Chapter 7: Keeping Up AppearancesAmal struggled to maintain his composure as he walked toward work in the warm Abu Dhabi sunshine. The thought of trying to pretend nothing had happened for the next ten hours overwhelmed him and he began to cry again just before reaching the store where he worked. Wiping his face carefully and taking a deep breath, he walked in the door.
But Ram, his co-worker, took one look at him and wasn’t fooled. “Uh-oh,” was all he said.
“What?” Amal replied, pretending not to know he’d been found out.
“Your friend was on that plane that went down, wasn’t he? Amal, I don’t know what to say. I’m so sorry. Do you want to go home? I’ll cover your shift for you.”
“No,” said Amal. “I think I need to be away from home now. I’ll be all right. I did some praying and that h
