Page 190 - And the Mountains Echoed (novel)

It was a brilliant hustle. Gholam dove left and right, saved all of Adel’s shots.

Taking off the jersey, Adel felt stupid for getting cheated out of what was
rightfully his, what was probably his most prized possession. He handed it over.
With some alarm, he felt the sting of tears and fought them back.
At least Gholam had the tact not to put it on in his presence. As he was
leaving, he grinned over his shoulder. “Your father, he’s not really gone for three
months, is he?”
“I’ll play you for it tomorrow,” Adel said. “The jersey.”
“I may have to think about that.”

Gholam headed back toward the main road. Halfway there, he paused, fished
the rolled-up cigarette box from his pocket, and hurled it over the wall of Adel’s
house.

Every day for about a week, after his morning lessons, Adel took his
ball and left the compound. He was able to time his escapades with the armed
guard’s schedule of rounds for the first couple of tries. But on the third try, the
guard caught him and wouldn’t let him leave. Adel went back to the house and
returned with an iPod and a watch. From then on, the guard surreptitiously let
Adel in and out provided he venture no farther than the edge of the orchards. As
for Kabir and his mother, they barely noticed his one- or two-hour absences. It
was one of the advantages of living in a house as big as this.
Adel played alone behind the compound, over by the old tree stump in the
clearing, each day hoping to see Gholam sauntering up. He kept an eye on the
unpaved path stretching to the main road as he juggled, as he sat on the stump

watching a fighter jet streak across the sky, as he listlessly flicked pebbles at
nothing. After a while, he picked up his ball and plodded back to the compound.
Then one day Gholam showed up, carrying a paper bag.
“Where have you been?”
“Working,” Gholam said.

He told Adel that he and his father had been hired for a few days to make
bricks. Gholam’s job was to mix mortar. He said he lugged pails of water back
and forth, dragged bags of masonry cement and builder’s sand heavier than
himself. He explained to Adel how he mixed mortar in the wheelbarrow, folding
the mixture in the water with a hoe, folding it again and again, adding water,
then sand, until the batch gained a smooth consistency that didn’t crumble. He