Duplus

Chapter 22:

Amaani's POV:

"Right this way," the short man in a janitor's uniform led the way and we followed him. My eyes fell on his pointy hat which was almost falling off his half-bald head. I tried to look away and distract myself but his shiny head was bobbing up and down with every heavy step he took. I glanced towards Sufiyaan to see whether he noticed it too.

We walked in silence as I tried to control my laughter. My lips were shut tight but it was like they would fall apart any moment. Either the hat was too pointy or the man's head was too lustrous. Whatever it was, it was hilarious.

Sufiyaan caught me and shook his head in disbelief. "What? It's funny." I whispered to him, pouting. Before he could say anything else, the janitor stopped in front of a door. "Here we are. Sir Jaber's waiting inside for you," he informed us with a little smile and walked away.

I gave him a little wave, amusement sparkling in my eyes. I looked around before opening the door and stepping inside. It was then that I realized that I had seen that place before.

I frowned, trying to recollect. My eyes widened in realization when I recognized the door. It was the same room where Broad shoulders had his meeting with Saira and Usama about the code that Lx16 had given him. I also thought back to when Usama had almost caught me snooping around. Thank Allah he didn't find me.

"What're you waiting for, Amaani? We can't keep Sir Jaber waiting." Sufiyaan shook me out of my thoughts. I frowned when he said 'Sir Jaber'. It made me want to ask him why he was acting like Jaber was his boss or something but I let it go. I just nodded at him and walked inside.

As soon as we entered, my eyes fell on the three people already waiting for us. All three of them faced us when they heard our footsteps echoing in the conference room.

The floor was a dusty grey color made of marble and the ceiling was high above our heads. The windows were large and the sunlight that passed through lit the whole room up. Despite the sunshine coming from the sun outside, the room was dark. A large conference table stood in the middle which used up most of the space of the hall.

Saira stood loyally beside Broad shoulders while Usama stood across them on the other side of the table, leaning on it. I passed a smile to Saira and Usama to which only Usama responded by returning one. Saira nodded once, acknowledging our presence with a tight smile which was almost unnoticeable. Her eyes moved from me to Sufiyaan, who was observing the room.

The almost-smile that was already present on her face slowly widened and her eyes glinted with admiration. She greeted us—well, mostly Sufiyaan. "Salam u Alaikum." her voice sounded much softer. I narrowed my eyes at her, frowning a bit. "Waalaykum Salaam." Both of us replied at once. I noticed the sudden change of personalities when she looked at Sufiyaan.

I didn't think they had something going on between them for no reason. Her behavior towards the rest of us and Sufiyaan was very different.

"Well, now that everyone is here," Broad shoulders started, picking up a pen from the table. "It's time to start the meeting." he finished. He pointed the back of the pen towards Usama as an indication to start speaking. Usama stood up on his feet and gave a nod before clearing his throat.

"So," he began. "I and three other trusted officers searched the marketplace along with the border we share with Kaazefandria. We even tried questioning a few people. Most of them said that they knew nothing but," he paused as if he was about to say something important.

"A coachman said that he took a young girl in strange clothing to the border. He said that he found it odd why a girl like her would go there alone. Upon asking, she said she needed to meet someone in Ushain. I suspect that it was Lx16. I asked him about her appearance and he described her as a typical Nuristani Muslim girl." Usama stopped talking.