exactly sure what they are yet. Most likely, it's drugs."

Saud: "Then he's fallen into it, I will throw him out like a dog and not even ask about him."

Assaf: "Okay, we'll take care of this matter, but I want to know how he found Waad and how he knew her name, why he's after her and not her sisters. Saud told me he knows all of you and where you work. If his goal is revenge against Saud, why didn't he take revenge on Saud himself or one of the boys? Why didn't he choose any of the girls, why specifically Waad?"

Ibrahim: "I don't have answers to your questions."

Assaf: "I've only come to one conclusion: Waad knows a girl who knows this man and is giving him information under the guise of friendship, and she's not aware of the danger she's in."

Saud: "She would do that, she trusts every girl and doesn't care, she sees all people as good."

Assaf: "Bring her phone."

Ibrahim: "I just took it from her…" He took it out and gave it to Assaf.

He took it and opened it to the contacts, saw a crazy number of contacts, scrolled to the bottom to see how many there were: "She's crazy, where did she get all these from?"

Ibrahim: "She doesn't let anyone she meets without getting to know her."

Assaf: "One thousand and seven hundred numbers."

Saud: "How many?"

Assaf: "One thousand and seven hundred numbers."

Saud: "My luck, how are we going to narrow these down?"

Assaf: "Your sister needs a thorough investigation to see who these people are and find out who knows she goes to the institute."

Ibrahim scratching his head: "This girl won't be satisfied until she kill me."

Assaf smiled: "Oh uncle, does that mean you can't handle her? Weren't you the one who used to keep everyone in line? Why is she the exception?"

Ibrahim: "Since she graduated, she's been a thorn in our side, and I don't want her to be upset."

Assaf: "Say that you can't bear to see her upset."

Ibrahim smiled: "And who told you I'm okay with her being upset? I can't stand to see her or anyone else upset."

Assaf: "I don't know how your heart can take it."

Saud: "Dad, you know she's wrong. If you appease her now, she won't realize her mistake. Let her stay put for now."

Ibrahim: "You don't need to convince me; I'm not going to appease her this time. I'll let her come to me."

Assaf: "But it's not her fault that he's after her."

Saud: "But she didn't think to tell us. If I hadn't gone to her institute once to take her home, we would still be unaware."