Serpentine Love (3 page)

“
Hey, thanks. It’s a
deal.”

“
Someone should get these
vermin off the road,” she said almost as an afterthought. “Do you
have a cell phone?”

“
Yeah, sure.” He took it out
of his pocket.

“
Use it. Call a hospital.”
Reversing the car, she zoomed off.

Arya stared long after her car
disappeared into the dark.

“
Tonight’s my lucky night,”
he muttered. This was just the break he was looking for; a chance
to meet Isaac Lois, an expert on snakes and allegedly the only man
who was rumored to have seen an inagimi in Kenya. Perhaps, this was
the break he was looking for?

After sparing one glance for the thugs
lying on the road, he called an ambulance. Having no intention to
be questioned by curious medics, he sat in his car intending to
leave the area before anyone arrived.

His cell phone rang, jarring him out of
his dream. “Hello?” he said. Few people had his number.

“
Archan here,” a rough voice
rasped back. “Report your progress.”

Despite the warm night, Arya felt a
shiver of cold run up his spine. How the hell did Archan manage to
contact him on a cell phone from another world? The vibrations of a
spell seeped through Arya’s hand even as he held the phone. Archan
was indeed a potent wizard to use magic to access the technology of
this world. An ambitious man, his ultimate goal was the
inagimi.

“
I’m close,” he reported.
“There is a man, Isaac Lois. He might’ve useful information that
could put me on the right path. He knows more about snakes that
anyone else in the world. I shall be meeting him in person
tomorrow.”

“
Has he ever come in contact
with an inagimi?”

“
My source said he once
accidently divulged some information regarding the inagimi at a
herpetologist conference, even going as far as to claim he saw one.
Later, he backed out and claimed he was joking. I believe he saw
one, or knows where to find one.”

“
I need results…and soon,”
Archan said, imperious even at a distance.

“
You’ll get them,” Arya
promised, a cold fist around his heart as he contemplated the mess
he would be in if he did not deliver. Although not desirous of
immortality, he also had no wish to die at an early age. He had
entered into a contract with Archan for money, but now it was
matter of life and death. Archan wouldn’t tolerate failure another
time. Just this once, Arya could not afford to make a
mistake.

Maya Lois was the key; he needed her.
She was his access ticket to Isaac. As he heard the distant click
on the other side when Archan switched off, Arya understood that he
was running out of time--fast.

Maya Lois was an enigma, Arya decided.
She was cool, calm and collected…and yet, underneath that tranquil
exterior lurked a passionate woman, one who was not afraid to speak
her mind or stand her ground.

She was beautiful, too. He would have
had to be dead not to notice the smooth mahogany of her skin, the
perfect teeth beneath perfectly sculpted lips and the curly black
hair that threatened to spill from the bun she so carefully made at
the back of her head. No wonder he found it hard to stay focused on
his mission when he was in her presence.

Today, he was determined to ignore her
charms.

At seven sharp, he rang Maya’s
bell.

“
Come in,” she yelled from
inside.

Opening the door, Arya walked in.
“Wow!” he said. The house décor reflected the owner in every way
possible. Snake—shaped ornaments, snake lamps and even a glass bowl
shaped like a coiled snake on the coffee table showcased her love
for her chosen career. “You’re really into snakes, aren’t you?” He
laughed.

“
It’s my life’s work,” she
said. “Are you sure you’re a writer?”

“
What?” Arya stared at her.
Did she suspect something?

“
Just a thought. Aren’t all
writers supposed to be nerds, with their noses into books or
research papers…or whatever it is that writers do?”

“
Aren’t all snake handlers
supposed to be sun-baked with snake bites all over
them?”

“
Touché!” Maya smiled as she
took the car keys off the bronze snake peg. “We’ll take my
car.”

“
And what do I do with
mine?”

“
You’ll call the rental
agency and tell them to pick it up.”

“
You seem to have thought of
everything,” he said as they stepped out. She turned to face him.
Outside, in the warm sunlight, her skin glowed like dark honey.
Unable to resist, Arya ran a hand over her smooth cheek.

Startled, Maya took a step
back.

“
May I?” Not giving her a
chance to speak, he leaned forward to take a taste of her warm
luscious lips.

At first, he kept it light, just a soft
brush of his lips against hers. Slowly he deepened the kiss,
leaving no room for her to back out. The taste of her mouth was
addictive. He wanted more. Without realizing, he put his arms
around her waist and pulled her close. Softly, he explored the soft
recesses of her mouth, mingling his tongue with hers in a
stimulating dance.

Arya raised his head, his mind blurred.
What had just happened? Wanting a mere taste, he had become
engulfed in a sea of sensation never experienced before.

Maya stepped out of his arms. “We’re
not doing that again.”

Giving himself a moment to collect his
wits, Arya walked over to his rented car and took out his luggage.
He dumped it on the back seat of her car.

What was he doing? He never mixed
business with pleasure. It was a rule that kept him sane in this
world of insanity. What was so different about her? Why couldn’t he
resist her?

“
Did you hear me?” she said
with a sharp bite to her words.

“
You didn’t exactly resist
me, did you?” he said and snapped the car door shut.

“
What? Now wait
here…”

Arya raised his hands in a gesture of
defeat. “You know what? I’m sorry. It was my fault and it won’t
happen again.”

She muttered something under her breath
and stalked off to the driver’s side of the car.

