by Farah Zaman
They agreed to take a section of the wharf each and search for fifteen minutes. If they did not come across a boat with the emblem within that time, they would stop the search and move on. Zaid began searching his section, noting that some of the boats had popular names like Fawziya, Johara, and Lulwa. His eyes soon began to water from the glare of the sun, but he had yet to sight any boats with the emblem. After the fifteen minutes were up, they gave up the search.
“Well, none of the boats here seem to have that emblem,” Adam said. “We’ll probably have to try one of the other wharves.”
“Why not ask someone here about the emblem,” Layla suggested.
“There are two sailors in that boat over there,” Zahra pointed to their left. “We can ask them.”
The two sailors, bearded and disheveled, were caulking the deck of a small fishing boat. They looked up with mild curiosity as the teenagers approached.
“Excuse me,” Zaid said politely, holding up his sketch. “We’re looking for a boat with this emblem. Have you seen it before?”
The two men squinted up at the sketch.
“Looks like a crest,” the first one finally said.
“Seems sort of familiar,” the second one remarked, stroking his beard thoughtfully. “I do believe it’s the crest the Ambreens use on their boats.”
“The Ambreens’ crest?” Zaid queried with interest. “Are you sure?”
“That’s what it looks like, my boy,” the second sailor said as he wiped the sweat off his forehead and went back to his caulking.
“How come we didn’t see any boats here with it?” Layla asked.
“That’s not surprising,” the first sailor chuckled.
“Why not?” Adam asked.
“Because, son,” the second sailor grunted as he tamped down on the caulking, “them Ambreens have their own shipyard and wharf.”
“Really?” Zahra said. “Where?”
“If you follow the curve of the bay that way for about two miles,” the first sailor pointed a callused finger, “you’ll soon come to it.”
After thanking the men, the teenagers, tired and sweating from their first ride but filled with the thrill of the chase, quickly mounted their bikes and set off for the Ambreen’s shipyard and wharf. When they arrived there, perspiring and wilting from the heat, they found the shipyard a hive of activity with muscular, sunburned men working at ships in various stages of construction. The wharf was at the back of the shipyard and as the teenagers passed by, the men stared curiously at them.
“Can we help you?” called out a burly man with a balding head and salt-and-pepper beard.
“We’re just going to take a look around,” Adam replied.
“Well, you’d better do it quickly before the boss sees you,” the man warned.
“What does he mean by that?” Zahra asked as the man went back to his work.
“I guess the boss, whoever he is, doesn’t like visitors,” Adam replied. “Well, we’d better hurry.”
The teenagers quickened their strides to the wharf and stared at the plethora of boats moored there. Zaid pulled out his sketch and they could see right away that it was an exact match of the emblem on the boats.
“It’s the exact same thing,” Zahra said excitedly.
“It certainly is,” Layla agreed.
“WHAT ARE YOU KIDS DOING HERE?” a harsh voice suddenly bellowed behind them. Startled, they spun around to see a hawk-nosed man bearing down upon them. Zaid hastily pocketed the purple notepad, saying under his breath, “Uh oh, that must be the boss.”
Raising his voice, Adam called out, “We’re just taking a look around.”
“You have no business being here,” the man shouted roughly. “This is private property. Get moving!”
Zaid thought the man looked vaguely familiar. With his distinctive nose, protruding eyes and thick lips, he looked like a cross between an angry bird and a baleful frog. In the shipyard, everything went quiet as the men stopped their work and watched the drama unfolding before them. The hawk-nosed man turned around and with a sharp word, sent them all scuttling back to their tasks.
“He must be one of the pirates,” Layla said softly. “He fits the bill—ugly and nasty.”
As Zahra gave a nervous giggle, the man reached their side in a few quick strides and said impatiently, “Did you hear what I said. Get out of here!”
Fuming, the teenagers marched across the shipyard, and rode off on their bikes without a backward look. When they were out of sight of the shipyard, Adam called a halt in a grassy field and they sat down to rest and sip their water.
