The Sheikh's Rebel (gay) ☑️

46. The eye of Al-Din.

Biting his nails, Tyler was pacing through Amir's office.
"I wish I had written something down," he said to Amir, who sat with his reading glasses on at his desk.
Without looking up from his work, Amir said soberly: "You explained it perfectly when you told me."
"Yes, okay, but you're not scary," Tyler countered. Black eyebrows rose mockingly. Tyler sighed. "You know what I mean. The members of the family, including yourself, are all impressive and rulers. But these men may be dangerous."
Amir touted his lips. "Our past in not squeaky clean, Tyler. I have every reason to think that they fear us as much as we fear them."
"Are all the papers in order?" Tyler asked nervously.
"For the third time, yes! Everything is legal and binding once the papers are signed."

Jawdat knocked on the door. "Everyone is present. We can start."
"Showtime," Tyler laughed wryly.
"What?" asked Amir distractedly.
"Nothing," he shook.
For the umpteenth time, he wished he'd taken notes. At school, his speaking engagements had been mediocre and he had written material.
They walked past the conference room and Tyler looked up in amazement. "Where are we going?"
Jawdat coughed. "It seems that the families were not satisfied with the meeting room. After much deliberation, we have come to an agreement."
They walked on to a wing of the office tyler knew was full of desks. Behind it were the stairwells and elevators. Great was his surprise to see that the whole floor had been emptied and there were tables with fifteen chairs in a wide U-shape behind it. Lonely in the middle in front of the rest, stood his table with chair.

Jawdat had made a list with the names of all those present and the order in which they sat. From left to right, these were:
Gaith Mahfouz, head of the family. His sons; Mahmud and Girgis and his grandsons; Bahir and Isaam.
Murtada Benali, head of the family. His sons; Tamer and Bushr and his grandsons; Mochine and Wahid.
Followed by the Al-Din representatives; Fleur, Princess Jasmine, Marwon, Amir and Jawdat.
He nodded to the people he knew and looked surprised at Fleur's presence. He walked up to her. "I was expecting Murad. Is everything okay?"
"My father does not want to leave Sheikh Jabaar alone in this uncertain time," she said softly.
"Of course," Tyler nodded, and he patted her on the hands. Her fingers felt like ice, same as his.

There was a lot of buzz in the big space. Their arrival had only intensified this.
Tyler took his place and cleared his throat. Almost immediately, everyone fell silent.
"Ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for responding to the invitation sent in my name. For the people who don't know me yet? My name is Tyler Reed and I am the bearer of the eye of Al-Din."
He saw princess Jasmine and Fleur both frowning at the addition of the Al-Din section. "I give the floor to Jawdat Al-Din first." Tyler took a seat on his chair.

Jawdat got up. "Thank you, Mr. Reed."
With admiration, Tyler watched as he spoke to the group.
"There is a non-disclosure agreement in front of you. We won't move on until everyone has signed it."
Noise broke loose.
"What does this mean?" demanded Bahir Mahfouz.
Tyler looked at the man tightly. "Well," he replied sneering. "I didn't study to be a lawyer, but the meaning of a non-disclosure agreement seems clear to me."
Because he didn't care at all what the man would do, he added almost in a bored tone: "If you want to know what's going to be discussed, you need to sign. If you don't, you can leave. Your choice."
Tyler looked at those present who were now hunched over the document. Would the person responsible for the attacks be among them? A chilly shudder pulled over his back.
Jawdat got up to collect the papers. "Sixteen signed documents," he said aloud so everyone was aware.
"Thank you, Jawdat."

Tyler came off his chair and walked around so he could lean against the edge of the table.
"We were all here because due to a strange course of circumstances I got this." He pulled out the medallion and visibly left it on his shirt. "When I asked about the meaning of this gift, I was told that I was now considered to be a friend of the family. A protector." He smiled warmly at Princess Jasmine.