Zakwan stood outside the gates of Shahi housing waiting for Raheem Miyan, the poultry farmer who had gone to deliver eggs inside. After half an hour he came out carrying a huge basket on his head.

"Raheem Miyan, wait", he yelled running to him.

"What do you want Zakwan?"

"What can I want from a poultry farmer? Eggs of course!"

"But I just sold all of them"

"You are lying to me"

"No little one. You can see the basket for yourself", he says placing the crate on the street.

Zakwan opens it and peers inside. The basket is lined with cloth and is empty. He lifts the cloth and finds the letter below it.

"Shukran Raheem Miyan", he says running away at top speed.

"But.... What's that paper?", asks Raheem Miyan at his running figure.

************************************

"Maa, how is the pain?", I ask sitting by her.

"It's getting worse"

"As soon as we get the letter we will know if the neighboring Hakeem can help us. With his vast experience I am sure he will suggest a cure". I lightly massage her limbs.

"What did the Shehzada say to the basket of custard apples?"

"He seemed to be a little emotional. I am starting to understand his business side but his personal side is still a mystery to me"

"When you understand a person too much Saeed, you either fall in love with them or go mad"

I look at her shocked.

"I neither want to fall in love nor do I want to go mad!"

"You don't have a third choice"

I think over it. Should I try not to probe further about his personal life then? Just teach him kingly stuff and step back? What about his punctured soul? Didn't that need help as well?

"Maa... What should I do?"

"Falling in love is not a bad thing but going mad will be of no use"

"I don't want to fall in love with a non-mehram*. It's not right"

"Then make him your mehram"

Before I can ask how, there is a knock on the door and Zakwan comes bursting in.

"Here it is", he gives me the letter with a flourish.

"And here is your reward". I hand him jalebis.

He is gone as fast as he had come. So Meher had summed up the courage to act. I open the letter she has written me and scan the contents.

Mir Jafar is poisoning Shehzada's food. I know that. He is trying to find out more about the guiding force behind the Shehzada. I know that as well. He is keeping an eye on Mahmood Hassan and Hammad Chachu! This is new. He goes out in the night. Even this is new. Meher's father, the Shahi Hakeem will come to meet me? I need to prepare for that. I had told Shehzada to meet him after breakfast on the pretext of being ill. Little did I know I will be meeting him myself shortly after that.

"Maa, Shahi Hakeem is coming to pay a visit".

"Javed Ansari? Why did you call him? His brother Hamid is enough to look after me!"

"They are brothers?" I can't believe this.

"Of course they are. You were little when he left so you don't remember him. Both of them used to run the matab together."

"How did he become the Shahi Hakeem then?", I ask still not able to digest this news.

"You can ask him when he comes". A knocking immediately follows her words.

"Who is it?", I inquire.

"I have come to meet Saeed", a male voice replies. It should be the Shahi Hakeem. I need to confirm.

"Reveal your name", I commanded.

"Shahi Hakeem Javed Ansari"

I immediately cover my face, draw a curtain over Maa's bed and open the door.

A man stood outside. His face showed fear, pain and grief. I let him in.

"Assalamualaikum Saeed"

"Walaikumassalam Hakeem Javed. Meher mentioned you will be coming". I place a stool for him to sit.
"How did you find my house?"

"It was easy. This is the only house around here"

"So, did the Shehzada call you today morning?"

He looks startled at first then relaxes. "I forgot Meher mentioned that as well in the letter. Yes he did call me"

"What did he say?"

"He said he felt weak and feverish. There was nothing wrong with him as far as I could tell".

"If he had been taking the poison in all three meals courtesy to Mir Jafar, he should have been close to death by now. Right?"

He looks nervous. He nods.

"That means anyone can easily gather that the Shehzada is not taking his food"

"Yes"

"What if you told the palace inhabitants that the Shehzada is very ill after examining him?" I ask.

"Even Shehzada asked me to do the same. But the truth cannot be hidden for long. It is evident from the way Shehzada walks and talks that he is hale and hearty. And he will not stay in bed whole day so it will be difficult to convince people he is sick"

"I guess Mir Jafar will realize Shehzada is not eating palace food sooner or later". I sigh.

"So, Hakeem Javed. What can you tell me about Shehenshah's death?"

"I beseech you not to disclose this in front of Meher. The shame will kill me"

"If you say so"

"Many years ago I and my brother Hakeem Hamid experimented on Sankhiya*. We found that it produced the same symptoms as haiza and there was no test to differentiate between Sankhiya poisoning and haiza. I was foolish enough to share this information with Mir Jafar and he procured the powder from me. Oh I feel terrible".

He covers his face in his hands and cries like a child. Though it was making me extremely uncomfortable I keep quiet and give him time to compose himself.

"Initially he forced me to mix the poison myself in the Shehenshah's food. My conscience did not allow it. So he took away my entire storage of Sankhiya with him and used to mix it himself. I am as much responsible for the Shehenshah's death as he is".

"How did you get trapped by him? Why did you agree to become the Shahi Hakeem when you already had a smooth running matab of your own?"

