Sunday. ‘Abdullah, the son of Abu Bakr would go to see them after dusk, stay the night there, apprise  them of the latest situation in Makkah, and then leave in the early morning to mix with the Makkans  as  usual and not to draw the least attention to his clandestine activities. ‘Amir bin Fuhairah, while in the  company of other shepherds of Makkah tending his master Abu Bakr’s flock, used to stole away  unobserved every evening with a few goats to the cave and furnished its inmates with a plentiful  supply  of milk.
Quraish, on the other hand, were quite baffled and exasperated when the news of the escape of the  two  companions was confirmed. They brought ‘Ali to Al-Ka‘bah, beat him brutally and confined him there  for  an hour attempting desperately to make him divulge the secret of the disappearance of the two
‘fugitives’, but to no avail. They then went to see Asma’, Abu Bakr’s daughter, but here also their  attempts went in vain. While at her door Abu Jahl slapped the girl so severely that her earring broke  up.
The notables of Makkah convened an emergency session to determine the future course of action and  explore all areas that could help arrest the two men. They decided to block all avenues leading out of
Makkah and imposed heavy armed surveillance over all potential exits. A price of 100 camels was set  upon the head of each one. Horsemen, infantry and tracers of tracks scoured the country. Once they  even reached the mouth of the cave where the Prophet (Peace be upon him) and Abu Bakr were  hiding.
When he saw the enemy at a very close distance, Abu Bakr whispered to the Prophet (Peace be upon  him): “What, if they were to look through the crevice and detect us?” The Prophet (Peace be upon  him)  in his God-inspired calm replied:
“Silence Abu Bakr! What do you think of those two with whom the Third is Allâh.”
It was really a Divine miracle, the chasers were only a few steps from the cave.
For three days Muhammad (Peace be upon him) and Abu Bakr lived in the cave and Quraish continued  their frantic efforts to get hold of them.
Someone called ‘Abdullah bin Uraiquit, who had as yet not embraced Islam, but was trusted by Abu
Bakr, and had been hired by him as a guide, reached the cave after three nights according to a plan  bringing with him Abu Bakr’s two camels. His report satisfied the noble ‘fugitives’ that the search had  slackened. The opportunity to depart was come. Here Abu Bakr offered the Prophet (Peace be upon  him) the swift animal to ride on. The latter agreed provided that he would pay its price. They took  with  them the food provisions that Asma’, daughter of Abu Bakr, brought and tied in a bundle of her  waistband, after tearing it into two parts, hence the appellation attached to her: “Asma’ of the two  waistbands.” The Prophet (Peace be upon him), Abu Bakr and ‘Amir bin Fuhairah departed, and their  guide ‘Abdullah bin Uraiquit led them on hardly ever trodden ways along the coastal route. That was in
Rabi‘ Al-Awwal, 1st year A.H., i.e. September 622 A.D. The little caravan travelled through many  villages on their way to Quba’. In this context, it is relevant to introduce some interesting incidents  that  featured their wearying journey:
1. One day they could find no shelter from the scorching heat so Abu Bakr (May Allah be pleased  with him) cast a glance and found a little shade beside a rock. He cleaned the ground, spread  his mantle for the Prophet(Peace be upon him) to lie on and himself went off in search of food.
He came across a shepherd, a bedouin boy, who was also seeking a shelter. Abu Bakr asked him  for some milk and took it to the Prophet (Peace be upon him), cooled it with some water and  waited till the Prophet (Peace be upon him) woke up and quenched his thirst.
2. Whoever asked Abu Bakr (May Allah be pleased with him) about the identity of his honourable  companion, he would reply that he was a man who guided him on his way. The questioner would  think that Muhammad (Peace be upon him) was a guide, in terms of roads, whereas Abu Bakr  used to mean guide to the way of righteousness.
3. Quraish, as we have already mentioned, had declared that whoever would seize Muhammad
(Peace be upon him) would receive a hundred camels as reward. This had spurred many persons  to try their luck. Among those who were on the lookout for the Prophet (Peace be upon him) and  his companion in order to win the reward was Suraqah, the son of Malik. He, on receiving  information that a party of four, had been spotted on a certain route, decided to pursue it