The Whispering Thieves
Once upon a time, in a sheltered valley that slept peacefully in the lap of lush pine forests, there lived a brave and clever shepherd named Kerem. The dwellers of this green valley felt a deep worry because of the strange whispers that rose from the hills when evening fell. These eerie sounds, mingled with the howl of the wind, pointed to the presence of mysterious bandits who stole the flocks of the village. No one had ever seen the face of these bandits, for they moved only at night, whispering in the shadow of the darkness. Clever Kerem was determined to solve this mystery in order to protect his sheep and the peace of the villagers. On a shadowy night when the moon gleamed like a silver tray, Kerem hid behind a huge oak tree. As soon as the hour passed midnight, frightening and hushed voices began to rise, rustling among the bushes.
The leader of the bandit gang looked at his helper and whispered with a cunning air: "Tonight we shall take the fattest rams and cover our tracks." The other bandit grinned and whispered in answer: "The guards of the village are in deep sleep, no one will even catch our scent." Kerem listened to the plan of the bandits with great care from behind the bushes, and at once a bright idea came to his mind. He struck the copper bell that he carried with him against a piece of rock and threw it toward the echoing cave of the mountain. Then he thinned his voice and shouted from inside the deep cave with a coarse whisper: "Catch these insolent ones who raid our land at once!" The huge whisper that echoed in the cave turned into a chilling roar of a monster in the pitch darkness. The bandits, thinking that they were surrounded by the spirits of the dark forest, froze where they stood in great panic.
The gang leader, whose knees trembled with fear, dropped the leather sacks in his saddlebag and tried to flee. Kerem quickly let the strong rope net that he had prepared before fall upon the bandits from the branch where he was hiding. The whispering bandits, caught in the trap, began to struggle helplessly, clinging to one another. As dawn broke, Kerem, together with the villagers, handed these cunning thieves over to justice. The people of the valley regained their peaceful sleep thanks to the superior wit and the courage of the shepherd. However secret and whispered evil may be, it is doomed to vanish before the light of reason and courage. Lies have short legs.