The Spark (White Gates Adventures Book 4)

by Trevor Stubbs

  They were soon out and about on the streets of this new city, once again distributing their flyers and T-shirts. The ladies they met took a concerned interest, too, as Kakko and Zoe approached them. There seemed to be a real desire to find Ruth, even from strangers. Kakko felt strangely warmed by the whole experience. James couldn’t get over the size of the operation.

  After a while they found themselves down by the riverside at the top of the ghats. People thronged the steps, washing themselves and even bathing in the dirty brown Ganges.

  Yuk, thought Kakko, how could anyone wash in that?

  Reading her thoughts – or perhaps her face – Dev explained. “The Ganga is regarded as the sacred river. No matter how polluted it may appear, the water of the Ganga is deemed to purify the soul.”

  “Look,” said Zoe with delight, “they are floating little tea lights with rose petals on tiny boats… I just love it.” They watched the small clay dishes filled with lamp oil float past them as the huge river flowed gently on towards the sea.

  Dev bought a dish with some oil and a diya – a small wick – and walked down the steps. Borrowing a light, he lit it with a prayer and let the current take it. “The prayer is for Ruth,” he declared.

  “You said you are a Christian,” said James, gently. “You don’t believe in this religion.”

  “Oh. This river is sacred. I am a Christian but that doesn’t stop the Ganga being sacred to India, nor does it mean that it doesn’t belong to God. As a Christian, I believe all creation is sacred to God. And Christ is the Living Water to cleanse and revive – He is also the Light of the world. We are all born through water but also the Spirit. He came to give us life, abundant life.”

  “Amen,” breathed Zoe.

  “Ruth is in God’s hands – wherever she is,” said Dev firmly. “She is already found and is safe in the hands of God. Nothing can separate us from God’s love.”

  They climbed back up the steps and looked back across the river. Kakko no longer saw the pollution – now she had a sense of awe and wonder. The river represented hope and life; it made sense to her that the dead were being cremated on its banks and their ashes scattered in the waters – the waters of life. Whatever the differing beliefs of the religions of India, few of them believed that death was the end – it was the gateway to another life somewhere. Life after life – all permeated with love.

  Just then, a woman approached them. She was shy at first. She spoke in Hindi.

  Dev translated. “She says she knows someone who has seen Ruth.”

  “Where?” asked James, excited.

  Dev conversed a little more with the woman. She herself did not know but she knew a man who might – but the information would not be free. This man was not of the generous kind.

  Dev took this seriously. “I have told her that I will pay him after I know that the information is reliable.” He nodded to the woman and she set off through narrow backstreets.

  “Stick close together,” urged Dev. This was scary and Kakko felt the skin on her arms tingle and Tam’s hand holding hers became tighter. The danger instinct they had gained through their previous experiences put them on their guard.

  The woman stopped outside a small door. She commanded them to wait and entered the house. A few seconds later she re-emerged and beckoned them all inside. The room was small and smoky – but the smoke didn’t hide the strong smell of human sweat mixed with garlic and spices. Kakko’s eyes burned and James coughed.

  Opposite the door, a middle-aged but wizened Indian was sitting on the floor. He chewed betel nut with his mouth open – bright red juice oozing between his teeth. The man’s eyes opened wide into what was meant to be a grin. The grin spread to his lips as he spat crimson saliva into the fire, which hissed.

  “You have information about this girl?” asked Dev curtly in Hindi, holding out a poster.

  The man continued to grin and indicated to his guests to sit on the floor. The young woman bustled over with a hand-held broom and swept an area clean. They sat but the man kept silent. Dev met his eyes.

  “I need proof that the information is useful,” stated Dev.

  “The girl was with six men – three of them white. Dealers.”

  “What did they look like?” asked James when Dev had translated.

  They described them as Westerners. It was a well enough description for James to know they were the same men with whom Ruth had left.

  “OK.” Dev produced a note. The man said he had seen them dealing with drug suppliers ten days ago. “Where can I find them?”