“Any of you remember seeing that man before?” he asked. “He looks sort of familiar.”
“He does,” Layla tilted her head to the side as she tried to remember.
“He was with Faruq Ambreen at the mosque that day,” Zaid’s brain suddenly clicked on the memory. “Grandpa said he was Faruq Ambreen’s cousin, Talal.”
“So that’s who he is,” Adam scowled. “Well, one thing’s clear. If the pirates are using their boats, then it means that the Ambreens are part of the pirate ring.”
Zaid cautioned, “We don’t know that for sure. The pirates could be renting the boats from them. Let’s gather some more evidence before we say anything.”
Chapter Twenty:
Underground Excursion
Exhausted from their long and strenuous bicycle ride, Zaid slept deeply that night until dawn broke. If a boat came into the cove during his hours of slumber, he certainly did not hear it.
When they met in Moss Haven later that morning, Layla had an interesting nugget of information to share with them. “I asked Grandpa this morning what date Aunt Hanifa died. After he told me, I asked him how she died. He gave me a strange look and said that she fell ill. When I compared the dates, guess what? She died just two days after her last entry in the journal.”
“It must have been a sudden illness,” Zaid said.
“I guess so,” Layla agreed. “Because she didn’t mention anything about being sick in her previous entries. I feel so sad when I think of her dying so young. She was only fifteen. And it was so soon after the Captain’s death. I can only imagine how Great-Grandma Saffiyah must have grieved.”
After several poignant moments of silence, Adam said, “Well, let’s take a look at the riddle again.”
Zaid pulled out the well-creased yellowed paper and they stared at the now familiar words.
Take a careful look at important events in the past, for the simple answer why one who always trifles with destiny is the main seeker of honor and glory of any tale.
After several attempts to figure out the answer, they gave up.
“What does it mean?” Layla threw up her hands in frustration. “This seems to be our only clue and we still can’t make head or tail of it.”
Zaid sighed and said, “I keep getting the feeling that I’m missing something.”
“Well, let’s continue to search the library today.” Adam, ever practical, got to his feet. “Tonight, we’ll explore the other two tunnels. If Zaid hears the boat later, we’ll go down to the cove.”
Layla surprised them all by saying, “I want to come explore the tunnels too. And don’t tell me I can’t,” she added fiercely as Adam was about to speak.
“I wasn’t going to say you can’t,” Adam replied mildly. “I thought you were afraid.”
“Well, my curiosity is much stronger than my fear,” Layla admitted.
“If Layla’s going, then I’ll go too,” Zahra said bravely. From past experience, Zaid knew that it was futile to argue with his sister once her mind was made up. But he had to let her know what the tunnels were like.
“It’s very dark and creepy down there, Zahra,” he said. “Are you sure you want to go?”
“Well, I have to give it a try, don’t I?” she looked at
him defiantly.
That night, they all assembled in the twins’ room in preparation for their exploration. To Adam and Layla’s exasperation, Hassan and Hakeem insisted on going with them.
“We’re going to do a lot of walking,” Layla tried to dissuade them. “You’ll get tired and sleepy.”
“No, we won’t,” Hassan said mutinously.
“We’re not babies, you know,” Hakeem said scornfully.
“We found the stairs first,” Hassan said accusingly. “You told us not to go down by ourselves and now you won’t let us come with you. Every day you go into the garden too and don’t take us with you.”
Their list of transgressions grew as Hakeem continued indignantly, “And you went riding without us today. You can’t have all the fun.”
“Alright, alright,” Adam threw up his hands in defeat. “You can come with us. The more the merrier. But not a word to anyone of what you’ve seen and heard, okay?”
Mollified now, Hassan hopped around excitedly and said, “We won’t. We won’t.”
“If you forget, I’ll pinch you,” Hakeem pledged solemnly to his twin.
“So that’s your technique to keep the little blurter quiet, huh?” Layla remarked. “Well, be sure to give him a nice big one if he opens his mouth to rat on us.”
