My Fearful Symmetry Page 5

  “It’s a bloody tiger!”

  “You’ve received a royal welcome from Kalidasa’s pussy cats. There’s at least a dozen more. Look.”

  Sinuous shapes in shades of orange and even white glided by. I marveled at them. “Fantastic…”

  “They are trained to kill, Beauty. So don’t get any idea of running off.”

  Another set of gates stood before us. The men waved their torches to frighten off the cats. The gates swung open, and the car drove inside to a wonderland of white marble. Metal clanged shut behind us. The sound gave me an uneasy feeling. Beeshom came around and opened the car doors for us. Raj and I slipped out onto a cobbled drive. I stood gawking at my new surroundings. Amazing. This place was surreal. Two men in traditional garb unloaded our luggage and bore it off. Boys and girls in butterfly-bright clothing flitted by on errands. Aside from the car idling behind us, and the floodlights bathing the drive, it was as if we’d stepped into a world from a thousand years in the past.

  Silk whispered and perfume rose up. A rather short, extraordinary-looking Indian boy bowed before us. In form he appeared a bit younger than me. A band studded with gems held back long hair, recalling a prince in some exotic tale. He wore red silk trousers and a kind of embroidered robe gaping open at the front, revealing a lovely golden skin. Brownish tattoos of what I took to be mystical symbols swirled over his hands, feet, and body. The boy noticed me staring and pulled a disapproving face. His voice sent inexplicable shivers down my spine, “The Exalted Father wants to see you in his private garden.”

  “Now? I’ve only just arrived,” Raj replied.

  “Immediately.”

  Raj exhaled a little huff of impatience. “Fine, tell him I’ll be there directly. Then go inform my household that I’m here and to bring refreshments to my quarters.”

  The boy bowed lower and slipped away on bare feet, casting a sidelong look from his painted eyes, like he was sizing me up for some reason. I stared after this phantom with the voice like a thousand tickling fingers. He might have come from another galaxy. He was so unlike anyone I’d ever encountered. All I could manage was an awed whisper. “Who is he?”

  Raj smirked. “Avijit? One of Kalidasa’s favorites.”

  “Will I have to dress like that as well? Because, well, I mean… Come on.”

  Raj didn’t answer my question. He gave an order. “Walk behind me a few paces. Take off your shoes.”

  What? I slipped off my shoes and socks. Not knowing what to do, I stuck them under my arm.

  “Leave them.” Raj’s brows knitted into a straight black line across his forehead. I knew not to disobey when he looked so and dropped the bundle on the ground. He strode along muttering and cursing. “I was hoping we’d have time to dress and paint you properly.”

  “Paint me—like that boy? Why was he made up like that?”

  He stuck his hand over my mouth. “Hush. Must you constantly bloody chatter?”

  I clammed up and followed Raj down a winding path, through a maze of hedges to a clearing. A stone elephant spouted water from its trunk into a wide fountain. Brilliant finches fluttered by. Strange to see so many out at night, but the place was brightly lit as daytime. A peacock spread his many-eyed tail and strutted past, squawking at us.

  “Careful, they leave shit everywhere,” Raj said.

  Too late, I stepped in a mound of squishy green muck. “Fuck!” I wiped my bare foot in the thick grass beside the path.

  Raj practically hissed at me. “You mustn’t make noise.”

  “I’m just—”

  He hauled off and smacked me across the mouth. I hit the ground. It hurt, but unlike the previous night the blow didn’t draw blood. “You can be tortured for disturbing the chief elder,” he said. “I’m deadly serious. No chatter.”

  I staggered to my feet, falling in behind Raj again. No shoes, no noise, no Western clothing. Who did this Kalidasa think he was, Shiva himself? I wasn’t sure how long I’d last like this. But it was only temporary, Raj had promised. In a year, we’d be back in London enjoying the nightlife. We came to a set of ornate brass doors. Two guards armed with assault rifles bowed to Raj and admitted us into a cavernous corridor. I looked around. A sound of wonder escaped me. You read about splendiferous places like this in stories, all sparkling white and gold. Raj made a beeline for an archway framing a sort of patio. A dozen parrots perched on squat trees, eating fruits and nuts clutched in their feet, or playing with toys equipped with beads and jingling bells. A blue and gold macaw bobbed and danced on his perch, whistling a tune. A pair of hands applauded. “Very good, clever boy!” a comical, high voice said. Kalidasa tossed the bird a grape. The parrot caught the fruit in his beak and transferred it to its nimble toes.

