The Boy Who The Set Fire and Other Stories by Paul Bowles and Mohammed Mrabet Read Free Book Online Page A

that came after me, either. It was an affrita.
    Qaqo began to laugh. Mother, he said. There are no affarits anymore. The old woman is probably hiding there from the government, and she’s got friends with her, smugglers perhaps. I’d like to see her myself. I’m going up and look for her.
    No! Don’t go there, please! I’ll go crazy waiting for you to come back. They could kill you. And if anything happens to you I’ll die.
    Don’t you think about it, Mother, he said. It’s seven o’clock. I’ve got to go to work now and get rid of these pastries. There aren’t many left.
    Qaqo went out with only about twenty pastries on his tray. He sold them quickly to the men having their breakfast at the café. Then he bought enough kif to fill his mottoui, went to the market for food, and carried it home.
    You can make lunch for yourself, he told his mother. Because I won’t be here. I’ll be back for dinner.
    She knew where he was going. Be very careful, son. If they ever catch you they’ll kill you.
    Don’t worry, said Qaqo.
    He walked to Dradeb and then up the Monte Viejo. He cut through to the highway by the Palace of Moulay Abd el Aziz, and then followed along to Sidi Amar. He climbed up to the top of the great rock of Sidi Amar. The sun was warm. He sat down, looked at the mountains, and smoked many pipes of kif. Then he lay on his back and looked at the trees and the sky.
    After a while he put away his pipe, climbed down the rock, and started walking again, straight to Bouiba del Hallouf. He stood on top of the cliff and looked at the big forest all around below him. The sight of it chilled him at first. But then he started down through the forest, taking the path his mother had described to him. It was not long before he came to the large hole in the ground. He peered in and saw the white bones far below. Then he went on, made the turn to the left, and soon came to the place of the two boulders. He stood still and listened. Then between the trees he saw a clearing where thousands of butterflies were trembling in the sunlight. The ground was covered with them, and they moved in the air under the trees. He went on into the forest. Again he stopped to listen and to smoke some kif, and now it seemed as though he could hear a woman’s voice saying to him: Don’t go on. Something will happen.
    He looked upward, into the branches of a tree above him, and thought he could make out the face of an old woman caught in the thick spiderwebs that hung between the boughs.
    Qaqo continued to walk ahead. Suddenly a girl stepped out from behind a tree and walked toward him. When she came up to him she stopped and said: Ahilan! How are you?
    And you, he said. How are you?
    I’m wondering what you’re doing here, she told him.
    Just looking at the forest. There’s not another like it. I’ve been to many places, and we have the best one here at Bouiba del Hallouf.
    Yes, you’re right, she said. Come with me if you want to see more.
    They started to walk together. Soon they came to the entrance to a large cave. Qaqo followed the girl inside, and they descended a flight of stairs into a lower cave. There were trickles of water running down the walls of rock. The water ran into a trough that led to a pool below. When they got to the bottom of the steps, Qaqo saw that the pool was full of fish. There were many torches burning in this part of the cave.
    Wait for me here. I’m going to change my clothes, the girl told him. I’ll be right back.
    Qaqo stood smoking kif by the edge of the pool while he waited. He was not certain whether what he was seeing was real or not because he had already smoked so much kif on the rock at Sidi Amar. Soon the girl arrived looking even more beautiful in a blue and gold kaftan.
    What would you like to see? she asked him as they went back up the stairs.
    You have butterflies, said Qaqo. I’d like to see them.
    Don’t you want to see what I have here in the cave? she said.
    I want to see the