conquer her fears. Besides, she enjoyed it so much she wants one of her own.”
“Sure do,” Charisma agreed. “It’s very therupedic.”
“What if she would have fallen off again? There are no physicians in the desert to patch her up.”
“She held on to me tightly.”
Robert clenched his fists. “I knew it wasn’t a good idea to leave her behind with you. I’ve seen the way you look at her.”
“Well at least I know that she is alive.” Shakir walked past everyone and went up the stairs.
Robert turned to her. “What does he mean by that?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “How should I know?”
Carmen interrupted. “Come on. I’ll show you to your room. You’re not going to believe this place. It’s gorgeous.”
Robert retreated off in the opposite direction.
“What’s wrong with him?” Charisma asked.
“He was just worried. You were in pretty bad shape when we left.”
“The doctor gave me a clean bill of health.”
Carmen led her upstairs and then through room after room of amazing African artifacts and relics. Charisma’s keen eyes picked up the rich details in the carvings, hoping to be allowed to capture it with her camera before they returned to the palace compound. Her room, like the room at the palace, was tastefully decorated in yellow and green pastels. Her luggage was already unpacked and stored away since it arrived earlier with Carmen in the car.
“So, what was it like?” her aunt asked. She was never one to beat around the bush if she wanted to know something.
“What?”
“The came ride here with Prince Shakir.”
Whew, for a moment I thought she was going to ask about the sex . Charisma sat down on the floor because she didn’t want to dirty up anything with sand. “Hot and the best time I’ve had in a long time. We talked and get this; he has sense of humor.”
“A man with a sense of humor is good. He’ll keep you smiling.”
“He even has a job when he’s not being a spoiled brat prince. He raises horses and camels.”
“His mother also told me that he does a lot of humanitarian work. Did you know he’s almost single-handedly responsible for rebuilding the village outside the palace?”
“No, he never mentioned that.”
“That’s because he’s so modest. That’s one of the reasons why we’re here in Khartoum . We’ve come to see if we can help them rebuild.”
“Why can’t the king and queen just give them some money?”
“Sometimes money just isn’t enough. They need educators and builders. That’s where we fit in. We take the problems back to Washington , we lobby and have fund raisers and get contracted workers and volunteers to come here and help.”
“Sometimes I feel so out of touch with reality. I didn’t know you did all of that. I just thought you guys gave a lot of parties and hobnobbed with the rich and famous.”
Carmen laughed. “I’m afraid not. There is a lot more to being ambassadors than just parties. Take Robert, for instance. He’s really excited about going down to the village tomorrow. He wants to see what he can do. He’s a hard-working guy when it comes to this type of stuff.”
Charisma sighed. She knew that was coming. Her aunt just had to put Robert’s name in the mix to remind her of the situation that she was now in. “You’re really making this hard.”
“You’re a smart girl. You will make the right decision.” Carmen walked toward the door. “All that begins tomorrow but tonight, we’re going to take it easy and plot strategy.”
“How can I help?”
“That’s why I asked you to bring your camera. The world needs pictures. They need to see what the conditions are like here. You’ll be the eyes of the world.”
* * * *
Robert finished the whisky in his glass. The alcohol burned, but went down smooth. Who did Prince Shakir think he was kidding with his suave