  I gaped at the chief elder. He wasn’t what you might have expected of the king of the vampires. Kalidasa wasn’t merely fat. He was a monument to corpulence. When I’d lamented my inability to fill out more, despite good food and exercise, Raj explained that one doesn’t tend to put on much weight as an Immortyl. Kalidasa’s bulk must have been a vestige of his previous life. To my disgust, the chief lay naked, face down on some sort of divan while a girl rubbed scented oil into his furry back. A matching boy crouched down by his feet, paring toenails that resembled some species of grayish mollusks. The blood and curry I’d consumed on the plane came up to my throat when he rolled over and sat up. Undulating flesh fell over his bits. Raj elbowed me and I remembered my instructions to prostrate myself on the floor. At least in this position I didn’t have to look at this sickening sight any more.

  The ancient only chuckled at my lack of manners. “Raj, welcome home. You’ve done very well for us in London, my son, very well indeed. So, this is the boy? What do you call him?”

  “His name is Cedric.”

  “Bah, that is no name for an adept. Up boy, so I can take a look at you.”

  An adept? What was that? I rose to my feet. To my relief the servants had helped the chief into a robe. He waved them away, and the pair scurried off, taking their grooming implements with them.

  Kalidasa stroked his beard and peered at me. “Take off your clothing.”

  This wasn’t going to be fun. Stripping down, I stood there as Kalidasa’s beady eyes appraised my body. I was used to being judged on my looks but not by one who held the power of life and death over every Immortyl in the world.

  “Turn around,” he said.

  I obliged, not wanting to become another of his victims. He went on like I was a colt he was considering to be a racehorse. “Tall. Long legs. Very well put together. Supple movement. Eyes like a cat’s. Hair like copper. Bit of a swagger about him.” Kalidasa chortled. “We’ll call him, Shardul. Yes, that suits him better. He obviously has the physical attributes of an adept, but is he up to the rigors of training?”

  “He survived the ordeal. He’s clever, has a fine singing voice, as well as a talent for musical instruments,” Raj answered.

  Kalidasa heaved his bulk into a chair before a table laden with fruits and sweets. He popped a candied date into his mouth, munching and speaking at the same time. The fine manners Raj exhibited were absent in the chief. Food sprayed out when he spoke. “I’ve spoken with Liu. He’s agreed to listen to your proposal for the Thai properties, but he’s entertaining other offers. You must entice him with something more than payment. Something the others can’t provide…” He paused to scratch his belly. “It’s been over half a century since a new adept has emerged from the ashram.”

  “But he’s a green lad, just nineteen. You can’t just rush him through the training.” Raj shook his head. “Lord Liu is a connoisseur of adepts.”

  They bandied about that word adept. It sounded like some kind of entertainer. I supposed this was the great honor Raj had hinted at. Why then was it so important that the chief see me naked? Then it hit me. Blood drained from my already pale face. I hoped I was wrong, but it sounded like they meant to pimp me to other Immortyls.

  The chief searched among his
tray of confections. He chose something red and sticky that smelled of coconut. He chewed. Bits of sugar sprinkled his beard. He brushed crumbs off with his pudgy fingers. “All the boy needs is a little polishing. Trust me, Liu won’t be able to resist the novelty of him. Send Shardul into the ashram, and order Sandhya to accelerate the process. In the meantime, we’ve got a problem. I need you to go to Italy tomorrow evening to discuss Gaius’ troubles in America.”

  “As you wish, Exalted Father.” Raj made a small bow and motioned me to prostrate myself again.

  I sank to the floor. All this bowing and scraping was humiliating. Part of me kept saying it couldn’t be real, but six months before I’d have never believed I’d end up a vampire either. The stones touching my nose smelled real enough. This wasn’t just a bad dream.

