The sheikh tortured his wives, violated their wills, and treated them like his property for eight years until a young student entered his life and committed a horrible act.
The sheikh lived as though the entire world were his toy for eight years. He had become a guy who saw himself as the lord of human fates as well as lands and palaces due to his wealth, power, and limitless resources.
Beautiful women from all around the world flocked to his harem every year. He abducted some by force or deceit, while others came voluntarily, lured by riches and beauty.
The sheikh, however, did not adore them. They were broken by him.
He saw all women as objects, possessions, rather than wives. He left a crimson mark, a sign of belonging, on the back of each.
The mark signified that they had permanently forfeited their freedom, therefore it was more than just an adornment. The wives were not allowed to leave the harem or even speak to their relatives.
So it continued for years. But then she showed up one day.
A young student who is proud and attractive. She was bold enough to turn down the sheikh. And that turned into a problem for him.
At all costs, he resolved to have her. He possessed wealth, connections, and unbounded influence. The girl soon lost everything: she lost her job, her mother was left without medicine, her father’s house was taken away, and she was dismissed from university.
She had no other option. She consented to marry him in order to rescue her family.
Like all the others, the sheikh thought he had broken her too. However, he was unaware that a horrible event was about to occur.
The sheikh was certain that he had subdued the girl after forcing her into the harem. In actuality, though, she had opted for a different strategy.
She developed endurance and started formulating a strategy. It was almost a year later.
She earned the sheikh’s trust throughout that period.
There was an elderly servant woman in the harem. The girl initially just inquired about innocuous herbal teas, purportedly for pain relief or sleep.
Then she started asking about unusual plants in the desert.
She discovered the “scorpion’s tears”—a powder formed from the dried venom of desert scorpions—in this way. It was undetectable in small doses, but once inside the body, it caused the heart to become paralyzed. A spontaneous heart attack appeared to be the cause of the symptoms.
Another issue, though, was that the sheikh’s personal staff constantly inspected his meals and beverages. He would have been exposed if somebody had tried to poison him.
She was aware that if she made a mistake, her mother and even her father would perish along with her. So she looked for a different route.
She had the idea that she would have to pass the poison during intercourse, which first made her even more afraid.
Additionally, she found an antidote that could be prepared from the root of a bitter shrub known as “Adam’s tear.”
She made it covertly and took tiny dosages till her body adjusted.
The sheikh was particularly happy that evening. He smiled, drank wine, and delighted in his authority as usual.
She surprised him by giving him her first kiss when they were finally alone. For a long time. Her saliva and a tiny grain of the drug, concealed in her cheek, entered his mouth at that precise instant.
Nothing caught the sheikh’s attention. However, his face transformed after a few minutes. His legs no longer obeyed him when he attempted to stand.
Before long, he passed out and fell on the ground. Although the servants hurried in, it was already too late. Everyone thought the sheikh had died of a heart attack, therefore nobody questioned the girl.
He will never again take another life, the girl realized.
