Words weren't enough to explain how Maalik felt as he watched Rustam disappear into the night. His warning had been as confusing as Reshma's. The only thing Maalik realized was that the murders might be related to the Kalash. A thought that hadn't occurred to him prior to meeting Rustam. But now that it was there, he couldn't stop thinking about it.

Reshma might be from a Kalash tribe, but she chose to live away from her people. He should've paid more attention to that little but significant fact.

"What are you thinking about?" Jahan interrupted his musings.

"It's strange," he said, looking at her without seeing because his mind wasn't fully there. "I just realized why people treat Reshma differently. She isn't one of us."

"Excuse me?"

"She's Kalasha," he shrugged, "And yet, she lives among us—the outsiders."

"I don't understand. Kalash are indigenous to Chitral, but so are your people. No?"

"Yes and no." When she gave him a confused look, he said, "We are all Chitrali, but their connection to this region goes farther back in history than us. Maybe even to prehistoric times. everything appears perfect on the surface, but I'm sure you can understand all the ways minorities might feel threatened. The Kalash people have lived in remote valleys and don't like cohabitating with neighboring communities. Their culture, religion, language, and traditions set them apart from us. These are the hard facts."

"Okay, so for Reshma to live away from her people means something?" she posed the statement as a question.

It was the same one he had asked himself. Everything Rustam told them suggested there was a deeper reason for his Aunt to live in these specific woods. He couldn't get Rustam's parting statement out of his head. Promises made in the moonlight must be kept. Why did it sound so familiar?

"Yes, she's here for a reason," he said firmly. His voice held the surety he didn't feel. "I don't know what it has to do with the murders, but I have a gut feeling she knows more than anyone else."

"I don't know why," Jahan said, "but I don't think she's the killer."

"Why?"

"It's just a feeling, but she doesn't seem like a violent person—quite the contrary. If anything, I'd say she's a pacifist. And now, thinking back, I don't even know why I was scared of her. Maybe your fear rubbed off on me."

He considered her words and realized they made sense. His fear of the woman was fueled by the local rumors and the deep-rooted superstition when in reality Reshma could only be accused of being overly dramatic. Eccentricity was her only flaw.

"I think we should talk to her," Jahan said.

"Now?" His eyes bulged in disbelief. She might be over her fear but he wasn't there yet.

"Don't look so horrified," she gave him a disgusted glance. "We can go in the morning or maybe I can visit her alone while you head back to the town."

"I know the way. It's no big deal. I can return the next day or call someone to pick me up."

He didn't say anything because he had no right to protest. But that didn't mean he liked the idea. Especially, if Rustam was still around, he didn't want to leave Jahan alone with those two mysterious people. Reshma might not be a direct threat to any of them, but her nephew was a wild card. What did they even know about him? Who's to say he was even related to Reshma? They only had his words on the matter. What if the man lied about it and everything else?

The night went by in restlessness. Long after Jahan turned in, he stayed by the campfire and dreaded the sunrise. Thinking about the past, present, and future, he couldn't sleep. The nagging feeling that he missed something crucial stayed with him all night.

#

Mahdi was the first person he ran into when he returned to the valley alone. Though he had misgivings, he couldn't dissuade Jahan from seeking Reshma.

"Your mother called the hotel," Mahdi told him. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes," he said distractedly. "I couldn't charge my phone. Did she leave a message?"

"Just that you should call her back."

"Okay, thank you."

"Wasn't Miss Jahan with you yesterday?" There was no censure in Mahdi's tone just curiosity underlined with worry. "I haven't seen her today."

Maalik sighed. He dreaded this conversation but had to ask these questions to understand the situation. "Yes, she was with me. We had to camp in the woods because of the weather. It's actually why I'm here. Can you spare me a few moments?"

"Of course, it's my break time, anyway." He led Maalik to a small room across from the hotel building. That was where guards rested when not on duty. "What do you want to discuss," he asked once they were settled beside a window.

Maalik could see the snow-covered peaks of the mountain. The window was closed, not only to give them privacy but also to keep the room relatively warmer. He stared at the sun, which hid behind clouds as if shying away.

"Maalik?" Mahdi prompted.

"Yes, well," he cleared his throat, "you see, Jahan and I went to see Reshma."

"Why?" The older man looked confused.

"She was the last person Meena contacted. They were going to meet the next day but," his voice trailed off. "Anyway, we were curious about her connection to the murder. Seeing her has reminded me of my sister and her meeting with Reshma. What I want to know is, do you know anything about her?"

