Meeting Max (20 page)

“Yes, it’s a deal. Bombay, together, as soon as we can. I would love that!”

Rick thought again about how luck had played an important role in his life. Now he had the woman he loved in his life. A weight was taken off his shoulders. He finally had someone to walk through life with. Maybe the universe had conspired to put beautiful Elena into the seat next to him on the plane.

***

They got on their camels and headed for Khuri, a small village in the Thar Desert about ten kilometers from where they were, according to their GPS. It was a warm and sunny day.

Elena called to him as she sat perched on Guinevere. “Maybe we should have gotten just one camel. I miss you. We’re too far apart.” She laughed.

“Yeah, amazing, I feel the same way. It would be a lot cozier, but I like riding behind you, watching your body move. It’s kind of sexy.”

Then Rick rode up next to her, Lancelot and Guinevere together in a slow walk as Rick and Elena talked.

“I’ve never told anyone I loved them since my first boyfriend, when I was sixteen,” she said.

“I haven’t either, since my college days, with Eric’s mom.”

“I wish we could be on this desert together forever.”

“What would I tell my friends? They would miss me.”

“Well, I’ll make it so
you
don’t miss
them
.”

“Ah, I like that. It’s something I know you can do.”

“Thanks for loving me, Rick. I need you in my life.”

“I have to confess, Elena. I fell in love with you five minutes after we met. I thought to myself, ‘I can love this girl.’ After we talked for a while, I knew we felt the same.”

“It took a
full five minutes
? Pretty long time, so it wasn’t quite love at first sight.” Elena flashed her beautiful smile.

“Well, I really knew before five minutes, but thought that telling you I loved you after thirty seconds would be presumptuous.”

“Okay, thirty seconds qualifies as love at first sight,” she said, beaming.

“Let’s go back a little further. First sight for me was really watching you sashay down the aisle on the plane.”

“I saw you sitting there.”

“You did?”

“Yes, our eyes met one time before I sat down, and I hoped the seat next to you would be mine.”

“Hmm, funny. So we were thinking the same thing at the same time.”

“It took the power of both our minds working together to make it happen. Didn’t you know that? Get with it!”

“I worked so hard to look cool and indifferent.”

“Yeah, it worked. You looked cool, all right,” Elena said, rolling her eyes.

“I did?”

“Actually, I saw those fake indifferent glances my way, as if you didn’t care who sat next to you. I knew what you were doing and thinking. At that point, I knew I’d get the seat next to you.”

“Really? How?”

“I wanted it, so I made it happen,” she said with a smile and an air of confidence.

“We’re crazy.”

“Yeah, but it’s
our
crazy.”

“Let’s keep it that way.”

“I can’t stop looking at the dunes,” Elena said. “They’re works of art, with those lines of ripples running along them like flowing rivers etched into the sand.”

“Each line copying the other. Yes, and we only need one grain of sand to see the world.”

“Ah yes, to see the world in a grain of sand. A microcosm of the universe. There are enormous truths in the smallest things if you look at them long enough.

“When I was a young girl, the autumn leaves always fascinated me. I would pick one up and stare at it, exploring its lines and colors. I saw the whole world in that one leaf, and the longer I stared, the more it revealed itself. Something deep inside brought me closer to the hidden mysteries of nature, the artwork within that can only be seen with new eyes.”

Thoughts of the colonel and their discussion about a chair flitted through Rick’s mind.

After galloping a good part of the way, Elena took the lead. They reached the desert village of Khuri in the early afternoon. The sides of their legs and their backsides were sore. Wearing shorts was not the best choice, but it was hot when they left in the morning. They should have known better. Their thighs and legs were bright red and sore.

Walking through the village gave them some relief for the pain in their legs. Elena’s right knee hurt badly. They found a small shop where an elderly, toothless woman sold them Eucalyptus oil, which eased Elena’s pain.

Khuri was a serene place with lots of cows sleeping the afternoon away. Black goats with white ears pranced around the village. The roofs of the clay huts were made of dark straw, and large, colorful paintings of plants showing long black stems with delicate purple leaves decorated each side of the open entranceways.

Children were all over the place, running, laughing, and playing games. Not one of them asked for any money, pens, or candy or begged for anything the way children did in the big cities. They were well-behaved and respectful. It was a peaceful place.

Elena stopped to talk to a ten-year-old girl as Rick looked on. She had long braids, one hanging in the back of her and the other in front. Each braid had a small purple flower attached to the bottom, matching her lavender dress. The little girl carried a checkered woven handbag similar to the one Elena had. It showed black, purple, white, and yellow squares. She kneeled in front of the girl.

“
Namaste
. I see we have the same bag.”

“
Namaste
,” she answered shyly. She looked at Elena’s handbag. “Yes, we do.”

“I’m Elena. What is your name?”

“Anushri,” she replied.

“Oh, that’s such a pretty name. What are you doing today?”

“Watching the people,” she said, twisting her body around playfully.

“I like to do that too. Do a lot of people come to visit?”

“Yes, many, but you are the first I have ever seen arrive on your own camel.”

“Her name is Guinevere.”

Anushri laughed. “That is a funny name. I have never heard of it.”

“Guinevere was a famous queen. She was married to King Arthur in a story written many years ago.”

“I like the name, but it sounds so funny.”

“Do you like living here?”

“Oh yes, indeed, madam. It is a very good place. There are many children my age here, and I have many friends. My family has a small guesthouse of two rooms that we rent to people who want to go on camel safari.”

