Rausin stopped immediately. Rozak who was walking in front of him turned back to check out what was going on.

"Seems like a woman to me." Rozak said.

"Ali, you stand guard here and watch that body. I’ll check out around. Rozak, you check out that way. This can be a trap, so be careful."

Rausin disappeared among the cane branches, followed by Rozak who went the other way. Ali crouched by the road, under a big tree closely watching the figure of the woman lying on the ground. He noticed that she was breathing slowly, so she must be alive. Her clothes were torn here and there.

"Damn, I’m sure this is a trap." He murmured to himself. He waited patiently while observing his surroundings, listening to every sound. He took a deep breath and let his inner strength flow to his five senses. He could hear the night owl, the wind brushing against the leaves. He couldn’t see anything out of ordinary out there. He heard footsteps closing in. Ali hid himself further from the road. As the footsteps became closer he recognized the smell. It was Rozak’s bad body odor.

Ali was surprised when he realized that Rausin was breathing down his neck while Rozak was coming from the opposite direction. Ali cursed.

"Why you always do that? You move like a ghost."

Rausin didn’t answer, instead he looked at Rozak demanding reports.

Rozak said, "All clear. I don’t think this is a trap of whatever we thought it was."

Rausin frowned and turned his head to look at the body.

"Then, we have to help that woman." He said. "You two watch my back while I carry her here."

"Yes!" Rozak and Ali answered in unison. Before they even closed their mouth, Rausin had fled to the middle of the road. Both of them looked at each other and shook their heads.

"He does move like a ghost." Rozak said.

Rausin squatted by the woman’s body, to take a quick examination before taking her. She was obviously alive, but unconscious. That was the most important thing. So he carried her and ran back to their hidden place. He put her slowly on top of a grass area under the tree.

Ali and Rozak came nearer to look.

"I don’t know her, do you?" Rozak asked.

"No." Ali said.

Rausin touched her necklace, "She’s not from around here. This is a Chinese alphabet. Probably her name."

Ali and Rozak looked at her closer but thought of things other than what Rausin was talking about. They noticed that her clothes were torn in many places revealing her beautiful smooth skins and also parts of her beautiful firm breast. Both swallowed hard staring at her beautiful feature.

"She has scratches and cuts all over her arms. Some of them are still bleeding. I think they need to be bandaged. What do you think happened to her?" Rausin asked his companions.

When he didn’t get any answers he looked to them and found that they were staring at the woman’s body.

He slapped each of them in the head softly.

"You greedy dogs." He shook his head while taking of his clothes to cover her body.

"Oh, come on, Rausin. How many girls can match her beauty in our village, eh?"

Rausin smiled, "I’m not saying she’s ugly. I just remind you guys to help her. She needs our help, not our stares."

"Our help? Our help?" Ali repeated Rausin’s word.

"Do you think I’m crazy enough to take home such a wonderful woman? My wife will hang me on the beam of our kitchen." He continued.

"Same with me. I wanted to help her Rausin. Oh.. yes I want to, but my wife will send me out of the house. Then, where would I live?" Rozak commented.

Rausin looked at her again and turned back to his friends.

"I guess I don’t have any other choice but to leave her out here, right? And you know I can’t do that."

"Yes you can." Rozak said.

Rausin took a deep breath, "You know, this will not be as simple as you think, Ali. Look at her necklace, guys. Look at the wounds at her feet. She must have run away from Batavia, probably walking all the way here. You know what I think? I think she’s a survivor of today’s slaughter in Batavia."

Ali and Rozak looked at him like he was crazy.

"All the way here? Man, she must have walked like 8 to 10 hours. That’s not possible, Rausin."

"Yes, it is possible, why not? When she wakes up, we can ask her about the situations in the city."

Rausin carried her up again.

Rozak stopped him. "Rausin, what if she was raped. And when she wakes up she accuses you? Listen, this is too dangerous for our mission. Inviting a stranger to your house might risk our identities as mask murderers. Leave her."

