by Zoey Gong
“Keep your head down,” Amma had said. “Never look the tiger in the eye. Never turn your back.”
The key to avoid being eaten by a tiger was to show it the ultimate respect. One must always be humble when in that path of a hungry tiger.
Priya had forgotten that. She had thought for a moment that she and the tiger were equals, or that the tiger was even less than her. A pet. A mere cat. And it could have cost Priya her life.
“Never again,” Priya promised Nabhitha. “Never again will I make the mistake of thinking I am above you.”
She thought about the Evans family, who had been foolish enough to buy one of Nabhitha’s cubs. It was actually fairly common for British families to buy wild animals—even deadly ones—and try to keep them as pets. The situation always ended in tragedy, usually the animal or a human dead—if not both. The lucky animals were released into the wild after they grew too big to control. But since they did not know how to live in the wild, they were usually captured and killed within a few days, if they didn’t simply die of starvation.
For a moment, she imagined Nabhitha’s kitten getting big enough to attack the boy who dropped the kitten in the well, then she shuddered. No. As much as she hated the Evans and their bratty child, she could never wish something so awful on a child. She only wished there was something she could do to get the tiger cub back. Reunite the cub with its mother.
She looked over at Nabhitha as she settled back on the floor and licked her paw clean. Even though Nabhitha had just tried to kill her, her heart broke for the mother who had just lost everything. Nabhitha was not her equal, but she was not her enemy. For better or worse, they were in this together.
At some point, Priya must have fallen asleep, rocked by the gentle motion of the ship on the sea. The sound of the lock on her cage clicking woke her. She opened her eyes and saw the dark figure of a man standing at the door to her cell.
“What?” she mumbled. “Who’s there?”
“I told you I’d be seeing you again,” said the man with a laugh.
Immediately, Priya was wide awake. She scrambled to her feet and stood with her back flat against the far wall.
“Stay back!” she said, but the man only laughed.
“Or what?” he asked as he stepped into the cell.
“I’ll scream,” she said. “The captain will hear me and punish you!”
The man laughed again and took another step toward her as he undid the belt on his trousers. “Everyone is at supper,” he said. “We have all the time in the world.”
She screamed anyway as the man lunged toward her. The animals all sensed her distress and launched into a cacophony of screeches and squawks. He grabbed her shoulders and she raised her arms to block him but immediately felt a surge of pain through her body from her injured arm. Tears flew to her eyes and she could not stop them.
The man hesitated for a moment as he looked at his hand, which was now covered in blood from her injured arm.
“What the hell?” he asked.
Priya darted away from him toward the door to the cell, but he recovered from the surprise quickly. He grabbed her by the hair and pulled her back. She yelped in pain as she fell back into him. She turned and pushed him away and heard him smack into the bars of her cell. She heard him laugh.
Then she heard a scream so chilling it froze the blood in her veins.
Nabhitha roared as she grabbed the man’s back. Priya stumbled back in horror. The man turned around and Priya nearly vomited at the sight of the man’s back shredded like paper, blood pouring from his ripped flesh. The man screamed again as Nabhitha reached through the bars of her cage and grabbed the man’s chest and arm and tried to pull him into her cage. She couldn’t bring his whole body through, so she contented herself with his arm, which she brought to her mouth. Her jaw crunched on the man’s bones and her teeth tore into the flesh.
The man continued to scream while Priya wept and Nabhitha roared.
Chapter Seven
The man was still struggling, crying, screaming when Priya heard footsteps on the stairs. She struggled to her feet as several other sailors and the captain came upon the scene.
“My God!” the captain yelled. The men froze, unsure of what to do as Nabhitha hunched over her prey.
The captain looked from the man to Priya. When he saw her bloodied arm and tear-stained face, he nodded with a look of understanding of the situation.
“Well, come on, you fools!” the captain barked. “Get him away from there!”
The men moved into Priya’s cell and pulled on the man’s legs, but he screamed in pain as Nabhitha dug her claws in further, growling at the men who would dare take her dinner from her.
“Hey! Hey! Hey!” one of the other men yelled from the other side of Nabhitha’s cage as he banged on the bars with a stick, trying to get her attention. But still, Nabhitha would not let go of the man.
“Give that to me!” the captain said, taking the sharpened stick away from the sailor. He then stuck the stick into Nabhitha’s cage and poked her with it. “Let go, damned beast!” But Nabhitha would not relent. In exasperation, the captain stabbed Nabhitha’s paw with the shiv. Nabhitha shrieked, but she let go of the man and moved to the opposite side of the cage to nurse her wound.
The sailors then dragged the man out of Priya’s cell, leaving a trail of blood behind him.
The men gathered around him so Priya could no longer see his mangled body.
“He’s dead, sir,” one of the men said.
The sailors let out mumbled curses and gasps.
“But…but he…he was screaming…” Priya mumbled, feeling sick.
“Must have been the shock. And the blood loss,” the captain said, shaking his head as he looked at the mess of blood on the floor. “Toss him overboard.”
“W-w-what?” one of the men asked. “Are…are you sure, captain? Shouldn’t we take him back to land? Give him a decent burial?”
