Immortals of Indriell- The Collection

by Melissa A. Craven

  “No. Not since I yelled at him.” Sasha crossed her arms over her chest.

  “Well, maybe this is him trying to move past that?”

  “It’s creepy,” Sasha said. “But I will do what I can to help us move forward.”

  “The mother is expecting me or I would come with you. But quite frankly, you two have got to learn to communicate better, so this could be a good thing,” Imogen said.

  “I still don’t trust him.”

  “He is not a bad man, Sasha. He’s just a very hard man to know. Help him. It may not seem like it, but he is trying.”

  “Maybe I’m a hard woman to know,” Sasha muttered.

  She made her way to the courtyard, munching on the last of her buttered toast.

  “Where are we going?” she asked, surprised to see it was just Jayesh waiting for her in the dusty courtyard and not the host of Chola monks who accompanied them wherever they went.

  Jay stood waiting with a huge basket and canteen as they walked along the garden path to the eastern gates. “Do I need to explain what a surprise is?”

  Sasha stopped suddenly when she heard the trumpet of an elephant. Her smile spread wide as she rushed through the gates.

  “He’s beautiful!” She beamed at the enormous elephant waiting to take them wherever Jayesh had planned. “Hello, Kandula,” she murmured as the elephant sniffed her with his elaborately painted trunk. She traced the Vedic patterns along his trunk, reaching up to pat his face.

  “How did you know his name?” Jayesh laughed.

  The elephant, Kandula, had told her his name. Sasha had never felt comfortable revealing her special connection with animals to her teacher. She decided then that she would show Jayesh today, but not here.

  Kandula gazed at Sasha with trust and an eagerness to take her wherever she needed to go. Animals are so much better than people. Sasha could give them her unfailing trust and they returned it without guile, secrets or manipulation. Kandula offered her a step up, lifting his back leg. Sasha hopped up and held on with a squeal as he lifted her all the way up to his back, where she scrambled up the length of him, like she rode elephants all the time.

  “Done this before?” Jayesh smiled.

  “Never.” She sat carefully where Kandula told her to sit. When she gave a second thought to the ethics of using such a beautiful creature as a beast of burden, he assured her it was his pleasure to take her on her journey to the sea.

  Jayesh is taking me to the sea? But Kandula quickly reminded her that he was the one taking her to see the leaves. Sasha gave him a playful pat on his enormous head and decided it was not a good idea to argue with the sage wisdom of elephants.

  Sasha only half listened to Jayesh as he climbed up behind her. She was enjoying her chat with Kandula far too much. As they made their way across the rolling hills, Sasha learned Kandula was a young bull with a pretty mate and a newborn calf. He and his mate worked for the monks, but were always treated with reverence and given the run of the valley that was their home. Kandula and his mate came when they were called, but otherwise they were free.

  “You aren’t listening to a word I’m saying,” Jayesh said.

  “Oh, sorry.” Sasha winced. She was bad about that. She often forgot that humans tended to treat animals like part of the scenery when to Sasha they were part of the conversation. “I’m just enjoying the ride.”

  “I thought you might like to get out of the temple for a break. We’ve been working so hard these last months; I know I’m starting to go stir crazy with the routine.”

  “It’s like living the same day on an endless loop,” she agreed.

  “With no end in sight for the two most stubborn people on the planet.”

  Sasha laughed. “It’s frustrating how we both know what we need to do to get out of here, yet we both refuse to do it.”

  “Maybe we deserve this place.”

  “Wait. Stop.” Sasha felt the stab of pain in Kandula’s front foot. Before she gave it a second thought, she slipped down the elephant’s left side, just catching his offered foot as he lowered her to the ground.

  She patted Kandula along his trunk.

  “What are you doing, Sasha? Be careful. He could trample you,” Jayesh called from above.

  “He won’t.” She dismissed Jay’s concerns as she rounded to Kandula’s right side, telling him to lift his injured foot.

