Paradise

With so many people about, the door to the walled garden is kept closed; only Khalil, Uncle Aziz, and the gardener Mzee Hamdani enter. Hamdani is oblivious to those around him, including Yusuf when he places himself in front of him. Uncle Aziz starts paying off the journey crew, but not the full amount, so he also gives them chits for what he owes. He does not pay the families of the two men that fled Chatu because if they come back, there will be hassles. Mohammed Abdalla and Simba Mwene are the last to be paid. Afterward, the merchant keeps Mwene back but dismisses Abdalla. Khalil is pleased by this dismissal, which surprises Yusuf with the intensity of his dislike. Abdalla praises Yusuf for how he performed on the journey, despite the nightmares, and says there will be no more journeys because the Europeans have taken everything. He advises Yusuf to learn from Uncle Aziz’s ways. He also warns him not to become like Khalil, whom he calls a woman.

Simba Mwene goes into town with Uncle Aziz to meet with creditors. They’re planning another journey to a place where the merchant stores some valuable goods. Yusuf believes he means Hamid’s place. Mwene claims the goods are vipusa, rhino horn, which the Mdachi government has outlawed but is still valued as a medicine. Khalil explains that Uncle Aziz keeps people who owe him, so when trade trips go badly, he can call in the debts. Khalil thinks the merchant doesn’t care much for Mwene because he chose him to go on a dangerous journey, but he didn’t call on Yusuf. Yusuf points out that he also didn’t choose Khalil, but the latter believes he remains in the shop only because he speaks Arabic, therefore he can speak to the Mistress. The night before departing, Uncle Aziz has Yusuf and Mwene for dinner in the house, and Khalil serves them. Mwene speaks too freely and criticizes Uncle Aziz for his interactions with Chatu. Khalil says Yusuf has an unsettling effect on people because he looks at everyone but desires nothing from them. As he’s leaving, Uncle Aziz talks of finding Yusuf a wife.

Yusuf and Khalil go to town to visit the beach and enjoy a meal together. Mzee Hamdani still doesn’t acknowledge Yusuf, so Yusuf just observes him for a while. He sees that the man is slower and struggles a bit, so when he has trouble with the water buckets, Yusuf steps in to help. The gardener seems to appreciate this, so Yusuf starts cleaning up parts of the garden. The mirrors are gone from the trees. One day while widening the channel of the pool, Yusuf finds a leather pouch partially buried. Inside is a hirizi, an amulet that usually contains prayers to benefit the wearer. He heard that jinns could be summoned with amulets, so he takes it. He hears a voice and realizes the door through which Khalil had served dinner is open and a figure stands within for a moment before closing the door. He’s annoyed that if the Mistress doesn’t want him in the garden, she doesn’t just say so. That evening Khalil takes some time to come out of the kitchen, and when he does, he seems angry. Eventually, he says that the Mistress has gone crazy. Yusuf thinks the Mistress’s attitude must be about his being in the garden, but Khalil laughs about Yusuf’s obsession with the garden and tells him the Mistress wants to see him.

After Friday prayers, Khalil tells Yusuf about the Mistress. Uncle Aziz married her about 12 years earlier. She was a wealthy widow of a man who owned several dhows. She had rejected many suitors but then heard about this trader Aziz, and they married, putting to rest the bad rumors about her stemming from her rejections. Uncle Aziz sold the dhows and his business prospered. Khalil’s father had a business south of Bagamayo, but they were poor. Uncle Aziz came to visit and had intense talks with his father. Khalil learned that his father owed Uncle Aziz money from a loan to help Khalil’s brother start a business which failed. Later, Mohammed Abdalla came and took away Khalil and his sister Amina to be rehani. His father died, and his mother and brothers moved to Arabia. Initially, Khalil worked in the shop with a man named Mohammed, who left one day when Uncle Aziz threatened to strike him for an accounting error. Amina, who was seven, served the Mistress but was afraid of her because the Mistress had an illness that left a big mark on her face. The mirrors on the trees were there so the Mistress could see the garden without going out. When she saw Yusuf there, she thought he could heal her with prayer or spit or touch. Amina said the Mistress would call to Yusuf to take pity on her when he was in the garden, but Yusuf didn’t understand the Arabic. Uncle Aziz didn’t want to take Yusuf on the journey, but he also didn’t want him left there with the Mistress, which is why the merchant left him with Hamid for a year. Uncle Aziz had ordered the mirrors taken down. The Mistress’s madness is renewed now that Yusuf is back. Khalil thinks it’s dangerous and warns Yusuf not to ever touch her. Yusuf realizes the figure in the doorway must have been Amina. Khalil reveals that Uncle Aziz married her the previous year, which settled his father’s the debt. Yusuf points out that that means Khalil is free to go, but Khalil responds that he has nowhere to go, and his sister is still there.

Khalil and Yusuf go into the Mistress’s chamber to see her. She doesn’t look disheveled or crazed as Yusuf expected. She speaks calmly at first while Khalil translates. She believes Yusuf has a gift from God and can cure her. She pulls back her veil to show him a large purple mark on her cheek. Yusuf is not horrified by it but saddened that she thinks he can do anything. When Khalil struggles to translate a word, another person supplies the translation. Yusuf looks over to see Amina. He is struck by her glowing skin, and he smiles. Khalil tells him to say a prayer or make one up, just to calm the Mistress down. As he leaves, Yusuf makes eye contact with Amina and notes a reciprocated curiosity.

In order to keep the Mistress calm, Khalil promises her that he’ll bring Yusuf in regularly to pray on her. Yusuf is initially jocular about it, but Khalil worries that the Mistress has reached a new, dangerous level of fervor. Amina and Yusuf smile at each other. The Mistress wants Khalil and Yusuf to eat in the house and come every day to say prayers. For propriety’s sake, they quash the eating idea but continue to visit her for prayers. Yusuf teases Khalil about his anxiety, but Khalil retorts that Yusuf isn’t taking the situation seriously enough because he enjoys the flattery. Yusuf returns to work in the garden, hoping to catch sight of Amina. The Mistress repeats that Yusuf has a gift, and she encourages him to continue his work in the garden and to sing while he does so. Yusuf approaches the Mistress when she beckons and touches her face. Despite Khalil’s warnings, Yusuf continues in the garden, and Hamdani starts leaving him work to do. Sometimes he hears Amina singing. Khalil begs and shouts at Yusuf to not go to the Mistress’s again for fear of bringing shame on them. He says there are things Yusuf doesn’t understand, but he doesn’t tell Yusuf what they are. Yusuf ignores him and returns to the garden.

Yusuf visits the Mistress on his own, and Amina translates. She tells him that there is much Khalil did not translate for him, such as that the Mistress’s name is Zulekha and she wanted him to know that. Once again, Yusuf touches the Mistress’s cheek. She invites him to come at any time and tells him he can sleep in the courtyard if he wants. Yusuf starts to feel uneasy about the situation. As he leaves, Amina walks him to the door. She admits to watching him from there. To make conversation, Yusuf says that Amina and Khalil don’t look very much alike. She tells him she saw him find an amulet. He responds that if he rubs it, a good jinn will come, but he hasn’t done that yet because he hasn’t made his plans. Amina says that she threw away an amulet because it was supposed to protect her from evil, but it didn’t; therefore, she jokes that it couldn’t be the same amulet. Khalil is not around when Yusuf goes to his sleeping mat. A storm breaks.