BAMAKO by Aribert Raphael (smart books to read txt) đ
- Author: Aribert Raphael
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âI see. Well, it brings me back to my suggestion. Do you remember I mentioned the word âcourtshipâ to you once before? And it seems you didnât heed my words.â
âBut, isnât that what Iâm doing right now?âcourting her.â
âIf you mean pursuing her is the way you view courtship, then youâre off tracks completely, my friend.â
âWhat am I supposed to do then? Present Monsieur Flaubert with a thousand goats and the deed of my practice? Or is that not enough?â
Mohammed smiled at the thought of a thousand goats being brought in to the reception hall of the Meridien hotel. âNo I donât think that would do itâeven if you had a thousand goats to bring before him.â He chuckled.
âSo tell me what can I do?â
âIâve never had the opportunity to court a white woman before, and a Jewish one at that, so Iâll only suggest a couple things. In the first place, I think you need to tell Monsieur Flaubert why you donât think a union is possibleâbecause you donât know the ways to make it possible, and see what he says. The other thing you should do, and that as soon as you can, is to go see Talya alone and tell her that you wish to court her and try to âadaptâ your ways, and see how she reacts. I bet sheâll welcome you with open arms.â
âOr sheâll kick me out?â
âThatâs a strong possibility, knowing her, but somehow I donât think so. I think sheâll want to know a lot more about you and your life, so that she can better understand why marriage between the two of you has become your prime objective in life.â
âThatâs not my prime objective in life,â Hassan retorted with resentment.
âOh no? Why then do you want to keep Talya close to you? Why couldnât you let her be with who she wants to be? Like the way youâre reacting when she wants to evade you and protect Hjamal.â
âOh, youâve seen her doing it then? How could she do that? And she did it again this afternoon when we were in his office. I tell you she admires the man. Even Monsieur Flaubert noticed it and he warned her about how dangerous the man could be.â
âMonsieur Flaubert is absolutely right. The man could be very dangerous. Yet I have to admit I have some respect for him now that I know what heâs planning to do. Although I donât particularly care for the way heâs done things to get where he is.â
âYou? You say you have respect for this man. I thought you hated him. What made you change your mind?â
âI got a call from the ambassador a few minutes ago.â
âWow! News does travel fast around here.â
âHe had to call me, because this is as much a political complication as it is a justice problem. Rasheed has presumably gone back to Mali, and I needed to know if we were going to track down a thief or a murderer. And you know the difference it makes under our laws.â
âSo what else did he say about Hjamal?â
âSee how you are?âyou canât let go of an idea once you have it in your head.â
âAnd whatâs that?â Hassan riveted his eyes on Mohammed.
âYouâre jealous. You canât wait for someone to find a flaw in Hjamalâs character or a mistake he may have made, so you could come down on him like the wrath of Allah. Thatâs a dangerous trait, very dangerous indeed, because I could see the day when you would strike Talya, blaming her for looking at another man.â
âI wouldnât. Never!â Hassan denied strenuously.
âNo? Then tell me how did you feel when you came out of Hjamalâs office this afternoon? Didnât you want to reprimand her somehow for admiring what the man is proposing to do?â
âYes, yes, of course I did. But I didnât want to hurt her. I wanted to kiss her to make her understand sheâs mine and no one elseâs.â Instantly, when Hassan realized what he had said, he was confounded. He couldnât explain the dreadful feeling of anger and hatred that ran through his being. Had Hjamal being there on the terrace, he would have pushed him off the balcony.
âExactly,â Mohammed said, shaking his head. âYou need to hold on to the only thought that counts in moments like these. You need to remind yourself that Talya probably loves you and that admiring a man has nothing to do with what she feels for you.â
âAnd what happens when sheâll come back for the Sabodala project? What am I going to do then? How can I ignore the fact that sheâll be with Hjamal day after day? I canât Mohammed, I canât.â
âIf you love her the way you should, with trust in your heart, you will, and if you canât, it will be the end of your courtship. Thatâs all I can tell you.â
101
Talya was zipping her black skirt when she heard a knock at the door. I should put the âdo not disturbâ sign on the knobâI canât even dress in peace now.
âWho is it?â She pulled the shirt over her head. God, Iâll be glad when tomorrow night comes. She opened the door without waiting for an answer.
âHassan!â she said, letting him in, âI thought you were getting ready to go down and meet James,â when she saw that he hadnât changed his clothes.
âNo, not yet, I need to talk to you.â Here comes the storm I was dreading this afternoon.
