But now wasn’t the time for caution.
“Yeah. Maybe you’re right.” He stood abruptly and threw some cash on the bar. “I’ve got to get going. Thanks, man. It really helped.”
“Good. Hey, Ash,” he called when Asher turned to walk away. Asher turned back. “Don’t forget to invite me to your wedding.”
Asher gave a half grin and a wave. He wished like hell he could be as optimistic as his friend. As things stood, maybe there weren’t as many barriers between Laila and him as there had been eight years ago.
But there were enough to make this whole situation a damn steep risk.
• • •
On Monday morning, Laila came up behind her cousin Driss where he stood in the kitchen surrounded by various gabbing family members. She tugged on his elbow gently, praying her aunt Nadine wouldn’t notice Laila stealing away her son for a moment. Driss was a captain in the Navy, six feet two inches tall, with a build that had helped him make the Michigan All-State football team as an offensive lineman back in high school. But he was comically helpless when it came to his tiny mother’s demands, and Nadine was being uncommonly clingy with him during this brief visit. Nadine was orchestrating the breakfast preparation though, so there was a good chance they could get a few moments of privacy. When Driss turned and saw her silent plea for silence, he followed her down the hall into the empty sitting room. As planned, Tahi was already there, waiting for them.
“What are you two up to?” Driss asked, laughing.
“We need to talk to you,” Laila said, shutting the door. “About something important.”
Driss’s amusement faded when he noticed their somber expressions.
“You’ve seen how emotional Aunt Nadine is, with you being here with Sara,” Tahi began. “She starts crying every other minute, it seems like.”
“She misses Zara,” Laila said starkly. Driss started slightly at having his sister’s name said out loud, but Laila was tired of beating aroun
d the bush. Zara was a person—a member of the family whom they all loved. She was sick of taking part in this ridiculous drama and constantly leaping over the topic of her. “We all miss her,” she added, stepping toward her cousin.
“Of course we do,” Driss said, recovering. “And of course I’ve noticed how emotional Mom is.”
“Your upcoming wedding is making her miss Zara even more than usual,” Laila stated.
A flicker of pain went across her cousin’s face. “I know, but what can I do about it?”
“You’ve always been reasonable, Driss. More reasonable than most of the people in this family. You must realize this whole thing with Zara being labeled an outcast can’t go on forever. She’s your sister, for goodness’ sake,” Tahi said, frowning.
“Zara is the one who left.”
“She left because she no longer felt welcome in her own home,” Laila defended hotly. When she saw Driss’s expression tighten at her outburst, she inhaled, trying to calm herself. “You honestly can’t be okay with this . . . this thing we do, ignoring Zara’s existence, treating her like an anathema, denouncing her like she’s cursed. She’s still your sister. She’s still Aunt Nadine and Uncle Reda’s daughter. Isn’t she?”
The ensuing silence rang in her ears. For a few seconds, Laila’s heart squeezed tight in anguish as she sensed the battle waging inside Driss to answer. Yes, she and Tahi had decided on the drive to Detroit to speak to Driss and enlist his help in doing something to address the Zara issue. Driss was the perfect person to get involved. He was the apple of his mother’s eye, and he and Zara had always shared a close relationship. But Laila hadn’t realized until that moment just how personally invested she was in healing this rift between Zara and the family. It was like part of her believed that if her family couldn’t ever accept Zara, then she—Laila—was certainly doomed if she ever exposed her true feelings for Asher.
And in a flash, she realized the futility of her anguish. She would never be able to twist her family’s emotions to meet her personal desires.
“I don’t think I can do anything to change my parents’ mind, if that’s what you’re getting at,” Driss said. A feeling of profound sadness went through her, because she felt the truth of his words in the very core of her in that moment. “Besides, what difference does it make? Zara is gone. We don’t even know where she is.”
“We do,” Tahi stated. She gave Laila an anxious glance. “Or at least we have, several times in the past, before she moved on to another job. We’ve been trying to track her whereabouts over the years. We think she’s still in Detroit, or at least she was as of recently.” Tahi went on to explain all the details to Driss about their attempts to contact Zara. Laila didn’t speak, sensing Driss’s doubts about their proposed plan to bring Zara back into the fold . . . feeling her own sense of loss and sadness growing.
“So . . . can we depend on you to help us try to right things with Zara and the family?” Tahi asked breathlessly after several minutes.
“I can’t change my parents’ mind,” Driss said. He noticed Tahi’s disappointment. “But I can do one thing,” Driss added quickly. He gave Laila a glance. “I can try to join in the hunt and help you find her.”
“You will?” Laila asked, her heart thawing a little.
Driss nodded. “She’s my sister, and I miss her. I’m not the whole family, but I’m one more person on your side. That’s something, isn’t it?”
Laila glanced over at Tahi, who was watching her with shining eyes. Her chest ached. Tahi had always stood by her. She’d always been her family, not just in name, but in deed. She walked over to Tahi and grabbed her hand before turning to Driss.
“It’s more than just something, Driss. It’s huge. And maybe it’s all we can hope for,” she said, her voice hoarse with emotion. She squeezed Tahi’s hand. “One family member at a time.”
• • •