“I don’t like you,” Hassan scowled at his older sister. “You’re mean.”
Instantly contrite, Layla gave him a hug and said, “Oh sweetie, I’m sorry. I know you won’t do it deliberately.”
“What’s dilba…ratey?” Hassan asked suspiciously, his tongue stumbling over the unfamiliar word.
Zaid, who along with Zahra, had been watching the byplay among the siblings with great amusement said, “It means that you don’t say or do things to hurt or get anyone in trouble. As Hakeem said, you just forget.”
Adam said impatiently, “We need to get moving or it will be midnight soon. Can you girls help the boys put on some clothes? They can’t go in their pajamas.”
Zaid said, “I have an idea. Why don’t we split up into two groups and take a tunnel each? It will be less walking and we will finish faster.”
“That’s a good idea,” Adam agreed. “Layla and Hakeem can come with me. You take Zahra and Hassan. We already have two balls of strings. We will need two more flashlights for the girls.”
“I’ll get them from the storeroom,” Zaid offered.
While he was gone, the girls helped to get the twins dressed in jeans and T-shirts. When Zaid returned, they all entered the closet one by one and climbed down the hidden stairwell. For Zahra, who hated dark enclosed spaces, it was quite daunting to lower herself into the recess. With much trepidation she went down the stairwell, resolutely averting her gaze from the network of spider webs suspended overhead. Hassan and Hakeem were whispering to each other, their voices sounding distorted in the compact space. Soon, they came to the end of the stairwell and entered the large chamber.
“This is the big room we sawed,” Hassan said.
Adam said to Zaid, “My group will take the second tunnel from the left. Your group can take the other one.”
The youths had reeled back the string they had used previously and the ball was hanging from the nail in the wall. Quickly, they hammered another nail and affixed the second ball of string. Adam then instructed, “The group that returns first should wait here until the other group gets back. If any part of the tunnel has collapsed, or if there’s flowing water along the way, return at once. All right, let’s go.”
With Adam and Zaid each holding a ball of string and a flashlight, they set off.
The tunnel that Adam, Layla, and Hakeem took was just like the others, except that Adam had to stoop a bit in some places where the ceiling became low. He kept to a slow, measured pace in consideration of the uneven floor and Hakeem’s short legs. Finally, it ended at a short flight of stairs.
“There’s no way out,” Layla said. “That’s strange.”
“Look, there’s a trapdoor up there,” Adam shone the flashlight above the stairs, where a rusty metal door was built into the ceiling. “Let’s see where it goes.”
“I’ll help you to open it,” Layla said. “It might be a little rusty.”
As Hakeem held their flashlights and shone it upwards, Adam and Layla climbed the stairs until they were within reach of the trapdoor. Flattening their palms against it, they heaved with all their strength. The door groaned and swung open upwards upon two hinges. Eagerly, the siblings peered out into the darkness. All they could see was an open space surrounded by trees.
“Let’s go out and get some fresh air,” Adam suggested. “We’ll also see how far away from the house we are.”
From the topmost stair, it was easy to get out through the trapdoor. One by one, they emerged and gulped in the fresh, cool air which was a welcome relief after their procession down the dusty tunnel. They were standing in a wide-open space, surprisingly free of bushes and undergrowth. On the fringes were tall trees that swayed gently in the soft wind, their branches casting waving shadows upon the ground. The stars, outlined against a sky that looked like soup broth, seemed close enough to reach up and grab, while across the distant horizon, a long swathe of white clouds slowly began to meander apart.
“We must be at the very back of the grounds,” Adam said. “I can’t recall seeing this area before.”
His flashlight picked out several stone tablets jutting out of the ground. They were small in size and evenly spaced apart. Stooping down, he pointed the flashlight at one of them and received a shock.
“I don’t believe this,” he said in a hushed voice.
“What is it?” Layla asked.
“Come and look,” Adam said.
