BOOK 2: COMMUNITY / CH. 25:THE MISSING COIN
SATURDAY 12TH AUGUST
At eleven thirty A.M. the gate guards called Maria. “There's a young man here with another coin, maam. But we thought we'd seen them all.”
“Interesting. Ten coins were given out, ten people have come forward, one who'd lost their coin. Does he match the profile of the others?”
“Well, he seems nervous enough, but if he's trying it on then he should be, shouldn't he?”
“Well, let's give him a chance to explain himself. Escort him to room six.”
“Yes, maam. Room six it is.”
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Room six was within the embassy compound, but wasn't a normal interview room. It was at the far end of a single story wing of the embassy, and the careful observer would have noticed it had been made with very thick walls and a light roof. In other words, it was designed so if there was an explosion inside then there wouldn't be much damage outside. The embassy had once been an army base, and room six had been the ammunition store. When the site had been leased as the embassy, they'd decided that it should be used as a secure interview room, for when a visitor seemed suspicious for some reason. Suicide bombers were incredibly rare these days, but not totally unknown or forgotten. The room had additional scanners fitted, and the visitor would be fully checked before the interviewer, in this case Maria, entered.
The discrete green light by the door handle signalled the all-clear. The young man had no weapons or explosives on him. “Good morning. My husband the ambassador is busy, but if you are not offended, I will listen in his name. How can I help you?”
“Urm, my sister, she has gone.”
“You do not know where?”
“No. She has vanished.”
“I'm very sorry to hear that. Can you tell me how it happened?”
“I don't know. I don't know anything at all, really. All I know is my father called me. He told me that I must bring the coin and tell you that my sister had disappeared. She has been missing for weeks. Father has not said anything, but I think he knows something. Our second cousin disappeared six months ago, and his body was found just after my sister vanished. I am really scared for my sister.”
“Can I ask you where you got that coin?”
“My father brought it home from work two evenings ago. He said that a little boy had given it to him. That it might bring us luck.”
“OK, young man. Can you write down your sister's full name, just here?”
“Of course.”
“Thank you. Now, I'm going to have to talk to someone. If you want to leave, you may, but I will want to speak to you again.”
“But you can help?”
“I think we can help.”
“Thank you, thank you for listening. The police did nothing. They said there was nothing they could do, and didn't want to listen even.”
“Part of my job is to help your countrymen decide that my country is a friend to yours. If I can help, then I will. I'll probably be about five or ten minutes.”
“Thank you, honoured lady.”
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“George, I've got a young man who says that his sister was stolen. Here's her name. Do you know anything about her?”
“Urm, I can't read this, sorry.”
“Oh, of course. Sorry.” Taking the paper back she pronounced the name. “Does that tie in with anything?”
“She's one of the disappeared all right. She had a relative who worked for Ibrahim, I didn’t check what relation. We thought it would be too big a risk to contact the family. But a relative came anyway?”
“Says his father brought home a ‘lucky coin’ given to him by a little boy two evenings ago. And that today his dad said to bring the coin here and tell about his missing sister.”
“So somehow his dad found out about the coins and is either trying to get his daughter released by disclosing the plan or is trying to get his daughter rescued. And it probably all depends on how he found out about the coin.”
“That was what I was just thinking.”
“I'm pretty sure that he didn't see the coin being given, we were being very careful. So I wonder how he found out about it.”
“Or how he found out to bring it here.”
“Maybe they trailed the woman?”
“Possibly. The guards should have been alert for that, but I wonder if they missed something.” Maria pondered.
“I presume there are video records?”
“Oh yes, lots. I'll get someone checking, but would you mind going and asking Hagar to join me in room 6? I know she's demonstrating to the other ambassadors that truth-sayers are not a myth, but I think I need one of you, and so far we've kept you and Karen under wraps. I think that’s best.”
“I agree. Urm, I'm not sure how good Hagar's English is. I'll ask Karen to ask her, OK?” George asked, embarrassed.
“Sorry, of course. Consider it a compliment, George. I guess I'm already counting you as belonging to the family, and we all learnt to speak the language a long time ago. Karen's been teaching you?”
“Yes, but I haven't got much past understanding ‘hold the red ball above your head.’”
“That's pretty good, you know!”
“Well, Karen did try to share some memories of language lessons with me, so I'm not too bad recognising words for concrete objects, colours and numbers. But the grammar and politeness forms are beyond me, and as for speaking, I'll need a lot of practice.”
“But your gift does help?”
“Yes, I mean, if I just called Hagar using the gift it'd be no trouble, but speaking still needs me to train muscles. If there's no need to use the gift, I'll leave the talking to Karen.”