The captain pointed at Priya. “What do you think he was doing in the cage in the first place?”
The men looked Priya, but then quickly turned away shamefaced.
“This man died a dishonorable death,” the captain said. “And he’ll be given a dishonorable burial.”
“Aye-aye, captain,” the men said as two of them struggled to drag the man away.
“You two there,” the captain said to two other sailors. “Clean this mess up. And mind the tiger!”
“Yes, sir,” one of them said.
“But, sir,” the other man said. “Shouldn’t we dispatch the tiger as well? She’s dangerous. Got the taste for blood now.”
“That tiger is worth more than the whole lot of you put together!” the captain said harshly. “Her buyer only wants her for sport anyway. The fiercer, the better.”
“Yes, sir,” the men said as they worked to gather buckets and mops to clean the mess.
The captain then turned to Priya and motioned for her to follow him. Priya hesitated. It was as though her feet were nailed to their spot on the floor. She was surrounded by danger and couldn’t trust anyone.
The captain sighed in annoyance. “Ain’t no harm going to come to you, gal,” he said. “You’re worth a pretty penny yourself. That man got what was coming to him.”
Priya gulped and then forced her feet to move toward the door of her cell. She did her best to step around the pools of blood, but she was horrified to see her own bloody footprints following her toward the stairs. She took one last look at Nabhitha, who was still crouched in the back of her cell licking her wound, before gripping the steep stairs and crawling out of the hull.
Priya had been captured for less than a day, so she was surprised at the sense of relief that washed over her as she breathed in the fresh sea air. She hadn’t had time to notice how stifling it was below deck. It was early evening, so it was still light out even though the sun was setting quickly. She took in a deep breath, thankful to still be alive and relatively unharmed after all she had been through.
>
“Easy! Easy!” she heard one of the men yell. She looked over just as some of the men were tossing her attacker’s body over the side of the ship. She quickly looked away, but still heard the unceremonious splash as his body hit the water.
“Come here, girl,” the captain said, motioning for her to follow him to the ship’s edge. “Give me your arm.”
She raised her arm, with more than a little wincing, and she sucked in a breath as he unwrapped the cloth.
The captain whistled when he saw the slashes on her arm. “Nasty cuts,” he said. “But you’ll live.” He picked up a bucket and ordered her to hold her arm over the edge of the ship. “This is going to hurt like hell,” he warned.
Priya screamed as he poured salty seawater over her wounds.
“I know it burns,” the captain said. “But it will keep the wounds from getting infected. The last thing either of us is going to want is to have to chop off that arm from gangrene.”
Priya whimpered at the thought and the captain chuckled. He pulled out a fresh bandage roll and wrapped her arm tightly.
“Don’t worry,” he said. “I’ve taken care of more than my fair share of battle wounds. This will heal nicely. You’ll have a hell of a scar, but it will make for a great story one day. The girl with tiger stripes.”
Priya nodded and ran her hand over the bandage, surprised that the scratches already hurt less than they did a few minutes ago. Politeness prodded at her to thank the captain for helping her, but she fought the urge. After all, he was still a bad man. A smuggler. A slave trader. By taking care of her, he was only taking care of his “investment.”
The captain seemed to sense her reticence to trust him. “You must be starving,” he said. “Why don’t you follow me to my quarters.”
She was starving. And thirsty. And tired. She wondered if the blood loss she had sustained was also having an effect on her because she was feeling more than a little nauseous. She didn’t want to trust the captain, but she believed he intended to keep her unviolated—at least for now—so he could get a higher price for her at the slave market later. So, she followed him.
His quarters were nicer than any she could have imagined existing on a ship. It was as though she had slipped into Memsahib Parker’s bedroom. There was a large four-poster bed in one corner with plenty of blankets and pillows. There was also a desk as lovely as the one that had been in Lord Fullerton’s office. There were books and statues and various other trinkets strewn about.
But at the smell of freshly baked bread and roasted vegetables, her mouth began to water uncontrollably. She practically had to wipe the drool from her mouth as a servant sailor placed two plates of food on a dining table and then left the room.
“Please,” the captain said, indicating she should take a seat by one of the plates of food.
She wanted to walk over slowly, show some dignity, but she was famished and completely parched. She rushed to the table and drank a full tankard of water before ripping into the bread.
The captain chuckled as he refilled her cup. “Slow down,” he said, “before you choke. And take a seat.”
Priya did as she was ordered, taking her seat and picking up the silverware to eat more properly. When she finally ate enough to feel her belly filling, she spoke.
“What’s to become of me?” she asked.
The captain took a swig of ale from his own cup. “First, a very long journey,” he said. “Do you know where Jamaica is?”
She shrugged. “America,” she said.
“An island off of Central America,” the captain clarified, though it didn’t make much difference to her. “Largest slave market in the world is there.”
“So, I am to be sold,” she said, the food turning sour in her stomach.
“Aye,” the captain said. “But not on the block like a common negro. You are Indian, young, not…unpleasant to look at. A private auction will be held for you among the elite buyers. You’ll fetch a high price for a good placement.”