  “They tell me the white men are still in the same place – but the girl has disappeared.”

  “Gisurgeh? – Where? Where are the Westerners?” demanded Dev.

  The man held out his hand and Dev gave him another note. He took it and then slid his thumb over his index and middle fingers. He wanted more and knew he would get it. Dev didn’t argue, held up a second note but wore the look of a man who was not willing to give more. The man still held back. Dev looked the man in the eye, then shrugged and made to get up. Kakko was positively angry. If this man knew something about a person whose life was in danger he shouldn’t be playing games. He shouldn’t want money at all. Perhaps her powerful glare and the clear signs she was about to explode convinced him to speak but it was more likely the knowledge that he would get no more from Dev until he did. He gave them an address.

  “Write it down,” Dev said hopefully. It may be that someone in the room could write. The man nodded to the young woman who took Dev’s ballpoint pen to write on the flyer. The man dictated and she scribbled something and gave it to Dev. Dev read it; then changed his expression. Everyone relaxed and the man said, “Chai?”

  “No, we can’t stay,” said Kakko urgently.

  “We stay,” said Dev. “Making friends is not time wasted.”

  Tam pulled Kakko back down beside him and smiled at her. Zoe and James had cottoned on earlier. If this man was their ally he would continue to help them. The young woman poured hot water from the fire into a pot.

  Kakko didn’t enjoy the brew but Tam drank it like a pro. The cups may not have had handles but at least they were clean.

  When they were outside, Dev explained that the woman had indicated she would guide them; she had written that beneath the address. They were to wait around the corner for her. When she found them, Dev offered her money but she wouldn’t take it.

  “No. My father brings us shame. Come.”

  They followed her through another maze of backstreets and across two noisy bustling main roads. It would have taken hours for them to find the place without a guide. Eventually they arrived at a place with a sign outside bearing the name Loft Hotel in English.

  “It is cheap place for young whites,” explained the woman. “Travellers with small money.”

  They pushed their way inside the hotel where they came face to face with two young Westerners with scruffy beards and dirty hair. They were smoking something putrid. James recognised them despite the hair.

  “You!” He spoke loudly – too loudly, for all the eyes of other customers in the small bar were turned on him. “Where is Ruth?”

  The young men, who were clearly the worse for wear on some substance, started. They were too far gone to face up to James.

  “Gone,” said one of them with a shrug.

  “What do you mean ‘gone’?”

  “Gone. She left… a week ago.”

  “Where?”

  “Search me,” the man drawled.

  “Don’t you play with me, mate!” shouted James who was doing his best to look strong. Stronger than he felt. James was no rugged drover from the outback but an English student in first year uni in Sydney.

  The young men began to laugh but Kakko had had enough. She lunged forward and grabbed one of the men by his shirt at his neck and twisted it. The man’s eyes looked as though they might pop out of his head. The other went to get up to back away but he found himself forced back into his seat by T
am’s heavy hand.

  Energised by Kakko’s vehemence, Zoe’s best biting voice repeated James’s question, adding, “If you don’t want my alien friends here taking you back to their home planet in bits, you’d better answer.”

  “Like we said,” sputtered the one half-strangled, “she left. She took herself off… Let… go… of… me…” Kakko only turned the shirt tighter.

  “More!”

  “Look, he’s telling the truth,” said his associate. “We had a party and she did drugs… We all did. We didn’t realise it was her first time and she overdid it – had a bad trip. Next day she went…”

  “Is that all?” asked Dev calmly. “What else did you do to her?”

  “Nothing.”

  “OK… OK,” said the first as Kakko threatened to continue her assault. “OK. We tried. But she was too far gone, unconscious. The next night she refused the drugs… and us. We only wanted to have a good time.”

  “Which way did she go?” asked Dev again.

  “I don’t know. She just left.”

  “Left her backpack and everything,” said the first.

  “You mean she ran off because she was in danger from you!” snarled Kakko.

