At the police station in Aung Syke, Sultan and Hoson could not be found. Malek came to the police station after he had been told by a grocery store owner that they were taken to the police station. The men at the police station said, no one was taken into custody the previous day. Then Malek saw a man standing outside the police station. He thought perhaps he could help. Malek pleaded with the man and offered him bribe so that the man would disclose to him what had happened. At last the man disclosed that the previous night, Sultan and Hoson were picked up by a military truck and were taken to an unknown location. Before the truck left the spot, the bystanders were told that the tall bearded man was a threat to the security of the state. The man was portrayed as a suspect of the Maung Dao incident. The moment Maung Dao was mentioned, it seemed to Malek that the Maung Dao incident had something to do with Sultan’s disappearance. Perhaps there were military spies at the meeting which was held on Friday at the mosque.
The next day, when Lee reached the banks of river Irrawaddy with his family, he felt like, together there should be a photograph of them. Kim ha something similar on her mind. Lee gave his smart phone to his driver and told him to take a snap. They posed for the picture having Irrawaddy in the background. When the next picture was taken they had Win Thura’s monastery in the background. The heat of the day was more or less replaced by the cool breeze of Irrawaddy. In the hall room of his monastery, Win Thura had been discussing the future of Buddhism with his disciples. Western beliefs, Christianity, Hinduism, communism were not a problem for Buddhism. The problem presented itself in the form of Rohingya Muslims. In general, Muslims were a problem for not only Myanmar, they were problematic for the entire world. This was the theme of Win Thura’s long speech. Lee’s arrival interrupted the discussion. For his blessings, Lee and his family were down on their knees before the priest. The turn to entertain the guests began after the blessings. To treat Lee’s family, tea, biscuits and juice of green coconut were placed on the table before them. Win Thura was talking very softly. Lee had a lingering smile on his face. For some reason, it didn’t look like atheist Lee was against any religion. On the other hand, his wife was about to sacrifice her life at the feet of the priest. The only exception was Lee’s daughter, Su. Coldly she stared at the priest. A scene from the movie ‘Count Dracula’ kept playing in her head. In one of the scenes, Dracula’s guests were being treated at his palace in Pennsylvania. Win Thura’s smile looked like that evil smile of Count Dracula. A smile which was meant to fool his would-be victims. To Su, it seemed like a beast getting ready to turn them into his dinner. Su was interrupted by her mother’s touch. When Kim looked at Su, she felt like she should present a smile to their host, at least, for the sake of courtesy. Su was not used to presenting artificial smiles. However, in this case if she tried, she had nothing to lose. When Win Thura saw that smile, he felt he could count Lee’s family in the list of his disciples.
On television, the news of the assault on Hin Kao temple was being aired continuously. At Lee’s official residence in Yangon, Kim and her daughter Su sat in the living room, watching the news with horror and anxiety. They tried to figure out what was about to happen. Su could not find any reason behind this incident. Quietly, she cried out, “Why?”
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Kim turned to Su, and said, “There is no answer to this question. The man who has committed this crime is a Rohingya and that is the most important thing.”
“Don’t these Rohingyas ever think of the situation they’re in?”
“Other than blind hatred, nothing works in them. Everyone has been saying this, and this is not just a rumor. This very incident is another proof of it.”
Su was getting ready to take a bath after returning from her office. She saw the news when Kim took her to the living room. The dead body of the Rohingya terrorist was hung outside the Hin Kao temple. The entire area had turned into a sea of people. People were eager to have a look at the dead terrorist. Inside the temple, a funeral for Hin Kao was being prepared. The image of what was going on was being aired, at the same time, a commentator had been narrating how the incident took place. Someone had recorded how Hin Kao was killed and later the images were uploaded to the mass media. This is what raised a question in Su. She asked herself, “Did anyone have prior information about it?” To her mother, she didn’t say anything.
Then, the noise of the vehicles from the porch next to the living room distracted Su and Kim. The flag bearing olive colored sedan followed by a troop-carrying land rover stopped under the porch. Lee and his adjutant could be seen inside the sedan. As Captain Un opened the door, Lee headed straight for the living room. The adjutant and the sedan left Lee’s residence, while the troops took position in the guard room. At other times, Su would have run to her father to embrace him. But today there was no such interest in Su and her mother. They looked at Lee as he walked at them. The cap over his head, the immaculate knot of his tie, the ribbons on his left chest and his polished boots told them that he had come from a very important meeting at the army headquarters in Yangon. Lee had expected his daughter to embrace him. When it didn’t happen, he extended his hands and embraced his daughter. He took his daughter and wife in his arms and moved towards the bedroom. Suddenly he stopped. He turned his head and looked at the television screen for a few seconds, and asked his wife, “Did you see what the Rohingya terrorists have done?”
Kim replied, “I and your daughter had been watching it. Now tell us where you have come from.”
“There was a meeting going on at the army headquarters about this. Very important decisions have been taken. As you can see they have provided extra security to me. Obviously, something is about to happen. Since I’m not like Ban La, don’t expect anything more from me at this point.”
After saying this, Lee tried to appease them with a smile. Kim went to the kitchen after escorting her husband to his bedroom. She wanted to prepare a special meal. She was going to tell their chef to organize everything for her in the kitchen. During meal time at night, Kim and Su learned from Lee about the plans for the next two days. From the army headquarters, Lee had been given a vacation for two days. He was advised to get blessings from the Buddhist priest Win Thura in Mandalay. This is why Lee decided to take his family with him to Mandalay. Kim liked the idea, but Su was uncomfortable. After a long time, her dad had come home, for this reason she couldn’t say no to him. She accepted their plan with a smile. At night, their dinner ended with laughter and fun. They didn’t prolong their meal time as they had planned to embark on their journey for Mandalay very early in the morning. They finished their dinner in the shortest time possible before going to their beds. When Su was certain, her parents were in their beds, she called Rafiq and informed him about it.