Tibetan scrolls and artwork decorated these pristine white walls, and the entire tableau was calming and comforting. But the true beauty of the room came from the splendor of the floor-to-ceiling windows that stretched the entire wall length before her. It showcased the spectacular beauty of the Alaskan mountains. No human creation could compete with nature, and the designers of the retreat must have known that and used it to their greatest advantage.
What she did notice was that there was nothing even remotely resembling anything about the Voynich Manuscript in the temple. No pictures, and certainly no symbols anywhere. Then again, why would there be?
Kelsey turned to her left and noticed a second series of rooms leading to the back half of the temple. A set of comfortably worn leather couches could be seen from her vantage point, along with a long farm-style dining table. Next to the front door stood an easel with the schedule of the day’s events listed.
6:00am: Wake Up Bell
6:30am: Sitting Meditation (noble silence ends)
7:30am: Breakfast (vegetarian)
9am: Dharma Talk: Love and Compassion
11:00am: Walking meditation: Mindfulness of Breathing (outdoors, dress warmly in layers)
12:30pm: Lunch (vegetarian)
1:30pm: Rest / Guided Relaxation
3pm: Working Meditation
6pm: Light dinner (vegetarian)
8pm: Dharma Discussion: Awakening your Inner Joy or Personal study time
9.30pm: Noble Silence begins
10pm: Lights out
The pleasant clinking sound of a teacup being set down met her ears. Kelsey inched over in her stocking feet to the series of rooms on the left, and peeked inside. Past the couches and larger dining area was a kitchen consisting of a single long counter broken out only by a sink and stove. A modest two-person wooden dinette table stood against the far wall and at it sat a young monk with his back to her. He appeared to gaze out the window and she could tell he sipped tea the way he raised his arms in the familiar actions. Between sips, she heard him mumbling something to himself. It sounded like he chanted a prayer. She only heard scant words. ‘Gold,’ ‘kind leader,’ and what sounded like the word ‘Asuras.’ That particular prayer wasn’t familiar to her.
She gently coughed, and the man turned his profile to her. Kelsey’s eyes widened in surprise. First, she had thought the monk was young, and he was, so she was mildly shocked to recognize Rajiv Sitaula. She’d seen photographs of him while researching him on the web and it appeared that he’d not aged in the seven years he’d been on the run. Though he was fifty-five years of age, he didn’t look it. He apparently had opted not to shave his head in the traditional Buddhist fashion. His hair was not short, thinning and flecked with gray like one would expect, but a full, lustrous jet black and his face appeared much less lined than others of his age. I guess quitting the corporate life and reducing your stress suits you, Mr. Sitaula.
But, second, looking at him gave her pause. There was something about him and it was the same feeling she had while staring at the Chilkhat blanket back at the shop in town. I don’t know what’s wrong with me suddenly.
He bowed his head. “Ah, you caught me in my meditations. Please, won’t you join me? It’s cold outside and I have more tea to share.”
Kelsey strolled over to the open chair opposite him and sat down. She placed her backpack at her feet. “Thank you, I’d love to. Do you pray all the time, Venerable Sir?” She studied Sitaula while he contemplated her question and poured her a cup of tea. That strange feeling she had didn’t quite go away.
“It teaches me obedience and makes me feel better. I tend to recite prayers and mantras throughout the day and not just at prayer time.”
He’d definitely taken to the modest life of a monk. In older photos he’d been bedecked with jewelry and fancy clothes, but now all of that was gone. No big rings with gems, no gold bracelets or necklaces. The Giorgio Armani suits and Gucci loafers had been replaced with the three traditional robes of a Buddhist monk, though Rajiv had opted to have both his shoulders covered against the cold. Plain brown socks warmed his feet and peeked out from under the table.
“I hope you’re not too uncomfortable in here, Miss,” he ventured. “I turn the heat down when no one is here with me. It is good to feel the cold, don’t you agree? I find it invigorating. But I can turn the heat back on if you’d be more comfortable.”
