My father was standing near the window. My mother was sitting in a chair, looking at him. My father spoke to us first.
I’ll say this only once. I am not a thief. I don’t know who stole the jewellery, but it wasn’t me.’
‘Of course your father isn’t a thief, but people will talk. You must be strong and not listen to them, said my mother.
‘What happened father? Why do the police think that you stole the jewellery,’ asked Amira.
‘about two weeks ago, somebody stole a watch, a necklace, some earrings and two rings from Sheikh Bin Salem’s house. They were very expensive. The police asked Sheikh Bin Salem and his wife to give them the names of all their visitors. They have a lot of give them the names of all their visitors. They have a lot of visitors. I’ve been a visitor there many times. They have a lot of visitors. I’ve been a visitor there many times as you know. They gave my name but the police didn’t ask me any questions. Nobody thought that I was a thief.’
‘So why do they think that you are a thief now?’ I asked.
‘Because some of the jewellery was in the parcel I took to Dubai,’ he smiled at our surprised faces, but it wasn’t a happy smile.
‘Of course I didn’t know what was in the parcel. The parcel was on my desk at work the evening before I went to Dubai. There was a typed note from Sheikh Bin Salem’s secretary. Well, I thought that it was from his secretary. The note asked me to take the parcel to Dubai the next morning. I didn’t open the parcel. I never do. The note said that there were important papers for Sheikh Bin Salem’s family inside the parcel. I have taken important papers for him many times before. He trusts me more than anyone for him many times before. He trusts me more than anyone – or he did,’ he said sadly.
‘Did you show the note to the police?’ I asked.
‘Of course, but the secretary said that he didn’t type the note and Sheikh Bin Salem said that he didn’t ask that he didn’t ask the secretary to type it.’
‘Who do you think typed it, father?’ asked Mohammed, my twelve-year-old brother.
‘I don’t know. The police think that I typed it myself.’
‘Where did you take the parcel?’ asked Amira.
‘The note asked me to take it to an address in Dubai, to the brother of Sheikh Bin Salem’s wife in Dubai. When I got there, I went into the house. I met a tall man there. I thought that he was the brother. We drank coffee. We talked for a few minutes and I gave him the parcel. Then I left.’
‘Wasn’t he her brother?’ asked Ibrahim.
‘No. Later, much later, the police told me that he buys and sells stolen jewellery. They were already watching him. Then they saw me arrive, get out of the car with the parcel and go into his house. When I left, they arrested me, the driver, and the tall man.’
‘What did the tall man say?’ I asked.
‘He said that someone phoned him. A man told him that he was bringing some expensive jewellery to his house. He didn’t know the man’s name. Perhaps it was me or perhaps it was another man. He wasn’t sure.’
‘What happened at the police station?’ Ibrahim asked.
‘They put me in a room and left me. Nobody spoke to me. Nobody told me anything. Then, after about two hours, a policeman came into the room, an important policeman. I told him that there was a mistake, but he just laughed. I told him that there was mistake, but he just taking it to that address. He became angry. He stared shouting. He told me that I would stay at the police station until he heard the truth.’
‘Were you afraid?’ asked Mohammed.
My father smiled. ‘No, but I was worried about you. You were waiting for me to come home.’
‘What happened next, father?’ asked Amira.
‘Another policeman came into the room about two hours later. He took me to an office, the office of the important policeman. He asked me more question. E knew everything about me – my job, my address, your schools and university, he even knew about your engagement, Kareem!’
‘But there has been no announcement yet!’ I said.
‘I know. He had a lot of information.’ He looks at my mother and I. ‘Have you spoken to Samira and her family yet?’
‘Her mother phoned two days ago. She was worried about you. I told her that you would be home soon and that everything would be fine. I haven’t spoken to her since then,’ my mother said.
‘I spoke to Samira yesterday. She told me that it must be a mistake. She said that nobody would believe it,’ I said.
‘She’s a nice girl, but still young. She doesn’t know people very well,’ my father said.
‘Go on with the story, father,’ said Mohammed.
‘You know the rest of the story. Your uncle came to the police station and phoned Sheikh Bin Salem. The police wanted to send me to prison for taking the jewels but Sheikh Bin Salem was against it. I’ve worked for him for a long time. He said to the police that perhaps my story was true. In the end, the police said that I could leave.’