  The great elephant snorted his dismissal, claiming it was nothing to concern herself with.

  “You have a rock in your foot, Kandula. I can feel how much it pains you and you’re not walking another step until I get it out.”

  Kandula grunted at her.

  “I am not a silly human. You’re a silly elephant. Now give me your foot.” She gestured for Kandula to lift his foot high while she prodded the area between his toes, looking for the culprit. She knew she looked like a madwoman, having a one-sided argument with an elephant.

  “I see it,” she murmured, grabbing the knife sheathed at her hip. She dug the offending rock from his foot, checking for cuts or any sign of blood. All the while, Kandula protested her fussing. She laughed at the way he looked at her like she was some strange bug on the end of a stick.

  “All better?” She smiled as the elephant wrapped his trunk around her shoulders, sniffing her hair.

  Without comment, Jayesh tossed her an apple, which she gave to Kandula for a treat.

  “So now you know,” Sasha said as she took her place back up in front of Jayesh.

  “Now I know.” He chuckled as they set off across the open valley. “You must lead an interesting life, talking to animals.”

  “They’re easier than people. They trust me and can sense I understand them and they never fear me. Most creatures are eager to offer me help when I need it because I do the same for them.”

  “You shouldn’t be here, Sasha,” Jayesh said softly.

  “I know.” She reached to pick a flower from a low-hanging vine, tucking it behind her ear.

  “You should be training to become a woman who inspires peace. Instead they push you into a life of war and death.”

  “Who knows, maybe I can do the world some good … staring down the barrel of a sniper rifle.”

  “Hang on to the girl you are, Sasha. Don’t let them beat it out of you.”

  Sasha found herself wondering what Jayesh was like before life had beaten him down into the jaded man she was just beginning to get to know.

  “So Kandula here told you where we’re going?” he asked in a cheerier tone.

  “His thoughts are somewhat confusing since animals don’t think with words. I saw something about the sea and then something about going to visit leaves.”

  “Good boy, Kandula.” Jayesh reached to rub his big, floppy ears. “He hasn’t given away the surprise yet.”

  “He likes you,” Sasha said.

  “Does he, now?”

  “He likes me better, though.”

  “You are a rare girl, Sasha El Sadawii. A lot like your mother. And your sister. But you have your own mind.”

  “So what’s the deal with you and the women of my family? If you don’t mind sharing.”

  “I met your sister here when we both trained as you are doing now. We did not get along at first, but we grew to become friends.”

  “Perhaps history repeats itself?” Sasha said softly.

  “Perhaps. Perhaps I struggle to relate to such terrifyingly strong women. In my experience, the strongest women are the ones who routinely try to put a knife in my back.”

  “The women of my family are not like that, Jayesh.”

  “A lesson I’ve had to learn three times now.” His warm breath brushed against her shoulder as he laughed. “I am nearly three hundred years old, Sasha, and I’ve had precious little time at peace. Doing what I do … makes it difficult for me to trust people. But I am trying.”

  “And I am trying not to make it too difficult for you. My position is frightening, Jayesh. I’m only trying to protect myself and at
the same time, accomplish this impossible training at an impossible age.”

  “I know. And I understand. I really do.”

  “So you knew my mother, how?” She glanced over her shoulder.

  “You will have to ask Naeemah about that someday.”

  “Ew.” Sasha shuddered. She couldn’t picture her mom with Jayesh—not in a million years, but that had to be why no one wanted to tell her how he knew her mother.

  “Get your head out of the gutter, Sasha. She was significantly older than me when we met. I knew her when I was even younger than you are now. She was my mentor … for a time. That is all.”

  “Then what’s the secret?”

  “Maybe I knew her during a time of her life she might not be very proud of, and if she wants to tell you about that, it’s her right as your mother to do that if and when she chooses.”

  “Ooooh, you knew Mom during her dark century?”

  “Is that what she calls it?” Jay laughed. “I can’t imagine she would tell you much about those days.”

