Laldasa (50 page)

Jaya shook his head. “No, I will. Ana was—is my responsibility.”

The Deva searched him with her lustrous black eyes. “She is not dead.” It was a statement of fact.

“No,” he said and new that to be true. “But she's terrified.” That was also true.

oOo

Ana's fear threatened to suffocate her. Bound, gagged and blinded by a velvet hood, she lay sprawled across a bed in a room scented with spices. Of her location, her senses had told her only that it was high up in a building with an underground carpark.

She tugged at the manacles on her wrists, but found them tight and secure. She tried to listen to the conversation muffled by the closed door, but it came to her in swaddled mumbles. She wanted to scream and cry with the frustration of being blind, nearly deaf, and senseless. Instead, she fell back on her discipline and worked at restoring calm. Finally, overcome by exhaustion, she slept.

She sensed someone in the room before she was fully awake, adrenaline kicking in like an alarm system. She turned her head, struggling to hear through the hood.

“Ah, you're awake.”

The voice was smooth, warm. Ana knew it was the one who had hovered over her so at the dalali and was glad it was not the other—the big man whose voice was like metal grating on stone, the one who had spoken so bloodlessly about “sacrificing” Jaya. She shivered, thankful for the present darkness.

“Are you cold?” he asked. “Or do I frighten you?”

“I'm cold,” she answered, her voice muffled.

“I'm glad I don't frighten you. I would not like you to be frightened of me.” He was silent for a moment then said, “You're extraordinarily beautiful.”

“Thank you, sama.” She sounded like a dutiful child accepting a treat.

“I wish I could see your face.”

“I wish I could see yours.”

He laughed. He sat down next to her, the bed sagging slightly under his weight. Ana tried not to roll toward him, but failed. She could feel the warmth of his body through the fabric of her unisuit and knew her fear would be transmitted along the connection.

“Did you know that I also find you extraordinarily desirable?” he asked.

She said nothing.

“What? No ‘thank you, sama'? Yet, you react so strongly.” His hand touched her thigh, rested on it, caressing. “Either I've offended you or I've frightened you. Which is it?”

She didn't answer and he went on, his hand massaging the sleek fabric covering her leg. “Or could it be that I excite you as much as you excite me?”

She let out a crack of sound intended to be a laugh. “I don't even know what you look like.”

“What? Are you that shallow? Is appearance so very important? Surely, what's in a man's heart counts for something.”

“You have a heart?” she asked before she could stop herself.

“Now you're teasing me. Are those the words of a Rohina?” He breathed the word, making it sound like a seduction. “Now it is true that my friend—whom you will also come to know quite well—has no heart. No soul. No conscience. To him, you are a hostage, a bargaining chip, a moment of pleasure and, of course, a means of wounding Rokh Nadim. I have no interest in any of these things. My interest in you is rather more ... spiritual. You see, I've studied the Rohin ways—especially the ways of Rohin women. I know of the mysterious disciplines you practice, the potent magics you possess. They say you can make love to a man's very soul. They say you have the Jadu. Do you have the Jadu, Anala Nadim?”

Was he superstitious or merely curious? A little of both, perhaps.

She said, “Yes. I'm very strong with the Jadu. It's in my eyes—the second sight and the power of Seeing Beyond and Within.”

“Ah, I can believe that. You see, I have seen you weave your magic, if only from a distance. I'll wager you can strike terror into a man's soul—bend him to your will.”

“They say so.”

“Does he say so—Jaya Sarojin? Do you stare into his soul when he makes love to you? Do you have him bewitched?”

She shivered again. “Of course.”

“Oh, I hope so. In fact, I'm counting on it.”

“Meaning, I'm bait.”

“To my rather insensitive friend, yes. To me, you are ... a Goal.” He drew in a deep breath, his hand gliding to her hip. “I have envied Jaya Sarojin. Now, he can envy me. I have the woman with the Jadu in her eyes. What a pity I can't see them just now. I shall console myself with other delights.”

Before she could raise her knees to fend him off, he had grasped the lapels of her unisuit. The closes parted in his hands; tearing open to her waist.

“My! What delicate under-garments miners wear these days.”

Ana wished heartily that her “delicate undergarments” were made of steel mesh. Especially when he twined a finger through one of the thin straps of her silken camisole. She could not pull away; he was leaning across her body. All she could do was lie, blind, beneath him, and wait. She felt sweat trickle from her temples.

“No,” he said and sat up. “I only torment myself. I have a promise to keep. So, until later, my dear Rohina.”

He leaned over, kissed the hollow at the base of her throat, then rose.

“My dear friend's dasa will see that you bathe and dress in something more suitable. Then, you must eat. And then, I would like to finish our conversation. I want to know all about the Rohin ways, Anala, and you shall teach me.”

“Duran Prakash has left Kasi.”

Mall Gar made his report before the three other members of the Inner Circle in whom the Deva Radha had placed her trust. They were two Dandin and the Vadin of the Port Zone, Rakesh Bithal, who was, himself, head of the Balin Order. Also in attendance were Hadas Gupta—in his capacity as a witness—and Rockh Nadim.

“At least, so his aide informs me,” the Zone Commander continued. “He was allegedly called away yesterday morning on some urgent business in Kalimpur. I asked to speak to Vrksa-sama, who gave me the same story—that he dispatched Prakash to Kalimpur. So, I called the KNC offices there. They confirmed his arrival and claim that he is presently in conference with the branch managers.”

He glanced at the Deva sitting regally in her carved and ornamented chair and found he was still awed.

“Yesterday morning?” Sri Radha frowned. “Apparently Prakash-sama is establishing an alibi.”