‘What are you going to do now?’ asked Ibrahim.
‘I want to forget these last few days. I want to go back to work. I want to do what I usually do, but I don’t think that I can. Sheikh Bin Salem told me to take a long holiday. He wants to give people time. He wants to give time to forget all this. I don’t think that will forget it, but Sheikh Bin Salem has been very good to me so I must agree to his plans.’
‘One day the police will catch the real thief and then we can forget all about this,’ said my mother
‘Now please children, leave me alone. I’m feeling very tired,’ said my father.
We all left the room. Catch the real thief! Were the police even looking? I turned around and opened the door again. My father was sitting on the chair. His head was in his hands.
Chapter 4
Life was bad.The next day it was worse.Samira’s father phoned.He wanted to speak to my father.I looked at my father while he took the call.After a minute or two he put his hand over the phone and turned to me.He asked me to leave the room.Ten minutes later he called me back and told me the bad news.I’m very sorry my son. When they arrested me ,I thought about your engagement.I was afraid of this. Samira’s father has just phoned. He said that his plans have changed.He said that he thinks Samira is too young. I’m so sorry. I’ve done nothing wrong and neither have you, but that’s not important now.
Samira’s father knows that you’re a good man. How can he do this to you, to our family? It’s not right, I said angrily. ‘We know that I’m not a thief and I think that he knows that, too. But he’s thinking about his daughter. How can he agree to this engagement now? Nobody wants to know a thief or the family of a thief. He doesn’t want his daughter to marry into a family that nobody wants to know. You’ll see He won’t be the only one to think that way.
My father was right . We usually had a lot of visitors: my mother’s family and friends, our friend, my father’s family ,friends and business colleagues. There was always someone in the house. Now the house was empty. Nobody came to visit. Nobody came for dinner or for coffee. I spoke to my friends on the phone, but,strangely,they were always busy. Amira and Ibrahim said the same. Luckily it was the summer.There was no school for my youngest brother.We were happy about that.
We didn’t want him to hear bad things about his father from the other children. But Mohammed wasn’t happy.He was bored. He didn’t have anyone to play with. He stayed in his bedroom and played on his computer.He only left his room to eat and to tell us that he was bored.
We didn’t see much of my father either. He lived in his own world. Day after day,heset in his office,seeing nobody, talking to nobody. He stopped eating with us, so my mother took food to him. He ate very little. My mother didn’t say anything to me, but I knew that she was very worried about him and the family. Sometimes at night,when she thought that we were all in bed,I could hear her downstairs,crying.
Not every stopped calling. The day after Samira’s father phoned, I had a phone call from Samira.
I’m so sorry, she said. She was crying. I don’t want to end our engagement, but my father won’t listen.I told my father that there has been a terrible mistake. I know that your father isn’t a thief and I’m sure that my father knows that too, but he says it’s not important what he or I think. He told me that he spoke to your father.
‘yes, he did, I said quietly.
‘One day the police will catch the real thief and everyone will be sorry, she said.
I’ll never forget your trust in my family, I said quietly Thank you.
‘Perhaps we can help my father change his plans again, she went on , and she wasn’t crying now. ‘We must fine the real thief. Your father didn’t take the jewellery, so we must find the person who did. She made it sound so easy.
‘But how are we going to do that?’I asked.
‘Let’s think. Sheikh bin Salem says that he didn’t leave the parcel. He says that he didn’t ask his secretary to type it. Perhaps he didn’t ask him to type it but perhaps he left the parcel.
‘What do you mean? I asked.
‘Perhaps he typed the note himself. Perhaps he stole his wife’s jewellery.
I was shocked at her words. ‘I know you want to help my father, but Sheikh Bin Salem isn’t a thief,’ I said.
‘Why not? He can sell the jewelry and get money from the insurance company at the same time. Then he can buy his wife newjewellery and have the rest of the money for himself.’
‘He doesn’t need to do that. He’s a very rich man.’
‘Perhaps he is, perhaps he isn’t. How do we know? Perhaps he has money problems. Perhaps he just thinks it is exciting to be a thief. I don’t know why he did it, but we have to find out more about him – and everyone who went into your father’s office on that day,’ she said.
I didn’t think she was right about Sheikh Bin Salem, but I wanted to do something. So I agreed.