“I’m actually quite fine, thank you.” Kelsey sipped her tea and then pulled back, staring into the contents of the cup with a puzzled expression. She raised her eyebrows questioningly. “What am I drinking? I’ve never tasted tea like this before.”
Sitaula smiled, and Kelsey was taken aback by how kind it appeared. Maybe that was the problem she had. She normally didn’t make assumptions about a person, but after what she’d learned about Sitaula, she expected something different. A hardness to him, the hidden agenda of a ruthless person, that she would immediately be able to read in his demeanor. The man had been a calculating, cold-blooded and heartless corporate executive in his previous life, hadn’t he? Instead, he was calm and gentle, and a deep-seated kindness stretched all the way to his eyes. Unless of course, it was all an act.
He swirled the tea in his own cup. “It’s ayuq leaves from a woody shrub that grows out on the tundra. I like to mix it with oolang tea. It is said to be a wonderful medicinal plant, but I simply enjoy the exotic taste. It’s the simple things in life that are the most treasured. Don’t you agree?”
Kelsey sipped it again and nodded. “I do. It’s delicious.” They drank in silence for a few minutes.
He stared at her over his teacup. “Are you here to stay at the retreat?”
Kelsey nodded. “I was hoping you had a vacancy. I’m sorry I didn’t make a reservation. Are you booked up?”
He chuckled. “There is supposed to be a scheduled retreat happening right now. But, as you can see from the empty dining room, I am lacking a few participants. So yes, there’s room.”
Kelsey put down her cup. “Do you own this center?”
The monk nodded. “I opened it three years ago.” He went back to his drink.
Kelsey would ask him about his grandfather’s things later. She spread her arms wide. “But why here, Venerable Sir? Why set up a Buddhist retreat in Skagway? It seems you’d have a much larger clientele in some of the larger cities that would be easier for visitors to get to.”
He shrugged. “Why not here? One can practice mindfulness anywhere. Or one should, anyway.” He stood up. “Won’t you join me?” He placed their cups in the sink, methodically rinsed them and placed them on the drying rack. They moved into the main salon.
Sitaula bent first to the altar before the Buddha and lit one of the votive candles while saying a quiet prayer. He then ushered Kelsey with him to the front of the room where he stood at the window and peered out. “Just look at this.” He pointed to the tableau before him. “This is nature at its most simplistic and its most glorious. Just enjoy the moment, Miss. Life moves so fast that sometimes we forget to just observe and breathe.” He became still and took a full minute to relax and meditate. Then he turned to her. “As to why here in Skagway? Everyone has a path and mine brought me here.
“Growing up, I was always concerned with material things, and one day, I realized that I needed to change my ways and lead a more meaningful life. I needed to simplify my life and make amends to those I’ve hurt by my past actions. So I studied the teachings of the Buddha, gave up my old life of greed and opulence and opened this retreat.”
Kelsey was going to ask about Bianca, but the door to the temple crashed open and two young boys burst in. The sound was loud and shocking in the stillness.
Kelsey stifled a laugh. The children were decked out in matching bright yellow down jackets reminding her of enormous yellow suns. They both skidded to an abrupt halt before they even passed the first set of pillows. They quickly stifled their giggles when they realized Sitaula stood before them.
The monk gave them a stern look and the children cast their gazes to the floor and shuffled their feet. Kelsey realized they didn’t know that Sitaula was not actually angry. A smile hid behind his eyes and he winked at Kelsey.
He spoke to the children. “You’re both an hour late. Did you get lost coming home from school?”
The boys both mumbled something incoherent.
Sitaula whispered to Kelsey. “As if I ever expected a logical answer.” He raised his voice. “You also kept your shoes on.”
With a squeak, they quickly kicked them off and tossed them by the front door, where they landed with a loud thud.
Sitaula rolled his eyes and sighed. “Go into the next room and take out your homework for today. I’ll be with you both shortly.”
The boys ran inside and Kelsey saw them tumble onto the couches in happy abandon.
