The Courthouse

A crowd had gathered at the entrance to the courthouse: men, mostly, looking ferocious, raising their fists, their spittle flying into the air as they shouted to be let in. Rehana saw reporters, a flash, and felt the crunch of shattered glass underfoot as she stepped out of the car. There were men in green uniforms beating back the crowd, the people heaving and lurching at the gate. Faiz held up his arms and towered above everyone else, making a path for Rehana and Parveen to push through. Parveen whispered, ‘Are those cameras for me?’ and shielded her face with spread fingers, exposing the carefully lined eyes, drawn to look like a cat, or Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday. Rehana heard a few scattered words — dictator, coup, house arrest — before pushing through the doors.

The halls within were quieter, but still crowded, peons and clerks and petty officials making way for the lawyers who swayed casually through the corridors. Faiz was leading the way and Rehana followed through the maze of passages and verandas. She saw a young man who looked a little like Iqbal kneeling beside a bench and assembling a sheaf of papers. He was worried; a triangle of skin gathered at his forehead as he glanced at the papers distractedly, arranging, rearranging. He dropped something with a clatter and said, ‘Damnit!’ under his breath, and Rehana stopped, bent to pick it up. It was an elegant, gold-tipped pen. The man thanked her, red-faced, and muttered, ‘My father’s.’

‘What are you doing?’ she found herself asking.

‘He’s been jailed. Our assets are frozen.’ He looked around and then said, in a low voice, ‘My father was an MP. Ayub’s been out to get him for years.’

‘Your mother?’

‘She’s depending on me. And I have three sisters.’ The triangle deepened. ‘And you? Do you mind if I ask?’

Rehana closed her eyes for a moment, wondering if she should tell him. She wanted to reach out and pinch his forearm. ‘It’s nothing,’ she said, for the second time that day.

‘Well, good luck then. It’s all up to the judge.’

No, she thought, rebuking him, up to God.