Maria laughed. “Oh yes, Karen's good at talking. Well, I'll go back and talk to our young man. George, before I go and tell the young man his sister is alive, can you check for me that she is?”
“Yes. Of course.”
George checked on the feet of the girl. She was alive, and there in the cell, which was there in the prison, which was there in the city. The same place she'd been before.
“She's alive, in the same prison she was before.”
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“We will try and help your sister, but you present me with a problem, young man.”
“I should not have the coin?”
“You should not have the coin and you should not know where to bring it.”
“My father told me where to bring it.”
“But how did your father know?”
“I do not know.”
“Can you tell me what you do know? You see, those coins went to people that a truth-sayer knew had had family members stolen. Your sister lives. She was one of the people the truth-sayer found out about. Can you guess why your family did not get a coin?”
“It is because of father's job, isn't it? Someone knew about father's job. I heard my parents argue about it. He is not a bad man! My father is not a bad man. It was the only job he could get after his accident.”
“Will you tell me about his job and his accident?”
“I may not tell. I do not know what you have heard from who or who you will tell. I cannot give advantage to our enemies.”
“I thought that the ones holding your sister were your enemies.”
There was a knock at the door. Maria opened it for Hagar to enter. She was in her formal truth-sayer garb. She handed a series of photographs to Maria. “You wanted these, honoured lady?”
“Thank you, yes.” She flipped through them. There was a man who seemed to be following someone carefully. Not the young man who was facing her, nor his father unless her guesses about ages were very wrong, but there seemed to be a resemblance. “Young man who speaks about fear of enemies, yet brings a token given to another and knows what he was not told, this honoured one wears the garb of a truth-sayer. She is one of integrity and great power. Do you wish her to prove her power?”
The young man turned and bowed, an appropriate sign of respect. Then he lashed out with his hand to strike Hagar on the face. Somewhat to his surprise he didn't connect with her at all.
His surprise was even greater when he found himself being dropped to the ground by Maria. His silent response hadn't seemed right to her and (as she liked to misquote Gilbert and Sullivan's lines) staying close to a desk and never going to sea would have never made her ruler of the Queen's Security. Of course she wasn't actually in charge of all of Security, she'd always point out, ‘just the interesting bits.’ Turning his lunge into a throw and pin hadn't even taken much thought. Training took over.
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The guards who'd been outside the door took over Maria's grip and handcuffed him. “Young man. You have just tried to attack a member of my staff. That is not a good way to secure my help in releasing your sister if that is truly why you're here. You've also broken quite a few laws.”
“If I could have hit her, she would not have been a truth-sayer.”
“Not true,” Hagar said. “If I had an injury and couldn't have reacted, you would have hit me. Thank you, respected lady, for your help. He decided to test me in a very direct way. He either knows a truth-sayer well or perhaps has the power himself. Unless he gives me permission I will not touch him to find out which, of course. Or maybe not even then. Someone who tries such a test might not be content with a single attack.”
“My friend, this foolish boy that attacked you had a coin that he should not have had. He knows where to bring it, though none told him. He brings the name of one we know is held and claims her as his sister, but gives no evidence of this. Perhaps he is a thought-stealer spy, working for the one who holds the stolen.”
“I am no thought-stealer!”
“Will you permit me to know this for certain?” Hagar asked.
“How can you know for certain? All I have to do is think lies. Try if you dare, timid one who fears attack.”
Maria's eyes met Hagar's, with a question in her mind. Given his consent and his attitude, Hagar didn't need to think very hard about whether to use her gift. She gave a little nod. She would scan this young man.
Maria launched a barrage of questions at him. “You're no thought-stealer, but you are a spy? Who for? And the thought-stealer is your brother? Or your cousin? What does your employer know so far? And who really got the coin? You or this one here?” Maria fanned the photos out on the desk in front of him.