Sitaula turned to Kelsey. “When meditations are not in session, I tutor many of the younger students after school for free. I find it keeps them out of trouble and off the streets, and it also helps out the parents. Many in the community have multiple jobs in the off-season to make ends meet. This gives the children a place to come. And I won’t lie that it makes me feel useful, as well.” He paused. “These are dangerous times.” He stared at the window warily.
“Dangerous? How so? That’s the second time someone’s told me that today. ”
He grimaced. “Alaska is a land of many legends and tales. It is a dangerous place and one that must be respected.”
“Which tales in particular are dangerous?”
He exhaled loudly. “There are many, but none more dangerous than that of the story of Kushtaka.”
Kelsey crinkled her forehead. “Kusthaka? The Native American’s version of Bigfoot?”
Sitaula raised his brows. “You know of the legend of the Tlingits?”
Kelsey nodded. “A local man explained some of the folklore to me earlier today.”
He huffed. “You obviously met Charlie. He loves to scare the tourists with his people’s fables.”
Kelsey nodded. “I did meet him. He also believed Kushtaka was behind a lot of things and he seemed scared.” Kelsey studied him. “Sir, you seem scared as well. You believe in the existence of Kushtaka?”
He nodded. “I believe in all the legends, for fables are the very fabric of a culture. You must always remember that most times, at the root of every mythology is some truth. I have spent much of the past seven years of my life searching for the verity of Bigfoot and I believe he exists.” He glanced towards the back room where the boy’s giggles could be heard. “I won’t lie. I have other motives for taking care of these boys. Children have a way of going missing in Alaska.” His lips trembled and he passed a hand over his eyes. “I’m sorry, it’s a sensitive topic for me.”
Kelsey stepped forwards and gently touched his arm. “Sir, are you okay?”
Sitaula blew out an unsteady breath. “I am a poor excuse for a monk. I talk entirely too much. I really should make this a completely silent retreat.” He tried to smile and failed.
He clasped his hands in front of him and bowed his head. “I once had a daughter who would be about your age now.”
Once? Oh, Bianca…
Sitaula continued. “She was a gentle creature whom I loved more than life itself. After I made a decision to change my life, our lives, I took my daughter and we traveled across Canada. It was to be a great adventure for both of us. One of enlightenment, mindfulness and peace. One where we could start over and do some good in the world. We planned to travel to many temples, study and learn. But one night early in our journey, when we stayed in a small, remote town deep in the mountains of the Pacific Northwest, I awoke to her screams. I ran into her bedroom and her window was open, her bed was in disarray and the foul stench of a wet, filthy animal filled the room.” Sitaula swallowed hard and his jaw tightened. “There was blood everywhere. I raced outside and followed a set of tracks deep into the woods. They were so big, they dwarfed my own feet. I spent the entire night and next day searching for her and finally collapsed. A group of hikers found me and brought me back to town. For a week the locals tried to help me search for my daughter, but to no avail. Where we were was so remote there was just a sole Public Safety office. We had to call in the State Troopers, but by the time they got there, she was long gone.”
He squeezed his eyes shut as he recalled the events. “We even went to visit the local Indian tribes and they all said the same thing. It was Wildman, Otterman, The Stone Giant. Or Gilyuk, Wetiko, or what they call him here in Skagway, Kushtaka. It is whatever name you wish to call it, because they are all the same. They are Bigfoot, Sasquatch, the infamous Yeti. The Abominable Snowman, and yes, I believe they exist because they took my daughter from me and all they left me was this.”
He pulled out a torn piece of ragged pink cloth from the inside of his robe and held it in his trembling hand. “I know I am supposed to rid myself of material things, but this is all I have left of my daughter. A piece of her nightshirt found stuck on a tree a quarter mile from our home.”
He turned back to stare at the mountains, then rolled his shoulders as if working out a sudden tightness before letting out a deep sigh. “My teachings say I need to forgive. That I need to let go of the past because this was her journey and what was supposed to happen to her in this lifetime, but that is a set of beliefs, of tenets, I have not yet mastered. I still feel anger in my heart. Is it so selfish to want my daughter back?” It was a rhetorical question and Kelsey knew he wasn’t expecting an answer.
