Between two mountains

Khadija’s hands were never handcuffed. At any case, she was a woman. Her one-storey house was in the far yard of the crossing of the streets of Ingilab and Khan Shushinski. The investigator of the procurator office was twenty two or twenty three years old young man. He put his leather suitcase on the table in the kitchen, and took some paper and a pen. The policeman responsible for this part of the city had called two neighbors to be witnesses.

After the investigator explained the witnesses their rights and duties he offered Khadija to surrender money and golden adornment which could be important for investigation. The search of the house commenced after Khadija said that none of the things the investigator named were there.

The young investigator was busy with drawing up a report, so the investigation was carried out by Ibrahimzade and Safarov. Safarov started investigation together with the witnesses in the sitting room. Masud went to the bed room.

After long searches in the bed room he looked behind the wardrobe. As if his sixth sense was telling him that there was something just behind that wardrobe. He pulled the wardrobe that was at a five or six fingers’ distance from a wall. He squeezed behind the wardrobe and again pushed it forward. Suddenly he noticed a wide four cornered hole on the wall. There was a white pillow. He took the pillow and saw there bank-notes.

The moment he had taken the pillow filled with dollars intending to inform the investigator about it, Khadija entered the room. Seeing the white pillow in Masud’s hands she turned white in face as the color of the pillow:

-When you entered the room I felt that only you would find money. There are five hundred thousand dollars inside of the pillow in your hand. Try to get the money out of the house. Don’t let the investigator to include the money in his report. It is all that I have. If you give even only a hundred thousand of that money to me I shall keep it in secret until my death. See, there is a window; it looks to the back of the house. If you throw the pillow full of money through this window it will fall and get stuck between the house and fence, nobody will know it. Then you may return in the evening and take it. Here you are, these are the keys of the house and gate. Till the end of your life you won’t see as much money as this. You will never be able to earn so much.

Masud looked sourly at Khadija:

–But all this money is the money of the people you had deceived. How can I use it?

–Be clever. The chances like this are rare. –Khadija smoothed her hair finically.

Masud called Safarov in order to put an end to this talk. As soon as Safarov entered the room he saw the money in Masud’s hand and looked at Khadija.

Khadija:– Your friend is stupid. This is the money that I had told you about while you were taking me to isolated cell. See, what he did. I wonder why haven’t you told him anything. – She looked at Safarov reproachingly.

– 

Well, would I need him? I told this to chief and he was supposed to let us both of us to carry out the investigation.

Then Safarov muttered something which only he could hear in sotto voice:

– 

How could we know ahead, we considered him a dork. We didn’t think that he would find the money so quickly.

Khadija stared furiously at Safarov. Safarov looked hesitantly at Masud. But he could feel what Safarov wanted to say and that was why he waved his head.

Safarov:

–The chief won’t let you get off the hook.

Masud was silent.

– 

Why wouldn’t you agree? Hurry, we don’t have much time. The investigator may enter the room at any moment. The witnesses are also in the next room. Hurry up and come to a conclusion.

Masud moved towards the door. Safarov approached the window and said angrily: – Khadija, he is crazy, there is no use.

Khadija tilted forward her large breasts to Masud and said: – Well, take all the money yourself, don’t give me anything. But I feel sorry for the money. Don’t submit the money.

He moved fowards making Khadija to back up and headed towards the kitchen where the investigator was writing a report. But from behind he could clearly hear Khadija and Safarov to say simultaneously:

– Stupid…

***

Masud was happy. Jokes apart, but he succeeded to return their honestly earned monies to a number of honest people.

When captain Ibrahimzade was in high spirits he used to tell some hemistiches of Pobindrant Togor in Russian language. However him being in high spirits was a rare case.

One – is always one, and nothing but the one

But it takes two to create the beginning of the one

That day, towards evening he didn’t know where to go after work. Since he divorced his wife and longed to see his daughter, life lost its meaning. The tables of the tea-house near theatre “Nizami” were outside. Two men were drinking tea sitting under the tree seemed to come from a different reality. It seemed that he was not living in the same city with those guys indolently drinking their teas under the shade and playing backgammon.

He couldn’t find an empty place. He entered a nearly located used books shop. For a long time he didn’t visit bookshops. He had forgotten which book he had read recently. The atmosphere of the bookshops attracted him when he studied in Moscow. What luck that he entered the bookshop, he felt good, he felt young and hale like he was in student years. In fact, he still was “a student”. He always had some small change in his pocket, and always daydreamed. People like him are often called “eternal students.”

The salesman was looking at him attentively, as if he was watching him. He wondered which books he will encounter. Then his glance fell on a poetry book. – Oh, my God! This is an Indian poet – Ashok Vajpeyi. A photo of a young man wearing glasses was pictured at the cover of a pocketbook. Under the photo it was written:

“Ashok Vajpeyi was born in 1941. He is the head of the Academy of “Lalit Kala”, that is to say the Head of Academy of Fine Arts. He was awarded the name of the commander of the French art and literature. Ashok Vajpeyi is one of the talented representatives of the trend of “new poetry”. His poems have been translated into some Asian and European languages”.

He began again to dream about India. Taj-Mahal palace …And his first love.

His heart gave a leap. He looked outside through the window and saw an empty place in the tea-house. He bought Ashok Vajpeyi’s book of poems and rushed out of the shop.

– 

Come again! – The salesman said.

He opened a book on the random page and read the first poem he came across:

My words

Touched you

Like a light wind,

Like sun beams,

Without being felt.

The buds of the words

Faded before blossoming

Fine smelling of the faded words

Disappeared all of a sudden

On the branches of tree named you.