Abubaker was the only one who wasn’t afraid of her. He’d lived in that house since the days of the Hajji’s father. When everything appeared ready to fall apart and collapse, his mere presence acted as a bulwark. He had defended Semereth and his wealth from the greed of his relatives and his rivals’ interests, and now he was protecting it from the Hajji himself, forcing Semereth to respect the equilibrium of the house.
The wives hated this stern, intractable man who spent the whole day loafing, but kept them under lock and key like a jailer, without according them any more importance than the other objects in the house entrusted to his care. Abubaker hated the Venetian woman for usurping his position: she was the one who was allowed to spend money and render accounts to the master, whereas
