Path of the Tiger

by J M Hemmings

  ‘Hurry up Gisborne,’ Bingham called, his sharp voice a harsh affront to the peaceful symphony of the jungle. ‘The dark is falling, and trust me, we do not want to be out here when the last of the daylight has deserted this labyrinth.’

  ‘Yes sir,’ William said, lowering his rifle and hurrying after Bingham.

  After a few moments of scrambling upstream, they reached a spot where the brook tumbled down from a sheer rock face in a waterfall, crashing into a small but deep pool below. Bingham took a seat on a smooth rock near the pool’s edge, where mist and a windy current drifted out from the force of the tumbling water. He motioned for William to sit near him.

  ‘Have a seat Gisborne, and listen to me.’

  William leaned the Winchester against a nearby rock, and then sat down upon it.

  ‘Kelly is a blasted fool,’ Bingham stated immediately. ‘He’s been deceiving and manipulating you all along.’

  ‘But sir, how can you say tha’, he’s—’

  ‘Don’t interrupt me!’ Bingham snapped. ‘I’m your superior here, and you will keep your trap shut and listen to me!’

  William nodded and kept quiet.

  ‘Everything Kelly told you back there is an outright lie … and, in fact, just about everything he ever tells you is a lie. He claims that you still owe him money from your passage across the seas, which he paid for. The truth is, you paid off whatever debt you owed him a long time ago, even at the exorbitant interest rate he added to your loan. The man is a fraud and a thief, unabashedly so. You are aware that his “business activities” in Calcutta are all illegal, no? Well, yes, I’m sure you are, but you have most likely convinced yourself otherwise. The man is a skilled weaver of tall tales, I’ll give him that, and he certainly does have a sublime talent for manipulating others. Tell me this though, Gisborne: do you know how he ended up in India, smuggling and thieving?’

  ‘I, er, well, I know tha’ he comes from Louisiana, and—’

  ‘He is a wanted fugitive, much like yourself. Except that his crimes are far more serious than your own. He has been convicted of multiple counts of cold-blooded, premeditated murder in his own country. If he ever returns, he will be strung up from the nearest gallows as soon as he sets foot on American soil.’

  ‘I … I cannae believe tha’ a kind-hearted man such as—’

  ‘I said don’t interrupt me!’ Bingham growled.

  ‘I’m sorry sir.’

  ‘Following his escape from his native land, he then involved himself in the Atlantic slave trade. He set up a company in West Africa, brazenly trading in slaves while our British ships were out on the waters hunting down the slavers. Eventually, he was arrested there as well, and sentenced again to death, but once more the wily bastard managed to escape, with the aid of some pirates who had been his business partners in the slave trade. That, Gisborne, is how your friend ended up here in India, where he still engages in all sorts of unsavoury activities. Don’t bother saying anything; I’m sure you’re just going to deny the veracity of the claims I’ve just made, and that you’re going to try to tell me just how generous and benevolent and kindly your wonderful friend really is. But rest assured, what I have just told you about Kelly is the absolute truth of the matter.’

  Bingham paused here for a few moments to allow William to digest what he had just said. After a while William simply nodded, and Bingham continued.

  ‘Now let me get to the point of why I brought you out here. It was my decision to hire you, a decision I made when you raced that Frenchman at Earl Cavanaugh’s estate outside Calcutta – Cavanaugh being another very unsavoury individual, but that is a story for another time. I needed an expert horseman such as yourself for this very mission, William, and that is why I insisted on hiring you. In fact, the sum I paid Kelly for your services is enough to have paid off your debt to him many times over, and believe me, that is no exaggeration. However, I’d like to talk to you about paying you directly and thereby cutting out this highly unnecessary middleman. Kelly is useless, and all he’s done since the beginning of this expedition is complain endlessly. You see though, the very reason he is out here with us is to make sure that I do not steal his investment, and by extension his financial security: that, William, being you.’

  ‘Me, sir?’

