We met iqbal's mother, inayat bibi, and his sister, sobia, in a heavily guarded compound in lahore. inayat bibi's accommodation was sparse, no more than a converted storage room, with a few scraps of furniture. i sat on a bench on one side, opposite iqbal's mother and a translator from the bllf.

about her head she wore a multicoloured cotton shawl. she stared ahead much of the time, speaking only when the bllf official asked her a question. sometimes she raised the shawl to her eyes to wipe away tears.

the translator was neatly dressed, in traditional pakistani clothing, but with a western-style jacket and grey scarf. he seemed to constantly have a cigarette between his fingers. behind him stood another person from the bllf. he videotaped our entire meeting.

i looked across at lqbal's mother and smiled, hoping to ease her discomfort. i realized it would probably be the only opportunity i would ever have to speak with her.

"why do you think that your son was killed? " i asked.

she spoke quietly.

"she is telling that iqbal had some enemy by carpet owner," the translator said. "and she thinks that carpet owner and her husband are involved in this."

i had heard how iqbal's father was now living with his stepdaughter in another village. i had also been told that he was a drug addict. the bonded labour liberation front and iqbal's mother maintained that iqbal's father was paid off to publicly support the police story and to denounce khan and the bllf.

iqbal's mother looked away. it seemed to me that she did not want to talk about it further.

i thought i would try to pinpoint iqbal's age, but like so many others i had met who had never learned to read or write, she wasn't certain of anyone's age, not even that of her own children. many times during my trip i had asked children how old they were and at what age they had started to work, and they would hold up a hand to indicate a certain height, unaware of the actual age.

which best describes the author’s purpose in the excerpt you read from free the children?

a. to inform readers about conditions in brick kilns, and to persuade them that iqbal was probably older than previously reported
b. to inform readers about the inconsistencies in iqbal’s story, and to persuade them that what is more important is iqbal’s impact on the fight to end child labor c. to inform readers about the truth behind iqbal’s story, and to persuade them that iqbal’s death was the result of foul play
d. to inform readers about the mysterious parts of iqbal’s story, and to persuade them that his mother and cousins are not to be trusted