He kept his silence, challenging Hagar with his eyes, obviously expecting her to touch the table. She didn't need to of course. She wasn't very surprised what she found on the top layer of his mind and took a second to take in his thoughts then withdrew. He had prepared what he obviously thought would be an overwhelmingly frightening image for her. He'd obviously been watching late night horror movies, like Hagar's older brother had when she was too young to find such things scary. Hagar recognised the image from a poster he'd owned, he'd embellished it a bit and some of the details were wrong. He had the power, but he thought his employer didn't know. He'd been careful to hide his thoughts when near Hamed. He was just a minor pawn, a low grade spy. Several times he'd failed to notice some things he should have, which had first resulted in his cousin being taken hostage, and then his sister being taken. She'd seen how his coming had been an attempt to win favour with Ibrahim, his employer, but that he hadn't told him anything about it. His younger brother who had been in the photographs had just been told to watch and follow the woman. He didn't know more of the plan. Ahmed, for that was his name, had been set the task of watching the different families, and had seen the boy playing with the coin. He'd been curious and had gone over to investigate. The little boy had been saying, “Pretty pretty daddy coin. Lovely daddy coin.” Ahmed had deliberately knocked into the boy so he fell over, but pretended it was an accident and as he picked the boy up he'd also pocketed the plastic coin that the boy had dropped. Then he'd pretended to help the boy look for the coin for a while. And he'd set his brother to watch the mother. Hagar first spoke to Ahmed. “Ahmed, you are a thief and a spy. Your employer is Ibrahim the nephew of the honoured president, and I expect he will think that you have failed him yet again for not reporting what you knew immediately. Be glad that we will try to rescue your sister anyway. Oh, and I thought the tentacles should have been yellow, not green.” His mouth dropped in shock. She knew his name, his employer. His trap hadn't fazed her at all and he'd seen no contact nor heard any thought from her. This was impossible!
Then to Maria she said, “Honoured lady, this foolish young man's sloppiness in his dishonourable job has cost the life of his cousin and now he has put his sister's life in greater danger. His father is injured, I do not know how, and he took this job because it seemed like easy money. I think he starts to see now how costly a mistake that was. He has not totally sold his soul to the evil Ibrahim: he has the power, but has kept this fact from his employer, also his motivation for spying on us was to secure the release of his sister who he does care for. He seeks to obtain her release by exposing our plans. Perhaps he needs time to repent of his sins against his family and against God. Certainly if you release him then he will run to his employer and tell what he has learned. For he has such little wisdom.
“That would probably lead to his torture at the hands of Hamed, so that Ibrahim can be sure that there are no more secrets in his stupid skull. And yes, he failed his master by not reporting what he suspected. Do you still not realise what an evil man your employer is?”
“I am not so foolish as that! But how? How did you find all that?”
“And do you think we will tell you, so you can tell your employer before you are tortured and your sister and the other stolen are killed?” Maria asked.
“No, I think you will gloat and tell me things that would save my sister and then not release me for years, by which time Ibrahim will have decided I have run away or killed myself, and so he will kill my sister! I must serve well for two years before they release her.”
“Have you ever heard of an embassy holding prisoners, young man? We cannot. You have been restrained so that you cause no harm to yourself or others. And also to give you time to think. We have no power to hold you against your will. If you ask us to then we might allow you to stay. Otherwise we will either have to hand you over to the local police or let you go. Can you guess who has made himself the police officer in charge of relations with this embassy?”
“My employer? Mr. Ibrahim?”
“Well done. How long will your sister live if we give you to him and he decides you're a failure?”
“They will rape her first, he has said, not just kill her.”
“Oh, well, she will live at least that long then. I am sure that is a comfort to you.”
“No! Why do you say such things! I love my sister!”
“No. You love life more, you love your comfort more. You love money more. Otherwise you would not have started working for him.”
“I had no other choice!” he appealed to Hagar.
“You had plenty of choices. But you did not take them. Do not lie to me. You could have studied, you could have worked harder, you could have joined the army, you could have used your power and become a truth-sayer. You could have found work on a farm or digging roads. But you chose crime instead, and crime brought you to this, and now you think further crime will get you out! Is that what you call wisdom?”
“Crime brought me this far. You are right. But from here, where is the escape? Not for me, but for my sister?”
Maria answered, “There is only one hope for your sister. Ibrahim must be arrested, his organization destroyed, the stolen rescued.”
“Who can do that? He has them too well hidden. How can they be rescued when they cannot be found?”
“They are found,” Hagar said simply.
“You know this? You know where they are?”
“You who hope for mercy from murderers, say first what you will do. Will you trust in us, or will you trust in your own ideas?”
“I know not. You have caught me so easily. I do not understand so much. How did a truth-sayer read thoughts I didn't think about? How did an ambassador's wife pin me to the ground without me hearing any decision? In fact, why have I heard no decisions from either of you? What are you? Are you demons who have come to taunt me even before I reach hell? Or angels who will rescue me from this mess? Demons or angels, that's the question!”
“Well, I'll answer some of you questions, young confused one. This ‘ambassador's wife’ has been practising moves like the one which put you on the ground for longer than you've been alive. No decision needed. Practically no thought, in fact!”
“And I am not just a hearer of thoughts. God has given me a gift of seeing deeper than you can when I choose. My grandmother prayed that I receive her gift, and what she asked was granted to her. Give God the glory when your sister is released. It will be by His mercy and grace. Do not call us angels, for we are flesh and blood. Would you accept the answer that we are Christians instead?”