“Where do they go?”

“I don’t know. Sometimes Papa walks them around here or they go to Bikaner on safari maybe.”

“Have you been on a camel safari, Anushri?”

“No, never safari, but Papa walks me on Yahiya.”

“Oh, is Yahiya a boy or a girl?”

“I think he is a boy.”

“Is he a nice camel?”

“Yes, we are friends. He has very nice eyelashes.”

“Oh, I see. I never noticed the eyelashes on camels.”

“Papa says only good camels have nice, full eyelashes and it protects them from the sand.”

“Oh, I never knew that. Thank you for telling me.”

“You are welcome.”

“Do you go to school here?”

“I go to school nearby, in Kotri, near Sum.”

“Sum?”

“Uh, yes it is spelled like Sam in books, but we say Sum. I cannot go to school every day because it is not too close, but Papa takes me with Yahiya when he can and waits for me.”

“You are lucky to have such a good and caring papa.”

“Yes, it is a very good fortune for me.”

“Do you like school?”

“It is my favorite place in the whole world. We learn to read in Hindi and English. We sing and dance and fit blocks into a box so they make a picture. We have a pretend market where we buy things with make believe rupees and get change from what we buy.”

“That’s very nice. What do you want to be when you grow up?”

“Oh, I know it. I will be a teacher in a tribal school and teach the children the maths and how to sing and dance. I will teach them to read and to count using sticks and teach them to speak in English so they can visit other villages.”

“You will be a very good teacher, Anushri. I can tell from what you said. You will give your students the gift of knowledge, and they will remember all their lives that you taught it to them.”

“Oh, they will think of me?
Shukriya
, Miss Elena. Thank you, you are very kind.”

“What do you like to do for fun when you’re home in Khuri?”

“Roll down the sand dunes with my friends.”

“Hmmm, that sounds like fun. Don’t you get sand in your eyes?”

“No, I keep my eyes closed. I don’t even get dizzy anymore.”

“I have to try that.”

“You will like it very much, but I never see ladies doing it.”

“Well, sometimes ladies like to have fun too.”

“You will love it and the dunes in Khuli are the best. You want to do it now?”

“I’d like to, honey, but we have to leave soon so we can ride back in daylight.”

“Oh, I am so sorry. I would like you to meet Yahiya, but he is on safari.”

“It sounds like he’s busy working now. I would like to meet him, especially since you told me he has such nice eyelashes. I would like to see them.”

“Will you come again?”

“If I come again, I promise I’ll roll down the dunes with you.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really. Would you like a biscuit before we leave?”

“Yes, please.”

Elena opened her handbag, moved a large metal object aside, and gave Anushri a cookie.

“Thank you, madam.”

“Bye Anushri. I loved meeting you. I hope we meet again. You’re a lovely girl.”

Rick saw Elena’s love for children
. She would be a good mother. Maybe, in time, we can have our own child.

Rick and Elena mounted their camels and made clicking noises with their tongues. Then they were on their way.

***

The sun was starting to go down and it was getting cold. After riding a few kilometers, Rick and Elena looked behind and noticed a rider on a camel rapidly catching up to them.

“He seems to be following us, Rick.”

“Well, he probably wants company.”

“I still think we should be careful. You never know.”

“It’s safe here, but he is catching up. Why don’t you ride ahead a bit, Elena?”

“Why?”

“Please, honey, it would make me feel better.”

Elena rode about thirty yards in front of Rick. Within a minute, the rider pulled up alongside Rick.

“Kind sir, please, water,” he said.

“Yes, of course. I have some in my backpack.”

“From where do you come?”

“We just came from Khuri, but we’re from the United States. Have you been there?”

“No, never.”

The man was heavyset, muscular. He was about forty years old and wore a tan silk turban, a white shirt, and a brown scarf. He got off his camel and gestured for Rick to do the same. Rick thought the man seemed nice enough and just wanted to talk. There was still some daylight. The man helped Rick bring Lancelot to his knees and dismount.

Instantly, the man pulled out a large knife, pointed it at him, and yelled, “Rupees, rupees! And jewels from woman. Bring her here!”

Rick held out his hands, waving the man off, but the angry man lunged at him. Rick quickly sidestepped and started to run in the direction away from Elena. The man came after him, screaming, “Give me now! Give me now!”

He caught up to Rick, held one arm around his neck, and squeezed Rick’s head against his chest. With his other hand, he raised his knife and said, “Give me now and then I let you go.” Rick was choking and he couldn’t speak.

At that moment, a shot rang out, striking the hand of his attacker. The man fell to the ground in agonizing pain as his knife dropped to the sand. He held his bleeding hand and screamed, “What you do? What you do?”

Elena rode her camel up to them, holding a gun in her hand. She cushioned it in both hands with her arms outstretched and pointed it at the man who was screaming.

“No, No!” The man begged.

Rick looked at Elena, mystified. Her lips were clenched and her eyes were dead set on the attacker. The idea of Elena with a gun was beyond Rick’s imagination.

She put Guinevere on her knees and slid off. Rick ran to her and tried to hold her, but she pushed him away. The man was lying on the ground holding his shattered hand against his shirt. Elena handed Rick a towel and a bottle of water from her backpack and motioned to give it to him. As Rick walked toward him, the man jumped on his camel and rode off, his knife still lying in the sand.