  ‘You’re his golden goose, because you’re the best horseman I’ve seen in my forty-eight years on this earth. And as for me, I need an exceptional horseman, not just for this mission, but for future expeditions as well. These missions I conduct are of extreme importance, not just for myself, but for all of mankind, in fact. You see, we men face a terrible threat, the heart of which lies within these wilds. If you work with us, you can be part of staving off that threat and ensuring the safety and prosperity of the human race itself. Yes Gisborne, these missions are exactly that important. Should you choose to pledge loyalty to myself and my employers, we will relieve you of your bondage to Kelly with immediate effect. What is more, we will compensate you extremely well in monetary terms. Let me repeat that, so that you understand it completely: we will compensate you extremely well for your services.’

  ‘Well, I—’

  ‘If you’re worried about Kelly and your debt to him, don’t be. We can make him … disappear … very easily. Also, I understand that there is a lady to whom you have pledged your heart, yes?’

  ‘Aye sir. Aurora Wallace, sir. She is … she is everything tae me.’

  Bingham stared grimly into the tangle of trees and vines as he spoke, and he curled his fingers softly around the grip of one of his revolvers.

  ‘Love, yes. A noble and worthwhile goal and pursuit. But, you see, I also understand that this Aurora is of the aristocratic class, and you, well … you, William, are not, to put it plainly.’

  William clenched his jaw and looked away, feeling the sting of sorrow inject its choking venom into the inside of his throat.

  ‘Chin up now!’ Bingham said, abruptly encouraging in his attitude. ‘Money can change that, my boy. Money! And what do you think about, say, a title? Lands? A manor? A new name, a new identity, with blue-blooded peerage stretching back five centuries? Could your Aurora’s father possibly deny the matching of his daughter to such a distinguished character?’

  William’s eyes lit up, and a powerful gushing of hope began to pulse its energising electrical current through his veins.

  ‘Why sir, tha’ would … tha’ would be … something beyond my wildest dreams, sir! Truly sir!’

  ‘My employers are powerful and wealthy beyond comprehension. If you pledge your unfailing loyalty and service to us, everything I have just said to you can become your reality in just a few years. We need men like you – exceptional men with exceptional abilities. So, prove yourself on this mission, demonstrate your loyalty and dedication, and you will be set up for life. The obscurity of your birth and origins will be erased, and a new personage will be carved out for you. You have potential, great potential, you see. Someone such as yourself could rise to a position of immense wealth and power … should you follow orders, and obey without question.’

  ‘I-, but, but what ay my status as a deserter from the 17th Lancers though, sir? I’m a wanted criminal, I cannae set foot upon British soil again sir, no’ until…’

  Bingham chuckled and dismissed William’s concerns with a casual wave of his hand.

  ‘My boy, I don’t think that you quite understand the extent of my employers’ powers. Those records will be purged and swept clean; that would be a small matter for my superiors, a mere trifle. It will be as if you never once donned the uniform of a lancer of the 17th. Your crimes will be completely erased. Indeed, you will become … untouchable.’

  William’s eyes glowed in the dying light of the falling dusk. ‘That sir, that would be … it would be incredible, sir.’

  ‘Then let me explain to you exactly what I want you to do on this mission, exactly why I brought you specifically.’

  ‘Go ahead sir, I’m all ears.’

  ‘
The truth is, that despite my years of experience both in hunting and soldiering in Her Majesty’s Armed Forces, this is perhaps the most dangerous mission I’ve ever been on. We are up against an extremely powerful and deadly foe … a few of them, in fact.’

  ‘But it’s just a tiger or lion, though, is it no’ sir? Forgive me fir sayin’ so, but I was under the impression tha’ you’ve shot an’ killed plenty ay wild beasts.’

  Bingham fixed William with an eerie stare.

  ‘These are not mere “wild beasts”, Gisborne. They are something else entirely. Monsters, lad, real, live monsters, the kind spoken of in hushed murmurs in ancient myths and legends, and stories that peasant mothers in the countryside whisper to their offspring in the dead of night. There is more to this world than you can possibly comprehend, no matter what you think you know. But you will come to understand these things soon, you can be sure of that.’

  William nodded uneasily.

  ‘All right sir … although I’m still no’ really sure what you mean. And I’m no’ a hunter myself, an’ no’ much ay a soldier neither. I’m no’ sure why you need me fir this.’