  “It wasn’t me – it was Seb who started it. Yeah, she just fled.”

  “Where’s Seb?”

  “Asleep.”

  They discovered Seb laid out across a bed upstairs. He was in a poor state. James found Ruth’s backpack. It still contained some of the items that were clearly of no use to the young men – clothes and a girly hairbrush – but most of her stuff was missing. It was clear these people had no idea where Ruth had gone, or even cared about it.

  Downstairs, the owner of the guesthouse was anxious they should leave. Dev was very polite. He said that it would be in his interest to disallow drugs. The owner grew alarmed; had Dev got influence with the police?

  “My friends,” said Dev quietly to the two men still seated downstairs under his watchful gaze, “they are indeed from another planet. If you want them to leave you alone I suggest you leave my country on the first available plane.” The men nodded. It would take some time for the shock mixed with drugs to wear off.

  “I doubt these men will be here much longer,” said Dev when they were all outside. “But we are – how do you say it in America? – back to square one in finding Ruth. A young woman with no friends and no money… It is bad.”

  “If I had no friends and no money in India, I would go to the police.”

  “She had been taking drugs,” said Dev. “She would risk being arrested.”

  “But that’s good news – a bit. Isn’t it?” said Kakko carefully. “I mean, if she was dead the police would know because they would have a body.”

  James shuddered but then said with a positive tone, “Kakko is right… The police would know that, wouldn’t they?”

  “Maybe,” agreed Dev but not with great conviction. There were many places to hide a body in Varanasi.

  “OK. So she didn’t go to the police. She may not have known where to go. And, anyway, the police are men and I don’t think Ruth would have wanted to have anything more to do with men.”

  “A woman, then,” said Zoe.

  “A woman not too far from here,” said Kakko. “A woman who is her mother’s age who looks confident and intelligent.”

  “Right,” said James. “We ask all the women we can see… in the market.”

  But by now it was quite late and people were all beginning to shut up for the evening. This part of Varanasi closed down earlier than Agra.

  “That is a good idea,” agreed Dev. “We need to ask around here. We will return tomorrow – first light.”

  “I’m pooped,” murmured Zoe. “Where are we staying, Dev?”

  “My father has made reservations for us at the Hotel Varanasi Palace.”

  “A palace. Sounds great. Is there a jitney that’ll get us there?”

  “Jitney?” mumbled James. “What’s a jitney?”

  “Or a taxi if you like. It just seems the kind of hotel that would have a jitney. Can’t say I’ve ever had the money for taxis.”

  “Can’t we stay looking here just a little longer?” James was tired but they had been so close; he didn’t want to give up now. Every minute, he felt, was critical.

  Just then Dev’s phone rang. It was his father. An Indian man with a Bihar accent had called the number on the flyers. He claimed to know where Ruth was but wouldn’t give an address. He offered to meet at a location of their choice in Varanasi. Dev’s father was suspicious.

  “I understand,” Dev was saying. “He must come to the hotel – on his own.” He lowered his phone.

  “We have a bite. But it may be a hoax – someone trying to get us to pay money for nothing… Come, I will hail a rickshaw.”

  It may not have been the hotel jitney but they squashed in and they arrived at the hotel quicker than Zoe thought they might. They checked in and were shown to comfortable rooms on the fourth floor. Kakko wondered whether they expected her to share with Tam but Dev had no intention of spending the night with Zoe. It never occurred to him.

  “Sorry, guys,” Zoe said with a giggle after Dev and James had gone back downstairs. “He’s far too much the gentleman.”

  “He knows what his family expects of him,” said Tam. “And he respects that. We’re cool with it. I am sure you two can look after yourselves… I’m going to join Dev and James. I think they are meeting this man. I’ll leave you to freshen up.”

  “Thanks,” said Zoe. “I need to.”