âOkay, letâs sit down thenââ
However, before she had a chance to make her way to the living room, Hassan grabbed her by the arm a questioning look in his eyes. âTalya?â
âYes, what is it?â
âDo you love me?â
âNo, Hassan, I donât love you, I adore you. Does that answer your question?â
Her mocking eyes didnât leave any doubt in Hassanâs mind that Talya was playing games with his feelings. Nonetheless, he asked, âThen why are you acting the way you do with Hjamal? You feel something for the man, donât you?â
âOf course I do. I appreciate him. He may be a misguided maniac, and an egotistical, obsessive man (to put it mildly), but I canât help admiring what heâs done or what heâs planning to do in Sabodala.â
âAnd I hate his guts.â
âWell, now that weâve made a clean breast of our feelings toward Mr. Hjamal, can you go and get dressed.â
âNo, not yet, I need to know one more thing before we go and meet Monsieur Flaubert.â
âAnd whatâs that?â
âWill you marry me?â
âI ⊠I donât know.â
Then, all of a sudden, Hassan turned on his heels and left Talya without another word. God, please help me.
102
They reached the terrace restaurant by the pool at nearly seven oâclock. James was waiting for Hassan and Talya at the bar, a drink in hand. He turned toward them when they came down the long flagstone steps.
âHello, you two!â He waved at the two of them. âLetâs get a table before this place gets too busy. What would you like to drink, Talya? Hassan?â
âIâll have a glass of Chablis, thanksâŠ.â Talya was looking around her to see if Samir, or Mohammed perhaps, were already sitting somewhere near the beach.
âJust an orange juice for me, thank you,â Hassan said, watching Talya.
James ordered the drinks and they went to sit at the same table they had occupied at lunch.
The wind was up as it was on most nights. The lampoons, dangling from the bamboo rafters beneath the overhanging thatch, were swinging fiercely at every gust. The tree trunk, encased in the cement floor, served as a single supporting foot to each table, and the wrought-iron chairs were heavy enough to withstand any blowing from a windy night. Unless for a tidal wave crashing the place, Talya didnât think they had anything to worry by way of furniture flying about.
Once they were sitting in front of their drinks, James said, âI bet youâre anxious to know what I wanted to talk to you about, arenât you, Hassan?â
âA little, yes, I must admit, I am curious.â
âIâll put it as delicately as I know how. And by the way, I donât want to hear a peep out of you, Talya.â James looked at her, waiting for her to jump in. She didnât say the word he was expecting to hear. She just smiled and Hassan grinned.
âAs I was saying, I am going to put this as delicately as I can, Hassan. Are you in love with Talya?â That was as delicately as he could?
âButââ Hassan smiled and shook his head at hearing another âbutâ from Talya.
âTalya!â James exclaimed, admonishing her interruption. âWell, are you?â he insisted, looking at Hassan fixedly.
âI expected the question because it has become obvious to everyone, I suppose, that we have very strong feeling for each other andââ
âIâm not talking about âstrong feelingsâ. Iâm talking about loving her. Do you?â
âJames, Iâm surprised at your intrusionâŠ.â Talya gawked at her boss.
He held her gaze meaningfully. âWhen two of my employees are getting involved in the most awkward, if not dangerous circumstances, I donât think a little intrusion from me is going to do any harm.â
âIâm sorry. I didnât mean it that way.â Watch your mouth, Talya.
âYou have to understand something; Iâm extremely concerned about your future.â James peered into Talyaâs eyes as if to make sure his words hit the mark. âWeâve made plans this morning, and to carry out these plans we need to have you with your feet firmly planted on the ground. I canât have you running the show with your head in the clouds.â
âDonât you think I havenât thought about that? This afternoon you mentioned something I hadnât expected. You said you wanted me to come back and head these projectsââ Her voice faltered. Talya was hurt more than she would ever want to admit. âGood God, donât you know by now, that I wouldnât let anything distract me from doing my job? Believe me; I have no intention of blowing my chances here just because Iâm infatuated with someone.â
âUnder normal circumstances, Iâd say yes, you would. But this is different. Youâre not in Vancouver in a nice, comfortable office. Youâre at the edge of the Sahara for Godâs sake. And youâre involved with a Muslim man. Iâm sorry, Hassan. This is not meant to be derogatory. I just need Talya to face facts.â Hassan bent his head and made no reply.
âMe, face facts? You want me to face facts?â Talya cried out in utmost disbelief. âWhy donât you ask Hassan to face facts?â She had enough of this. âI think I will have dinner in my room! I need to go and face facts.â At that, she got up, leaving her companions blurting out some sort of apologies, and went back to her apartment.
Hassan wanted to run after the woman he loved, but he couldnâtânot in front of James. That would have been out of place. It would have demonstrated to his ânew employerâ that he had no restraint when it came to pursuing Talya.
As they watched her marching back up the
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