After returning to her father’s official residence in Yangon, mentally, Su began preparing herself for a decisive step. At night, she was going to discuss it with Rafiq over the phone. Already she had submitted to the UN desk handling the Rohingya crisis, the documents of the Rohingya properties. She was in possession of the receipts as well. She headed back to Aung Syke with those receipts day after the function at the Mingaladan Army Headquarters. She was totally speechless when she could not find the trace of a single Rohingya family in the whole village. At Rahim’s residence, she noticed the slightly open door of the hut where Karim used to reside. Very cautiously she entered the hut. The pieces of furniture were in their usual places, but she couldn’t see any of their clothes or cooking utensils. There was mattress on the bed, but no blanket. A folded paper on the mattress attracted Su’s attention. She took it in her hand and unfolded it. It was Karim’s letter addressed to Su. Karim’s family had long acquired the Burmese language and in neat hand writing Karim wrote:
“Dear Su,
We Muslims start a letter with Islamic greeting. However, this tradition is not applicable when we interact with non-Muslims. Therefore, on behalf of my family, I would like to start this letter by wishing you the best of everything. Our plan was to start our journey after your arrival as you were supposed to accompany us to the border. I’m sorry if we disappointed you. But remember, it doesn’t matter what we plan because in the end everything happens according to what He has in store for us. Only He knows what will happen the next moment. Along with some extremist monks, the majority of our Buddhist neighbors have created an environment where it is no longer possible for us to live peacefully and safely in this country. For centuries our ancestors have been living in this land, and now we are being told that this land does not belong to us, we are ‘outsiders’. Those who run this country, they don’t want us, they want our land. In many other countries, Muslims are facing the same fate. They are being treated as aliens in their own homeland. The picture is same almost everywhere. They don’t have the right to erect even polythene shacks in their ancestral lands. We are being thrown out of our motherland with a label that we are extremists, terrorists. Actually we are guilty of being Muslims. We are guilty of having the audacity to ask for fairness and justice. Our Holy Prophet once predicted that a time would come when retaining faith would be more painful than holding burning coal in our hand. I think we’re passing that period. Anyway, I will not talk too much of it, but remember, the man with whom you’ve uttered the matrimonial vows, if he ever gets the opportunity, he will not hesitate to leave behind the comfort and safety of Medina to liberate his ancestral lands from these tyrants. I do believe that Rafiq is already in that sacred path. Please do not blame my little brother for this. It is the inherent nature of every decent human being to fight against tyranny and injustice. I won’t prolong my letter or sermon, whatever you prefer to call it. But before saying good bye I would like to express my sincere gratitude to you for being next to us during these darkest of hours. Who says there’s no hope for us? The fact is one valiant Burmese lady has come forward to fight for our rights. It’s time to say good bye. If my destiny allows it, perhaps we will meet again in a more harmonious world. Stay well –
Karim”
On her way back, Su stopped at HinKao’s temple to find out from Than Kin what had really happened. What drove out all Rohingya families from Aung Syke? But she didn’t find him over there. One monk told her, he had been staying in Mandalay for a few days. During her bus journey back to Yangon, she was being haunted by Karim’s letter. Rafiq’s entire family had migrated to Bangladesh. Hence, her interest in what was going on in Aung Syke, greatly evaporated with Mollah clan’s departure. Now she was going to focus on how she could unite with her husband. Apart from that, Karim’s letter aroused in her a peculiar curiosity to discover what Islam demanded of her. Somehow when she would reach Indonesia or Malaysia, she was going to deal with it.
Through the glass door, for couple of minutes, Su observed the stranger before entering the living room. From a side, she could not see his whole face. The sound of Su’s footsteps made the man turn to his left. That’s when he saw her approaching him. But suddenly, Su stopped on her track and gazed at him. She tried to recall where she had seen this man. Then she remembered. She saw him standing behind Win Thura when she had visited Win Thura’s monastery in Mandalay with her parents. His appearance is not really like the Burmese Buddhists. His complexion is also a bit paler. He had an orange robe on him. Su suppressed her hesitation, and moved forward to greet the man with a gentle smile.
“Good evening!” Su greeted the man softly.
“Good evening. Are you General Lee’s daughter?”
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“Yes but I don’t understand.”
The man didn’t let Su finish when he resumed what he was about to say. He said, “I‘ve come from Win Thura’s monastery in Mandalay. I’m not driven to you by my own personal interest. I’ve come to you for your own sake.”
“What could be my interest in seeing you?” Su muttered.
