The Moon of Masarrah

by Farah Zaman

  “Let him go,” Adam said fiercely as Hassan scrunched up his face in fear.

  “Then give me the diamond,” Nassif said silkily.

  With a look of fury, Adam reluctantly held out the Moon. Nassif snatched it from him and stared at the diamond with a covetous look of wonder on his face.

  “We’re going to get it back from you, don’t think we won’t,” Adam said furiously.

  “Don’t be a sore loser,” Nassif mocked him. “I warned you not to look for it in the first place.”

  “So, you were the one trying to scare us away,” Zaid said accusingly.

  “Yes,” Nassif chuckled. “I had a great time at the playland. I guess I should be grateful that you didn’t listen to my warnings. Otherwise I wouldn’t have gotten my hands on this little beauty,” he caressed the stone. “I’ve searched all over the house but never thought that it would be hidden in that hideous old rocking horse.”

  “You’ve been searching the house?” Layla asked disbelievingly.

  “Oh, yes,” Nassif smirked. “From the tunnels, I’ve used this secret panel and the hidden stairwell upstairs to look around. One of these little brats saw me one night as I was going out their door, so I had to be extremely careful after that.”

  “You’re the jinn,” Hassan cried out. “I sawed you. And Hakeem heard you.”

  “We saw you here one night too,” Zaid said, recalling the figure with the flashlight in the living room. “We just didn’t realize it was you.”

  “You must have been the one who put that skull and crossbones poster in the cellar,” Layla said. “It all makes sense now.”

  Suddenly, the doorbell rang and Nassif stood stock still in surprise at the unexpected interruption. As the bell pealed again, he put the diamond in his pocket and said menacingly, “Not a sound from any of you.”

  The bell rang once more before it became silent. Zaid thought that whoever had rang it must have left when there was no response.

  “Okay, I want everyone inside the passage now,” Nassif rapped out.

  “We gave you the Moon,” Adam said angrily. “You don’t need to take us too.”

  “Oh yes, I do,” Nassif insisted. “Otherwise, the moment I leave, you’ll be running to sound the alarm. Now, get into the passage,” he began shoving them roughly with his free hand.

  Helplessly, the teenagers and twins went through the opening onto a little landing. Following after them, Nassif pulled out a powerful flashlight and closed the open panel with a soft click of the clasp. From the landing, they descended a short flight of stairs into a cramped space. Nassif opened another clasp and a panel glided open to reveal the large chamber they were familiar with. Not bothering to close back the panel, he prodded them towards the second tunnel from the right and Zaid realized that he was taking them to the cavern.

  “How did you learn about these tunnels?” he asked Nassif. “Are you working for the Ambreens?”

  “Clever of you to guess that,” Nassif said sarcastically. “Faruq Ambreen figured that you kids would be trouble after you went looking up the Moon at the library.”

  “The Ambreens know about the Moon?” Zahra asked in surprise.

  “Oh, yes,” came the answer. “I’m so glad that they sent me over today to see what was going on. I heard there was some excitement earlier.”

  “They almost murdered my brother and friend in the cove,” Layla said indignantly. “They will be very sorry when the TCBI comes crawling all over here,” she added with relish.

  “I could care less about the Ambreens,” Nassif said indifferently. “I’ve got what I wanted and they won’t see me again.”

  “Very loyal, aren’t you,” Adam sneered. “The Ambreens will soon know what a traitor they hired.”

  “Listen, I don’t owe the Ambreens a thing,” Nassif burst out angrily. “They owe me.”

  As they passed the tunnel marked with the large white X, Hassan recognized it and said fearfully, “The bones of the ghost are in there. We sawed it that night.”

  Nassif chuckled and said cryptically, “I was telling you that the Ambreens owe me. Well, in that tunnel lies the reason why.”

  “What do you mean?” Zahra asked.

  “Those old bones in there belonged to my great-grandfather,” came the surprising answer.

  “Your great-grandfather?” Layla asked. “Who was that?”

  “His name was Tahir Usmani. I never had the pleasure of knowing him.”

  “Tahir Usmani?” Zahra gasped. “But he was Iyad Usmani’s father.”

