Devil's Whisper Chapter 10: Voices Of The Lost

The café was quiet now, the morning rush giving way to a more subdued atmosphere. The faint clinking of cups and the low hum of conversation provided a comforting backdrop as Kate and Aussie huddled over the table. The page lay between them, its cryptic symbols and Persian text seeming to pulse with hidden meaning.

"It's related to my recent case... I can't disclose any further details right now. I hope you understand." Kate replied softly.

"Yes, I understand," Aussie acknowledged, taking a sip of the black coffee that had been served a few minutes ago.

Kate leaned forward, her voice low but urgent. “Aussie, please translate this text into English. I need it.”

Aussie nodded, his expression serious as he picked up the page. “I’ll do my best.”

Kate reached into her shoulder bag and pulled out a blank piece of paper, sliding it across the table. “I have a printed copy of the photo here. Write the English version of the Persian text on the other side of this paper.”

Aussie took the paper, his fingers brushing against hers briefly. He opened the English version of the Rubaiyat on his phone, his eyes scanning the lines of poetry. “I’ve always loved Persian poetry,” he murmured, almost to himself. “The way it weaves meaning and metaphor… it’s like solving a puzzle.”

Kate watched him intently as he began to write, his pen moving steadily across the page. The minutes stretched on, the only sounds the scratch of his pen and the occasional sip of coffee. Finally, he set the pen down and handed the paper back to Kate.

“Here,” he said. “The English translation of the quatrains.”

Kate took the paper, her eyes darting between the Persian text on one side and Aussie’s neat handwriting on the other. The quatrains were haunting.

Here with a Loaf of Bread beneath the Bough,

A Flask of Wine, a Book of Verse — and Thou

Beside me singing in the wilderness —

And Wilderness is Paradise enow.

"How sweet is mortal Sovranty!" – think some:

Others – "How blest the Paradise to come!"

Ah, take the Cash and let the Credit go

Nor heed the rumble of a distant Drum!

Were it not Folly, Spider-like to spin

The Thread of present Life away to win

What? For ourselves who know not if we shall

Breathe out the very Breath we now breathe in!

Look to the Rose that blows about us – "Lo,

Laughing," she says, "into the World I blow:

At once the silken Tassel of my Purse

Tear, and its Treasure on the Garden throw.

The Worldly Hope men set their Hearts upon

Turns Ashes – or it prospers; and anon,

Like Snow upon the Desert's dusty Face

Lighting a little Hour or two – is gone

(Omer Khayyam)

Kate read the English translation of the text, trying to grasp its meaning, but she knew it wouldn’t be an easy task. Lifting her head, she noticed a boy standing beside a pillar, his gaze fixed on the piece of paper she held in her hand. He had been standing there since Kate and Aussie had sat down at the table.

lean, sharp-eyed, his fingers tapping rhythmically against his thigh as he pretended to scroll through his phone. Initially, he had been talking with two other boys, but they had left, leaving him behind. Kate observed that he was covertly listening to their conversation. His gaze lingered too long on the page in her hands.

Kate considered asking the boy who he was and why he was so interested in the paper. However, she ultimately decided against it and let him continue staring at the page.

“You’re distracted. What’s wrong?”

Kate glanced back at Aussie, “Nothing. Just… thinking.”

She turned her focus back to the symbols Aussie had circled. The first, on the left margin, resembled a serpent coiled around a dagger. The second, on the right, was a series of intersecting triangles. The third, beneath the final quatrain, bore the words Tamam Shud—to be finished.

"Why did the killer put a page with Persian poetry in the coat of the dead body?" Kate pondered silently. "Why not the English version of the poem?" she questioned herself. "What is the connection between this poetry and the murder? Is the killer someone who speaks Persian, or is the killer a foreigner?"

"Kate, what are you thinking?" Aussie noticed her silence and asked.

"Nothing," Kate replied. She couldn’t share any of her thoughts with him.

"Kate, what are these symbols?" Aussie inquired, pointing to three symbols on the page. One symbol was on the left side of the page, another on the right side, and the third was beneath the last line of the fifth quatrain, with two words written below it.

"I don't know what these are... I need to find out their meaning," Kate admitted, her voice tinged with confusion. "Aussie, you didn’t translate these two words," She placed her finger on the words below a symbol.

"The words 'Tamam Shud' are also Persian, meaning 'to be finished or completed,'" Aussie revealed. His voice dropped slightly, as if he were sharing a secret. "It’s a phrase that’s often used in Persian poetry to signify the end of a journey or a task. But in this context... it’s almost like a warning."

"Okay," Kate said, exhaling deeply. The symbols and the words had stirred up a lot of questions, and she felt the weight of the mystery pressing down on her. "Thank you, Aussie, you’ve been a great help to me."

"My pleasure," Aussie replied, a small smile playing on his lips. He seemed to enjoy the puzzle, the challenge of deciphering the symbols and their meanings.

"I should leave now," Kate stated, rising from her chair. "Thank you, Aussie, you’ve been a great help to me."

"My pleasure," Aussie replied, standing as well. He walked her to the door, where he paused for a moment. "Let’s go for lunch and reminisce about old times," he suggested, his tone light and playful.

"Some other day... Once I solve my new case, we’ll hang out together," Kate said, smiling faintly.

"I’ll wait for your call," Aussie said, giving Kate a goodbye hug.

Kate glanced toward the pillar and noticed the boy leaving the cafeteria. She headed toward the door, leaving Aussie behind. She want to follow the boy and find out why he was staring at the cryptic note from the Rubaiyat.