  ‘It’s simple. You are my escape plan, William. I don’t need you to fight these creatures – I need you to help me escape from them should things go pear-shaped.’

  A sudden chill ran down William’s spine, and he shuddered involuntarily.

  ‘Oh, I see, sir…’

  ‘If things start to look bad tomorrow – and they might, I’m under no illusions about that – you are to stay near me. I will get on your horse with you, and you will ride like the wind itself to get us out of this place. Do you understand? Forget about the others; their lives do not matter. Especially that fool Kelly. Your loyalty from now on is to me, and me only. Your primary concern is to keep me alive by any means necessary. And that, preferably, will not involve fighting, but rather fleeing as fast as you possibly can on that swift horse of yours. We are not in the army here, and there is no shame in running from a danger that would otherwise end your life. Do you understand me?’

  ‘Yes sir.’

  Bingham transfixed William with a piercing stare, and his eyes narrowed, and the corners of his mouth curved downwards in a grim frown.

  ‘Say it then, Gisborne: put in your own words your primary purpose for being here. Tell me what your overriding concern on this mission is.’

  ‘My overriding concern, sir, is tae keep you alive by any means necessary, the primary an’ most desirable method being rapid flight from the hunt, if it looks like things are starting tae go badly.’

  Bingham clasped his hands together, and a pleased smile brightened his craggy visage.

  ‘Good!’ he exclaimed cheerfully. ‘Good, Gisborne. I am glad we have reached an understanding. Remember, if you serve me well and keep me alive, you will have a very, very bright future ahead of you. Aurora will be yours. I will make it so, I guarantee you this.’

  ‘I understand, sir.’

  ‘Excellent. Then let us return to camp; darkness is falling, and out here the shadows are our enemies.’

  ***

  That night William sat in uneasy quiet in the darkness of the forest, with its undulating waves of strange noises, and its drafts of chilly air snaking through the trees as the currents of cold fled the Himalayas, whose serrated peaks, like the teeth of some gargantuan primordial reptile, tore chunky edges off of the star-white sky. He peered through the gloom at the figure of Kelly, huddled like a caterpillar in his bedroll by the fire, grumbling to himself in the centre of the camp, and couldn’t help but feel as if he was about to betray him. Why, though, did he feel this unquestioning loyalty to the man? It seemed clear now, after Bingham had explained it to him, that Kelly had been manipulating him all along. Why hadn’t he been able to see this before? Had his dependence on the opium really dulled his wits to such a degree? Had it really caused his senses to deteriorate to the extent that he had become completely unable to see that he was being used and cheated by a charlatan, a devil masquerading as a friend and a benefactor? This man, who claimed to be acting in his interests, actually only had one person’s interests at heart: his own.

  Anger rippled hotly through William’s system, and he glared at the prostrate form of Kelly and growled, balling his hands into tight fists.

  ‘I know what you’ve been after now, Niall,’ he whispered to himself. ‘I know who you really are now. And when tomorrow comes … aye, when tomorrow comes, lad, you’ll find tha’ I’ve seen the light, an’ tha’ I owe nothing more tae you. Nothing more at all. No more “master”, Niall, no, no. I’m done wi’ you. Good luck surviving out here on your own, you scoundrel; your lies willnae get you very far in this forest. No’ very far at all.’

  William took the chillum pipe that the porters had lent him and packed it with some of the dried ganja that they so readily shared. He lit it up, and the open end of the pipe glowed fiercely against the inky night as he pulled deeply on it. He held the strong, pungent smoke in his lungs for as long as he could, and then exhaled it in a great puff of grey vapour that fled the campsite through the network of trees. William then lay back on his bedroll and stared up through the gaps in the black canopy at the stars above, and thought back to another night beneath a star-heavy sky. A night in which he had not been alone, a night in which he had not been a prisoner of dreams and memories and regrets, a night in which only one force had existed: the force of love, as deep and infinite as the convex bowl above him with its countless jewels and unfathomable boundlessness.

  ‘It will be, once again,’ he murmured to himself as the drug began to take hold on his mind, sinking his body into his bedroll with a super-gravitational force that was at once both immensely relaxing and somehow invigorating. He smiled to himself, pulled the portrait out of his grimy jacket – he had kept it with him all this time, through thick and thin – and gently planted a kiss on the lips he saw, tasted and drank in every night in the realm of dreams.