He came to Mahdi for answers, not because of the older man's age or his friendship with Reshma but because of his trustworthiness. People confided in him easily. And he was the only person Maalik trusted at the moment. Even if he failed to provide him answers, he would keep their conversation to himself.

"I remember that time," Mahdi's voice held nostalgia. "Your father and I were close, and that's how I knew you and your sister well. You two were all your father ever talked about. It was always Mahi this and Maalik that."

A soft smile appeared on Mahdi's wrinkled face. "You were in college and hardly ever at home. Mahi was falling in love."

"I didn't know anything about that." Maalik's shock was palpable. His sister had been in love? But with whom and why did no one ever mention it before?

"Yes, it was new." Mahdi smiled as if he could see the past. "Your parents were waiting for your visit before they made anything official, but she was as good as engaged. The guy was from the city—a tourist. If I recall correctly, things didn't go as well as Mahi and your parents thought. I don't know all the details but your father was planning to visit his parents and sort things out."

"I don't get it. What does any of this have to do with Reshma?"

"I'm getting to that. So, someone mentioned Reshma's ability to tell the future and you know how Mahi was. She believed in those kinds of things. That was why she visited her. At least, that was what I heard from your father. Whatever Reshma told Mahi, she never mentioned it to another soul. And you know how Resham is," Mahdi said. "She can make you believe in anything she wants to."

Maalik didn't know that about her. Why would he when he was scared of the woman? It saddened him to learn how little he knew his sister. He always assumed that she distanced herself from him because of something he did. But maybe she was heartbroken and didn't want to be around her brother who always smiled too brightly and laughed loudly.

Knowing the truth, he understood a few things. If Mahi was indeed in love and wanted to marry that guy, she would've done everything within her power to resolve any hurdle in their way. No wonder she visited the fortuneteller. She must have wanted to know the outcome of her efforts. But why did she give up? That was what must have happened otherwise he would've learned about the situation sooner.

He clearly remembered the few months before Mahi's murder. He was on vacation and had come home. Though he was too self-engrossed, he had noticed his sister's odd behavior. She was quieter than usual. Most days she used to avoid him like a plague. Sometimes, she would leave and wouldn't return for days. His parents always said she was with friends, but he never met any of them. Did she even have any friends or were they lying? But why would they?

And then she died and everything changed. His parents never recovered from the loss. He went back to college and completed his degree. And life went all, brokenly. His grandmother passed away later the same year and his parents moved to the city never to return.

"You know Reshma well. Don't you?" Maalik asked.

"Yes, we went to the same college," the man chuckled, "believe it or not."

Reshma had a college degree? That was the most unbelievable thing he had heard since he arrived in Chitral. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't imagine her as a student.

"Anyway," Mahdi said when Maalik didn't respond, "I know her well enough. Is there something bothering you?"

"I don't believe in fortunetellers," he said, shrugging.

"No sane person would." Mahdi seemed unfazed. "But what's your point?"

"I wonder what she might have said to Mahi to break her spirit like that."

"Why do you assume it was anything Reshma said or did? Maybe she was sad because of her broken engagement. Or it could be anything else."

Mahdi had a point, yet his heart refused to let go of the notion that Reshma was somehow involved.

"Now, let me ask you something." Receiving a nod from Maalik, he said, "Why are you back? And why do you think Meena's death is some big mystery instead of the bear attack it probably was?"

"Bears don't just kill one person and then disappear into thin air." Maalik's voice held annoyance. He didn't think it was something that needed to be said. If a bear roamed around in the area, someone would've spotted it by now. They could fool the tourists all they wanted, but Maalik knew how seriously their community took wildlife preservation and environmental protection.

"Fair enough," Mahdi relented. "But I still think you should let the police do their job. They will make an official statement as soon as they can confirm it."

"Tell me, when was the last time you heard about a fatal bear attack?"

"Six years," Mahdi said without thinking and then realized the significance of his statement.

"Exactly," Maalik sounded vindicated, "we know how rare such attacks are. First, it was Mahi and now Meena, and you want me to believe it's a coincidence. I don't think so."

He could appreciate the human need for an easy answer. But he couldn't let a murderer go free because humans were too scared to look closely within their community. Finding a monster lurking among them wouldn't be comfortable, and it might raise difficult questions, yet it was the right thing to do. What happened to Mahi should never have happened again—not to Meena.

Maalik felt a weight lifted off his shoulders yet replaced by a deeper sense of responsibility. Even as he thanked Mahdi for his time, Maalik's mind was already tracing back to Rustam's cryptic words and Reshma's mysterious connection to the past and present tragedies. Each passing hour made the gnawing sensation in his gut worse.

"Promises made in the moonlight must be kept."

And he remembered where he had heard those words before.