Tooth and Nail, Fur and Scale Read online

  ‘How can I help you?’ she asked, using a dishcloth to wipe the table down, on which my new friend had spilled his drinks.

  ‘I’m sorry to bother you like this,’ I said, ‘but I’m here on rather delicate business.’

  Her practised movements halted at my off-script words. She straightened her back and stared suspiciously at me.

  ‘What do you mean?’ she said.

  ‘I’ve been sent here by a very wealthy man who would like to express his regrets over what happened here recently,’ I rattled on. ‘A brute in his employ seemed to have caused a spot of trouble for you, and my boss wishes to make reparations.’

  She glanced at her father, who wasn’t looking our way. The man who sat before me was slowly getting the implications of what I’d said and was staring at me, slack-jawed.

  ‘Um . . . you—you might want to talk to my f-father,’ she mumbled.

  ‘If the king heard that an athlete from his akhara was going around harassing the good people of Girivraja,’ I continued, ‘he wouldn’t be pleased. My employer vows to keep his wrestler in line, and would like to reward the man who defended your honour and prevented further harm to your establishment.’

  She bit her lip. ‘You . . . want to . . . do what exactly?’

  I put my coin-pouch, which had been almost entirely depleted from the payment to Adrideva and the ticket I’d bought for the special matches, on the table. Luckily, the few mudras inside it jangled suggestively.

  ‘I’d like to give this to the brave man who fought for you.’

  By now, Kanaka, his wife and their two boys had noticed that something unusual was happening at our table. They peeked at us once in a while, but continued to work. I knew I didn’t have much time before someone intervened and threw me off my game.

  The girl extended a hand towards the pouch. ‘I can give him that.’

  So she did know how he could be reached.

  ‘I’m afraid I can’t allow that,’ I said, sweeping the pouch off the table and out of sight. ‘But if you’d be kind enough to tell me his whereabouts, I’d be glad to convey it to him myself.’

  Saudamini frowned, and her eyes suddenly turned cold. ‘I’m sorry, but I don’t know where he is.’

  ‘But you do know who he is?’

  Just then, Saudamini’s mother walked over from the bar with the drink I’d ordered for the man sitting before me. ‘Is there a problem?’ she asked.

  ‘No problem,’ said Saudamini, then turned on her heel as she addressed me again. ‘I don’t know who that man was, and I’d appreciate it if you didn’t bother me about this again.’ Saying so, she walked away.

  Her mother slammed the glass of milk down on the table and scanned me. Over my shoulder, I saw Kanaka edging his way out from behind the bar and the two boys walking towards me as Saudamini retreated into the kitchen.

  I stood up, dropped the mudras I owed for my interlocutor’s drink on the table and walked towards the exit, trying my best to look well meaning.

  ‘Hey!’ I heard the man at my table say as I left the place. ‘This is just milk!’

  Outside, I opened the pouch containing the gems from Patala and studied them. In the darkness of the night, their brightness seemed enhanced, but the lights inside them were scarcely more than pinpoints.

  I turned the facts over in my head as I walked back home. The sky was clear, and under the light of the full moon, I weaved between the potholes, sharp rocks and cow-dung cakes that were sprinkled along Vasu’s Way, down to Main Street. In my mind, though, things were darker, and I felt like I was stepping into messier territory.

  The thief I was looking for could well be the same character who’d had the fight with this Bhoopala fellow. It seemed like he was from out of town and trying to keep a low profile. If he’d already been in the city for a week without being noticed by the bookies, despite having the chops to beat a professional athlete, he’d probably never tried out at the akhara.

  Kanaka and his family seemed vaguely invested in the man’s well-being too, but maybe that was just because of him having saved their daughter. Things could have got pretty nasty if he hadn’t taken Bhoopala out. Of course, things could get even worse if Bhoopala woke up with a taste for vengeance.

  But the man I’d been speaking to seemed to think that my suspect had been hurt pretty badly during the fight, and that had been just three days ago. I had a feeling my client would have picked up on that sort of thing, but maybe she wasn’t a trained warrior. And it had been dark.

