Page 40 of Tiger's Curse
I scratched his ears. “Nice of you to join us. I guess you’re anxious to get moving today, huh? You must be excited that you’re this close to breaking the curse.”
He kept watching me intently as if impatient to leave, but I didn’t want to rush. I pacified him by feeding him pieces of mango. Content for the moment, he sat down and enjoyed his treat, licking the juice from my fingers.
I laughed. “Stop it! That tickles!” He ignored me, moved up my arm, and licked me almost all the way up to my sleeve. “Ew, gross, Ren! Alright. Alright. Let’s go.”
I washed my arm off, took one last look at the view, and made my way out to the garage. Mr. Kadam was already outside with Ren. He took my bag from me, put it on the passenger seat, and then held open my door as I hopped into the Jeep.
“Be careful, Miss Kelsey,” Mr. Kadam warned. “Ren will watch out for you, but there are many dangers ahead. Some we’ve planned for, but I’m sure you’ll face many that I am unaware of. Use caution.”
“I will. Hopefully, we’ll be back very soon.”
I rolled up the window and backed out of the garage. The GPS began beeping at me, telling me where to go. Once again, I felt a deep appreciation for Mr. Kadam. Ren and I would be truly lost without him.
The drive was uneventful. The traffic was very light for the first hour. It gradually began to pick up the closer we got to Mumbai, but by then I had almost gotten used to driving on the other side of the road. We drove for about four hours before I pulled to a stop at the end of a dirt road that bordered the park.
“This is where we’re supposed to go in. According to the map, it’ll take us two and a half hours to walk to the Cave of Kanheri.” I checked my watch and continued, “That gives us about two hours to kill since we can’t go in until nightfall when the tourists have gone.”
Ren leapt out of the car and followed me into the park to a shady spot. Ren lay down on the grass, and I sat down next to him. At first, I used his body as a backrest and then gradually relaxed against him, using his back as a pillow.
Staring up into the trees, I started talking. I told Ren about visits with my grandma, growing up with my parents, and the vacations we used to go on as a family.
“Mom was a nurse in a geriatric facility at first, but then she decided to stay home and raise me,” I explained, thinking back with fond memories. “She made the best chocolate-chocolate chip and peanut butter cookies. Mom believed that showing your love meant making homemade cookies, which is probably why I was chubby as a kid.
“Dad was your average backyard-grilling-kind of dad. He was a math teacher, and I guess some of that rubbed off on me because I like math, too. We all loved reading, and we had a cozy home library. Dr. Seuss books were my favorite. Even now I can almost sense my parents near me when I pick up a book.
“When we traveled, my parents liked to stay at bed-and-breakfasts, where I’d get a room all to myself. We toured practically the whole state and saw apple farms and old mines, Bavarian-themed towns that served German pancakes for breakfast, the ocean, and the mountains. I think you’d easily fall in love with Oregon. I haven’t traveled all over the world like you have, but I can’t imagine a place more beautiful than my home state.”
Later, I talked about school and my dreams to go to a university, though I couldn’t afford more than a community college. I even spoke of my parents’ car accident, about how alone I felt when it happened, and what it was like living with a foster family.
Ren’s tail flicked back and forth, so I knew he was awake and listening, which surprised me because I figured he’d just go to sleep, bored with my chatter. Eventually, I trailed off, getting sleepy myself, and drowsed in the heat until I felt Ren stir and sit up.
I stretched. “Time to go already, huh? Okay, lead the way.”
We trekked through the park for a couple of hours. It had a much more open feel than the Yawal Wildlife Preserve. The trees were spaced farther apart. Beautiful purple flowers covered the hills. But, when we got closer, I noticed that they were diminishing in the heat. I guessed that they sprung up briefly during the monsoon rains and would soon be gone.
We passed teak trees and bamboo, but there were other types I couldn’t identify. Several animals darted across our path. I saw rabbits, deer, and porcupines. Looking up at the branches, I spied hundreds of birds in a variety of colors.
As we walked under a particularly dense group of trees, I heard strange, alarmed grunts and spotted rhesus monkeys swinging as high up as they could climb. They were harmless and familiar, but as we moved deeper into the park, I saw other, more fearsome creatures. I skirted a giant python that hung from a tree and watched us with black, unblinking eyes. Huge monitor lizards with forked tongues and long bodies scurried quickly across our path, hissing. Big, fat bugs buzzed around lazily in the air, bounced drunkenly off objects in flight, and then continued on their journey.
It was pretty but also creepy, and I was glad that I had a tiger nearby. Every once in a while, Ren would veer off the path and circle around in a way that made me think he was avoiding certain places or perhaps, I shuddered, certainthings.
After about two hours of walking, we arrived at the edge of the jungle by the Kanheri Cave. The forest had thinned out, opening to a hill, bare of trees. Stone steps led up the hill to the entrance, but we were still too far away to see more than just a small glimpse of the cave. I started toward the steps, but Ren jumped in front of me and nudged me back toward the tree line.
“You want to wait a bit longer? Okay, we’ll wait.”
We sat down under the cover of some bushes and waited for an hour. Slightly impatient, I watched tourists emerge from the cave, make their slow way down the steps, and walk to a parking lot. I could hear them chattering as they left in their cars.
I remarked enviously, “Too bad we couldn’t have driven in here. It sure would’ve saved us a lot of hassle. But, I guess people wouldn’t understand why a tiger was following me around. Plus, the park ranger would be keeping tabs on us too, if we’d driven in.”
Finally, the sun set, and the tourists left. Ren stepped forward carefully out of the trees and sniffed at the air. Satisfied, he began moving toward the stone steps that were cut into the rocky hill. The long climb up left me breathless by the time we reached the top.
Once inside the cave, we came upon an open stone bunker with rooms that reminded me of beehive cells. Each one was identical to the other. A stone block the size of a small bed was positioned on the left side of every room, and hollowed-out shelves were located on the back walls. A sign noted that this place used to be where the Buddhist monks lived and that the cave was part of a Buddhist settlement dating back to the third century.
Isn’t it strange that we’re looking for an Indian prophecy in a Buddhist settlement?I thought as we continued on.But then again, everything about this adventure is a bit strange.
Walking farther in, I noted long stone trenches connected by arches that ran from a central stone well and continued on—probably higher into the mountains. A sign read that the trenches were once used as an aqueduct to move water to the area.
Reaching the main room, I ran my hands over the deep grooves of the elaborately carved wall. Ancient Indian writing and hieroglyphics had been etched into the walls.
