She hurried home and into the bathroom where she vomited – and cried and cried and vomited for what seemed to her to be days. And all this time, she was thinking of how right the boys had been. She would have liked to run to where they were to tell them so. To ask them to forgive her for having dared to contradict them. They had been so very right. Her brothers, lovers and husbands. But nearly all of them were still abroad. In Europe, America or some place else. They used to tell her that they found the thought of returning home frightening. They would be frustrated. . . .

Others were still studying for one or two more degrees. A Master’s here. A Doctorate there. . . . That was the other thing about the revolution.

For Whom Things Did Not Change

For Whom Things Did Not Change

Knock . . . knock . . . knock . . .

‘A-ha?’

‘Massa, Massa, Massa . . .’

‘A-ha? A-ha? A-ha?’

‘You say make I com’ wake you. Make I com’ wake you for eight. Eight o’clock ’e reach.’

‘Okay, thank you.’

Knock . . . knock . . . knock . . .

‘A-ha?’

‘Massa, Massa, Massa.’

‘A-ha? A-ha? A-ha?’

‘You say make I com’ wake you. Make I com’ wake you for eight. Eight o’clock reach long time.’

‘Okay, thank you, Zirigu.’

.  .  .  .  .

‘I think this is a strange one. This young master. You can see he is very tired. But he insists that he should be woken up at eight o’clock. And I wonder what he thinks he can do in a place like this from that hour. He must be one of these people who don’t know how to rest. Even when they are scholars.’

‘Zirigu my husband, sometimes you talk as though it is not yourself speaking but some child. Do you think people are all the same because they all went to school and are big masters?’

‘Setu, you know I do not think anything like that. But you must agree that after all these years, I can say something about the type of human beings who come here. This young one seems different.’

‘And what is the difference?’

Ah-ah. He does not drink at all. He has never asked me to serve him with anything strong or buy him any from the town.’

‘Maybe he is a Believer?’

‘No-no. He is from the coast. And I have not met many big men from those areas who are Moslems. But that is not what I mean really. Most of the Believers from your area who are big men are not different from the others. Yes, they do not drink – some do even that – but then, that is all. They are all like the others.’

‘As for me, what I have just noticed is that he did not bring a woman with him.’

‘Eh-heh! Ah Setu, so you know what I mean?’

‘What do I know?’

‘That this one is different?’