  The chief chanted something unintelligible and then spoke again in English, “The Mother’s blessings on this endeavor. I’ll order a banquet to celebrate the boy’s debut. Up Shardul, you may go.”

  I rose to my feet. Kalidasa broke into a delighted cackle, sounding like one of his pets. I pulled on my clothes and then followed a disgruntled Raj out of the garden and back along to the corridor. “You’re selling me? You done this be—”

  “Silence, we’ll speak in my quarters.”

  Might as well. I was angry and betrayed beyond words. My feet followed, as if of their own volition, until we came to an ornate door. Beeshom stood guard there, picking at his ear and frowning, like he knew everything and maybe even more.

  “We’re off to Capri tomorrow night,” Raj said to him. “Go and make the arrangements.”

  Beeshom bowed and opened the doors. Raj swept in ahead of me, betraying irritation that I’d voiced my petty concerns. As I passed by Beeshom, the dog grumbled some elaborate Bengali insult at me, adding the words Scottish pouf to the end of the strand. The doors closed behind us. We stepped into a spacious apartment, scattered with furniture covered in deep orange brocade. Carved screens covered the windows. Statuary of dancing women with bulging hips and bosoms stood around the room. My luggage sat by the door, but Raj’s remained absent.

  Raj gestured around. “These are my rooms. However, you will be taken to a special place for your training.”

  “About that…”

  Raj’s pursed mouth warned me that his nerves were grated into chutney, and I’d better tread warily if I didn’t want to get hit again. “Before I went to London, Kalidasa charged me to look for a new candidate for the ashram,” he said. “You’re to become an adept of the ancient arts.”

  I couldn’t help it. Tears welled up in my eyes. For once in my lousy life, I thought someone had cared about me. “You planned this? You brought me here so that fat monster can pimp me out to his cronies? All your fine talk of being chosen for some great honor was a scam. Merchandise…that’s all I was, all along. I loved you, you bastard.”

  His face pulled very tight like he’d been given an overdose of Botox, his skin threatening to tear if I pushed him an iota further. “It is an honor. Do you have any idea how hard I searched for just the right candidate? You’ll become a living work of art, mastering music, dance, and proper etiquette in order to service your lovers with elegance and grace. When your training is complete, you’ll take vows and be consecrated to Kali Maa’s service. A true adept is worth his or her weight in gold. Now, will you shut up and give me a moment’s peace?”

  I was bothering him? Give me a break. I thought I’d escaped that racket and here I was, still a whore. Only now I was to be one with a fancy name. I should have known when Raj set me to seduce those mortals in London that he had some ulterior motive. It was all a test, like the ordeal and the three nights of questioning.

  The smell of silk and female flesh wafted on the breeze of huge ceiling fans. Three of the most beautiful girls I’d ever seen materialized from behind a screen. Two tall, slender blondes with marble pale complexions, almost identical, whispered to one another. The third flipped back satiny dark hair. Juicy, golden breasts peeked above her costume. Although smaller in stature, she carried herself like a princess in her ornate sari. Black-lined eyes threw me a disapproving glance while the blondes giggled behind their hands. The princess hushed them with an impatient, “Shhh!”

  Raj cleared his throat and addressed them. “This is Ced—uh Shardul.” He gestured toward the blondes. “Patsy and Kirsten.” He nodded toward the dark woman, and pronounced her name with distaste, “Sandhya.” Raj looked around. “Where is that damned monkey?”

  Did Raj keep a pet of some kind? It didn’t seem in his nature to dote on furry creatures. Just then a kid, maybe eight or so in appearance, crept in and bowed. Raj stroked his hair in a way that no one should ever touch a child. “Take Shardul’s bags to the ashram.” My eyes followed the eerie, silent child as he picked up two of my six Louis Vuitton bags and lugged them out of the room. I felt quite sick now.

  Raj turned to the pair of blondes. “You two. My room.”

  The brunette scowled and tossed shimmering red folds over her shoulder. Was Raj blind? The one called Sandhya was a goddess next to those two tarts. She raised her chin, gliding away. Her fluid movement recalled the boy called Avijit, who we’d met on our arrival. The same tattoos he’d sported also whirled over her flawless skin. I wondered about the significance of these markings.