  ‘In dreams, Aurora, in dreams,’ he whispered, ‘but no’ for tae much longer, my love. A change is a-comin’, my dear lass, a change is a-comin’. I can feel it, truly, I can.’

  PART TWENTY

  67

  HROTHGAR

  31st October 2020. KSM Nightclub

  Hrothgar raised his glass of whiskey and beamed a smile at the members of the Huntsmen Board of Directors, who were all seated around the enormous seventeenth-century walnut dining table, on the surface of which lay nude models of both sexes, their youthful bodies, perfect in build and proportion, which would have been the envy of many a cover model, garnished with sushi, sashimi, caviar and other delicacies.

  ‘Ladies and gentlemen of the most illustrious and mighty Huntsmen Corporation,’ Hrothgar cried, ‘I welcome you to this Vaetrnacht celebration! Tonight we eat and drink in the ancient tradition of my ancestors, and raise our glasses to victories already won, and in anticipation of victories to be won in the future! Salut!’

  The board members raised their respective glasses to toast this.

  ‘And here,’ Duchess Younghusband said, raising her glass, ‘is a toast to the destruction of the Rebels, when you ensnare them in your trap here on New Year’s Eve.’

  Hrothgar grinned savagely.

  ‘I will hand you Gisborne’s head on a platter personally, Duchess.’

  ‘Good thing those cunts aren’t coming here tonight, eh? By the way mate, I’ve never seen you wearing specs,’ Mitchell Fletcher, a fifty-year-old Australian financier and billionaire, said to Hrothgar. ‘I wasn’t aware that your kind needed ‘em!’

  ‘We don’t,’ Hrothgar said with a disarming smile. ‘These are mere fashion accessories. If you look through the lenses, you’ll see that they make no difference.’

  ‘Never mind mate, never mind,’ Mitchell said. ‘I was just takin’ the piss.’

  Jing-Sun Park, a sixty-three-year-old Korean heiress and owner of a number of technology companies, laughed dryly.

  ‘If only I could say the same abou
t myself,’ she remarked, wistfully fingering the diamond-studded arms of her own spectacles. ‘I’ve had to wear these since I was a little girl.’

  Santosh Gupta, an Indian steel industry tycoon, touched the side of his right eye and flashed a gold-toothed smile at his fellow Huntsmen.

  ‘Laser eye surgery,’ he commented with a grin. ‘It’s given me back the vision I had forty years ago. I threw my own spectacles into the trash the second I walked out of the clinic!’

  All the Huntsmen Board Members laughed, as did Hrothgar.

  ‘I suppose I should consider myself rather fortunate then,’ Duchess Younghusband said as the polite laughter died down. ‘I’ve had twenty-twenty vision my entire life; all six decades of it.’

  ‘Lucky you,’ Pablo Silva, an elderly but still powerfully built Brazilian cattle rancher, remarked dryly. ‘I’ve always had shit eyes. I was wearing glasses before I could even read.’

  ‘Enough talk of you humans’ bad eyes,’ Hrothgar interjected. ‘Come, let us drink to the Alliance.’

  ‘To the future success of the Alliance, and a total victory over the last few Rebel stragglers who are still clinging to the last, pathetic vestiges of hope,’ Duchess Younghusband declared as she sipped on her red wine. Her tone was one of polite congeniality, but the icy sharpness in her eyes spoke in no uncertain terms of the loathing she had for beastwalkers. ‘But tell me Hrothgar,’ she continued, ‘where is Sigurd? My colleagues and I were most looking forward to discussing certain matters with him. Not that I mean to imply that you alone are inadequate; not at all, my good man. However, you see, you two do operate as equal partners, do you not? And it is best, in business dealings, to get the input of both business partners simultaneously, in order to get a balanced summary of opinions. We really are rather disappointed that Mr Haraldsson could not be here with us. I suspect that Mr Ma will be especially disappointed, as there were a number of items he wished to discuss with both you and Sigurd. And as you know, due to our own individual business interests, as well as our duties as Huntsmen Board Members, time is a luxury that—’