  “So you must be Iyad’s grandson,” Zaid said.

  “Which means that Iyad wasn’t murdered on the Night of Catastrophe,” Adam concluded. “He must have fled Midan. No wonder Nuh saw the resemblance.”

  “Well, well,” Nassif said. “I didn’t realize you know my family history so well.”

  “But everyone thought that Tahir drowned,” Zahra said. “He must have gotten lost down here and died.”

  Nassif gave a cackle of mirth. “You kids are so stupid. Trust me, the old man didn’t get lost down here.”

  “So how did he die here then?” Zaid asked. “And how do you even know it’s his bones?”

  “I know for a fact that it’s his,” Nassif replied. “He couldn’t keep his mouth shut, that’s why he ended up here.”

  “He was murdered?” Adam said aghast. “Your grandfather Iyad murdered his own father? Did he murder the Captain too, so he could steal the diamond?”

  “Wrong on both counts, you dumb infants,” Nassif answered scornfully. “My grandfather didn’t murder anyone.”

  “Then who murdered them?’ Zaid asked.

  “That’s none of your business,” Nassif snapped. “You’re too nosy for your own good.”

  There was no more conversation until they reached the gallery and Nassif herded them down into the cavern.

  “On the ground, all of you,” he ordered, laying his flashlight onto a table and pulling on a coil of rope. Oh no, Zaid thought in dismay. He’s going to tie us and leave us here. I can’t believe we’re prisoners again.

  “You can’t leave us here,” Adam said furiously.

  “They’ll find you nosy brats sooner or later, I’m sure,” Nassif replied callously. “By then, I’ll be long gone.”

  “What are you going to do with the Moon?” Layla demanded.

  “As if I’d tell you,” Nassif laughed scornfully. “Let’s just say that you’ll never see me or the Moon ever again. Well, which one of you wants to go first?” he held out the rope. “Or should I take my pick?”

  “You won’t get away with this,” Adam said mutinously.

  “You seem to be the most troublesome of the bunch,” Nassif said. “I think you’ll be the first. You,” he barked, hurling the rope at Zaid, who flinched as it stung his bare arm. “Tie his wrists together. Do it quickly and no tricks or I’ll put a bullet in you.”

  Sullenly, Zaid began tying Adam’s wrists, trying to make the bond as loose as possible. Wholly caught up in the scene in front of them, none of them noticed the figure creeping down from the gallery, an object in his hand. Concealed by the boxes and crates lying all around, the figure crept closer and closer to where Nassif stood until he was directly behind the chauffeur. Then, with a great lunge, he whacked Nassif soundly on the back with the object, putting all his weight behind the blow. Nassif fell forward onto the ground, the gun dropping from his hand.

  “Basim,” They all gaped at the strapping youth and the incongruous object in his hand before they swung into action. While Zahra and Layla untied Adam, the other boys used their weight to hold Nassif down on the ground. Then Adam, the girls and the twins also entered the fray.

  Nassif had recovered now and was beginning to wrestle with his captors.

  “Hakeem, get the rope,” Adam called out and the little boy sped
forward to where the rope lay on the ground. Nassif snarled like a wild beast as he struggled desperately. Hakeem returned with the rope and Zaid grabbed it, his breath whooshing out as Nassif ’s knee made contact with his stomach. At last, Nassif lay securely bound, his eyes glittering murderously.

  “Told you we would get this back,” Adam crowed jubilantly as he removed the precious diamond from Nassif’s pocket and slipped it into his own.

  Zaid grinned and slapped Basim on the back. “Basim, I don’t know how you came to be here, but you’re a hero.”

  Layla laughed and said, “Thanks to you…and Maymun’s rolling pin?” she cast a comical look at the object on the ground, “we’re not prisoners anymore.”

  Basim beamed at everyone, his chubby face alight with pleasure.

  “I don’t know what this is all about,” he gestured to the bound Nassif, “but I’m amazed by these underground passages,” he looked around the cavern in awe.

  “How did you find us?” Adam asked.

