The Intern Affair (20 page)

23

“So, am I going
to see you this wee
ken
d?”
Ghali
asked with some edginess in his voice.
Talya had accompanied Samir to his hotel just before sunset.
He wanted to be alone for a while, and prepare himself for Evening Prayer.
As she came home, the phone rang.

“Of course you will,” Talya replied, “Samir wanted to meet you and I think if Sunday is a good day for you, we could get together for breakfast maybe?”

“What about tonight, or tomorrow?”

“I don’t know,
Ghali
. Samir is here to be with me. I told you that. I can’t just tell him to go and amuse himself while we go gallivanting on our own.” Talya didn’t like being pressured, yet, she, too, wanted to spend time with
Ghali
.

“You’re absolutely unbelievable. Do you expect me to stay in my corner and not seeing you for the next two weeks? You’re leaving then and God only knows when you’ll be back.
I think—”

Talya didn’t need this.
“Hold it,
Ghali
. Don’t say things which you don’t mean. I want to spend time with you also. I am not shoving you into a corner either.
It’s just that Samir arrived only yesterday and I need a little more time with him.”

“All right, I’m sorry. But please let’s make it soon.”

“Tell you what, why don’t you come over right now?”
That should make him happy
. “And later, when Samir comes over we can go and have dinner together.”

“Good.
I’m glad you’ve come to your senses.
I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”

Without giving Talya time to react,
Ghali
hung up. Looking at the receiver still in her hand, at that moment, she wanted to grab her purse from the hallway and go to a hotel for the night. She didn’t.

By the time Talya came out of the shower, and got dressed in black—suiting her mood—
Ghali
walked in the door. She was sitting in a lounge chair on the balcony watching the sunset.
Clouds of orange and gold were ablaze atop the mountains like plumes shooting up from volcanoes about to erupt. The light blue and the yellow streaking the horizon provided a soothing balm to the fire aloft.
The scene was altogether awesome and serene.

Talya stood up when she heard the door close.
Ghali
, as handsome as ever, came to stand beside her quietly, resting his elbows on the railing.
He had chosen to dress with beige serge slacks, a polo shirt and a blazer.

I guess blazers are in vogue today.

“How are you
?” he said
finally.

“I’m fine. I just don’t know what’s happening to me. I’m fighting you all the time, when I have no reason to do so, and for that I should be sorry. Yet I’m not. I feel like I’m pulled in all directions and I have no way of knowing how to stop the tugging.”

“Just let destiny take its course, Talya. When the time comes, you will know what to do without a second of hesitation.”
His voice was reassuring and firm.

“What if I don’t like what destiny has in store for me? What if I find myself alone at the end of the road?”

“You won’t, and you know that as well as I do. You don’t have to be afraid of being alone because I, for one, will be here when you get back. What’s more, I know that you’re going to find peace during this journey.”

“How’s that?”

“Simply because Samir will guide you and he will help you uncover what’s buried in your past.”

“Maybe I don’t ever want to remember. I just want to let the entire thing lie in the past forever. I was perfectly happy before
Alhassan
and
Kareef
came along to shatter my castle of peace.”

“Don’t you see that, in a way, your ‘castle of peace’ as you call it, was only ephemeral? Your life could no longer be lived in ignorance of the past. We all have to face the events that we would like to shut off from our minds. But we can’t.”

“Shut up!” His eyebrows shot up.
Ghali
was astonished with Talya’s outburst. She put her arms around his collar and brought his face down to kiss him. He took her in his arms and held her for a while.
His embrace was peacefully soft and calming.

“Let’s go in,”
he said
. “It’s getting cold and that shawl of yours won’t keep you warm enough.”
She nodded as he took her hand and led her inside to the warmth of the living room.

Almost as soon as
Ghali
settled down in the English chair, Talya heard the phone ring twice in succession. She knew Samir was at the door. She was trembling when she opened it. Samir stood in the doorway, looking at her quizzically. Instantly he sensed that something was troubling her. Talya wondered where he had been storing the exquisite linen suit he was wearing.
She was curious.

“Talya. What’s the matter?”

“Come, come in, Samir,” Talya said, dismissing his querying gaze. “Let me introduce you to
Dr. Defray
. I’ve invited him to have dinner with us, if that’s all right with you?” she added, steadying her voice and leading Samir into the living room.

Ghali
stood up to meet their guest. “Captain
Mandalay
, it is a real pleasure to meet you at last.”

They shook hands, gazing into each other’s eyes. “Dr
.
Defray
, I’ve heard of the care you have given to Talya and it is an honour for me to meet you.”

Talya sensed the tension rise between the two men—there was no reason for it.
Samir was reacting to her outwardly confused attitude and he was probably blaming
Ghali
for it. The latter, on the other hand, seemed genuinely and only curious to know a little more about the man who had been Talya’s companion for almost two weeks of the last of her stay in
Dakar
.

“Let’s sit down, shall we?” Talya offered, taking Samir’s hand and dragging him down with her to sit on the sofa.
“I’ll get some drinks…,” she added, on the point of getting up again.

