“It wouldn’t have worked for long. Lokesh bounces back quickly. The only thing that drove him off was you. You and the Baiga saved the day.”
“So Lokesh had the power to freeze you?”
“Yes.”
“Did you note any of his other powers?”
“Yes.”
“Good. We will discuss them later.”
“Okay. I’ll write down everything that happened while it’s fresh.”
“Very good. Continuing on, after Kishan and Kelsey found Ren, the Baiga wanted to move away from the camp as quickly as possible. They loaded everything they could carry, and filed into the jungle. We accompanied them partly because I felt responsible to get them as far away from Lokesh as I could and partly because it was in the direction we needed to go anyway. Just before we left, Ren picked up a knife and pierced the skin of his arm.”
I leaned forward. “What was he doing?”
“Removing a tracking device Lokesh had put in.”
I looked down at my white tiger with sympathy. His eyes were closed, but his ears were flicking back and forth. He was listening.
“We journeyed with the Baiga, had a feast with them, and left right after I signaled you, Nilima.”
“You play a deity very well,” I teased.
“Yes. Well, it seems they believed all four of us were deities. If I’d seen the things they had, I would believe we were deities too.”
I asked, “Did they really use magic to hold Ren there?”
“When I spoke to them about it, the gunia claimed he did have power over tigers and used his magic to hold Ren there. He can create a barrier of sorts around the encampment to protect his village from tiger attacks. However, he said that about a week ago the spell was switched to attract tigers to the village instead. It seems the soldiers have been plagued by tiger attacks all week.”
“Ah, so that’s why Kishan could get in?”
“Apparently.”
“Does that mean Ren could have gotten out?”
“Possibly, but Lokesh does seem to have powers of his own as well. I presume that using the Baiga to contain Ren was just a back-up plan in case Lokesh was too distracted to incapacitate Ren himself.”
I spoke softly, “He’s horrible. Ren was his ultimate prize, his trophy. The one he’s waited for and hunted for centuries. He wouldn’t have let Ren escape.”
Kishan interjected, “I think he’s lost interest in Ren. He’s after someone else now.”
Mr. Kadam shook his head discreetly.
“Who?” I asked.
He said nothing.
“It’s me, isn’t it?” I stated flatly.
Finally, Kishan spoke, addressing Mr. Kadam. “It’s better that she knows so she can be prepared.” Turning to me, he said, “Yes. He’s determined to go after you, Kells.”
“Why? I mean, why is he after me?”
“Because he knows how important you are to us. And because . . . you beat him.”
“That wasn’t me. That was you.”
“But he doesn’t know that.” Kishan shot me a meaningful look.
I groaned softly and only half listened as Kishan began describing our fight with Lokesh. I offered comments only when Kishan forgot something.
Ren was watching us now and listening intently to what we were saying. I set my uneaten plate of food on the floor, hoping he might be interested. He watched me curiously, and then stood up and came a few steps closer.
He ate the eggs but pushed the pieces of French toast back and forth, unable to get them in his mouth. Cautiously, I used my fork to pick up a thick slice. He delicately pulled it off the fork, and swallowed it in one gulp. I did the same with the other one. After he licked the plate clean, he lay down near Kishan and began licking sticky syrup from his paws.
Kishan had fallen quiet, and when I looked up, I saw him watching me. His eyes crinkled at the corners with just a touch of sadness. I looked away. He frowned and started speaking again. When he got to the part where Lokesh threatened to kill me and stop my heart, I interrupted him and clarified.
“Lokesh wasn’t talking about me.”
“Yes, he was, Kells. He must have known who you were. He said I’ll kill him, stop his heart.”
“Yes, but why would you, disguised as Kelsey, be concerned about me in my Baiga servant disguise? He said kill him, not kill her. He merely thought I was betraying him.”
“But Lokesh threatening to kill you was why I stopped.”
“That may be why you let him go, but he wasn’t threatening me.”
“Then who was he threatening?”
I looked down at the white tiger and felt my face flame red.