– May I?
He took her arm and smelled the ointment.
– What is it?
Zabi said:
– It stops the burns from itching. So I don’t scratch them and they can heal, that’s what Nara says.
– Where did you find the ointment? Did the soldiers give it to you?
Nara answered:
– We made it, while you were sleeping. From almond oil, boiled juniper berries and some flowers we found outside. The soldiers gave us the oil. We found the rest of the ingredients. Zabi insisted on the flowers.
Zabi added:
– We didn’t know what kind of flowers they were. I’ve never seen them before. I’ve never been this high up before. This is the first mountain I’ve climbed.
Nara stroked back Zabi’s hair.
– I tried to explain that just because something is pretty, it doesn’t make it harmless.
Zabi replied:
– Before I could use it in the medicine, she ate a flower, just to test to see if it was harmful. I watched her put it on her tongue and then swallow it. The petals were blue.
Zabi paused, looking at her fingers.
– Did you know that the colour red tastes bitter?
Without any preamble, apparently for no reason at all, she began to cry, unable to stop. Nara put an arm around her, careful to avoid her burns. Whatever Leo planned to do, he would have to do it with them. They would come with him. He would not leave them behind.
Same Day
After breakfast, Leo waited for a chance to speak to Nara alone. While Zabi reapplied the ointment, he took his opportunity.
– Walk with me.
They left the cave, following the path down the mountainside, reaching the steep drop. Despite Leo’s urgency, Nara seemed distracted. He touched her arm, trying to get her to focus, unsure how long they had.
– Nara?
She looked up, saying:
– You find it hypocritical of me to look after Zabi as if nothing was wrong. I tried to have her killed and now I tend to her wounds? Tell me, how should I behave?
– Nara, you made a terrible mistake. I have been in the same position as you. I have made similar mistakes believing that I was serving a greater good. However, the people who I wronged did not survive. You have an opportunity. Perhaps she is a miracle – she survived.
– I will always know what I did, even if she doesn’t.
– That is true. You must find a way to live with that. It is possible, difficult, but she will need someone to look after her. She is alone. You could love herif she will let you.
No guards had come after them and Leo was pleased that security seemed relaxed. While Nara was still brooding over her decision, he changed the subject to the prospect of escape.
– What are the soldiers planning to do with us? Have they said anything?
Nara shook her head.
– They’ve said very little. They’ve treated us well enough. They’ve fed us. They gave us the almond oil we used for the ointment.
– And Fahad Mohammad?
– He’s here. They haven’t allowed us further inside. When we arrived they provided us with a blanket and told us not to light a fire. They were worried it might be seen.
– And Zabi? How is she?
– She’s upset…
Leo interrupted:
– I mean, is she strong enough to run?
He peered down the path, assessing their position and altitude. A man leading a mountain pony was climbing the trail towards them, the pony sighing from the exertion, laden with supplies. Nara was perplexed by his question.
– Run where?
– We can’t stay here.
– To escape?
– Yes.
– How far do you think we’d get? They know these trails. They know every village from here to Pakistan. We wouldn’t stand a chance. Why do you think they haven’t bothered to guard us? Or tie us up?
– I’ve made difficult journeys before. But I won’t do it without you.
– I don’t know what you’ve done in the past. This is my country. You must listen to me. I am not afraid of dying. But what you suggest is impossible.
Before Leo could press his case, a group of mujahedin emerged from the caves. The tall figure of Fahad Mohammad was among them. He did not seem concerned that they were outside the cave.
– A jirga has convened.
A jirga was a council, a decision-making body composed of elders. Leo asked:
– You wish me to stand before it?
– The three of you will stand before it. Follow me.
Entering the depths of the cave network for the first time, Leo was impressed by the degree of sophistication in its development. Further inside there were timber steps, a drop of at least ten metres to an uneven passageway – a narrow man-made corridor, blasted with dynamite and supported with scaffolding. There were extensive munitions and food stocks in several uneven-sized stores on either side. At the end of the passageway there were further steps down, leading into a natural chamber, a giant dome, as if a massive air bubble had been trapped in the rock when the mountains were created. There was running water, a mountain stream. The air was cool and damp. There had to be a natural ventilation source for they were too deep ino the mountain for air from the entrance to offer enough circulation. The base was an ingenious fusion of the natural environment and the man-made, enabling this central chamber to be inhabited deep inside the mountain with a thousand metres of rock and snow above them as protection.
