Aliah flushes, appears genuinely remorseful.“After that… Sabera seemed more and more withdrawn.Jumpy.Anxious.Something was not right.I just didn’t realize how wrong.I’m sorry.I thought I was being respectful, waiting for her to come to me.I wish now I’d pushed harder.”
That would make two of us.“Aliah, do you remember the exact day this incident happened—Sabera coming here all rattled and distressed?The date?”
“I could look it up.”
“Please do.”There’s a thought forming in the back of my mind.According to Staci, Sabera had once been admitted to the ER, leading to Staci getting a call instead of Isaad.I’m wondering if the hospital stay might have been Sabera’s first disappearing act, especially given that Isaad wasn’t summoned.
Maybe my theory’s nothing, but maybe it’s something, and at this point, I could use all the something I could get.For now, I switch gears.“Did Sabera ever talk about her mom?”
“All the time.She died when Sabera was a girl, but Sabera missed her very much.Her mother’s name, Maryam, means beloved.Sabera would whisper it as a term of endearment.Clearly, they were very close.”
“Did you know Sabera had reached out to an organization, No One Left Behind, to learn more about her mother’s role as an MI6 agent?”
“What?”Aliah’s eyes round.She appears genuinely stunned.“Her mother was a spy?”
“It’s the real reason Sabera’s mother returned to Kabul against her family’s wishes.I mean, I’m sure she loved and missed her husband as well, but there was more going on than met the eye.”
Aliah’s mouth opens, no words emerge.
I continue with my newfound information.“Were you aware Sabera herself had worked briefly for the army’s military intelligence unit in decoding?”
Aliah no longer appears dazed, but shaken.I imagine it’s becoming clearer and clearer to her how little she knew the younger refugee.
“I did not.”Aliah takes a deep breath in, releases it slowly.“But then, Sabera didn’t speak much of her former life.That’s not so uncommon.We may discuss missing a favorite food, or season, or smell in the air.The little details that skip across our memories.But our actual day-to-day lives… What was but is no more.Who we were but are no more.Most choose to leave it completely behind.”
“Did she talk about other members of her family?Her father, siblings, cousins, anyone?”
“Her older brother, Farshid.”A quick smile.“Sometimes, she would let stories slip.They would make her smile.And then, they would make her very sad.He died the day Kabul fell.Their father, too.That’s all I know.”
“I didn’t think there was much fighting.Didn’t the city just sort of… fold?”
“There was not an all-out battle if that’s what you mean.The real war turned out to be suitcases of cash and secret handshakes behind closed doors.Many of the national police and security forces hadn’t been paid in months, or even a year.Deals were made with frontline soldiers who had families to feed.Leaders were bought off who wanted to further fatten their wallets.After that, the Taliban simply had to appear, and mostly, it was over.But not everyone gave up their future so quietly.And some knew they would be targeted by the Taliban either way.Especially once it became clear evacuation was impossible, they made the decision to go down fighting.I lost some family, too.”
“You still have… had… family in Kabul?”
“Of course.Only my mother and us two girls emigrated twenty-five years ago.Otherwise most of my family remains in Afghanistan.In the months leading up to Kabul falling, I could feel their tension when we’d video over WhatsApp.Then, after the city collapsed, for an entire week, nothing at all.It was one of the worst weeks of my life.Finally, an aunt reached out.The moment I heard her voice, I knew.My cousin’s son, a known activist.The Taliban shot him dead in the street, then left his body as a warning for others.And now, all of my family lives under such a regime.I would bring each and every one of them here, if only it were possible.”
Aliah gazes at me solemnly.“I can’t help them, so I do what I can to help my fellow countrymen here.And I hope that back inKabul, someone will show equal kindness to my loved ones.Conditions there are bad, and only going to get worse.”
She shrugs fatalistically.I wish I had hopeful words to offer, but we are both too experienced for platitudes.
“You said your cousin’s son was killed because he was a known activist.Was that why Sabera’s family died?Or maybe someone figured out her mother had been a spy?”
“Maryam had been dead for years by then.Sabera’s father, however, was known for his progressive views on women’s right to education.And being an academic of some note, he would’ve made for an easy target.Sabera’s uncles, on the other hand, didn’t sound like nice men at all.According to Sabera, they were corrupt, greedy bullies.Given their various business activities… Well, let’s just say they were not well liked by their neighbors.”
“Their business activities?Meaning…?”
“Their enterprises weren’t just illegal but controversial.The practices had been outlawed by the government as the Taliban themselves were turning to such things for profit.But also, such businesses were extremely dangerous and exploitive of the locals.There’s another term, not one we use in Afghanistan, but in other countries—blood diamonds.”
I feel a cold fissure race along my spine.“Sabera’s uncles were involved in illegalmining?”
She gives me a curious look.“Exactly.”
“Aliah, start at the beginning, and tell me everything.”
CHAPTER 25
IFALIAH IS SURPRISED BYmy sudden interest in illegal mining, she does her best to get over it as she collects her thoughts on the subject.