  “Well, I rang the doorbell but no one opened the door. I thought maybe the bell wasn’t working, so I decided to walk around to the kitchen to see if Maymun was there. As I passed by the living room, I peered in at the windows to see if any of you were in there. The curtains were open a bit and I was shocked to see Nassif pointing a gun at you and forcing you into that hidden compartment in the wall. I knew I had to help you, so after trying the back door and finding it locked, I’m afraid I had to break one of the windows in the living room to get in. I couldn’t figure out how to get that hidden compartment open, so I hit it until it finally swung open. It was really dark, so I got a flashlight from the storeroom and Maymun’s rolling pin from the kitchen as a weapon. I was able to follow you by the sound of your voices and finally tackle him,” he looked disdainfully at the chauffeur.

  “You chose the perfect time to visit,” Zahra said happily.

  “Well, I was actually coming to tell you what I found out about Nassif yesterday. As he was helping Mom to unload groceries from the car, a letter fell out of his pocket. When I picked it up to give back to him, I noticed that it was addressed to Nassif Iyad Multani. I decided to come over to tell you, so I asked Mom to bring me over since I couldn’t get hold of him. I had no idea he’d be here causing trouble.”

  “He’s Iyad Usmani’s grandson,” Layla told Basim.

  “How come your last name is different?” Adam asked their prisoner.

  “My grandfather changed it when he started his new life,” Nassif said sullenly.

  “Things will go easier for you if you come clean and tell us all you know,” Zaid advised. “Who murdered the Captain and your great-grandfather, Tahir?”

  “It was Jafar Ambreen,” came the shocking answer.

  “Jafar Ambreen,” Zahra exclaimed. “He wasn’t even on the ship. How did he know about the diamond?”

  At that moment, there was a shout and the sound of running feet. A flashlight moved atop the gallery and Mir appeared, followed by Mr. Horani, Luqman, and Abbas.

  “Are you children all right?” Mr. Horani asked. “After we saw the broken window and hidden compartment, we thought the pirates must have taken you prisoners again. Who’s that?” Mr. Horani’s voice came to an abrupt stop as he tried to make out the bound figure in the dim light.

  “It’s a long story,” Adam replied. “And you won’t believe what we found.”

  Epilogue

  Two weeks later, Zaid sat on the rug in the great hall at Bayan House, gazing at the sea of faces gathered around him. Next to him were the other teenagers, the twins, and Basim. The house was ablaze with lights and filled with the merry chatter of voices all trying to speak at once. In addition to the household and employees, there were other guests present that evening.

  Zaid’s eyes kindled with pleasure as they fell upon his parents, Professor and Mrs. Alkurdi, who were speaking with Dr. Horani and his wife. Next to them were the Ahmeds, the Tabibis and Shaykh Sulaiman of Ghassan, Mustapha like a shadow next to him. Zaid grinned as his gaze went next to Mir, who was making sheep’s eyes at his smiling wife, Sabaa. She was a pretty, petite woman who had professed herself delighted to meet them after hearing so much about them from Mir. Last of all, Zaid’s eyes rested on Old Bashir, the wooden rocking horse, tucked discreetly in a corner of the great hall.

  Everyone gathered there had been involved one way or another in the chain of events that had unfolded in the last few weeks. They knew little bits and pieces of what had happened but none of them knew the full extent to which events in the past had impacted the present. Thus, the gathering of family and friends provided an opportunity for all the mysteries to be cleared up and all secrets to be revealed. After eating a sumptuous dinner and performing the sunset prayer, the household was now gathered in the great hall to hear many of the details which were as yet unknown to them.

  Zaid came to attention when Mr. Horani began to speak.

  “My dear family and friends, you have all been invited here so you can listen firsthand to the tale you’re about to hear,” he began. “It’s not my tale to tell for indeed I play a very minor role in it all. It’s the young people’s tale and you will hear it from them. Adam,” Mr. Horani gestured to his oldest grandson, “you can begin now.”

  The room became hushed as Adam began telling them of what had transpired at Bayan House since their arrival. Occasionally, he would ask the teenagers and twins to tell their parts.

  Everyone looked bemused after the teenagers finished telling their tale.

  “Astounding,” Professor Alkurdi said. “Underground tunnels and pirates. Subhanallah.”

