the statue began to move and was soon facing the street outside once more.
“Hello? Earth to Kishan.”
He’d stood watching until Durga was gone from sight. “She is . . . exceptional.”
I snickered. “Yeah. So what is it with you and unattainable women anyway?”
The light faded from his eyes, and he visibly withdrew into himself. He grimaced. “Yes. You’re right, Kelsey.” He laughed at himself dryly. “Maybe I can find a support group.”
I giggled but then became sad. “I’m sorry, Kishan. That wasn’t very nice of me to say.”
Smiling ruefully, he held out his hand. “Don’t worry about it, Kells. I’ve still got you. Remember, you’re my warp and I’m your weft.”
“Yeah. Not too flattering for me, eh?”
“You’re a beautiful warp.”
“Hmm, I don’t think my warp drive is operating within normal parameters.”
He tilted his head, confused. “What’s a warp drive?”
I winced. “Sorry. Dad was a Trekkie. I couldn’t resist.”
“A Trekkie?”
“I’ve got to introduce you to Star Trek. It’s a television series and not one but several movies. You may like it.” I mumbled, “Too bad Scotty can’t beam us out of this crazy life, huh?”
Kishan’s brows knit together in confusion. He had no idea what I was talking about.
“Just ignore me. Someday, when we’re not fighting demons, I’ll teach you all about science fiction. We’ll start easy. Maybe with E.T.”
He shrugged his shoulders. “Whatever you say, Kells.”
I teased, “Come on, ebony one. Let’s go find Mr. Kadam.”
He grinned. “After you, my lovely.”
I rolled my eyes at him again and headed down the stairs. “Didn’t get enough flirt time in with the goddess, huh? Well, knock it off. It doesn’t work on me, anyway.”
He laughed and followed me downstairs. “Then I’ll keep trying until I find something that does.”
“Don’t hold your breath, Casanova.”
“Who’s Casanova?”
“Never mind.”
The moon had disappeared behind the clouds, and the temple walls and floors were covered with the same grime and dust as when we entered. Kishan took my hand again, and together we stepped out into the dark night.
14
The Friendship Highway
We met Mr. Kadam outside the temple. When we asked if he’d noticed the statue moving, he said that he hadn’t. He hadn’t felt the wind either. I told him that he should come with us next time. He always took the look-out position and said he had assumed that Durga would appear only for me and the tigers. He thought that his presence might deter us from our course.
I teased, “Of course, if you did come along, you’d probably fall under Durga’s spell the way Kishan did, and then I’d have to bring both of you out of your love stupor.”
Kishan scowled at me while Mr. Kadam’s face lit up with delight. “The goddess is beautiful, then?”
I responded, “She’s okay.”
Kishan began gushing, “Her beauty surpasses all other women. Her ruby lips, soft limbs, and long dark hair would be enough to cause any man to lose control of his faculties.”
I scoffed, “Oh, please! Exaggerate much? Ren never reacted that way.”
Kishan glared at me. “Perhaps Ren had a reason to look elsewhere.”
Mr. Kadam laughed. “I would very much like to meet her if it will work.”
“It can’t hurt to try. The worst that could happen is nothing, and then you could always leave, and we’d try it again.”
After we returned to the hotel, we showed Mr. Kadam our new weapons. Kishan was going on and on about the goddess this and the goddess that and was twisting his discus in the light so the gleaming gold reflected on the walls of the hotel room. I listened for a while and heard Mr. Kadam talking about how the discus represented the sun, which was the source of all life and that the circle was a symbol of the cycle of life, death, and rebirth. I stopped listening, so I could tune out Kishan’s constant praising of Durga and her lovely feminine features, which practically made me gag.
I leaned in the door frame between their connecting rooms, rolled my eyes, and during a break in Kishan’s Durga tribute, mocked, “Are you going to yell like Xena when you throw the discus? No! Even better. We’ll buy you a leather kilt.”
Kishan’s golden eyes turned to me. “I hope your arrows are as sharp as your tongue, Kelsey.”
He walked toward me. I stood my ground, blocking his way, but he just picked me up and moved me to the side. Leaving his hands on my arms for a moment, he leaned over and whispered, “Perhaps you are jealous, bilauta.” Then he closed