  I had a few leads to follow, but things hadn’t clicked into place yet. I turned into my street, thinking about how this case might drag on for longer than I’d initially suspected, when I saw a lithe shadow lurking outside my door. All the other doors on the street were shuttered and the lights in the windows were out. I was debating whether I should go around the house and try to get in through the back entrance when I realized that the figure had spotted me and was drawing closer.

  ‘Any luck today?’

  It was my client’s voice. She had wrapped herself in a woollen shawl, so that only her face was left uncovered. In the moonlight, I could see that her brow was furrowed and her lips were quivering.

  ‘What are you doing here?’ I asked.

  ‘What do you think I’m doing? I’m checking on your progress, of course!’

  ‘It’s nearly midnight!’

  ‘I got here a while ago,’ she said. ‘I saw that you lived here when I was in your office earlier, so I figured you’d be back at the end of the day. What’s wrong? You look . . . tense . . .’

  ‘Well, madam,’ I said, ‘it’s been a long day, and I was kind of expecting to go up to my room and sleep it off!’

  ‘What’ve you found out?’ she asked still, and I realized that she was too keyed up and worried to care about niceties.

  ‘I’m sorry,’ I said. ‘It’s only been a few hours since I got on this case. Things like this can take weeks to unravel.’

  ‘Weeks? I don’t have weeks! I don’t think you understand the enormity of the situation, human. This dirty surface-world is driving me crazy! I need to get back to the nether-realms! I need my mani!’ She clutched my shoulders in a tight grasp, and I saw that her eyes were brimming with tears.

  ‘Hey, take it easy!’ I said, trying to wriggle out of her grip, which was hurting more than just a little. ‘Relax! We’ll find it!’

  She let go of me. ‘I-I’m sorry,’ she gasped, covering her mouth with one hand. ‘This isn’t like me!’

  ‘It’s all right,’ I said. ‘I can see that you’re shaken up. Why don’t you come into the office for a bit?’

  ‘I—are you sure that’s okay?’

  ‘Sure. Have a drink of water, then I’ll drop you home,’ I said, wondering where she’d been staying.

  I walked up to the door and opened it, remembering the charms I’d set up.

  ‘Hold on,’ I said. ‘Stay right here.’

  I went inside, careful not to step on the yantra I’d drawn on the floor, and brought a lamp over to the doorway. Holding the light over the defensive diagram, I said the requisite mantras and disabled it. ‘It protects against magical creatures,’ I said. ‘I think you qualify.’

  ‘A warrior working with the magical arts . . .’ she said. I thought she looked impressed.

  ‘Lady,’ I said, not without humour, ‘I say my own shlokas, shoot my own bow, run my own business and deal with my own refuse. The varnas are for people who can afford it and people who can’t help it. For those of us who are willing and able to fend for ourselves, they’re just empty words.’

  I led her inside the house, and this time, dusted the stool for her to sit on.

  ‘I’m sorry I bothered you so late,’ she said after I’d handed her a glass of water. ‘It’s just that—this isn’t my world! There’s so much I don’t understand! People stare at me when I pass them in the streets, and I have to check to make sure I’m looking human. There’s so much pain and suffering and stench and ug
liness . . . I’m afraid that if I stay too long, it’ll seep into my skin!’

  I shook my head and sighed. ‘As for the looks you get,’ I said, ‘it’s only because your manner and your appearance, though human enough, betray you for a foreigner.’

  ‘But why must one stare at a foreigner?’

  ‘I don’t know. They’re just curious. It’s not something you can control. About the rest of it, well, I’ve never been to the nether-realms, but I suspect there’s as much vileness there as up here.’

  She pouted and then lightened up on her own, probably realizing that if my words had been offensive to her, hers had had the same effect.

  After a minute or two, she began to say something when I saw a colourful pulse of light somewhere around my waist and jumped out of my seat.

  ‘The gems you gave me!’ I whispered, unrolling the top of my antariya. Even through the velvet of the pouch, I could see the stones glowing. Loosening the drawstrings, I found them blazing yellow and green.

  Her jaw fell open and her eyes widened. She seemed frozen in place, and I realized that I’d have to tackle this matter quickly. I took her hand and pulled her into my living quarters.