  Raj grabbed Sandhya on her many-braceleted arm. I thought his rough grasp rather rude. I never would have treated a woman in that manner. “The Exalted Father decrees that Shardul be trained as an adept.”

  Sandhya looked me over with obvious disgust. “I won’t train another of your bum boys.”

  “I’m under orders. He wants to send him to Liu when I go to present our offer.”

  Sandhya’s obsidian eyes flashed. “It takes a full year of training before he’s even ready to entertain anyone and years to truly refine his technique.”

  “He’s been on the streets for three years. He’s not exactly a novice.”

  “An adept isn’t a whore. We are temple artists in service to Mother Kali. None of those other boys you dragged home were able to endure the price she exacts.”

  “This one has the gift. You know that can’t be taught. Do your best to get him ready.”

  They fell silent and stared hard at one another for an uncomfortable moment until Sandhya tilted her chin higher and spun away in a befuddling cloud of hair, perfume, and silk.

  “Come with me.”

  I’d have gladly followed her to my demise if she so decreed. I made to grab another of my bags, but she shook her head.

  “You won’t need any of that. Hurry, apparently we’re under a deadline.”

  Her officious manner only made her that more delicious. Sandhya provided welcome distraction from my anger with Raj, though I knew following her only enabled his insidious plan. I tagged like an enraptured kitten at her golden anklets. There were wee bells there, chiming a siren song. She led me out of the main wing, out into the courtyard and through the gardens to another, less impressive wing. Two more huge guards opened the thick wooden doors.

  Inside, a dozen boys and girls of all shapes, colors, and sizes worked at various tasks, such as caring for clothing or polishing precious objects. Some were in the form of little kids like the one called Monkey. They stopped and looked up, like startled gazelles, when Sandhya addressed them.

  “Shardul is my novice. By decree of our Exalted Father, he is to be cloistered in the ashram for these next three months. If any of you disturb our solitude, you will be subjected to bleeding. I know you understand.”

  They bowed in unison, as if this Sandhya was a person of some stature among them. She turned to me. “These are common slaves, out of favor and put to menial work. Some are failed adepts. I hope you appreciate the honor you’ve been accorded.”

  “I wish someone would tell me what is going on.”

  She sighed and addressed an invisible companion. “Great Mother, this is what they give me to work with? A red-headed rent boy with no ma
nners?”

  “I didn’t exactly ask for this. All I want is some explanation.”

  She sniffed as if I’d said the most uncouth thing. “This way.”

  She took a key from a ring at her waist and unlocked a golden door. Literally. The designs depicted erotic scenes I supposed came out of the Kama Sutra. This opened onto a courtyard surrounded by several more doors connected by a covered walkway. In the center stood a crystal-clear bubbling pool, presided over by an ebony statue that sported several arms. Sandhya beckoned to me. “I’ll show you to your quarters.” She opened one of the surrounding doors to a tented silk paradise of a room that contained carved furniture and a huge bed covered in plump cushions.

  “This is brilliant,” I said.

  She looked at me like I was a cockroach crawling across the floor. “This room is reserved for a true adept.”

  I wasn’t about to disagree with her. “Right.”

  “You will sleep here.” She opened another door to an adjoining room, a whitewashed, monastic-style cell furnished with a bare cot much too short for my long legs. A peg stuck out of the wall. To hang clothing, I supposed. The low ceiling had also never been intended for someone my height. I had to stoop so as not to bump my head on the beams. The sole decoration in the dim chamber consisted of a miniature altar presided over by a tiny many-armed female figure and candles in glass holders. I feared that even if I did manage to sleep on the small cot, that statue would reach out and grab me.

  Sandhya turned to me with this smug smile of revenge. “This is the habitation of a novice, bare and unadorned. So shall you be until you’ve earned the right to embellish yourself. You are a lump of raw clay in my hands, and it is my unpleasant task to sculpt you into a masterpiece. Now, take off those Western clothes and give them to me.”

  I stripped down yet again and handed over my brand new Hugo Boss trousers. My teacher scoffed when she saw my rigid state in the black silk thong. “Boys.”