Khadija sneered. "I beg your pardon… It’s right for you to defend that life. The truth is that God never united two such identical people as when he united the two of you. When it comes to laziness, mildness, and indolence you're the same person. Mr. Fahmy, by the Prophet, her husband spends the whole day smoking and playing music while she adorns herself and flits back and forth in front of the mirror".
Yasin inquired, "Why not, so long as what she sees in the mirror is pretty?" Before Khadija could open her mouth, he quickly asked, "Tell me, sister, what will you do if your child looks like you?"
She was fed up with his attacks and answered him seriously, "With God’s permission he will resemble his father, grandfather, grandmother, or aunt… If…" She laughed. "If he insists on resembling his mother, then he'll deserve to be banished even more than Sa'd Pasha".
With the tone of a man of experience, Kamal told her, "The English don't care about beauty, sister. They like my head and nose a lot".
Khadija struck her breast with her hand and cried out, "They claim to be your friends when all the time they're making fun of you… May our Lord send another zeppelin after them".
Aisha cast a tender look at Fahmy and said, "How your prayer would please some people".
Fahmy smiled and muttered, "How can I be happy when they have gullible friends in our house?"
"What a pity your influence has failed with the boy".
"Some people aren't helped by good influences".
Kamal protested, "Didn't I ask Julian to bring back Sa'd Pasha?"
Khadija laughed and said, "Next time have him swear by that head of yours he likes so much".
More than once Fahmy had felt they were trying to draw him into the conversation and distract him every chance they got, although that did nothing to dissipate his feeling of alienation, which for a long time had come between him and his family whenever he was with them. He would feel alienated or alone no matter how crowded the coffee hour was. He would withdraw into his heart, grief, and zeal when surrounded by giddy, laughing people. When they could, they even made a joke out of Sa'd’s banishment.
He glanced stealthily at each of them in succession and found they were all happy. Aisha was flourishing, although a little tired because of the pregnancy. She was happy about everything, even her fatigue. Khadija was bouncy and quick to laugh. Yasin’s health was outstanding, and he looked blissful. Who among them cared what was happening nowadays? Who among them was concerned whether Sa'd was in Egypt or in exile and whether the English left or stayed? He felt like a stranger or at least estranged from these people. Although this feeling was usually blunted by his magnanimous spirit, now he felt angry and resentful, perhaps because of what he had been going through over the past few days. He had frequently expected to hear that Maryam was getting married. He had been concerned and troubled about that, even though he had already resigned himself to it in despair. As time passed he had almost accepted the idea. Even his love had retreated from center stage in his emotions while he was distracted by weighty concerns. But the incident with Julian had been like an earthquake. What was the meaning of her flirtation with an Englishman she could not hope to marry? Would anyone but a shameless woman do such a thing? Was Maryam a shameless woman? What had happened to the object of his dreams?
The first chance he had had to be alone with Kamal he had asked his little brother to tell the story again, insisting on all the details. How had he observed what took place? Where was the soldier standing? Where was Kamal standing? Was he certain that it was Maryam herself who was in the little window? Was she really looking at the soldier? Did he see her smile at the man? Where…? Was…? Did…? Clenching his teeth as though trying to crush the distress that was tormenting him, Fahmy had asked, "Did she act scared and leave when she saw you?"
Afterward Fahmy had visualized the whole episode, gesture by gesture and scene by scene. He imagined her smile at length until he could almost see her lips parting, the way he had seen them the day of Aisha’s wedding when the girl was following along after the bride in the courtyard of the Shawkat family residence.
"It seems Mama won't join us today," Aisha said sadly.
Khadija commented, "The house is full of visitors".
Yasin laughingly remarked, "I'm afraid the soldiers will become suspicious of the number of people coming here and think a political rally is being held in our home".
Khadija said proudly, "Papa’s friends are so numerous they could hide the sun".
Aisha observed, "I saw Mr. Muhammad Iffat himself at the head of the procession".
Khadija confirmed her sister’s statement: "He’s been his best friend since before we saw the light of day".
Shaking his head, Yasin said, "Papa accused me falsely of destroying their friendship".
"Doesn't divorce separate even the dearest friends?"
Yasin smilingly replied, "Not your father’s friends!"
Aisha boasted, "Who would ever want to oppose Papa? By God, there’s no one in the whole world who’s equal to him". Then with a sigh she continued: "Whenever I think of what happened to him last night, my hair turns gray".
Khadija had finally had enough of Fahmy’s despondency. She decided to attack it directly, after indirect methods had failed. She turned toward him and asked, "Brother, do you see how gracious our Lord was the day you were denied your wish with regard to… Maryam?"
Fahmy looked at her with astonished embarrassment. All eyes were immediately focused on him with concern, even Kamal's. Profound silence reigned, revealing the existence of a stifled sentiment that had been ignored or concealed until Khadija expressed it so boldly. They looked at the young man as though awaiting his reply, almost as though he was the one who had asked the question.
Yasin thought he had better end the silence before it got any worse and caused more pain. Pretending to be happy, he commented, "The reason is that your brother’s a saint, and God loves His saints".
Fahmy, suffering from anguish and embarrassment, said tersely, "This is an old issue that’s been forgotten".
To shield him, Aisha said, "Mr. Fahmy wasn't the only one to be deceived by her. We were all taken in".
Khadija defended herself as best she could against this alleged oversight: "Well, I was never convinced for a moment-even when I believed she was innocent-that she was worthy of you".
Pretending to dismiss the whole affair, Fahmy said, "This is an old issue that’s been forgotten. An Englishman, an Egyptian, it’s all the same thing. Let’s skip all this".
Yasin found himself thinking once again about the "issue" of Maryam… Maryam? He had never looked at her in the past if she came into view except in a cursory fashion. Fahmy’s attachment to her had increased Yasin’s desire to ignore her, until her scandal had been broadcast in the family. That had aroused his interest, and he had wondered for a long time what sort of girl she was. He would have liked to study her carefully and observe the girl who had aroused the desire of an Englishman sent to fight, not flirt. Yasin’s anger at her was only a conversational device. He was actually enraptured by the presence nearby of a daring "fallen woman," separated from him by a single wall. His broad, sturdy chest was pervaded by a bestial intoxication bringing out the hunting instinct in him, but he held back in honor of Fahmy’s sorrow, for he loved his brother. He limited himself to a passive, emotional delight, although no one in the whole district so stirred his interest as Maryam.
"It’s time to leave," Khadija remarked as she rose. She had heard the voices of Ibrahim and Khalil, who were coming in from the hall. Everyone stood up. Some stretched while others adjusted their clothing. Only Kamal remained seated. He looked at the door of the sitting room mournfully, his heart pounding.