Sri Elui squinted at Hadas, who sat uneasily in one of the box seats reserved for visitors to the Inner Chamber. “Are you sure Prakash-sama was the man you saw?”

“The holo the Commander showed me was the man I saw at the dalali,” he replied. “I'm certain of it.”

“That man has my daughter,” said Rokh Nadim. His back to the assemblage, he gazed from the chamber window to the courtyard below. “We must find him and get her back.”

“I'm not certain he has your daughter,” said the Deva, “but if he is in Kalimpur, we must certainly bring him back. Vadin Bithal, I would like to send a small detachment of Balin to Kalimpur to see to this detail.”

The door chime sounded before he could respond and the Deva touched her console, causing a holographic image of the visitor to appear before her seat. It was an Asra courier, seeming to look wide-eyed into Radha's face. She clutched a piece of drawing mat.

“Yes, Rua?”

“Pardon, Holy One, but this message was found sitting on the Holy Book in the Hall of Honor. It is addressed to the Inner Circle.”

“Bring it to us.”

Radha banished the image and caused the door to open. The courier scurried in, bowing, and handed the crude, folded bit of mat to the Deva. She thanked and dismissed the girl, waiting until she was gone to read the message.

She frowned, her face creasing delicately. “It appears that Prakash-sama has more than an alibi. The Workers' Coalition claims that they have Anala Nadim and that they will kill her if Rokh Nadim does not withdraw the Guild's petition.”

oOo

“How can they know we're involved?” Nigudha Bhrasta adjusted his hood so he could see his eyes, then studied his reflection in the glass above the sumptuously laid sideboard in his officesuite.

Behind him, Duran Prakash made a chopping gesture with his hand, anxiety oozing from his every pore. “The Sarngin contacted my office-“

“Yes, I know. And you have an alibi. Kalimpur confirmed you were there. You can't be in two places at once.”

“Damn you! How can you be so calm? Bel Adivaram knows we're involved and they're searching Kasi for him right now. If they find him-“

“If.
 
... I am terrifying in this hood, aren't I? Do you think our little Avasan friend is impressed?”

“I think you have more important things to contemplate than how much fear you inspire in the women you control. There have been Sarngin at Adivaram's house. Rishi reports that the dalali is crawling with them. All asking questions about the Vadin's habits. There are even Balin patrolling near his residence. Balin, do you hear? Do you know what that means? That means the Circle is alerted. We have awakened Indra, my friend, and He hunts us.”

His companion poured himself a cup of tea. “No, He hunts Bel Adivaram. We are protected.”

“Protected by what?”

“By a Rohin witch, perhaps.”

“Now you're mocking me. You don't believe-”

“No, but you do.” Bhrasta's nod took in Duran Prakash and the third man who sat silently in the window casement, staring absently through the tinted glass and stroking the black velvet hood in his hands.

“The woman is a hostage, not an amulet,” Duran protested.

The man in the window spoke. “The woman is more than a hostage, Duran. She's a fountain of sacred power.”

“There, you see? The Mystic has spoken.”

Prakash stared at his superior, increasingly uncertain of the direction his mind was taking.

“Listen to me,” he said. “Adivaram isn't one of us and he's soft. He's a slave to his greed. If that can make him compromise his loyalties, imagine what abject fear and humiliation will do.”

Bhrasta nodded. With a parting glance at his reflection, he turned to face Prakash. “If the Circle suspects our good Vadin of heinous sins, then he has outlived his usefulness to us. We have no choice but to cut the connection.”

“Cut-?” Prakash shook his head, pretending for a moment not to understand. “And just how do you propose to do that? Adivaram is a member of the Vrinda Varma and One of the Nine, not some barely literate yevetha.”

“Yet, he is just as prone to frailty as that accursed yevetha, is he not? You concentrate on handling our business with the Circle. That's paramount, Duran. AGIM must not break our hold on Avasa. Nor can we afford to relax our efforts to control the Circle's legislation in that area. If those miners gain any real independence, our empire will collapse.”

“I'm well aware of the ramifications.”

“Now that you've established your alibi and the Workers' Coalition has assumed responsibility for the Nadim woman's abduction, we're covered. Anything they can squeeze out of that Sarojin Rani is just supposition and hearsay. Unless, of course, you admitted more to her than you've told me.”

“Absolutely not.”

“No, I think I would know if you had.”

Prakash fixed his companion with a direct gaze. “Tell me something, old friend. If worse came to worst, would you cut my connection, too?”

He was vaguely aware of a stirring from the direction of the window; perhaps the answer to this question was also significant to the so-called Mystic.

“I'm not a fool, Duran. And I know your worth. You're simply not expendable to me. Besides, as you said, we're friends.”

“I had thought so.”

“Good. Please continue to think so.” Nigudha Bhrasta deftly loosened the hood and pulled it off, smoothed his graying hair, and sipped his tea. “You look worn out. Go to your office and rest. Handling the Circle will take all your wits.”

oOo

 
“He's a very anxious man, Nigu,” observed Bhrasta's companion when Duran Prakash had made a hurried exit.

“He is also possessed of a supreme sense of selfpreservation. He will do nothing to compromise me.”

The Mystic nodded, then glanced down at the hood in his hands. “The woman ... you will not harm her.”

It might have been question or command. Nigudha Bhrasta glanced at the speaker with a mixture of amusement and irritation. “Don't worry, I won't wring the Jadu out of her.”

The other man rose from his window seat and smiled. “Nigu, you are an irreligious blasphemer. The fact is that you couldn't ‘wring the Jadu out of her' if you tried. You don't believe, you aren't disciplined, and you have no capacity. I simply don't want her harmed.”