Chapter TwoAbout a month after Hamid had travelled to Cairo his brothers returned to the house one day to find that he was not at home. They waited to see if he would arrive for supper but he did not come, and when that night and the following day had passed with no sign of him, they wrote to inform their father. He came quickly, anxious for an explanation but they had no idea what had become of their brother. Wringing his hands the old man went into Hamid’s room, his eyes sunken and moistened with tears. He sat down, sad and dejected, lamenting the ill fortune that had snatched away his dearest son. Where could he be? Suicide? Surely he would not take his own life. But how could he leave his brothers and family without so much as a message and for no reason whatsoever?
The world darkened
