Like a statue coming to life one of the elderly men in the hut wailed, a delayed cry of anguish. Startled by the noise, Leo spun round, guessing from the reaction that he was the boy’s father. At the same time, outside the house, the soldiers opened fire with bursts from their machine guns. From his position, still kneeling on the floor with his finger on the boy’s neck, Leo could see the crowd breaking apart, running, several men falling. The captain moved to the entrance, raising his gun, firing shots from the doorway.

In the confusion, Leo neglected to check the old man. The elder had staggered to his feet and was striding towards him with a curved knife, the blade protruding from his hand like a talon. He raised it above his head, ready to strike. Leo’s training and combat instincts deserted him, leaving him helpless before this man’s blade.

The elder’s arm spun away, as though yanked back by a string. The captain fired again, hitting the old man in the shoulder and stomach. The elder dropped the knife. A fourth shot knocked him to the floor, not far from the body of the boy. Leo remained in the same position, still waiting for the knife to hit his neck. The captain turned the gun on the second Afghan elder: a man who’d remained silent, cross-legged on the ground. The captain fired into his chest, killing him, before returning his attention to the fight outside.

Leo slowly got to his feet, sure that he was going to topple, his legs heavy as lead. He felt delirious. Candles flickered, smoke swirled. An explosion outside brought him to his senses. Despite the fact that upon arrival he’d seen no Afghans carrying weapons, they’d evidently produced some. The captain remained in the hut, now on one knee, reloading then firing carefully from the doorway, entirely untroubled by the dead boy behind him.

A burst of machine-gun fire cut through the roof, the line of bullets running along the mud floor. The trapped smoke escaped through the holes, daylight burst through. The villagers were firing from a position on the ridge. The captain returned fire, at the terraced fields, shouting orders at the other soldiers. He darted out, into the open. Another burst of fire came through the roof, hitting the body of the dead elder. Leo made no effort to find safety. Someone grabbed his wrist. It was Nara, pulling him to the back of the house.