After a while, he was descending from the same wall again. Placing his foot on the last transom, he jumped down.
"Your talent was revealed just now," Fayyaz said softly.
"Did you meet any female monkey inside?"
"You heard voices reaching here?" Imran asked.
"Yes! But I didn't see any monkeys around!"
"Any other voices?"
"Yes... Maybe you screamed out of fear," Fayyaz said.
"Should we retrieve the corpse right now or in the morning?" Imran asked.
"A corpse!" Fayyaz exclaimed. "What are you saying? What kind of corpse?"
"A poet has composed two couplets," Imran replied.
"Oh, you're the wisest fool in the world, clearly," Fayyaz said, bewildered.
"Another body—three wounds—the distance between the wounds is five inches—according to the post-mortem report, their depth will also be the same."
"Man, don't make a fool out of me," Fayyaz said humbly.
"The judge's key is present. Be smart," Imran said in a dry tone.
"But how did this happen?"
"Just like poetry happens... but this verse seems forced to me, like Mir's verse—
'Why ask about Mir's religion and faith now?
He has drawn a tilak and sits in a temple; he abandoned Islam long ago.'
"Tell me, why did he sit in the temple? Why not sit there earlier?"
"It's not 'early', it's 'temple' (dair), meaning a place of idol worship!" Fayyaz said, then muttered, "God forgive me, I've fallen into this nonsense too. Where in the building is the body?"
"In the same room and exactly in the same place where the first body was found."
"But what were those sounds?" Fayyaz asked.
"Oh, it's better if you don't ask. I've never seen such a ridiculous scene in my life."
"Meaning?"
"First, I saw a donkey with a monkey riding on it... then I saw another shadow that was definitely a person. Even in the dark, you can tell the difference between a donkey and a human. What's your opinion?"
"I'm sorry, but you are always unserious."
"Fayyaz, tell me honestly! If you saw a man kissing a monkey, would you be angry or not?"
"Ridiculous!... You are wasting time."
"Alright, come on..." Imran said, patting his shoulder.
They both went towards the main door.
"Why are you bothering unnecessarily?" Fayyaz said.
"Take out the key!"
Opening the door, they entered the room with the corpse. Imran turned on the torch. But in the next moment, he was rubbing his head as if he suddenly felt a surge of heat in his brain.
The body was gone.
"What kind of joke is this?" Fayyaz snapped.
"Hmm. Some wise poets also remove forced verses from their ghazals."
"Imran, I'm done with your help."
"But my dear, look here... The fresh bloodstains are still there. The one who hid the body hasn't dealt with them yet. As Mirza Iftikhar Rafi Sauda or someone else says—
'The murderer must surely publicize our body
So that no one will ever be loyal to anyone again.'
Fayyaz bent down to look at the blood spread on the floor.
"But what happened to the body?" he asked in a worried tone.
"The angels took it away. The deceased was heavenly... but God forbid... a heavenly being... is also what they call a water carrier... oh, it was Firdousi... but Firdousi died during the lifetime of Mahmud of Ghazni... So what will you say... Come on, speak."
"Man, don't talk nonsense."
"Confusion. Tell me quickly... What will you say... My head is spinning, I'm going to have a fit."
"They'll say heavenly... Imran, may God understand you."
"Good! So, the deceased was heavenly... What was I saying..."
"Why didn't you stay here?" Fayyaz snapped. "You could have called me."
"Listen, man! I've never even kissed a fly, let alone a monkey," Imran said in despair.
"What's the matter? You've mentioned a monkey several times."
"Whatever I've told you so far is absolutely true... That man took the monkey off the donkey, brought it into the room... Then the monkey screamed twice and the man once... After that, there was silence... Then the body appeared. The donkey and the monkey had disappeared!"
"Are you telling the truth?" Fayyaz said in a choked voice.
"Why doesn't the wrath of God fall upon the one who thinks I'm a liar?"
Fayyaz was silent for a while, then swallowed and said, "So... then leave it until morning."
Imran's eyes then lifted towards the grave. The gravestone was raised, and those same terrifying eyes were staring into the darkness. Imran turned off the torch and pushed Fayyaz behind the wall, wanting to ensure that Fayyaz didn't see it.
"W-what?" Fayyaz stammered, trembling.
"Monkey!" Imran said.
He wanted to say something more, but that same scream echoed through the silence again.
"Oh, my God..." Fayyaz said like a frightened child.
"Close your eyes," Imran said seriously. "Seeing such things can cause a heart attack. Did you bring the revolver?"
"No... no... you never mentioned it."
"Alright, never mind! Okay, wait here!" Imran said as he slowly moved towards the door.
The gravestone was now level, and the silence seemed even deeper than before.