  ‘Where are you taking me?’ she asked, but didn’t resist.

  I led her to the back door, watching the gems. They seemed to be getting dimmer as we crossed the house. I looked through the peephole—the back alley seemed deserted. Slowly and without making a sound, I opened the door and tried to shove her through.

  ‘He’s coming through the front,’ she said. ‘We can get him together!’

  ‘He might have seen us both come in and may be prepared. Go down the alley—it’ll lead to Marama Square. Can you find your way home from there?’

  She looked like she was going to argue, but then she nodded and let me push her out. I bolted the back door and bounded back into my office. The first thing I did was reactivate the protective yantra on the floor, after which I picked up my bow, nocked an arrow and stood before the front door. I eased the bolt open with my foot, holding my breath.

  Then I sprang out into the night, ready to shoot at the first sign of movement. I sighted along the arrow’s shaft, turning left, right—

  I felt the blade against my throat before I saw him in my peripheral vision.

  ‘Put the bow down,’ he said in a baritone. ‘You’ll hurt someone.’

  I pointed the arrow to the floor and relaxed my draw. ‘Okay. You got me.’

  ‘Why have you been looking for me?’ he spat. ‘Who are you?’

  ‘That’s a fine question to ask a man you’re going to slaughter at his doorstep.’

  ‘How do you know that big oaf I brained outside the madhushala?’

  ‘I don’t.’

  ‘You said you knew his master—the man who’s employed him.’

  Strange, I thought. Does this guy actually buy the story I gave that girl?

  ‘I know the master,’ I said. ‘Not the wrestler.’

  ‘Well, you take this message to the man who’s trying to find me. Tell him the only reward I want is to be left alone. I didn’t mean for this to happen, and if that oaf hadn’t tried to threaten a lady in my presence—’

  ‘Hey! I’m only the messenger, and I got the message,’ I said, letting my bow and arrow fall to the ground. I felt the knife’s edge relax against my throat. ‘But I don’t think you understand the seriousness of what’s occurred,’ I continued. ‘That man you thrashed—he’s worth a lot of money to my client, to the akhara and to the bookies who’ve paid him off. If you’re not careful, you’re going to have a lot of enemies at your back.’

  I heard teeth grinding behind my neck. Maybe my client hadn’t noticed when she encountered this guy in the darkness of Vasu’s Way, but just from the long shadow of us cast by moonlight, I could see that he was favouring his right leg.

  ‘Tell your client that I’ll compensate him,’ he said finally.

  ‘Wow. You clearly don’t know how much money we’re talking about, friend.’

  ‘It doesn’t matter. I just need some time. I’m caught up with some business right now, but as soon as it’s done, he’ll be paid in full.’

  ‘Honestly, I’m not sure he’ll be convinced by your verbal assurance,’ I said.

  ‘I don’t care, errand boy. Give him the message and let him act as he will,’ he finished, releasing his hold over me and pushing me to my knees.

  I looked over my shoulder and saw that he had turned around and was crouching, ready to leap up to the roof of my building.

  ‘I know how you plan to pay him back,’ I shouted. ‘With the nagamani!’

  He hesitated for just a moment, and I took the opportunity.

  I planted my hands on the floor and lashed out with my right leg, aiming for the back of his left knee. My kick slammed home, and he grunted as he lost his balance. My gambit had paid off—I’d hit one of the bones that Bhoopala had broken.

  Next, I hurled myself at him, tackling him through my open door. As we sailed over the rice-flour yantra below, I felt his body shake violently under me and then slacken as we hit the floor.

  It took him only a few seconds to come to, but I was already standing over him, wearing my quiver, an arrow trained at his eye. I saw that he wore a dark-blue silk tunic, a strange garment in these parts, over a black silk antariya. He was of medium height, sinewy and had no body hair that I could see. His face was all sharp angles, and when he opened his eyes, they were like twin sapphires. A foreigner, if there ever was one.

  He groaned, but didn’t make any sudden movements.

  ‘Listen up,’ I said. ‘Here’s the deal. I have nothing to do with that wrestler or whoever his employer might be. My client is the woman whom you stole the nagamani from last night on Vasu’s Way.’