  Down in the bar, Dev and James were sitting at a table with a rough-looking Indian. He did not hold himself like an Indian gentleman. He was not dirty or unkempt – he was dressed in a suit – but there was something about him that Tam didn’t like. Tam could see Dev was on his guard. Dev looked at him when he came in but made no sign of recognition. Tam got the message – he needed to stay a free agent. He seated himself in earshot.

  “I need to know you are genuine,” Dev was asking in English.

  “Oh. I have proof. We were just waiting for someone to come looking. We are most anxious to reunite this young lady with her family.” He pulled out a smartphone and called up a picture. He laid it on the table. “Enough proof?”

  Ruth’s head was laid on a pillow, her eyes half-shut. She looked very ill.

  “What have you done to her?” demanded James alarmed.

  “Nothing. We found her – picked her off the streets. She has malaria. We are giving her medicines; they are very expensive.”

  “She should be in hospital,” said Dev with a firm voice.

  “Ah, yes. But hospitals cost money. It is the responsibility of the family to pay the bills. That is why we are looking for the family,” he mocked.

  “Where is she?” demanded James.

  “I will see she gets to hospital. You pay.”

  “How much?” asked Dev.

  “I think I will need three million.”

  “Three million rupees? That is too much. I do not have access to that amount of money.”

  “She needs hospital treatment. It is expensive.”

  “One million,” said Dev firmly.

  “Oh, no. That is nothing. But I will come down a bit – two and a half.”

  “One and a half. Or I go to the police.”

  “Very well. One and a half it is,” the man sneered. “You drive a hard bargain…” And then his smarmy attitude suddenly changed and he barked, “And no police, or the deal is off.” All pretence of politeness had vanished. “The rupees will be collected tomorrow. I will tell you where – and this silly bitch will arrive at the hospital.” He stood to leave. “Don’t forget: any police, no deal. She is very sick…” Then he was gone.

  Tam attempted to follow him but he got into a taxi which sped off among the traffic.

  21

  When Tam returned to the bar, Dev was comforting a very distraught James.

  “We must wait until tomorrow. I cannot get mo
ney tonight and, in any case, we cannot do anything until he calls.”

  “We can go out and see if we can find her. Someone will know where she is – I mean, not just this man,” suggested Tam.

  “Exactly,” replied James. “We can look all night – as long as it takes. Ruth is alive but she’s not OK. I can’t go to bed and just wait. What if she dies tonight? We have to do everything we can.”

  “It will be dangerous. You should not—”

  “I don’t care, Dev. You saw that photo. Ruth might not survive until tomorrow. That man doesn’t care whether she lives or dies – all he wants is his money!”

  It occurred to Tam that Ruth might already be dead but he didn’t say anything.

  “I’m going back to the place she was last seen. Now.”

  “You can’t go alone,” protested Tam.

  “Well, come with me, then!” James almost shouted.

  Tam didn’t argue. “Fine,” he said gently. “Let us go and tell the girls what we’re doing. Then we can go.”

  James calmed down. “Sorry,” he said. “You have been so good to me. I had no right to speak to you like that.”

  “No problem,” said Tam. “You’re right. It’s urgent. I couldn’t sleep either. And besides, I’ve been in far worse danger than this. We have phones now; we can call for help when we need it.”

  Back in the room, Zoe lay fast asleep. She had showered and then taken herself to bed and was out for the count. Kakko had just finished dressing after showering and felt good. They left Zoe to sleep while Dev explained the situation in the boys’ room.

  “I’m going back to look,” said James, determined.

  Dev protested. He knew this was dangerous; his father would not approve. But James wouldn’t relent.

  “I’ll go with him,” said Tam. “Watch his back.” He knew what was coming.

  “Not without me you won’t,” said Kakko with her usual vehemence. Tam knew he had no choice but he also knew that Kakko could look after herself better than ninety per cent of males her age. Almost certainly better than James.

  They hailed a rickshaw and returned to the Loft Hotel. As they stepped down onto the road, they could smell the perfumed smoke that came from inside. Compared to a noisy venue across the street, the Loft Hotel was quiet.