Shocked Jalila reported to Subh the result of her meeting with Amal. The Sultana did not seem to care or be so surprised, accustomed as she had years of militancy in politics in Cordoba alongside Hakam when she often heard her opinions on almost every issue of government.

— I understand your disappointment Jalila, after all, is your relative, but this will just give us a bit more work to reschedule the next meeting and Amal is right, if he is under the observation of Almanzor, our removal removes the suspicions that might incur upon us. I will not say I was not shocked by his ultimatum. He must be truly determined in his religious purpose. I'm sorry to tell you that I do not see his future as a hopeful, for he'll be alone, I cannot do anything for him. You understand, don't you, Jalila?

— I do not mind Subh, we trust him, and he failed with us, now he is under his own luck. As for the meeting place, I had a brief conversation with Farouk after our first meeting and I think his choice right now is the safest. I talk to him and I warn others.

— Great, because this meeting will be fundamental for the next actions. I received a message from General Ziri from Mauritania, and we will build our strategy counting with his strengths, but for that, we will need gold and you will not get armies for support without putting your hand in your pocket. This resource is in the Royal Treasury under the direct guard of the Caliph and supervision of Almanzor. I need to pass on to our group the joint strategies we will have to implement.

— I see the episode did not even scratch your enthusiasm. This encourages me and neutralizes the disappointment I have just suffered. Then I beg to leave and deal with the scheduling.

Saying this, Jalila left Subh's quarters and had her line of action thought out. He would seek Farouk's support, but he would not go to him directly. She resolved to ask for Hamid's intervention. For some time now she had begun to let into her heart her, more mild thought about him, and in the last contact, she had felt that left a dubious impression. She also wanted to sort this out.

She went to Hamid's offices, and unlike the first time she had approached him, she was calmer and even yearned for the meeting. Maybe Subh was right about never feeling as happy as when she was with him. This idea was no longer bothering her like the first time Subh mentioned it. It would take her to see how far that feeling would lead her.

Hamid was surprised by the unannounced visit, but at the same time delighted, and as from the other times they met, he showed all his attention to Jalila. She went straight to the point as a way of explaining her sudden appearance at his office and reported the latest events involving Subh and Amal coming to the breakup with the need to relocate the meeting to another space and for that she came to ask him help for the setup of the things with Farouk.

Hamid suddenly noticed that Jalila was not distant as on the other occasions when they met, she accepted without hesitation the teacup she will refuse the other time, was talkative and had a semblance less of an employee doing his job and more than one woman. This gave him the energy and satisfaction that he made evidently and did not go unnoticed by Jalila. The official subjects were soon resolved, and he agreed to settle everything with Farouk, then report to Sultana and also to have the other members notified of the change of location. He would take care of himself. Suddenly, to their delight, they were talking about amenities and amusing themselves with common memories. That was perfect, but he did not want to go beyond the limit, he would let this direction be captained by Jalila.

After finishing her cup of tea and talking a lot, a will she cannot contain, Jalila got up and said that it was time to go, she would wait for news of him and at that moment she put on the face something more than a formal expression and a smile. He was beginning to nod at Hamid with some hope, though she did not want to overtake any sign. She was testing herself. She could already be more at ease in his presence and evaluate with the events how far she could go, or not, safely.

Hamid had won the day. He had felt a breakthrough in his meeting with Jalila, and his hopes renewed, but he had thorny chores ahead. Solving the issue of meeting place with Farouk was no problem as he had the resources to do so even without directly involving himself. His concern was Bahadur. Now, with the separation between Subh and Amal, he would have to deal with him about the beginning of the audit in the library while at the same time trying to remove him completely from any matter relating to the literary contest.

He decides to send a man of confidence who, even without knowing what was behind the meeting, he must resolve with Farouk the exchange of place at the request of Jalila and Subh with urgency, because he had to warn the others. He would let Subh explain the reasons for the meeting. At the same time, he sent a messenger requesting Bahadur to come to him. After all, he was an advisor to a Vizier of the Caliphate. Who was Bahadur?

It was not many minutes after the messenger had returned and Bahadur arrived with Al-Aziz. After leaving him waiting for about half an hour at the anteroom, Hamid through his secretary had them come in. He needed to establish the chain of command, regardless of whether Bahadur had brought him an order of cooperation from Almançor, the hierarchy needed to be clear.

