“You are a generous man, master.” After a short silence, Sawi asked, “May I leave you now, Mr. Khalil?”

“No. Stay a while. My back is aching, and I have a terrible headache.”

How long will he stay? Will he spend the night with the old man? Saber shuddered at the thought. Khalil was busy saying his prayers. How appropriate. When he had finished, he said, “Help me with my robe and shoes, Sawi.” Rustling and movement then, “Get me my sleeping tablets from the drawer.”

Where is that drawer?! If it was in the cupboard, the fake theft would be discovered. He held his breath in anticipation. He breathed again when he heard the old man drink water, swallowing the tablet. Then he felt Khalil lie on the bed and pull the covers around him.

“Sawi, I can’t get up. Lock the door and open it at the usual time tomorrow morning. Good night.”

Darkness, then the dim light of a small lamp. You will find your master a corpse tomorrow morning. How did the killer enter? How will he escape afterward? The window, the one overlooking the roof. How will they reconstruct the crime? He was going to explode with tension and fear. All these thoughts, all this planning. You must carry it out. You must. Your heartbeats are deafening. You can’t think. Will he fall asleep before I explode? Snoring. Just like his mother on her last night. The death shroud, the weeping skies in Alexandria. Forget that now. He crawled out from under the bed. He stood up, gripping the bar firmly in his gloved hand.

Khalil was hidden under the bedclothes. Only his head showed slightly under the pillow. He felt better at not seeing his face. He approached with renewed courage. He raised the bar. Suddenly the old man turned restlessly. Saber stood rooted in his place, arm raised, bar above his head. The old man opened his eyes. Their eyes met. No sign of recognition in Khalil’s eyes. Saber realized his plight and brought his arm crashing down. He was taken aback by the fantastic force of the blow and the sickening sound of the impact. The old man uttered one soft cry, then a whimper, then silence. The body shuddered once violently, then was still. Saber didn’t bother to make sure he was dead. He rushed to the window, opened it, looked out, and jumped quickly onto the roof, closing the window behind him.