This makes him cry louder than before. I hope it's not making Maa nervous behind the curtain.

"It was greed Saeed. It was greed! How ashamed I am to admit this in front of you. You who are young of heart are much more wiser than me a man whose beard has grown white".

"I don't understand", I say.

"I had a loving brother, a blessed family and a peaceful life. One day Mir Jafar called a Hakeem to the palace for some services. I was blinded by the luxury of the palace, its beauty and splendor. Mir Jafar immediately caught on to my weakness. He frequently called me after that and used to lure me by paying more and more gold each time. I forgot the pledge I had taken with my brother of serving the poor. All I wanted was a life of luxury. When Mir Jafar knew I was completely trapped in his net of wealth, he made a proposal to me. The old Shahi Hakeem was a wise old man who couldn't be convinced of taking away Shehenshah's life. So Mir Jafar replaced him with me. I, who would now bend in front of wealth and splendor. He enticed me with his schemes and held me under his spell like a magician. Like a fool I shared all my knowledge with him. He immediately caught on my latest research and happily realized Sankhiya was his need of the hour. When I finally understood how evil he was it was too late. I couldn't back out. Finally I decided to run away with my family to escape from him. He came to know of my plans and barged in my home at midnight and dragged away my young daughter with him".

His tears are back.

"I lost the battle. I couldn't leave Meher in his hands and run away. We had no choice but to stay. He married Meher and abused her. He used her as a bait to hold me in control. I had not set eyes on her for 2 years until yesterday night when she turned up. She had changed. She was more brave and courageous than her father. How proud I felt to see my little girl fight back. It is but for her I am here. It is but for her I have told you my deepest secrets with hope that somehow you will be able to help us and release my children from the life they are living".

He looks at me with hopeful eyes.

"I am but a weak human being. I can only do what Allah has given me the power of doing. It's Allah you should be asking for help. I'll do my best and the rest is in Allah's hands".

He nods.

"I will leave then". He gets up.

"Wait", Maa says from behind the curtain.

He jumps.

"Who else is here?", he asks.

"My bed ridden mother"

"Bring him close to me, I want to talk to him", Maa says.

I place his stool as close to the curtain as I can.

"Javed, it is I. Haleema"

"Haleema! Saeed is your daughter? SubhanAllah! Now I understand where she gets her bravery from. Her father!"

"That maybe so Javed. I want to ask you, don't you miss your brother?"

He goes quiet. Emotions run through his eyes.

"A lot" he replies.

"Then I suggest you meet him"

"I cannot. I cannot. Not after what I  have done. What will I tell him? What will I tell Seher? No, I cannot do it"

"He is your brother Javed. He loves you a lot. He will embrace you with open arms and forgive your follies as easily as a mother does. Why are you punishing him and yourself this way?"

"Haleema, I appreciate your efforts to counsel me. My little brother whose role model I was supposed to be is a  much better man than I am. I don't want the dark cloud of my sins to hover around him"

"That is what you think while he cries for you everyday. Think over what I have said"

He rises up to leave.

"Hakeem Javed, is a lot of Sankhiya still left?" I ask.

"I don't think so. Half of it had already been used on the Shehenshah"

"Do you know where Mir Jafar keeps it?"

"In his office at the palace. It is in a wooden box with a carving of peacock on top"

"One last question. I heard 3 different Hakeems testified that Shehenshah died of haiza. Is this true?"

"Yes. No one else knows that Sankhiya poisoning mimics haiza except me and my brother. Therefore Mir Jafar called in different Hakeems to prove his innocence. Initially he was very much respected in the palace. People trusted him blindly. As the Shehenshah's death drew near everyone grew wary of his intentions. That is why he proved his innocence to win back their trust. But as soon as Shehenshah died everyone understood beyond doubt that he was an evil man. Unfortunately it was too late. He had already caught on the weakness of each high court official and knew exactly which strings to pull to get them on track. No one stands up against him. He is very cunning Saeed".

"A man who reaches heights of transgression has to pay his due". I repeat the words of Hazrathji to him.

************************************

"So Sankhiya killed the Shehenshah?", asks Hammad Chachu after I am done narrating to him the events of today morning.

"Yes and the same is being used to kill the Shehzada", I say.

"Except the Shehzada is not consuming it. Mir Jafar is on our track. See that boy selling anklets under the tree?"

I lookout and sure enough there is a boy selling anklets.

"How foolish! No one will buy anything from him here. He should have put up that stall in the Shahi bazaar", I say.

"Exactly! He isn't here to sell anklets. Abdul is here to keep an eye on me. Till yesterday he just sat under the tree. Unfortunately he can't do it everyday without arousing suspicions. Today he has come with anklets to pretend he is a trader".

"Right! Meher told me about this. Mahmood Hassan is being watched as well"

"The poor man. Death relieved my other companions from the ordeal. He couldn't even escape that way. He has suffered the worst if you ask me", says Hammad Chachu.