‘OK. Let’s try,’ I said. ‘The first thing I can do is to talk to A
My father was standing near the window. My mother was sitting in a chair, looking at him. My father spoke to us first.
I’ll say this only once. I am not a thief. I don’t know who stole the jewellery, but it wasn’t me.’
‘Of course your father isn’t a thief, but people will talk. You must be strong and not listen to them, said my mother.
‘What happened father? Why do the police think that you stole the jewellery,’ asked Amira.
‘about two weeks ago, somebody stole a watch, a necklace, some earrings and two rings from Sheikh Bin Salem’s house. They were very expensive. The police asked Sheikh Bin Salem and his wife to give them the names of all their visitors. They have a lot of give them the names of all their visitors. They have a lot of visitors. I’ve been a visitor there many times. They have a lot of visitors. I’ve been a visitor there many times as you know. They gave my name but the police didn’t ask me any questions. Nobody thought that I was a thief.’
‘So why do they think that you are a thief now?’ I asked.
‘Because some of the jewellery was in the parcel I took to Dubai,’ he smiled at our surprised faces, but it wasn’t a happy smile.
‘Of course I didn’t know what was in the parcel. The parcel was on my desk at work the evening before I went to Dubai. There was a typed note from Sheikh Bin Salem’s secretary. Well, I thought that it was from his secretary. The note asked me to take the parcel to Dubai the next morning. I didn’t open the parcel. I never do. The note said that there were important papers for Sheikh Bin Salem’s family inside the parcel. I have taken important papers for him many times before. He trusts me more than anyone for him many times before. He trusts me more than anyone – or he did,’ he said sadly.
‘Did you show the note to the police?’ I asked.
‘Of course, but the secretary said that he didn’t type the note and Sheikh Bin Salem said that he didn’t ask that he didn’t ask the secretary to type it.’
‘Who do you think typed it, father?’ asked Mohammed, my twelve-year-old brother.
‘I don’t know. The police think that I typed it myself.’
‘Where did you take the parcel?’ asked Amira.
‘The note asked me to take it to an address in Dubai, to the brother of Sheikh Bin Salem’s wife in Dubai. When I got there, I went into the house. I met a tall man there. I thought that he was the brother. We drank coffee. We talked for a few minutes and I gave him the parcel. Then I left.’
‘Wasn’t he her brother?’ asked Ibrahim.
‘No. Later, much later, the police told me that he buys and sells stolen jewellery. They were already watching him. Then they saw me arrive, get out of the car with the parcel and go into his house. When I left, they arrested me, the driver, and the tall man.’
‘What did the tall man say?’ I asked.
‘He said that someone phoned him. A man told him that he was bringing some expensive jewellery to his house. He didn’t know the man’s name. Perhaps it was me or perhaps it was another man. He wasn’t sure.’
‘What happened at the police station?’ Ibrahim asked.
‘They put me in a room and left me. Nobody spoke to me. Nobody told me anything. Then, after about two hours, a policeman came into the room, an important policeman. I told him that there was a mistake, but he just laughed. I told him that there was mistake, but he just taking it to that address. He became angry. He stared shouting. He told me that I would stay at the police station until he heard the truth.’
‘Were you afraid?’ asked Mohammed.
My father smiled. ‘No, but I was worried about you. You were waiting for me to come home.’
‘What happened next, father?’ asked Amira.
‘Another policeman came into the room about two hours later. He took me to an office, the office of the important policeman. He asked me more question. E knew everything about me – my job, my address, your schools and university, he even knew about your engagement, Kareem!’
‘But there has been no announcement yet!’ I said.
‘I know. He had a lot of information.’ He looks at my mother and I. ‘Have you spoken to Samira and her family yet?’
‘Her mother phoned two days ago. She was worried about you. I told her that you would be home soon and that everything would be fine. I haven’t spoken to her since then,’ my mother said.
‘I spoke to Samira yesterday. She told me that it must be a mistake. She said that nobody would believe it,’ I said.
‘She’s a nice girl, but still young. She doesn’t know people very well,’ my father said.
‘Go on with the story, father,’ said Mohammed.
‘You know the rest of the story. Your uncle came to the police station and phoned Sheikh Bin Salem. The police wanted to send me to prison for taking the jewels but Sheikh Bin Salem was against it. I’ve worked for him for a long time. He said to the police that perhaps my story was true. In the end, the police said that I could leave.’