Sitaula returned the cloth to the folds of his robe and turned to Kelsey. “Feel free to use the temple while I tend to the boys.” He was moving away when Kelsey gently called to him.
“Venerable Sir, I’m so sorry.”
Sitaula closed his eyes and a lone tear glistened against his cheek. “Me, too. More than you know.”
Chapter 9
A sound woke Kelsey up out of a deep sleep. A baby’s cry, sharp, loud and then silenced. She sat upright and glanced around the modest cabin. The sole window had no curtain and the moonlight lit the trees and snow-covered mountains outside with an eerie yellow glow. Another cry sounded. It’s an infant. It has that distinct mewl of a newborn. Suddenly, a shadow loomed outside her window and a pair of yellow eyes peered in. Wearing only her t-shirt and underpants, Kelsey leapt out of bed and grabbed the table lamp, tearing the plug from the outlet as she flew to the cabin door. She opened it, raced outside and barreled right into someone standing directly outside the door. The two of them collided violently and tumbled down the two steps, landing clumsily in a heap of arms and legs on the hard ground.
Kelsey pushed to her knees and raised the lamp high to attack.
The man disentangled himself and turned around to face her. “Wait!” he yelled when he saw her weapon aimed at his head.
“What the hell?” Kelsey stared at Ari. With a disgusted grunt, she jumped to her feet and edged around the cabin until she was outside her back window. The creature was gone.
Seconds later, Ari stood beside her, his pistol in his hands.
“Put that away,” she hissed. “This is a place of peace.”
He ignored her. “I’ll reserve judgment for that. You may think this is a place of peace, but whatever made those indents in the ground right next to you may not agree. I saw the thing dart behind the cabin when I came up. It wasn’t human and trust me when I say it was huge.”
Kelsey kneeled down in the dirt and examined the two enormous footprints planted there. They were nearly double the size of her size eight shoe. Not to mention there were only four toe prints.
Another baby’s cry pierced the night and she whirled towards the sound.
A pair of glowing yellow eyes shined through the trees.
And then they blinked out.
She took off.
#
Kelsey ran towards the pair of eyes, but realized there was no way she could track the creature in her present condition
. It was freezing outside, she had no shoes or pants on and had only a table lamp as a weapon in the middle of the Alaskan forest. She was sure the animal was better suited for this terrain than she was at that moment.
Her breath smoked in the cold air and Ari came to stand beside her. She turned her glare on him. “What are you doing here? I told you I don’t want to see you anymore.”
He gritted his teeth. “You said a lot of things the last time I spoke to you. Most of them with your fists. Look, I was worried about you. There’s things going on that you don’t know about. Since you’re not speaking to me, I had no choice but to come after you. It’s your own fault.”
She snorted. “Save it. There is always a choice. And for the record, I don’t need your help. I never have.” She brushed past him and trudged back towards the cabin.
Ari followed her. “You don’t know what you’re getting into. Sitaula is dirty.”
She glanced sideways at him. “Really? He’s dirty? Maybe you’re the one who doesn’t know what you’re talking about. I met the guy. There doesn’t seem to be a dirty bone in his entire body.” She passed the footprints with a sidewards glance and then ducked around the cabin until she reached the steps and went inside.
Ari grabbed his duffle bag that had fallen on the ground and followed her inside. He glanced around at the simple room and frowned his apparent disapproval. One single cot. A nightstand and a few hooks on the wall to hang clothing. A small portable heater. “You couldn’t find a better place to stay?”
“Yes, because a Buddhist retreat is all about the amenities,” she replied, sarcastically. She sat down on the edge of the bed and brushed dirt and leaves off her feet. Reaching into her bag, she grabbed a thick pair of cotton socks and put them on and then pulled out a pair of leggings as well.
Ari hadn’t moved.
Kelsey threw him one of her two pillows and jutted her chin to the floor. “See that area rug and my bath towel? That’s your bed tonight. And, don’t bother talking to me. I have nothing to say to you.”
The Call of Mount Sumeru Page 7