Rausin looked at his friends in disbelief.

"We have killed many people, guys. We are killers, we are robbers. But we killed those who worked for the Dutch. And we rob only those who have a lot and not willing to share. We do it for the sake of our people. People, who live under pressure, people who live in poverty. People who can’t defend themselves against the oppressor. Does this woman looks like a person who can defend herself?"

Ali and Rozak shook their heads.

"Then, let me help her. You guys just keep your mouth shut until we’re sure who she is."

Rausin spoke in his usual way. Very nice yet very firm. His deep, yet clear voice sounded like a poem when he was talking. Only the glow in his eyes indicated when he was mad or joking. And only those who were close to him can understand it. Among women, Rausin was known as a charming, mysterious man. Among men, he was highly respected for his wisdom and insights yet was also considered mysterious.

Ali and Rozak both knew very well that at the moment Rausin was really angry. They now understood why. Both of them had regarded the woman as not only a threat but as an object of their sexual fantasies. That made them afraid of helping her, afraid of the temptation she might pose. But Rausin, younger as he was, could see that this woman was only a victim. Until he knew more about her, he regarded her as a person in need of help.

Ali and Rozak looked down. They didn’t dare to look at Rausin’s eyes. Their faces were blushing in shame. And they knew, Rausin noticed that too. Rausin started walking and both of them followed closely behind him. After a few meters, Rozak took the lead as he saw it was difficult for Rausin to lead the way while carrying the woman.

They arrived at Rausin’s house at almost dawn. Ali and Rozak hurriedly went back to their houses after helping him settled down the woman inside the house.

Mpok Ati was surprised to see the woman, but she didn’t ask anything. She knew that Rausin never liked being asked when he was in a bad mood. And from the frown he was wearing on his face, she knew that he was annoyed with something.

She noticed that there was a heap of rice in front of the house. She knew that Rausin’s mission was a success tonight. She quickly put it in a bowl and kept it in a hidden place in the kitchen.

When she came back to the room, Rausin had already closed the front door and was busy in the bedroom, hiding his masks and golok.

Mpok Ati looked at the woman. She was covered with Rausin’s wet clothes. When she took it away she was surprised to see the wounds.

"Will you take care of her, Mak?" Rausin was already standing behind her. He was still bare-chested, his black trousers were wet.

She looked at him, "Yes, sure. But .. but who is she?"

"I don’t know, Mak. We found her lying on the road. I’m gonna take a bath now and I have to go work at the plantation."

He turned his back and walked away.

"Usin. . Son, are you allright?"

"I’m allright, Mak. Just a little tired."

"No, my son. You can’t lie to me. You are upset."

Rausin looked at her mother and smiled, "It’s just those old brats, Mak. Ali and Rozak. They.. they.. well, they looked at that woman as if she was just a piece of meat. I. . I. . "

"It reminded you of Marni?" Her mother asked softly.

Rausin didn’t answer straight away. His mother shook her head.

"Who said anything about Marni?" He answered at last.

"Your eyes did. Anyway, it’s not important. What important is, I have to take care of her wounds now. And you, young man, you go take your bath, do your Shalat Subuh (dawn prayer) and go to work."

Rausin smiled, "Yes, Mak."

Mpok Ati continued her work and stopped only to see that the wet clothes were stained with blood. As always, every time his son got home from a robbery, his clothes were always stained with blood. The blood of the men he had killed.

"After I’m done with this young lady, you’re next." She spoke to the heap of clothes on the ground.

Cornelius Janssen hit the desk in front of him. He was a tall, blond man. Even his mustache was blonde. He was a very corrupt man, just like most VOC’s officers. All he could think of was interests, advantages and mostly money.

"You idiots!!!!"

The Bek (Supervisor) and the head of Centeng (body guards/hit man) were standing in front of him, reporting last night’s incident.

