Said and Nur collaborate to steal the car of one of Nur’s wealthy clients. Said proceeds into the desert to the Martyr’s Tomb to find Nur and her client. He then steals the client’s car and money then drives off to the city with Nur. When they arrive, he drops her off and tells her to go to the police station and give them an alibi so as to remove suspicion of their involvement in the theft. Before he leaves, she tells him that he can come by her apartment anytime if he needs a place to stay.

When describing the interaction between Nur and her client, the author indicates that there is heavy breathing. As Said nears the car where Nur is, “the breathing… [turns] to panting”(195). This panting displays animal imagery of a dog. This describes the client as someone who is lowly like a dog. Immediately after, Said is described to be “almost crawling on his hands and knees”(196) the closer he gets to the car. The fact that Said is described similarly to an animal at this point may be to show the similarities he has to the rich people he despises so much, as Said quickly seems to lose his sense of morality as the story progresses.

“The young man bolted off in the dark like a comet”(196), imagery that shows how quickly the factory owner’s son escapes to save his own life without regard for Nur. This complements Said’s disdainful outlook on upper class people as selfish cowards.

As Said approaches the city, he passes a hill which is a landmark that indicates the city is close. The hill is depicted as “a chunk of the night more solid than the rest”(198). This indicates that the approaching city is darker than night, a truly miserable place. This foreshadows the events that may take place later on, when Said is in the city.

Through their interactions, Nur’s and Said’s characters are further developed. Said points out that both of the characters have difficulty changing their old jobs, indicating a tendency to hold on to the past for both of them. This is true as both characters hold on to aspects of the past. Said continues to harbour his hatred for Ilish, Nabawwiya and Rauf Ilwan. Nur continues to hold her feelings for Said even if he clearly does not love her back.

Said remarks that he “[doesn’t] particularly like factory owners” to which Nur replies that he “[doesn’t] like anybody”(197). This shows that he has been a very non-trusting and cold person even before he entered prison. This is further supported when Nur says that Said was “heartless long before [he] ever went to jail.”(198).

Said gives the description of someone who looks nothing like him, “fat, fair-skinned and has an old scar on his right cheek”(199). This helps give the readers a very slightly better way of visualizing Said as we now know what he does not look like.

While driving, Said drinks alcohol (196-7). This shows that he is a reckless character. A possible cause for his recklessness is that he has lost all personal regard for safety due to the severe emotional pain he felt from being betrayed by his closest friends

The factory owner’s son, Nur’s client, is depicted as a nervous and frightened man who was “so out of his mind with fear [that] he wasn’t capable of suspecting anything”(197). This could possibly represent the author’s opinion on the upper class people at the time.

When Nur describes her home, she says that “No one knows [her] there and no one’s ever visited [her].”(198). This statement when considered along with the fact that she loves Said though he doesn’t love her back and along with the idea that she uses her sexuality to help earn a living, reveals that she is a submissive and passive character who, instead of seizing opportunity, waits for others to come and save her. This contributes to the portrayal of women from earlier chapters of the novel.

Nur’s unreturned love: When she is with Said in the car, Nur constantly “[harps] on the subject of affection”(198), much to Said’s discontent. She acts very emphatically and wishes that he would to open up to her. Despite this, he rejects her advances and continues to act coldly towards her citing that his heart was “locked up in prison, according to regulations”(198).

Luck/Fate: “look how luck has sent me this car!”(197). Said sees the car as a gift of fate and not as help given by Nur. He seems to neglect her and doesn’t see her as important to him. At least, not yet.

Said’s Revenge: Said points out that he needs the gun and car as they are the “tools of the trade”(197). This acts as a foreshadowing as to what Said’s intentions are for getting his revenge. He may possibly end up spilling blood.

Said as a “Robin Hood”: Said mentions that Rauf Ilwan used to say that “[the thieves’] intentions were good but [they] lacked order or discipline”(195). This indicates that the thieves may have had a sense of honour among themselves, possibly similar to “Robin Hood” types of characters(those who steal from the rich and give to the poor).

New setting: The desert. A place that Said knew “as if he had a compass built into his head”(195). His familiarity with such a desolate and lonely setting is probably due to his own character being so similar to a desert. Throughout most of the novel, Said remains emotionally isolated from everyone around him. He is also very harsh and unforgiving, just like a desert.

Egypt: Landmarks and places like ‘the Martyr’s Tomb”(195), “Mugattam”(198), “Sharia Darrasa” and “Zinhum”(199) are featured in the chapter to reinforce the idea that the story is indeed set in Cairo, Egypt.