مزاحم نشو

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Do Not Disturb

The corridor outside cabin 22 was still empty. Everything was silent. Salahadin went into the cabin and picked up the box carefully. Then he carried it across the corridor to his own cabin.

He went back across the corridor once more. In every cabin there was a notice with the words “Do Not Disturb” written on it in large letters. Salahadin took this notice and hung it on the door of cabin 22.

The steward will see this on the door, thought Salahadin to himself. He’ll think that Peterson is sick. No one will go into cabin 22 until Venice.

He locked the door of cabin 22 and put the key on its hook in the steward’s room. Then Salahadin went back to his own cabin. The food was still on the table, but he was not hungry. He threw it out of the window.

Salahadin looked at his watch. He was surprised. It was only a-quarter to nine. A lot had happened in a short time.

After a few minutes there was a knock at the door. It was the steward.

‘I hope that you enjoyed your dinner, sir,’ he said to Salahadin.

‘Thank you,’ replied Salahadin. ‘I enjoyed it very much.’

‘Mr Peterson’s put the “Do Not Disturb” notice on his door,’ said the steward. ‘Perhaps he’s sick. I’ll not disturb him until Venice.’

‘Yes,’ said Salahadin. ‘I met him half an hour ago. He said that he felt sick. He’ll not want anything until tomorrow.’

‘When do you want breakfast, sir’ asked the steward.

‘I feel tired,’ replied Salahadin. ‘Don’t wake me in the morning. When I want breakfast, I’ll call you.’

‘Goodnight, then,’ said the steward.

Salahadin said goodnight and locked his door. He had not slept on a bed for many hours and he was very tired. He undressed and got into bed. At first, the movement of the boat kept him awake. But he was soon asleep and slept deeply all night.

When Salahadin woke up the next morning, the bright sun was shining into his cabin. He looked at his watch. It was nearly eleven o’clock. He rang the bell for the steward.

‘When do we arrive in Venice’ asked Salahadin.

‘We’re early today,’ replied the steward. ‘We’ll be there in two hours. But you don’t need to get off the boat immediately. You can have lunch first.’

‘No, thank you,’ said Salahadin. ‘I want to get off the boat as soon as possible. What about Mr Peterson? Is he better?’

‘He still has the notice on his door,’ replied the steward. ‘I’ll not disturb him until after lunch.’

‘That’s a good idea,’ said Salahadin. ‘Now, can you bring me some coffee, please.’

Salahadin drank his coffee slowly and got dressed. He heard a lot of noise. The ship was arriving at Venice.

Salahadin looked out into the corridor. It was empty. The steward had gone to the dining-room. Salahadin picked up the heavy box and left the cabin.

From the side of the boat, Salahadin saw the tall buildings of Venice. They were passing in front of St Mark’s Cathedral. They were now near the docks.

After half an hour, the boat was beside the dock. Salahadin left The Syria while the other passengers were having lunch.

‘What’s in that box’ asked a policeman.

‘Some books,’ replied Salahadin. He did not want any trouble.

The policeman did not ask Salahadin to open the box. In a few minutes, Salahadin was in a water taxi on his way to the railway station.

Safe at last, thought Salahadin. When they open cabin 22, they’ll find it empty. They’ll be very surprised.