  ‘Huh?’ he uttered, clearly still disoriented by the effects of the charm.

  ‘You mugged a woman—a naga—near the butcher’s shop on Vasu’s Way last night and stole her mani. She hired me to find you this morning, and that’s what I’ve been trying to do. The whole Bhoopala thing was a ruse to get your sweetheart back at the madhushala to tell me where you lived.’

  ‘What? I don’t know what you’re talking about!’

  ‘You better sober up quick, tough guy, or I’m going to have to wake you up with an arrow.’

  ‘I’m awake! I just don’t know what you’re going on about. What woman?’

  ‘The one you’re into. Saudamini, I think her name is.’

  ‘Not that woman. The other one. The one you think I stole from. And I’m not into the waitress!’

  I sighed. ‘Drop the act, will you? You still have the nagamani on you—I know that much. I’ve got three gems from Patalaloka screaming that to me. Hand it over and I’ll let you leave.’

  ‘You’re making a big mistake.’

  ‘I can’t promise I won’t help my client find you again, provided she’s willing to pay me extra, but I’ll give you the night’s head start.’

  ‘Your client, whoever she is, is lying.’

  ‘You can’t talk yourself out of this one, kid.’

  ‘I don’t intend to. Let me show you.’

  He brought up both hands, and I almost shot him. I was only on top of this situation because of a lucky break, and giving this guy any quarter would cost me my neck. Bum leg or not, I knew he was way stronger and faster than I was.

  ‘Hold it right there!’ I warned.

  ‘Relax. I’m just going to open my tunic, and you’ll see—’

  ‘Nah-nah. Just keep still. First, tell me what you want to show me.’

  ‘The nagamani! I want to show you why you’re detecting one on me.’

  ‘And why’s that?’

  ‘Because it’s been embedded in me since I was born, you idiot!’ he screamed, reaching for the bindings down the front of his tunic.

  ‘I said, hold it!’ I fired an arrow slightly to the right of his head. It was supposed to be a warning shot, but I guess he thought I meant to make a h
ole in him. And instead of holding it like I told him to, he did something totally weird.

  Right in front of my eyes, his skin seemed to desiccate and his bones appeared to collapse on themselves. His hair, his skin, even his clothes, were being sucked into some linear whirlpool that ran the length of his body, as a hissing noise filled the air.

  Of course, these were things that registered in my mind over the span of a few seconds, by which time I’d already discharged my whole quiver at him.

  Twenty-four arrows stuck out of my floor, vibrating along two parallel curves about four inches from each other. And caged between them, unable to writhe as was its nature, was a large, sinuous serpent with a blue gem in its hood.

  ‘Wha—’ I blurted, feeling like a real chump.

  It hissed in response, its tongue darting in and out, and I re-evaluated my understanding of the day gone by.

  On the one hand, he could still be my culprit. Would one naga steal a nagamani from another? I’d never heard of the serpent-men hankering after wealth and fame the way humans did, but maybe they did—I was no expert. Or maybe this guy wanted to settle some old score with my client, and so stole her gem while she was in her human form. He was definitely strong and violent enough to do it, as was evident by his cracking of Bhoopala’s skull.

  But then he had seemed genuinely shocked by my accusation of the mugging, and he had saved the waitress from being harassed. It was possible that my client and this guy were totally unconnected, and that all the correlations I’d drawn were purely coincidental. The worst-case scenario, of course, was that my client had lied to me and I was tangled up in something I didn’t understand.

  Either way, I decided I had to get him to talk to sort things out.

  I shut my front door, took the protective amulet I’d hung from its bolt and tossed it around the fletching of the three arrows that were pinning down the naga’s head.

  ‘I’m going to get these arrows out, because I need you to talk,’ I told him. ‘The thing directly above your head is a talisman against evil intent. That means if you so much as think about hurting me while I’m doing this, you’ll be hit by a jolt worse than the one you got when we came through that door.’ This was a blatant lie, because the amulet would only release a concussive pulse if it were activated, one that would be non-lethal even to humans. It would probably amount to just a mild shock to a naga. If it came to that, I hoped it would give me the split second I’d need to get away.