Bending down, Layla stared at the stone tablet framed in the flashlight. Then she saw the words written on it and drew a sharp breath. “Oh my God, it’s a graveyard.”
“Yes. And Great-Grandma Saffiyah is buried under this marker. I’m sure the other markers are family members too.”
Even though she knew there was nothing to fear from the dead, Layla could not help the involuntary shiver that crept down her spine. “I think we should go now.”
“Let me look at one more marker,” Adam said. Crossing over to the next stone tablet that lay to the left, he said in an awed voice, “The Captain is buried here.”
Hesitantly, Layla took a few steps over to the tablet on the right and shone her flashlight on it. “And Aunt Hanifa is here.”
Hakeem clutched Adam’s hand. “I’m scared.”
“There’s nothing to be scared of,” Adam said firmly. “Our family who died are buried here. We have to pray for them and ask that Allah make their graves spacious and filled with light, that He forgives their sins and grant them the Garden of Paradise. Do you think you can remember that?”
“Yes…I think…so,” Hakeem answered falteringly.
“Okay, then let’s take a minute and pray for them. Then we’ll leave,” Adam promised.
As they returned to the tunnel and retraced their steps back to the large chamber, Layla said, “I wonder if the others are back. Won’t they be surprised to hear that we found the family’s graveyard.”
Upon entering the large chamber, however, they found that the other group had not yet returned.
“Their tunnel must have been longer,” Adam speculated. “We’ll just have to wait for them to come. It shouldn’t be too long now.”
“We’d better wind up the string before it gets all tangled up,” Layla suggested.
The tunnel that Zaid’s group took was designed no differently than the others, and they walked slowly and carefully over the indentations beneath their feet. They had not walked very far when Hassan stopped and whispered, “Do you hear that?”
“Hear what?” Zaid asked as he and Zahra also came to a stop.
In the silence, the
y heard a series of faint echoes.
“What in the world is that?” Zahra asked.
“It must be the jinn,” Hassan whispered.
“No, it’s not,” Zaid squeezed the boy’s hand reassuringly. As the echoing sounds came again, he said wonderingly, “I believe they’re voices.”
“Could it be Adam and the others?” Zahra asked.
“No, they’re men’s voices,” Zaid replied as he caught the deep timbre of the echoes.
“Who could they be?” Zahra whispered apprehensively.
“I don’t know,” Zaid answered. “We have to go take a look. The others will want to know who they are. It’s up to us to find out.”
“Yes, it’s up to us,” Hassan’s voice was filled with importance.
In the darkness, Zahra grimaced and thought, if it had been up to me, I would have hightailed it back to my room.
As they continued forward, the voices rose and fell sporadically, with occasional bursts of laughter which filled the tunnel with ghastly echoes.
“I’m scared,” Hassan whispered, clutching at Zahra’s hand.
“It’s alright, sweetie,” Zahra said, squeezing his hand comfortingly even though she herself was a bundle of nerves.
As they rounded a curve in the tunnel, they saw light up ahead.
“Turn off your flashlight,” Zaid said to Zahra, as he clicked his own off. They were immediately cast into gloom, save for the light ahead. “All right, let’s go extra quietly now.”
They soon passed by another tunnel to their right and came to a stop. Above the opening was a large X written in white chalk and they stared at this unexpected sight.
“Well, this is unusual,” Zaid said in a low voice. “I wonder who put that mark there and how old it is. We’ll have to explore this tunnel another time.”
“Do you think the jinn will be in there?” Hassan whispered.
“Shush,” Zahra said, taking hold of the little boy’s hand. “Let’s not talk about that now.”
As they set off again, the light grew brighter and the voices more distinct. In front of them, Zaid saw a stone gallery with high iron railings. Inching forward, they peered cautiously between the railings and Zaid’s eyes widened in amazement. Below was a large, brightly lit cavern with several men busy at work packing and unpacking boxes and crates. They conversed loudly as they worked, cracking jokes and ribbing each other with easy familiarity.