“I still do not understand. What do you mean, trust you?”
“It is very simple. This evening, I think, Ibrahim and Hamed will be arrested, unless they are warned. If not this evening, then tomorrow. There! I too am foolish. I trust you with knowledge that puts all we have worked for at risk, and all the stolen too. If he hears, I believe they will all be killed. Will you trust us to release them all instead? If you do not trust us then perhaps you could warn him and take what you know to him. Perhaps he will grant you your sister in exchange, perhaps not. Or perhaps he will blame you for failing him again. I ask that you ask to stay here, safe from Hamed.”
“Lady, let me think!”
“You may think. Call for the guard when you decide. If you decide to give evidence against Ibrahim and the rest of the gang, we will arrange it that you can give testimony safely. If you do not wish to do that but wish to stay safe here until he is arrested, then we will allow you to do that. If you wish to make a formal declaration that your sister has been stolen from you, and about your cousin, you may do so. Otherwise you will be charged with entering the embassy under false pretences and attempting to assault a staff member. We will have to hand you over to the local police, and that could put you straight into Ibrahim's hands. I hope you will not choose that path.”
“So I cooperate or get handed to the police?”
“That is what happens to spies. Or worse. Sometimes much much worse. Consider well.”
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Maria ushered Hagar to the family room, where Karen and George were waiting.
[How did it go?] George asked. [Had he been sent as a spy?]
[Yes and no. He was trying to find out what we were doing, so he could tell his employer, but he wasn't sent. He hadn't even passed on what he knew. Here is what we found out {memory}.]
“We thank you, Hagar,” Karen said. “Respected mother, I presume Hagar will get danger pay for the assault?”
“Of course.”
“No! It is too much! How can I earn in a day more than my husband does in a week?”
“Hagar, this is your contract. We do not break the rules, nor even exaggerate them, but perhaps we remember them with you when we would need reminding for others. That and that only. We know that your family will lose income while Yosuf is in hospital and recovering. But you were in danger, not great danger, but it was present. You would have been in greater danger had you not used your gift. I needed to know what that boy thought, so had you not used your gift I would have asked you to hear his thoughts as a normal thought reader. And he would have tried to attack your mind. But I have a question for your husband from my husband, which you have just reminded me about. There are times, and I think that young man is a good example, that a visitor or a staff member needs someone to talk to about spiritual things, important decisions. Would Yosuf be willing to be that someone? We have a word for such — chaplain — but I do not know how to say it in your language.”
“And let me guess, there is money involved and no heavy lifting?”
“You said yourself, Hagar, that it is not good that you earn so much more than your husband,” Karen said with a smile. “And I have it from a very good source that it is not good for anyone's marriage for a man to stay at home all day with nothing to do.”
“These are good and true words. Who is your good source?”
“They are the words of my husband, after his back was hurt. He needed something to keep himself busy, to make him feel useful,” Maria admitted.
“Ah. What did he do?”
“He wrote some programs for the computer which are now used in every embassy of our country. But that is not the important thing. The important thing is that at the end of each week he felt he had done useful work and had provided for his family.”
“Thank you. You are right, this is an important thing for most men, my Yosuf included. I will try to convince him.”
“But back to today, I thank you Hagar for what you learned,” Maria said. “Now we know a lot more, I think, about the stolen ones.”
“At least that that boy's relatives were taken to be hostages. Yes. A very simple way to encourage obedience and fear, if not loyalty,” Hagar affirmed. “And perhaps we will find the others are similarly hostages to others' obedience?” Karen suggested.
“Yes. It is possible. It gives a motive, I think. I had been wondering why Ibrahim would take prisoners,” Maria agreed.
“I must leave now, I think,” Hagar said.
“You will come tonight?” asked Karen.
“My employer tells me I must, and bring my husband too. How can I not come?”
“Very easily if you have important business elsewhere,” Maria stated firmly.
“But, on the other hand my husband would like you to be there, otherwise he will have to rearrange who is sitting where. I'm not sure why he thinks it must be him, but he will not let anyone else do it.”
“Far be it from me to cause such distress! We will come.”
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After Hagar left, Karen said sheepishly “I know why Daddy won't let anyone else do it, Mummy. So do you, if you think about what happened last time he let me help.”
“Oh! Yes. That was embarrassing, wasn't it? But you didn't know their countries had just declared war on each other. You were only six, for goodness' sake.”
“What happened?” George asked, curiously.
“I decided that I'd arrange the ambassadors by geography, so that everyone was next to their neighbours.”
“Ah. Neighbours don't necessarily make friends, do they?”
“No. I didn't know that then though. But I'm pretty sure Daddy's not let anyone else do a seating plan since.”
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