— My dear Bahadur," he said after the greetings and be introduced to his companion. The events evolved, Amal was already contacted, and this eventually led to his removal from the competition organizing group. There was no need to wait for the meeting, they are different matters. Now you can introduce yourself to your audit, backed by the order of Almanzor.

Bahadur, who hoped to put the two affairs together, had a moment of perplexity, and in the first few seconds, he did not answer what prompted Hamid to proceed.

— I also want to introduce you to my assistant Abd Al-Karim who will accompany and integrate your staff representing our office. He must participate in the entire audit. The Vizier is concerned about this monitoring. Saying this he asked for the entrance of his assistant who was already waiting at the antechamber.

— With this new surprise Bahadur could not hide his irritation, however much he tried and restlessly rubbed his hands and exclaimed:

— But, why? Would not my team be able to do the service alone? After all, I raised this problem, not that I did not need help, but we did not talk about it at our previous meeting. That alone worries me. What has changed?

— Nothing's changed, that's exactly why. You are an interested party. We need to keep the exemption at Amal's trial. After all, he is a faithful servant of the Caliphate for ten years. You would not like to be accused of bias in case the charges are proven, and the Library's position is eventually being delivered to you. After you told me, the Vizier talked to Almanzor and he wants that kind of behavior, Hamid lied. And completed, Al-Karim has experience with documents from Islam, he will only help.

Bahadur felt that it was not yet time to confront Hamid, he still had nothing concrete about his suspicions about the meeting and had to swallow hard. Then he would see how to isolate the presence of this unexpected collaborator.

— All right, you're right. We want the exemption. So, get to work. Is he going with me then? He said to Karim.

— He's all yours.

Bahadur, Aziz, and the auditors' newest partner left Hamid's office going to the Library to notify Amal of the start of an audit authorized by Almanzor.

He already had obtained information on the existence of the secret compartment of Al-Hakam and hoped to surprise initiating its searches by the place. But he agreed to stop by his house to adjust actions and behavior and to get the document signed by Almanzor, in case Amal created some hindrance.

On the way, he conjectured about the changes. It was clear to him that Hamid had sought to shun the focus of Subh's meeting. Oh, he was right. It had problems there. He had not spoken, but surely the meeting would no longer be in the Library. He could not refocus the focus yet until he had concrete evidence of the collusion between Amal and Jalila and with luck involving the Sultana herself. He had a fire in his hands and intended to handle the flame without burning himself.

After setting some points such as Bahadur being the only interlocutor with the administrators, free passage to all members of his staff in all premises of the Library including the specific rooms of Amal and Nasr, they went to the meeting that would give Departure in the audit. On the way, three more members of the Bahadur group assembled on the premises used by them were joined by the audit team.

They found Amal and Nasr discussing internal library issues as they often did in the studio. Bahadur left his companions outside and entered only with Karim who did not budge from being present at the initial contact, leaving the librarian aware that it would not be easy to isolate the intruder from his group. He was already breaking the first established rule and realized that his new partner's strategy was not to challenge but to act on his own agenda. That was bad.

After introducing the Vizier representative, Bahadur began his speech:

— Amal, we're here to carry out an order from Almanzor. There are indications of use, custody, and dissemination of texts prohibited by Islam and my audit is aimed at determining this fact. I hope to have your cooperation, because if the thing fails like that, no advantage will be extracted for your administration and more drastic decisions can be taken, such as removing you from office while we audit.

— Finally, you got a space, isn't Bahadur? It had been lurking for so many years. It must have been tedious years. I should have kicked you out of here when I was warned of your idleness and pretensions to one day occupy my place. You did not rest until he came up with a pretext. Maybe the opportunity will come now, and we will not get rid of you only in the Library but in the Palace. But do not worry about myself and my immediate assistants do not intend to prevent any action from your audit. Where do you want to start? As you know Al-Hakam oversaw the construction of Al-Zahara and gave the library a central core status of his work, as well as the Mosque. There are almost fifty rooms including administrative offices and rooms with various works.

— I see you are disturbed, cold blood Amal, you do not seem to carry the tranquility of the innocent. And as for the beginning of work, let's start with this hidden deposit inside your studio. I want the keys and I establish the prohibition of any employee, and this also includes you and Nasr, to have access to him until we release him.

— Well, you start wasting your time. I have never used it and I do not even know what is in this deposit. I have always regarded it as a place of personal use for the Caliph. I have respected his memory, nor do I have the keys. I have never sought. Even the studio I took a long time to take over. You're going to have to break it down.

After a first moment showing that he was surprised by Bahadur's response, he returned the charge.

