Mr. Kadam was in the library on the phone. I heard only half of the conversation. He glanced at me and pulled out a chair so I could sit beside him.
“Yes. Of course. Contact me as soon as possible. That is correct. Send in as many as necessary. We’ll be in touch.” He hung up the phone and turned to me.
Playing with my wet hair, I asked, “Who was that?”
“A man of my employ who has many remarkable talents. One of which is infiltrating large organizations.”
“What’s he going to do for us?”
“He will begin investigating who works in the penthouse office in the tallest building of Mumbai.”
“You aren’t planning on going there yourself, are you? Lokesh would capture you too!”
“No. Lokesh gave away more about himself than he learned of us. Did you notice his suit?”
“His suit? It looked like a regular suit to me.”
“It isn’t. His suits are custom made in India. Only two businesses in the entire country specialize in expensive suits such as that one. I’ve sent my men to hunt down an address.”
I shook my head and grinned. “Mr. Kadam, did anyone ever tell you that you are extremely observant?”
He smiled. “Perhaps once or twice.”
“Well, I’m very glad that you’re on our side. I’m impressed! I didn’t even think to look at his clothes. What about the servant?”
“I have a few ideas about where he might have come from. Based on the beads, the hair, and the tattoo, I should be able to narrow it down by tomorrow. Why don’t you have a snack and head to bed?”
“I took a long nap in the car, but a snack sounds good. Will you join me?”
“I believe I might.”
I stood quickly. “Oh! I almost forgot! I brought something for you!”
I found my backpack at the foot of the stairs and also retrieved a couple of glasses and two small plates from the kitchen. I set out the plate and glass in front of Mr. Kadam and unzipped the backpack.
“I don’t know if the pastry is still edible, but the nectar should be.”
He leaned forward, curious.
Opening the Silvanae’s delicious packages, I placed several dainty delicacies on his plate. Sadly, the small pack of sugar-dusted lace cookies had become a pack of crumbs. But, the other items still looked as fresh and delectable as they had been in Shangri-la.
Mr. Kadam appraised the tiny appetizers from several angles, marveling at the artistry involved. Then he carefully tasted a mushroom galette and a tiny raspberry tart as I explained that the Silvanae were vegetarians who loved sugary things. I popped the stopper of a tall gourd and poured sweet, golden nectar into his cup. Kishan walked in and pulled up a chair next to me.
“Hey! Why wasn’t I invited to the Silvanae tea party?” he teased.
I slid my plate to Kishan and went to get another glass. We laughed and enjoyed a peaceful respite as we savored pumpkin rolls with walnut butter and mini apple, cheese, and onion stuffed pies. We drained every drop of the nectar and were thrilled to see that the Golden Fruit could produce more.
The only thing that could have made this moment better would have been to share it with Ren. I promised myself that I would write down each delicious food we’d eaten in Shangri-la so I could taste them all again with Ren by using the Golden Fruit after he was rescued.
We stayed awake until late that night. Kishan changed into a tiger and slept at my feet as Mr. Kadam and I read books on the rural tribes of India. At about 3:00 a.m., I turned a page in the fifth book I’d picked up and found a picture of a woman with tattooing across her forehead.
“Mr. Kadam, come look at this.”
He sat on the leather chair next to me. I handed him the book, so he could study the woman.
“Yes. This is one of the groups I thought of. They’re called the Baiga.”
“What do you know about them? Where are they?”
“They are a mostly nomadic indigenous tribe who avoid association outside of their communities. They hunt and gather food, preferring not to till the ground. They believe farming harms Mother Earth. There are two groups of them that I know of: one in Madhya Pradesh in central India and one in Jharkhand, which is in eastern India. I believe I have a book that has more details of their culture.”
He scanned through several shelves until he found the right text. He