Leo counted six men. Like elders in a village, they wore no uniforms, with mismatched weapons by their sides, some with pistols so ancient it was hard to consider them anything other than symbols of war, others with rifles, all crouched in a typical stance, legs tucked under them, bodies hidden beneath thick pattu, blankets wrapped around them like seed pods. The lighting in the cave was electric so as not to foul the air with burning torches. A system of wires ran along the floor connecting batteries – it was a dim, bat-like existence, and Leo took a moment to adjust, before being able to observe their faces. He was presented first while Nara and Zabi were held back at the entrance of the domed chamber. The man in the middle of the council, apparently the leader, stood up:
– The khareji have spent three days bombing the valley and shooting at anyone who walks on the paths. They have sent many hundreds of soldiers to look for you. You are of value to them. Explain this.
Khareji was a name for a foreigner and was spoken with contempt. Leo couldn’t be sure why the Soviets had sent so many troops into the valley but considering the circumstances it made sense to emphasize his importance. He answered:
– I am not a soldier. I have never fired a weapon in this country. I am an adviser. I have lived in Afghanistan for many years, longer than any other adviser. I know more about Soviet interests in this country than anyone else. I have been writing reports for the Kremlin One man stopped him.
– What did you say in your reports?
– I advised on many different matters, including a recommendation that they should not invade this country.
– Your advice was ignored. You cannot be important.
– Some of my reports were listened to. Many were ignored.
There was hushed discussion among the council. Finally, the leader spoke again.
– It is as we thought. You will make a valuable hostage. Fahad Mohammad was correct to keep you alive.
He waved Leo aside and gestured at Zabi.
– It has been decided. A boy will pretend to be the only survivor from the village of Sokh Rot. The miracle of your survival is of use to us. We are informed that the story has become a powerful inspiration. You will be sent far away. A new home will be found for you. You will be kept safe from the Soviets.
He then gestured at Nara.
– Finally, we come to the woman. She is a traitor. She is worse than a khareji. She is an Afghan, but a slave of the occupation, a murderer. She will be execut
ed. The sentence will be carried out immediately.
Same Day
There was no discussion. The judgements had been given and before Leo had a chance to protShe the council was on its feet. Soldiers dragged Nara away. Leo tried to move after them but a young man, his face almost completely concealed, stepped in front of him, blocking the path. Nara and Zabi were taken out of the cave. Helpless, Leo watched as the members of the council climbed the steps. He called after them:
– Wait!
They ignored him, one by one leaving the chamber. Leo cried out again:
– She could be valuable to you!
The last member of the council paused.
– She is of value to us. She is of value dead, as a symbol of what happens to Afghans who betray their country.
The council member gestured at the guard.
– Bring him. He can watch.
The soldier waited until everyone else had left the chamber before allowing Leo to the steps. Trapped at the back of the group, he tried to hurry forward but the men in front of him would not be rushed.
The last to arrive at the mouth of the cave, Leo caught sight of the final preparations. Nara’s hands and feet were lashed together. A rope was tied to her wrists, harnessed to the back of the ragged pony he’d seen earlier. The pony hadn’t been delivering supplies, as he had presumed, it had been sent as a means of execution. It stood at the mouth of the cave, unsettled by the commotion, kicking at the dusty path and snorting. Nara would be dragged to her death.
Zabi was at the front of the crowd, either by accident or design. She would be made to watch, along with the other soldiers, some fifty or so, gathered for this spectacle. Leo pushed forward. A gun was pointed at him, cautioning him to remain back. He called out in the direction of the council members.
– I have a proposal!
The leader shook his head.
– You think us cruel? How do the Communists deal with their enemies? They torture them. They shoot them. Many thousands of Afghans have died. Many thousands will die. Your soldiers kill innocent families in the hope of killing one fighter. There is nothing you can say in her defence. There is no defence. She is a traitor. There is no deal to be made. You have no proposal that will interest us.
One of the elders slapped the pony and it began to move. Nara was pulled off her feet, falling to the ground, her face cut open on the cave floor, unable to scream, her mouth gagged. Leo cried out, as loud as he could manage:
– How many guns would buy her life?
The pony was walking faster, whipped on by the others. Nara was dragged out of the cave, pulled down the rough grit path, her nose filling with dirt. No one had heard Leo, or paid him any attention. He cried out again:
– How many guns would buy her life?
The council leader laughed at Leo.
– For ten thousand machine guns and one thousand mortars you can have the woman.
The elders laughed. Leo replied:
– We have a deal. If you call an end to this!
The elders stopped ghing, looking at Leo, trying to figure out if he was serious. Leo added:
– Ten thousand guns, more perhaps.
The leader raised his arm.
– I wish to hear what he has to say.
With the command from the council, the pony was stopped. Nara had been dragged at least twenty metres. She was not moving. Zabi had squeezed both hands into fists, positioned over her eyes. The leader walked up to Leo. He smelt of tobacco. Up close, Leo realized he was much younger than he appeared, his skin cracked, his beard grey, but he was younger than Leo.
– You are only delaying her death by a matter of seconds if what you say has no interest to us.