— You will not want me to believe you never had the curiosity to go in there, you a studious bookseller would not resist trying to discover the secrets that Al-Hakam kept in this place. It's hard to believe.

— This is your problem! As I said, you're going to have to break in the heavy door, and no one will ever want to go in there, no one ever came in, their ban is the same as rain in the wet floor. And now, if I may, to facilitate your work as you decide what to do on the premises of my studio I will move temporarily to another room to be able to work. As you know, although you have never participated in anything here, we have a lot of work. And saying this he left with Nasr leaving Bahadur and Al-Karim standing in the middle of the studio.

They left and headed for Nasr's office. Amal had decided he would stay with Nasr and moved a small table there. The deposit had been "prepared" not to leave any signs of recent use and the key had been removed from the Palace. With the participation of few but faithful servants, the deposit had been placed in a state of total abandonment. Besides, anything that might interest Bahadur had been removed from the studio, which was not much to worry about.

Amal's strategy was not to interfere because he felt safe. However, he and Nasr did not want this audit to go on too long. From several days, which they set to a maximum of ten, they would begin to press for closure. At this moment they might lack Subh's support, with which they could no longer count. Amal imagined he could count on Hamid's support if he considered him innocent. He looked like a fair man. Whatever they did, they would have to get rid of Bahadur after a while, for he would certainly try to prolong this audit to continue his investigations in the other direction and keep them on the defensive.

Nasr continued to warn Amal about Bahadur's total lack of scruples, and that in the face of a lack of evidence, it would not be an obstacle for him to plant them. He, therefore, warned that they might need radical measures to drive him away or prevent him, rather than the influence of anyone else. He knew that Amal was no more averse to these less orthodox strategies.

In the meantime, Bahadur, together with Al-Karim and with his cronies, found that the deposit was enclosed with a large lock and that, as Amal had said, would have to be broken into. He began to worry about his firmness and to suspect that the area might have been cleaned. He was not so sure he would find anything, but the audit was now a weapon to him, and if there were no evidence, he would fabricate them. This opportunity would not be missed. The only obstacle in sight was Al-Karim.

A bit of work due to the huge lock and padlock, but the door was broken open.

Inside the 40 square meter warehouse, it was a huge mess and lots of dust. It seemed like an uninhabitable environment for many years. The smell of dead mice under some shelves made the air unbreathable in the back of the room.

Bahadur interrupted any search. Amal had been clever. She could have sworn the room had been prepared, but she could not prove it. Amal, in this case, was one step ahead of him. It was a waste of time. They would not find anything and if they thought they would be credited to Caliph Al-Hakam. They would have to look in the normal rooms frequented by all other staff. The chance to find something seemed remote, but he could not make it sound like that. Auditing was his free pass. He ordered them to search the library in an orderly manner, starting in the east and left with Aziz on his way home. He needed to exchange ideas with his greatest collaborator. He was disappointed with the first discoveries of what would be his greatest weapon, but deep down, deep down, he knew it would not be easy. His opponent was intelligent and seemed more determined than he had thought.

— Aziz, in a way this was expected. I just did not think it had been so well done. The deposit that was our surprise action was prepared to receive us, it just might have been.

— Of course, it was Bahadur. Do not you remember telling you we did not see movement or lights while working at night? They were there in that warehouse that should not be dusty or full of dead rats like we saw today.

— Yeah. I'm thinking we're going to have to appeal to plant compromising documents.

— Bahadur, under no circumstances, will be an easy task. First, we need specialists. Second, where to find them? You seem to have already convinced yourself that we will not find anything in the Library.

— Yeah, I do not think we're going. And the document we stole from them?

— Just a partial piece, without the rest we will not convince anyone that there was any intention of attacking the faith.

— That's what I figured out. I mentioned her with Hajib, stating that someone from my staff would have seen her, but I did not even take it with me, or I emphasized it much in my encounter with him. So, we need to start looking. Bahadur expressed this like a seizure, demonstrating symptoms of the onset of loss of control of the situation. We cannot miss the advantage of being auditing the Library, but it is certain that without results we cannot sustain this advantage for long. Look for your contacts in churches, convents, no matter where look for documents of any kind that could compromise Amal's Islamic loyalty. Meanwhile, we are gaining time in the audit. Select one of the team's men to accompany you on this quest.

— This is a dangerous path, but you're boss. I will do it right now. And Aziz said goodbye to Bahadur, leaving him wrapped in his cares, hurrying out the door before any curses were launched upon him.