“Let me do the
honours
”
—
Ghali
waved to her to remain seated
—
“I know where the secret cache is. What would you like to drink, Captain?
Talya has all kinds of juices in the fridge and wine in a cooler or tea or—”

“Just a glass of orange juice for me, thank you, Doctor,” Samir replied with a gentle smile.
He seemed to relax a little.

Ghali
got up. “Please call me
Ghali
—if I may call you Samir?”

“Yes, that will be fine,” Samir replied courteously but with restraint.

While
Ghali
was busy preparing their refreshments in the kitchen, the phone rang again.
It startled her; Talya practically jumped to take the receiver.

“
Ms.
Gilmore
?”
She recognized the voice instantly, but she couldn’t fathom the reason for a call from
Sir Reginald
at this hour on a Friday evening.

“Yes,
Sir Reginald
, this is she. What can I do?” She was trembling again. Her woman’s intuition was shouting in her ears. Something was terribly wrong. When they heard the name of
Sir Reginald
being pronounced, Samir turned to her and
Ghali
came hurrying from the kitchen. They, too, had sensed the impending trouble.

“
Ms.
Gilmore
, let me first apologize for interrupting your evening in such a fashion and since I didn’t have Mr.
Durant
’s phone number with me at home … I couldn’t call him.”

“You’re not interrupting, sir; by all means do tell me what’s happening. It must be the middle of the night for you…”

“That’s not important,
Ms.
Gilmore
. What is important, however, is that you should prepare yourself for a shock.”

“For goodness’ sake, please tell me.” Talya was almost yelling now.
Samir took her hand and held it firmly.
Ghali
came to squat in front of her, looking into her eyes anxiously.
They felt as she did, that they were in for some horrible news.

“
Ms.
Gilmore
, I’m sorry to have to tell you that
Mr. Dillon
, Maitre
Sangare
and
Mrs. Dumarais
have been viciously attacked tonight in the streets of
Bamako
—” Talya’s heart missed at least two beats.
She was choking.
The room was swirling in front of her eyes and she let go of the receiver.

Ghali
grabbed it before it fell.
“
Sir Reginald
, this is
Dr. Ghali Defray
,
Ms.
Gilmore
’s physician. We haven’t had the pleasure,
S
ir, but Mr.
Durant
has informed me of the problems she had in
Dakar
—”

As
Ghali
began talking, Talya tried to regain a little of what was left of her composure and closed her eyes. Imagining what may have happened, she couldn’t hold back the tears that were stubbornly welling to the rim of her eyes.

Meanwhile, Samir stretched an arm around her shoulders; she bent forward, shaking his arm off, not wanting anyone to touch her.

“I’m awfully glad you’re there, Doctor,”
Sir Reginald
went on.

“Captain
Mandalay
is here with me.
Shall I ask him to listen to this conversation?”

“Yes, by all means, if Captain
Mandalay
wants to hear what I have to say, put him on the line.”

“Just hold on a moment,
Sir,
Captain
Mandalay
will be listening on the extension.”

“Samir, please go in the bedroom, there is a phone by the bed—” Samir was already up and rushing to pick up the line.

“
Sir Reginald
, this is Samir
Mandalay
, I think we are now ready to hear the news.”

“Well, gentlemen, as I said to
Dr.
Defray
, I am very glad to have you in attendance. What I have to report is in fact disturbing news. I, for one, received a shock when our consul in
Mali
, Mr.
Brightman
, phoned me earlier. Maitre
Sangare
,
Mr. Dillon
and
Mrs. Dumarais
have been brutally attacked last night.
Mrs. Dumarais
died as a result of her injuries;
Mr. Dillon
and Maitre
Sangare
have been badly wounded—knife wounds I’m told.
They’re both in hospital.”

“Dr
.
Defray
here,
Sir Reginald
; I can’t possibly tell you how we feel right now.
I didn’t know the people you spoke of.
I knew of their relationship with
Ms.
Gilmore
, but I had never met them. What can we do to help?”

“The only thing I would like for you to do now, Doctor, is to attend to
Ms.
Gilmore
in order to have her back here as soon as possible.”

“I’m sorry,
Sir,
but why would
Ms.
Gilmore
’s presence be of any assistance? It would only put her in harm’s way—”

“Let me interrupt you here, Doctor. I couldn’t agree with you more that we need to be vigilant of
Ms.
Gilmore
’s safety at this
point;
however, she holds the key to this mystery. The reasons for these attacks and killings are, I believe, locked in her recalling the incidents that have occurred in
Senegal
or in her various discussions with the parties involved in this affair.”

“And you want her to relive the ordeal, so that you could satisfy your curiosity?”
Ghali
sounded outraged. “That’s insane…!”

“I can understand your reluctance,”
Sir Reginald
replied evenly, “but that’s the only way we can hope to stop the killings or foil the drug trafficking
.
”

“But isn’t that the job of our Intelligence Agency in
Ottawa
?”