It was Leo’s last chance.
– You have said that the Soviet Union wants me dead. That is true. You admit I’m a valuable hostage. I agree. Ask yourself what would be the worst thing that could happen in their eyes?
The leader of the council shrugged.
– The worst has already happened. We have captured you alive. You will tell us the things you know.
– I could tell you the specifications of the machine guns on the Hind helicopters. I could mark troop movements on maps. I could give you most of this information in a matter of hours. But that will not give you weapons or mortars, or the ammunition you need. However, consider this. What would happen if the Soviet Union’s pre-eminent adviser defected to the United States, if you took me across the border to Pakistan?
The man shook his head.
– This is a trick.
– No, it is a genuine proposal. Imagine what would happen if I convinced the Americans to support your fight.
– How would you do that?
– By telling them the truth about the war. By explaining what is at stake for the Soviet Union, their main adversary.
– What is at stake?
– They have a chance here, in Afghanistan, to deal a blow to the Soviet military machine without provoking a nuclear war. The Soviet military authorities know this to be true. Nothing scares them more. They are counting on American indifference to a country so far away from them. They are hoping that the experience of Vietnam will make them too cautious to realize the potential of this conflict. I will make the Americans understand that this is an opportunity they cannot afford to miss.
Leo had been a war hero, risking his life countless times to defend the Soviet Union against the advance of Fascist troops. Now he was betraying that homeland, putting Soviet troops in danger, but he had not fought in order that his country might bomb villages and burn farmland.
The council members came together, discussing the idea, murmurs of their conversation echoing around the cave. The other young soldiers remained silent, neutral, as they had been throughout the process, never expressing an opinion. Leo could not look at Nara. She was face down, her clothes ripped. There were cuts on her legs. He was not sure if she was conscious. Finally the council returned their attention to Leo, trying to understandefection ideologically.
– We find the idea hard to understand. Why would you bring shame upon yourself? You would be a traitor.
– My motivation is no concern to you.
– We must believe that you are sincere.
– Ask Fahad Mohammad. He saw me attack my superior officer with a knife. I wounded him. I am already a traitor.
– That could be a trick.
– To what end? Ask the man who saw what happened if he thinks my actions were trickery.
The council turned to Fahad Mohammad.
– What do you think?
– If it is a trick, I do not understand it.
A careful reply, but not an endorsement, and Leo needed to work harder to convince his audience.
– I will do what I promise. I will defect. Tell me what you think of my proposal.
– It interests us.
Leo pressed his case.
– You need American support. You need their weapons, new guns, not the ancient rifles that can’t fire straight. Not the rusty pistols you carry on your belts. You need missiles. You need a way of damaging the helicopters and jets.
The elder nodded, musing on the idea.
– How would you achieve this? The Americans will not trust you.
– Take us across the border, into Pakistan. I know that you are receiving support from the Pakistani secret police. They must have contacts within the CIA.
– They might.
– Then you have the means to contact the CIA. You can use the Pakistanis to set up a meeting.
– And then what? How can we trust the word of a traitor?
– You don’t have to trust me. The CIA would not protect me unless I was valuable to them. I will tell them everything, or they will turn me loose.
The elder asked:
– What is it you want in return?
– Nara Mir and the girl would come with me.
The suggestion caused outrage. Before they could argue, Leo continued:
– Everyone wants something. And you want her. Foreigners come here and collect our women, that is how it works, is it not? You wish her as your wife?
– My wife is dead.
– Then you wish to take another? You want her?
– She is my friend.
– A friend?
The council laughed at this.
– We all need friends.
The leader stopped laughing, sinking into serious consideration.
– We will vote.
Hindu Kush Mountain Range Afghanistan-Pakistan Border The Khyber Pass 1000 Metres above Sea Level 180 Kilometres South-East of Kabul 30 Kilometres North-West of Peshawar
Next Day
They were to cross the border at night. Fahad Mohammad had volunteered to escort them to Pakistan, adamant that he should be the one to take them. His involvement surprised Leo. The hostility he’d showed towards them was intense – he made no secret of his hatred for them and appeared quite content to watch Nara die. He’d lost three brothers to Soviet operations in three days. Though he was unaware of the precise intimacy with which Leo and Nara were involved in the capture and death of his eldest brother in Kabul, Dost Mohammad, they were agents of a murderous infidel occupation and he hated them as deeply as the helicopter pilots who’d incinerated his village, killing women, children and the elderly. Despite this hatred, he’d put himself forward for the mission after the council of elders ruled in favour of Leo’s proposal. The council was divided: a slim majority believed American support could influence the future of the war, the others considered it an insult to ask for help. However, they abided by the vote and insisted upon sending one of their best soldiers, appropriate for a mission of this importance.
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