Page 263 of 5+Us Makes Seven

“He’s the village elder,” I explained.

“Have you known him long?”

“Always with the questions, huh?”

“It’s my job.”

The Humvee stopped. Logan killed the engine. I opened the door and hopped out, waiting for Jade to climb down. At least a dozen village children swarmed around the vehicle, all excitedly raising their hands and yelling at the same time.

“Enough!” Aamir said as he emerged from the house, stroking his long, white beard.

At the sound of his voice, the children scattered.

“Welcome, my friend Cooper,” he said, ignoring Jade’s presence.

“Thank you, Aamir. I brought someone to talk with you. This is Jade.”

She offered her hand. The old man stared at it as if she were offering him a pile of dung.

“How are things?” I asked him, hoping to avoid a confrontation.

Jade dropped her arm, not getting upset.

“They are peaceful now,” he said. “Have you come for the samples?”

I glanced over at Jade then back to him.

“We’ll talk about that later,” I said. “We brought gifts. Maybe Jade can speak to your wife and daughters?”

“Fine,” he said then raised his hand into the air.

A half-dozen men all dressed in similar attire stepped out from behind two of the mud-brick houses and made their way over to us.

“Help with the gifts,” Aamir told them.

They walked to the back of the Humvee as Logan opened it then set cases of water onto the dry, dusty ground.

It’s gonna be a long day.

“I’ll take you to the other families who want to talk,” I said to Jade.

“I’d like to talk to Aamir too,” she said, looking at him. “Is that okay?”

“Maybe later.” I took her hand. “Let’s go.”

She pulled her hand from mine as we walked away.

“I’m trying to keep the friends I have here,” I said. “You have to understand the culture is different.”

“I don’t care about the way they treat women. There’s something he’s hiding. What did he mean by samples?”

“Don’t worry about it,” I said then pointed. “Look, there’s Malilah. She’s a terrific person to interview.”

“I’ll sort this out,” Jade said as we continued walking toward the Afghan woman.

“I don’t doubt it. You stay here with Malilah. I need to talk to Aamir alone.”

“Is it safe?”