  “Nope, not even a little bit. My brothers and I only know that she’s never told us a single detail about her life after she left the Shaolin temple in 1635 and before she arrived in Europe in 1735. It’s like she didn’t exist for one hundred years. When did you say you met her?”

  “I didn’t.” She caught the white of his smile over her shoulder.

  “Well, if you’re about three hundred and you knew her at my age….”

  “I met your mother in 1729 when I was fourteen years old.”

  “Tail end of the dark years? I’m intrigued.”

  “And you will continue to be intrigued because it is not my story to tell.”

  “You’re no fun.”

  “Says the girl riding through the Indian wildlands on my elephant.”

  “Kandula begs to differ,” she said. “He is his own elephant and belongs to no one. It is his choice to take the pretty lady on this journey.”

  “Touché, Kandula.” Jay laughed. “But it was my idea to take the pretty lady on an adventure today.” He leaned over and patted Kandula’s head. “The way the wildlife flocks to you is simply astounding.” Jay gazed around, taking in the hesitant animals in the trees.

  “You noticed? They usually don’t come close enough for most people to realize.” It was never in an obvious way, but wherever Sasha went, the animals came out to see her.

  “They trust you. And they’re insanely curious about you. I think if you were alone here, they would come right up to you.”

  “Some would, but the larger predators would keep their distance.”

  “I bet a visit to the zoo with you would cause a ruckus.”

  “I hate the zoo. The animals are so sad. It breaks my heart.”

  “It breaks my heart to be doing this to you, Sasha,” he said after a long pause. “You’re a sweet girl with a bright future. You don’t need to get mixed up in … politics.”

  “With my gift I knew it was coming, Jay,” she said softly. The concern in his voice cracked a little bit of that hardness in her heart toward him. He did care. “I thought I had a few more decades to prepare for it, but I knew it was coming.”

  “You know they’re … they’re not going to lose your number after this. No matter how much you try to hold back what you can really do.”

  “Maybe…. And maybe they’ll hear I’m not very good at this. That I’m a nature-loving, non-violent person who isn’t cut out for the work they have planned for me. And maybe they’ll be inspired to wait until I’m Proven to continue this kind of training.”

  “It is likely the Senate will receive a report suggesting just that when we are done here.”

  It was a shame it had taken them this long to have a real conversation. Maybe that’s what today is supposed to be about.

  “Look.” He pointed. “We’re almost there.”

  Sasha gazed along the horizon—green as far as she could see. The hint of salt in the air told her they were near the coast.

  “The mangrove forests?”

  “I thought you might like to explore the canals with me. We can’t go far, but I came here before. It was an escape from the monotony of the training grounds.”

  “Do we have a boat?”

  “We do. And a feast.” He thumped the picnic basket behind him.

  The mangrove trees seemed to grow straight out of the water, their gnarled root systems spreading like a spider’s web in every direction. Clusters of trees stood like islands in the blue-green water, creating a maze of canals as far as she could see. Sasha was eager to go exploring with Jayesh and make some memories about her time here in the Chola Valley that didn’t involve her training.

  “Here we are,” Jayesh said.

  “Kandula, my friend, will you be all right without us?” Sasha asked. She laughed at his response a moment later. “He plans to play in the canals while we eat. He wishes to wash off this silly paint the monks insist on decorating him with.”

  “We will go exploring after we eat. And then Kandula can take his bath.” Jayesh slipped to the ground, taking Sasha’s hand to help her down.

  Her breath caught when his hands wrapped around her waist and he sat her down beside him. She looked up at him and he reached to brush the loose curls from her face. She smiled, feeling at ease with him in a way she never had before.

  “You are a beautiful girl.” He seemed startled that he’d spoken out loud.

  Sasha flushed, dropping her gaze. There was no doubt Jayesh was handsome. I could get the biggest mad-crush on this jackass of a man. But he was substantially older, even though he looked no more than twenty-five.

