The Septembers Of Shiraz

Farnaz meets Isaac’s brother Javad in the busy bazaar, where they can go unnoticed. He needs money to escape to Turkey—he has indeed been working as a bootlegger, smuggling vodka, and has been told the Revolutionary Guards are after him. He asks Farnaz to give a check to an antique dealer friend, who will cash it and pass the cash on to Javad. Later, Javad will send the money back to Farnaz. Farnaz is unsure this plan will work, but reasons she must help Javad for Isaac’s sake. Javad gives Farnaz back her missing ring—he had stolen it to use for collateral. Farnaz respects that even in the midst of his black market dealings, Javad has retained his principles. She rues that her life has become chaos.

Two seasons after his arrest, Isaac is still in solitary confinement, washing his feet several times a day, and enduring the pain. He reminisces about the sounds and smells of the daily routine in his old life. Hossein brings him fresh bandages and they talk about the child running up and down the stairs every day—it’s not a hallucination, but Mohsen’s son. Mohsen is very proud of the boy, not least because after having been tortured in the prison himself, the interrogator feared he could never have children.