"Tell me about it"

"When I resigned Shehenshah wasn't happy about it but I left anyway. My other friends had already been murdered. There was no sign of Khan Baba. Mahmood Hassan was in a delimma. After a few months he realized he should run away as well. But Mir Jafar did not want to let go of him. He had far too much information of the kingdom and only he knew the procedures of documentation and the complete record was with him. To hold him back Mir Jafar took away his son from him who was just a few months old. Rumours have it that he murdered the baby in a very brutal way. Mahmood Hassan's wife went mad after that and he himself is but a walking dead man. Why he continues to live in the palace now is beyond me. Mir Jafar can't threaten him with anything for he has already lost everything. He can easily leave if he wants to"

"Maybe he has lost his sanity as well and that is why he continues to live under Mir Jafar", I say.

"May Allah compensate him with the best for every ordeal he has faced and the sabr* he has shown"

"Aameen" I respond to his prayer. " "What should I do next Chachu?"

"Finish teaching Shehzada politics. Armed with knowledge and training he will easily ascend the throne. His subjects are already in his favor. Mir Jafar can silence the court but he cannot silence the whole kingdom. After Shehzada becomes the Shehenshah everything will be in our hands. We already have enough evidence to convict Mir Jafar. By then I am sure we will have more. Once we have cleared him off we can concentrate on rebuilding the administration. We will have to change everything and filter out every bit of malpractice and dishonest people and make the system pure. Then we can hand back the reins in Shehzada's hands and go back to living our lives".

Go back to living our lives? Why had I never thought about this part? What will I do once my mission is done? After this exciting life will a life of a commoner interest me? What does a person do once his reason of existence comes to an end? What a scary question! It was making me tensed.

Daniya enters the house.

"Assalamualaikum Abbuji", she greets her father. "Hakeem Hamid asked me to deliver this letter to you". She hands him the letter and turns around to spot me.

"Assalamualaikum Saeed! I was looking forward to meeting you. How have you been?"

"Walaikumassalam. Alhamdulillah, I am doing good. Where are you coming from?"

Hammad Chachu leaves us so that we can catch up with each other.

"Hadiya is sick and I went to visit her. Guess what? Aaminah, Saira and Ruksar had also come to visit her. We had a gala time."

"Oh nice". I drink the sherbet* served to me and smack my lips.

"You know Aaminah's brother Falah and a few other boys are suffering from a bad case of poisoning. Hakeem Hamid is working on its antidote"

"That's bad. What did the boys do this time?" I ask.

"Played around in the forbidden part of the Shahi Jungle is what I heard"

"Poor boys"

"Want to hear the latest gossip?", she asks.

I nod taking another sip and savouring every bit of it.

"Aaminah is getting married!", she squeals.

"Really? To whom?" Life was so unpredictable. One moment you are single the next you have a life partner!

"Daniyal!"

"Hang on. Where had I heard that name? Yes! Zakwan told me that Daniyal Bhai is getting married. So he is getting married to Aaminah, is it? By the way, who is Daniyal?"

She gives me a disbelieving look. "He is the strongest officer in the army at present. He can take down 7 men at once"

"Well, his strength hasn't been tested against Ali or against Shehzada. I am sure they can take down 10 men at once"

"Always in the favor of your own team aren't you?". She must have gathered from her Father's talks about me teaming up with the Shehzada.

"What about Akram? I heard her mother threatening her to get married to him", I say recalling the scene at the well the other day.

"Akram is a good for nothing street boy. Every mother in the neighborhood threatens her daughters with his name. She wasn't serious about getting Aaminah married to him. She just wanted to distract him from the Shehzada"

"I see. How is Aaminah now?"

"Wait till you meet her. All she can talk about is Daniyal this and Daniyal that".

I laugh. Girls! Though Daniya mentioned them all so freely in front of me, I wasn't comfortable around them. It was only Saira's company I truly enjoyed.

"Saeed!" Hammad Chachu calls me from the next room.

"What is it?"

"Hakeem Hamid says he has found something interesting in the forbidden part of Shahi jungle and wants me to accompany him in exploring it tomorrow night. Want to come along?"

"Of course!"

"Good then inform Shehzada that you won't be able to meet him tomorrow night. Deliver his food before that".

I nod.

********************************************************************************************

FOOTNOTES

*Non-mehram- They are men in front of whom a woman needs to do purdah (cover herself)

*Sankhiya - Arsenic

For more info on arsenic poisoning

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arsenic_poisoning

*Sabr- patience

*Sherbet- sweet flavored drink

A/N

“If the son of Adam had a valley full of gold, he would want to have two valleys. Nothing fills his mouth except dust, and Allah will forgive whoever repents to him.”

Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 6075, Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 1048

"Hazaron khwahishe aisi ki har khwahish pe dum nikle
Bahut nikle mere armaan magar phir bhi kam nikle"

- Mirza Ghalib

There is no end to desires!

What do you guys think of the story so far?
I have finally let out the secret of Hakeem Javed Ansari!
Other answers are on their way.
Sometimes it's so difficult for me to express emotions. I have something on my mind and then sit and think for hours how to put it in words.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter

Lots of love
Dr Mystic