  “And finding the Moon to boot,” Dr. Horani said. “You children have done us proud.”

  To Hassan and Hakeem’s delight, they were patted and complimented for their part in training Gul to carry messages and in finding the hidden stairwell. Their ingenuousness in helping to pluck the Moon out of Old Bashir’s belly was also a source of much amusement.

  The lighthearted comments soon gave way to more weighty matters.

  “Faruq is a chip off the old block,” Abbas murmured. “I would never have guessed that it was Jafar who murdered the Captain. Can someone tell us how that came about?”

  Adam explained, “After questioning Nassif and Faruq, we were able to put all the pieces together. It all began when Iyad went up north to get his wife and daughter back. After he was told by the tribe that she had divorced him, he set fire to some of their tents in anger and several people got burnt trying to put out the fires. They would have hanged him if they had caught him, that’s why Tahir begged the Captain to take Iyad on that voyage. On the way to Yemen, they stopped at the Port of Ghassan for a few days to load some cargo. On the evening that the Captain bought the Moon from the fence’s cousin, Iyad happened to see the Captain giving the man a wad of bills and the man giving the Captain a pouch in return. He was curious to know what was in the pouch but was unable to do so because the Captain kept it in a locked box in his cabin. He got lucky the very next day. When he went to clean the Captain’s cabin, he found that the Captain had accidentally dropped his bunch of keys on the bunk. Iyad wasted no time in opening the locked box.”

  “Imagine his surprise,” Zahra continued, “when he saw a beautiful gem inside and knew at once that it was the Moon of Masarrah. He had worked for a jeweler in his younger days and had a trained eye when it came to precious stones. After reading about the theft in all the sensational news articles in Midan, he knew that the missing stone’s appearance and description exactly matched the one he now held in his hands. From that moment on, he thought of nothing else but stealing the gem for himself so he could gain wealth and power. He couldn’t do it on the ship because he knew he would be caught, so he waited for a chance and got it when they reached land. When they heard of the coup, the Captain was in a hurry to get home and set off immediately on foot. Iyad’s plan was to follow him,
knock him unconscious along the way and steal the stone. As he set off after the Captain, he ran into no other than his best friend, Jafar Ambreen. Glad to have an accomplice, Iyad quickly told Jafar of the diamond and his plan to steal it from the Captain. Jafar agreed at once to help him.”

  Zaid now took up the tale and said, “The two accomplices had just started off when the messenger who had been sent to warn the Captain came on the scene and asked where he was. Learning that Iyad had been a crewman on the Yuhanza, he told them of the message he was supposed to have given the Captain and his intention to go after him and warn him not to go home but to join his family in Bayan Woods. Since this would have interfered with their plan to steal the stone, Jafar took Iyad’s khanjar and killed the messenger. Iyad was shocked but he still wanted the stone, so they continued after the Captain, who must have run all the way home for they didn’t catch up with him at all. When they reached the house, all was quiet, with no sign of the rebels. They waited a bit to make sure that no one else came. While Iyad kept watch in the courtyard, Jafar used his head covering to make a mask for his face, and went into the house. When he saw the Captain in the great hall, all his old hatred rose up. It was then that he decided to get rid of his rival and steal the diamond at the same time. He knew that the rebels would be blamed, and no one would suspect him at all. So he killed the Captain with the bloodied khanjar he still carried, cleverly taking the Captain’s khanjar so everyone would think that the Captain had been stabbed with his own dagger.”

  Layla continued, “While the Captain lay dying, Jafar searched for the diamond but could not find it. When he returned to the courtyard and told Iyad what had happened, Iyad became angry and that’s when the two friends had a falling out and began to quarrel. Iyad said that Jafar had gone too far in killing the men and Jafar said that Iyad would be blamed for the murders since it was Iyad’s weapon which had killed them. Filled with fear and panic, and still in danger from his ex-wife’s tribe, Iyad took off that very night on a ship bound for Yemen. As we know, he never set foot in Midan again. As for Jafar, he cunningly placed the Captain’s khanjar in the bag and left it outside Iyad’s house. And the rest is history, as they say.”