The man looked around, he seemed to be hesitating. Then he said, “What I wanted to convey to you, I can’t tell you over here. If unwarranted people listen to us, there might be trouble.”
“Other than I and my mother, no one's in the house. The servants won’t come to the living room.”
“Still, it’s better to be cautious. These days you can’t really tell who’s who.”
Quietly Su looked at the man’s face for a few seconds. Then she said to the man, “Alright, wait for me on the footpath outside the gate, I’ll meet you there shortly. I need to get dressed.”
When the sandal wearing man had left the living room, Su went to her bedroom. Within ten minutes she was with the man in an auto rickshaw heading for the Swedagan Temple, on the bank of the Lake Inya. The man was in no mood to talk while in the auto. Su passed her time, quietly wondering what to expect from this stranger. When they were inside the park, instead of going to the temple, Su began strolling along the bank of the lake with the man quietly behind her. Where she used to rendezvous with Rafiq, Su stopped right at that spot under the huge banyan tree. Then she faced the man, and said, “I hope you’re comfortable enough at this spot. Now please tell me what you’ve come to say.”
The monk slipped his hand into his robe, and brought out a smart phone from a hidden pocket. When he turned on the voice recorder, Su could clearly hear the recorded conversation of two people. She had no problem telling who the interlocutors were . She took a deep breath when the recorder had stopped. If Win Thura was allowed to execute his plan, there would be more violence and anarchy in the country. Undoubtedly, the Rohingyas would be blamed in general, and consequently, on a mass scale they would be expelled from the country. She didn’t know how, but she realized that Win Thura must be stopped. Before Than Kin could persuade her dad to confine her to her residence, she would have to visit her dad. There was plenty of convincing to be done in order to prevent Than Kin from having an influence over her dad. Su suppressed her anxieties and diverted her attention back to the monk, and said to him, “How did you manage to record this highly confidential conversation?”
“I myself recorded this from behind the door.”
“I don’t think you are who you say you are. Will you please tell me who you really are? What is your motive in conveying to me this secret conversation?”
“Miss, it’s safer that I don’t disclose my name to you right now. I’ve a history, Win Thura is unaware of. For the time being, I would like to keep that from you as well. I’ve a feeling that in near future, we’ll have to meet more than once. In time, I will most definitely disclose to you my secret history. And when I do, it will also be clear to you why I’m doing this. Win Thura is planning to make something happen which will be more daring and destructive than the Hin Kao murder. I think, this should be of prime importance to us at the moment. No one can tell right now, where or when it will happen. But I’m certain, the next terror attack will be the brain child of these two priests. It’s too early to tell, who will join them in future, in order to implement this devilish plan.”
When the stranger had stopped Su went to a nearby bench and reclined in it. A gentle southern breeze blew along the lakeside. The last spectrum of the sunset had already disappeared from the evening sky when these two figures, unfamiliar to each other, tried to gauge each other's thoughts. The two figures sitting in the bench, were clearly visible under the dim light of the nearby lamp post. Su stared at the darkness over the lake. She knew there were lotuses in it, albeit she couldn’t see them, shrouded in the thick veil of darkness. Su perceived the future like the lake which was shrouded in darkness. Su had her face turned away from the stranger. Nonetheless, she could sense his presence. In a rather harsh tone, she said to him, “What is it that you want me to do?”
“Without wasting time, communicate with your father. Convince him so that Than Kin can’t use him against you. Let your father know from you what you said to Than Kin during his interview. Explain to him that you said so, because you thought it would be good for the country. I’m sure he’ll have sympathy for you. Use journalism to give him a hint of the conspiracy. Provide tips about Than Kin and Win Thura. I’m sure if their movements are constantly observed, in time, everything will be revealed.”
“Those who are to observe their movements, what if they are involved in it?”
The monk took a few moments and then said, “Do you have a passport?”
“Yes.”
“Those who should monitor, if you think that they are also involved in it, then do whatever you need to do to flee from this country. Migrate and seek asylum in a foreign country.” When he was done talking, he asked for Su’s mobile number. Upon getting the number, he sent her a miss call. He forbade Su to make any effort to communicate with him. If necessary he would call her.
After the monk had left, for quite some time, Su remained in the park, sitting motionless in her bench next to the lake. She was like a statue, wondering how her entire world had turned into such a complicated and hazardous puzzle. Subsequently, it occurred to her that she had to talk to her dad. At night she would have to talk to Rafiq as well. Now, she was in a rush. She stood up from the bench, and headed for the exit of the park.