‘What are you going to do now?’ asked Ibrahim.
‘I want to forget these last few days. I want to go back to work. I want to do what I usually do, but I don’t think that I can. Sheikh Bin Salem told me to take a long holiday. He wants to give people time. He wants to give time to forget all this. I don’t think that will forget it, but Sheikh Bin Salem has been very good to me so I must agree to his plans.’
‘One day the police will catch the real thief and then we can forget all about this,’ said my mother
‘Now please children, leave me alone. I’m feeling very tired,’ said my father.
We all left the room. Catch the real thief! Were the police even looking? I turned around and opened the door again. My father was sitting on the chair. His head was in his hands.
Chapter 4
Life was bad.The next day it was worse.Samira’s father phoned.He wanted to speak to my father.I looked at my father while he took the call.After a minute or two he put his hand over the phone and turned to me.He asked me to leave the room.Ten minutes later he called me back and told me the bad news.I’m very sorry my son. When they arrested me ,I thought about your engagement.I was afraid of this. Samira’s father has just phoned. He said that his plans have changed.He said that he thinks Samira is too young. I’m so sorry. I’ve done nothing wrong and neither have you, but that’s not important now.
Samira’s father knows that you’re a good man. How can he do this to you, to our family? It’s not right, I said angrily. ‘We know that I’m not a thief and I think that he knows that, too. But he’s thinking about his daughter. How can he agree to this engagement now? Nobody wants to know a thief or the family of a thief. He doesn’t want his daughter to marry into a family that nobody wants to know. You’ll see He won’t be the only one to think that way.
My father was right . We usually had a lot of visitors: my mother’s family and friends, our friend, my father’s family ,friends and business colleagues. There was always someone in the house. Now the house was empty. Nobody came to visit. Nobody came for dinner or for coffee. I spoke to my friends on the phone, but,strangely,they were always busy. Amira and Ibrahim said the same. Luckily it was the summer.There was no school for my youngest brother.We were happy about that.
We didn’t want him to hear bad things about his father from the other children. But Mohammed wasn’t happy.He was bored. He didn’t have anyone to play with. He stayed in his bedroom and played on his computer.He only left his room to eat and to tell us that he was bored.
We didn’t see much of my father either. He lived in his own world. Day after day,heset in his office,seeing nobody, talking to nobody. He stopped eating with us, so my mother took food to him. He ate very little. My mother didn’t say anything to me, but I knew that she was very worried about him and the family. Sometimes at night,when she thought that we were all in bed,I could hear her downstairs,crying.
Not every stopped calling. The day after Samira’s father phoned, I had a phone call from Samira.
I’m so sorry, she said. She was crying. I don’t want to end our engagement, but my father won’t listen.I told my father that there has been a terrible mistake. I know that your father isn’t a thief and I’m sure that my father knows that too, but he says it’s not important what he or I think. He told me that he spoke to your father.
‘yes, he did, I said quietly.
‘One day the police will catch the real thief and everyone will be sorry, she said.
I’ll never forget your trust in my family, I said quietly Thank you.
‘Perhaps we can help my father change his plans again, she went on , and she wasn’t crying now. ‘We must fine the real thief. Your father didn’t take the jewellery, so we must find the person who did. She made it sound so easy.
‘But how are we going to do that?’I asked.
‘Let’s think. Sheikh bin Salem says that he didn’t leave the parcel. He says that he didn’t ask his secretary to type it. Perhaps he didn’t ask him to type it but perhaps he left the parcel.
‘What do you mean? I asked.
‘Perhaps he typed the note himself. Perhaps he stole his wife’s jewellery.
I was shocked at her words. ‘I know you want to help my father, but Sheikh Bin Salem isn’t a thief,’ I said.
‘Why not? He can sell the jewelry and get money from the insurance company at the same time. Then he can buy his wife newjewellery and have the rest of the money for himself.’
‘He doesn’t need to do that. He’s a very rich man.’
‘Perhaps he is, perhaps he isn’t. How do we know? Perhaps he has money problems. Perhaps he just thinks it is exciting to be a thief. I don’t know why he did it, but we have to find out more about him – and everyone who went into your father’s office on that day,’ she said.
I didn’t think she was right about Sheikh Bin Salem, but I wanted to do something. So I agreed.
‘OK. Let’s try,’ I said. ‘The first thing I can do is to talk to A
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