Early in the morning, a violent knocking was heard at the door, clearly coming from an impatient visitor.
— "Caesar! Caesar! Come out now or I'll break the door!"
— "Easy, easy, you brute, you'll break the door! Lower your voice, my family is sleeping."
The large man grabbed Caesar by his collar, lifted him up, and said:
— "You little bastard, when are you going to pay my money?"
— "All right, all right, man. Didn't I tell you—after a month?"
— "That's what you told me three months ago, you bastard!"
— "I swear if you don't pay within the next month, I'll kill you."
— "Come on, man, put me down! Fine, this is my promise to you. Just wait for me and you'll get your money, I promise."
The large man threw Caesar to the ground violently, as if he wanted to kill him, and said:
— "I'll wait this time. And if you don't bring it… well, you know what will happen."
The man left, and the sound of his footsteps fading away was clear, filled with anger.
Caesar felt an inner tension; something was eating him from the inside. After a short while, he sighed.
— "Huff… come out, man. I know you're here."
Caesar stood up, brushed the dirt off his clothes, and called out to his friend Theo, who was hiding behind the wall.
— "Hey, man, how did you know I was here? I hid really well so that brute wouldn't see me, and yet you knew I was here!"
— "Who? Hiding well, you idiot? I bet he already knew you were here."
— "All right, man, what are you going to do? How will you get his money back? From what I saw, it's clear he'll do what he said."
— "I don't know, man. The amount is high… about five thousand silver coins."
— "Whaaat?!"
Theo gasped when he heard the amount and looked at Caesar as if he were looking at someone who wanted to commit suicide. That money was enough for several months for a middle-income family, but for them… it was nearly impossible.
— "Man, are you crazy? Why did you take such a huge amount? Do you want to give your mother a heart attack, you idiot?!"
— "And what do you know?
I took that money because I have a plan."
— "And I want to know what kind of crazy plan needs that much money."
— "Well… I don't know yet. The plan is still in the thinking stage."
— "I hope you hurry up, man, so you don't worry your mother and sister. They have no one but you to take care of them."
— "All right, all right. Come with me, let's have breakfast, then I'll take you to that place."
After they went inside, Caesar prepared the dishes and cooked the usual breakfast:
eggs with tomatoes, olive oil, and beautiful Palestinian thyme,
along with a cup of delicious karak tea.
Before Caesar finished preparing breakfast, his mother and sister woke up, washed up, and Caesar told them about the guest.
They ate and enjoyed their conversation, and after they finished, Caesar washed the dishes and Theo helped him.
After that, Caesar took his friend and went to the intended place.
Behind the house, there was a small wooden shack.
Its door was cracked, with a few climbing plants on it, and the marks of time were clearly visible.
The inside of the shack was the opposite of its exterior.
After entering the shack, on the right side there was a giant cushioned chair, big enough for three adults.
In front of it was a small television, and beneath it a beautifully embroidered brown table.
There was also a small bookshelf.
On the left side, there was a desk covered with scattered papers, ink pens, and some sheets bearing drawings of strange things—such as a glowing spherical orb, and a weapon resembling a pistol, but with a clearly visible needle at its muzzle taking up a large portion.
And another sheet, filled with drawings of strange patterns.