The Golem and the Jinni

Ahmad and Arbeely attend a Maronite wedding. Ahmad wants to leave. However, Arbeely insists that Ahmad will be seen as an outsider in the community if he doesn’t attend. When they go to the wedding reception at the Faddoul’s coffee house, Ahmad quickly goes outside and uses his limited magical abilities to sculpt a small caged pigeon from some gold necklaces that he bought. Arbeely persuades him to rejoin the party, and when he returns to the reception, he embarrasses the bride by looking at her intently. Maryam subtly chides him for staring at a newly married woman. Ahmad leaves soon after and heads to Central Park, where he finds a fountain called Angel of the Waters. There, he meets a young woman who intrigues him. He asks her about angels and tells her about Jinn. She is curious and wants to know more, but their conversation is interrupted by her aunt, who glares at Ahmad with deep-seated prejudice. He learns that the girl’s name is Sophia Winston; she is the daughter of the wealthiest man in New York City. Sophia and her aunt get in a carriage and leave, and Ahmad follows them at a distance.