  “I know I don’t look much older than you, but this is not a good idea, Sasha,” he said softly, echoing her thoughts exactly.

  “I didn’t say anything,” she whispered.

  “You said it with your eyes.” He smiled. “They are very expressive. You’ve managed to cut me with them on multiple occasions.”

  “Then don’t look at me the way you’re looking at me.” She grabbed the basket he handed to her.

  “Like what?”

  “Like I’m not your student and you aren’t a million years too old for me.”

  “I am not that old. But I am too old for you.”

  “Then we agree on something at last.” She laughed. “You are very handsome and it’s not out of the realm of possibility in another time or place. But here, today, I want nothing more than to be your friend, Jayesh. That is all.” She reached for his hand.

  “You are still looking at me like you do not think I am too old for you.” His hand wrapped around hers with a squeeze.

  “A girl can look, can’t she?” Together they turned to the path leading down to the canals.

  “I’m guessing you’re starving. I’ve rarely seen you stop eating since we arrived.” Jay walked beside her.

  “Funny guy. I guess you’re too old to remember the gnawing hunger that never goes away at this age.”

  “It is a rather distant memory, but I’m hardly old, Sasha.”

  “I have brothers about your age.”

  “Tell me about your family?” Jayesh asked as he spread a rolled carpet on the ground beside the canals.

  “I have three older brothers, two brothers-in-law and one younger brother who’s worse than all the others combined about pulling the overprotective bullshit. And two uncles too. And then there’s Quinn. He’s not like a brother, but we grew up together. His little brother is like a brother, though.”

  “That’s a lot of brotherly types you’ve got surrounding you.” Jayesh laughed. “Makes dating hard, I bet.”

  “Oh, I can handle the McBrien boys.” Sasha sighed. She missed them all so much. Especially Aidan and Darius.

  It was nice, sitting in the warm afternoon sunshine, talking about normal life stuff with Jayesh.

  “So Quinn’s the boyfriend?”

  “No, not for a long time. These days we’re just friends.” She reached for the picnic bask
et to distract herself from thoughts of Quinn and the overwhelming guilt she felt for flirting with Jayesh.

  “But you think he is your Complement?”

  “I do. Or … I did. I don’t know, honestly. There’s a big history there. When we’re together, we make each other miserable and we fight constantly. When we’re not together, we can’t stand to be apart. It’s frustrating and confusing.”

  “He’s a big part of your life.”

  “There’s this overwhelming pull I feel for him. A fire in my veins that’s always there. I used to think that meant we were Complements, but I don’t really know anymore.” She thought about that last kiss before he was ripped away from her, still not sure what it meant or if she even wanted to go down that road with him again. It only ever led to heartbreak. “I just know I have to help him, and being stuck here with my hands tied is making me crazy.”

  “You have to promise me, Sasha. When we leave this valley, you cannot go looking for him.” Jayesh frowned. “It will do him no good.”

  “I can’t face a future without Quinn in it.” She shrugged. “No matter what he is or isn’t to me. I’ll do whatever I have to do to help him.”

  “These people … there is likely much more to them than you could ever know. You should let his parents decide the best course of action.”

  “I know. I just … I have to do something.”

  “When we get through this, I will do what I can. I know all sorts of sordid people in the seedy underworld of Immortality. I’m sure I can find a safe way for you to help Quinn.”

  “You’d do that?”

  “If it keeps you home where you belong and not out trying to get yourself locked away in a cell right next to him, then yes. I will see what I can do.”

  “You’re not so bad, Jay.” Sasha smiled, her hopes soaring at the thought that he might be exactly what Quinn needed.

  “Well, you’ve turned out to be a good student and not nearly as annoying as I thought you’d be.” He gave her a wink and she threw her almonds at him.

  “What’s with the face tattoo?” she asked. She’d been curious about it since she met him. “That has to have an interesting story behind it.” The black lines were faded with age, and she couldn’t quite make out any distinctive shapes.