"How many times should this be happening again, huh? Five? Ten more times before you can catch them?"

Bek Yanto willed himself to offer an explanation. He was afraid of his boss, especially when he was in such a bad mood like this.

"But Meneer, they were so many of them. They. . ."

"Shut up!! I don’t want to hear your stupid explanation!" Once again he hit the table and rose to his feet.

"You!" He pointed his finger to Centeng Amir.

"You told me that your men are the best fighters. Well they’re nothing but a bunch of idiots."

Amir was a stubborn man, he was not afraid of Janssen.

"Meneer, I told you that my men are the best Javanese fighters. I also told you that the best fighters in this area are the Betawi people. As you know, non-of them are willing to turn to Christian while you only want to pay those who turn their religion into Christian. If only I could recruit some of them, I believe we can stand a chance against the mask murderers."

"You stupid idiot!!! How can you tell your friend from your enemy?"

Bek Yanto stepped in into the conversation, when it came to credit, he wouldn’t miss a chance.

"Meneer, I know some people who are not interested in robberies or murders. They are true Moslems, very religious, but live very poor. And most importantly, they sure know how to fight. They can bend a gun with their hands. Their inner strength are so strong, Meneer. They were descendants of the founder of the Perguruan."

Janssen sat back on his chair. He motioned his two workers to close the door.

"Now how do you know that these people are not one of the gang members?"

Amir walked closer to the desk.

"Meneer, these people are not interested in anything but praying and martial arts. If they were the ones who robbed the warehouse, they wouldn’t have been hungry by now. But even this morning, I saw one them sharing cow milk with neighbors."

Janssen nodded his head several times.

"Martial Arts you said? Why would they learn it if not for fighting?"

"Tradition, Meneer. They have to carry out the tradition, to their children, to their grandchildren and so on and so on."

Yanto added, "Yes, Meneer. There are three of them. They lived near the house of the old ex master of the Perguruan. Their names are Rausin, Ali and Rozak. They are nice but rather stupid. They work at the plantation too."

Janssen seemed to be thinking. His fingers were drumming the desk.

"And you think they are interested in money." He asked.

"Oh, yes, Meneer. Rozak has a wife and three children. He will be more than happy to get the job. The main reason they never took the opportunity is religion. They will never convert their religion, even though they will have to starve to death. They believe that God will feed them and will not leave them in hunger. Stupid!"

Janssen seemed satisfied with his answer and rose from his seat.

"Then, what are you waiting for? Get them to work. They’ll get the same payment as your men."

Both Amir and Yanto fled out of the room. They were thankful that their master’s wrath didn’t cause them more trouble. Last time they didn’t get their full payment because of the robbery.

They both went in a hurry to the plantation to follow up the plan.

Rausin walked home under the sun. The temperature was rather hot today. He felt a bit dizzy. Probably because he had not eaten anything since dinner. He didn’t feel too hungry though. His mind was focused on the offer he had received from the Centeng.

He suddenly felt hungry. The pain on his head was getting worse and he felt sleepy too. He had not slept since the day before yesterday.

He thanked God when he finally made it home.

"I’m home, Mak." He shouted as he walked in the house.

His mother appeared from the bedroom.

"You’re early, my son. Didn’t they need you anymore at the plantation?"

Mpok Ati asked while walking to the kitchen to prepare the lunch.

"Not today. I go wash myself first, Mak. Then I want to eat, I’m really hungry."

Ten minutes later he was sitting on the bamboo divan enjoying the hot rice, boiled egg, vegetables and his favorite sambel. His mother sat in front of him, eating too.

He had been so hungry that he totally forgotten about the woman he had brought home last night. After he finished eating and drank 2 glasses of water, he lied down the divan watching his mom who started to bring the dirty plates to the kitchen. Then he remembered about the woman. He sat up quickly.

"Mak, how is she? Why is she not eating with us?"