72 pages • 2 hours read
After pouring through documents related to Worthington all day, Fatma and Hadia find nothing. Fatma sends Hadia home and heads for the Jasmine, a secret nightclub only referred to as The Spot when outside.
A man named Benny, a jazz musician who fled New Orleans’ Jim Crow laws, greets Fatma at the bar. Other musicians join, and they discuss the music and musicians left behind in Louisiana. When al-Jahiz brought magic back to the world, the United States met it with persecution; the musicians praise Cairo for being better, though racial problems still exist. Siti arrives, and Fatma tells her about Hadia, her new partner. Siti wants to meet Hadia, but Fatma believes Hadia is too strait-laced for a jazz nightclub.
After the nightclub, the two flirt while walking home, though Fatma somewhat spoils the mood by mentioning Siti’s father. Siti distracts from the moment by pointing out that someone has been following them. The two women round a corner, wait, and knock the man to the ground—it’s Ahmad.
Ahmad wanted to see how Fatma was handling the case. He was upset to find her cavorting at a nightclub, but tells her he has a lead.
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