She snorted. As if there was such a thing as a “good” placement for a slave.
“You know what I mean,” the captain said.
“I’m afraid I don’t,” Priya said.
“You know, placement in a rich home as a house slave. Probably a lady’s maid,” he clarified.
Priya nodded. The British women in India often had personal lady’s maids. And while they were usually well-fed and well-dressed, they also bore the brunt of their memsahib’s ill-treatment. And not a few were the victims of attention by the sahib as well. Priya thought she’d rather toil in the fields of some large plantation. It would be hard work but at least she’d be alone.
But she knew he had no choice in the matter.
“It will take us about one to two months to get there, depending on the wind,” the captain went on, and Priya nearly spit her drink.
“One to two months?” she exclaimed.
“We will stop in Goa first,” the captain explained. “Pick up the last of our goods. Then we sail for England. We will make a quick stop there, unload some of this stuff. Then we head to Jamaica to auction off the rest.”
Priya rubbed her forehead. She had no idea how far away that all was, but it sounded like a world and lifetime away. By the time she reached Jamaica, her parents would surely think she was dead. And she didn’t imagine she would ever find her way home again. How could she? It would be impossible.
“Of course,” the captain said, standing and walking around the table to her. “It would be a shame for you to have to spend the entire journey in that cage.”
Priya started. She wasn’t concerned about that in the slightest. She knew she would have to spend the whole of the trip in her cell next to Nabhitha. The captain placed his hand on hers and held it fast. Priya’s heart beat fast as she tried to tug it away.
“I could arrange…other quarters for you, if you’d like,” he went on, leaning toward her. “My quarters, you understand.”
“No!” Priya said, standing up but being unable to move away as long as he held her hand in his. “I don’t understand. That…that man. The one the tiger killed. You said he was dishonorable!”
“Indeed, he was!” the man said. “On this ship, you belong to me. And no other man shall touch you. And I know you will bring a lot more at auction if I can vouch for your…purity.”
“But I won’t be pure if you take me,” Priya said, still struggling to release her hand from his grasp.
“I won’t take you, I promise you that,” the captain said. “But there are other things you could do for me.” He reached up with his other hand and cupped her cheek, running this thumb across her lips. “Other ways you could keep me company on the long, long journey ahead. And you could stay here, in lavish comfort, all the food and drink you could wish. A veritable pleasure cruise, wouldn’t you agree?”
“No!” Priya shouted again, slapping his hand away. “I’d never debase myself with a horrid man like you! You disgust me! You’re no better than the man the tiger killed! I wish she were here right now!”
The captain laughed. “You think that stupid tiger was protecting you? She just saw an easy dinner.” He grabbed her injured arm and held it up, causing her to gasp in pain. “She’d just as sooner gobble you up, you ungrateful slut.”
“Stop!” she cried. “Please, let me go!”
The captain let out a grunt and released her, then pushed her to the floor. “We will see how long you last below deck,” he sneered. “A few days down there in that stinking hull and you’ll be begging to share my bed.”
Priya scrambled to her feet and ran toward the door.
“Here,” the captain said. She looked and saw he was holding out a basket toward her. “Food, water, clothes. You won’t live in luxury down there, but I won’t have you showing up at port looking like a scrawny rat. Robust girls bring the most cash.”
She hesitated, but then took a few cautious steps back toward him. She reached out to take the basket, but he was holding it tightly
.
“Say thank you,” he grumbled.
She pressed her lips tight. She did not want to be beholden to this disgusting man in any way. But she knew that her very survival depended on him for now. If she angered him too greatly, he could kill her in an instant. He might want the large payout he would receive for selling her, but his whole ship was laden with expensive, illicit goods. If he lost her, it would be no great thing in the long run.
“Thank you,” she mumbled.
The captain placed his hand to his ear. “What was that?” he asked. “I couldn’t quite hear you.”
“Thank you!” she said, loudly and clearly.
“That’s more like it,” the captain said, releasing the basket. “I’ll teach you a few manners yet.”
Priya took the basket and headed toward the door. Not if I teach you first, she thought.
Chapter Eight
The captain did not accompany Priya back to her cell himself, but sent one of the other sailors with her to make sure she was locked back inside securely. Nabhitha let out a low growl at the sailor as he passed her cage, which sent him quickly scurrying back up the stairs to the main deck, but she quieted back down as soon as he was out of sight and went back to nursing her wounded paw.
“Did the captain hurt you very badly?” Priya asked. Nabhitha let out what sounded like a low whine, but she didn’t stop licking. Priya was actually a little surprised that the captain had taken a stab at Nabhitha, considering her incredible value. But she supposed people often reacted without thinking when faced with a man-eating tiger.
Priya went through her basket and found a pillow and blanket, a couple of simple saris, a water skein, and some fruit, vegetables, fresh bread, and meat. She wasn’t hungry at the moment, since she had eaten at the captain’s table, so she put the food aside for the time being and placed the pillow and blanket on the cell’s “bed,” which was a wooden frame with some ropes tied across it to form a mattress. She shook her head. The next few weeks were going to be uncomfortable indeed.
