Chapter 52

In spite of the cold, Amir loved walking around Old Montreal. We visited the Basilique Notre Dame, remembering how we had visited the cathedral of the same name in Algiers. That had been a very hot day; now, completely the opposite. I had brought all sorts of winter clothes to bundle Amir up in, and I took him up Mont Royal for the spectacular view of the city it afforded. A stiff wind buffeted us out of the north, and I pulled him in close to keep him from shivering.

“It is a beautiful view, Habibi,” he said. “But let’s go back to the car to get warm.”

“You know,” I remarked when we got back in the warm car, “my parents honeymooned here. I remember seeing a picture of them standing on this very spot.”

“I hope it was a warmer day!” he laughed.

“Not much. I think it was in early spring, maybe April. That would have been seventy years ago. But it made me think of something that I wanted to ask you.”