“
Where are we going?” Arya
said in a businesslike manner. It was important to put some
emotional distance between him and the very attractive Ms. Lois. He
sat on the passenger seat and buckled up.

“
Amoria.”

“
Where’s that?”

“
It’s where my grandfather
lives,” she said. “It’s a small village near the base of Mount
Kenya.”

“
What does he do there?”
Arya decided to keep things strictly professional between
them.

“
He runs a small snake farm.
They do research on snake venom, especially its medicinal
properties. He believes snake venom can be used to cure deadly
diseases.”

She navigated through the busy Nairobi
streets where everyone was rushing off to work or
school.

“
Did you take time off from
the zoo’s snake house?”

“
The park’s closed for a few
days for renovation.” Maya turned a corner and stopped at a signal.
“I was planning to visit Isaac anyway. Since it got a bit tiring to
be stalked, I thought it best if you got over this itch you’ve to
see him.”

“
I would apologize, but I
don’t think you’ll buy it,” Arya said. A smile crinkled at the
corner of his lips.

“
No, I won’t.”

“
Well, then, no point in
making an effort to do so.”

She glared at him. “You think you’re
smart, don’t you?”

“
I am smart.” He smiled back
at her, pleased to see a flush of annoyance on her
cheeks.

She really was a gorgeous woman.
Intelligent. Intriguing. However, she was also totally off-limits,
he reminded himself. That kiss was an aberration, an act of
madness. He was here for work and she was a means to an end. There
was no way he could afford a dalliance at this point. Archan had
him on a short leash and he simply couldn’t afford to waste any
time with personal pleasures.

What a waste! He closed his eyes. It
would take immense willpower to stand firm against this
particularly tasty temptation, especially now that he had tasted
her already.

“
I’ll take a nap, if you
don’t mind,” he drawled.

“
Be my guest,” she
said.

Silently, they made their way to the
small village of Amoria. As their destination edged closer, the
road became narrow and rutted, clearly showing a demarcation
between the big urban cities and the largely ignored smaller
communities.

“
Here we are.” Maya
maneuvered the car onto a dirt road and negotiated a narrow bend.
She stopped in front of a small cottage covered with ivy on all
sides. “Home, sweet home!”

Arya removed his sunglasses, which he
had been wearing while pretending to be asleep--a perfect way to
study his stunningly elegant companion without her knowing about
it. After stepping out of the car, he stretched his arms high above
his head.

They had been on the road for four
hours without a break, but their destination was worth the long
travel. Behind the cottage, at a distance of less than two miles,
stood the majestic Mount Kenya, its ragged peaks covered in snow
and white fluffy clouds.

“
Wow!” he said, gaping at
the wondrous sight that met his eyes.

“
Kind of takes your breath
away, doesn’t it?” a voice called out.

Arya looked and there stood the man he
was searching for. Isaac Lois was seventy, if not more, but looked
fifty. A tall man, he was slightly stooped at the shoulders and had
a thick mass of white hair that reached down to his shoulders. His
face was sun-baked but there was a healthy glow to his skin. His
eyes were the same piercing blue as the overhead sky.

“
It sure does.” Arya smiled,
and walked up to shake his hand. “I’m a great admirer of your
work.”

“
Well, I am no celebrity,
but it’s kind of you to say so. Come in,” Isaac said.

Arya walked in, aware that Maya was
close behind him, observing his reactions, as he walked
inside.

“
This is one hell of a place
you live in,” Arya said, impressed by the cozy and warm décor of
the cottage, complemented by huge unadorned glass windows that
brought in the beauty of the landscape inside.

“
Well, if one has to retire,
might as well do it in style, don’t you think?” Isaac Lois motioned
for him to sit on the couch. He sat next to Arya.

“
You’re hardly retired.”
Maya sat on a straight-backed chair placed opposite the couch.
“You’re busier than most men I know.”

“
This and that. I try to
fill the day.”

“
Yeah right, and what is
that I hear of the safari you’ve started?”

“
What’s that?” Arya watched
the interaction between the two. There was clearly a lot of comfort
and love.

“
It’s a thing my boys have
started for the tourists who come to hike on Mount Kenya. The
ambitious ones go right to the top with professional guides, but
we’ve some staid ones who wish to enjoy the experience but don’t
want to climb all the way up. Leon and Zeba came up with the idea
of taking them on a two day trek around the highlands, combined
with some game watching, snake spotting and fishing in the streams.
It’s bringing in some tourists, to be sure,” Isaac said.

“
I hope you’re not going on
the trek yourself?” Maya said. There was a worried frown on her
forehead.

“
Don’t fuss so, I’m not dead
yet.” Isaac shifted in his seat. “I’ve been training the boys on
how to handle the big snakes in case they come across any dangerous
species. We don’t want any injured tourists now, do we?” Isaac
laughed off his granddaughter’s concerns, a twinkle in his eyes as
he talked about his beloved snakes. “Now, you two must be tired.
Maya, you know where your room is. And Mr. Manav,
right?”

“
Please call me
Arya.”

“
Well, come with me, Arya.”
Isaac stood. “I’ll show you to your room. Your cottage is right
next to my research lab.”

“
Wonderful.” Arya walked out
to take his luggage out of the car. He put Maya’s bags in her room
before taking his to the cottage. “Maybe I can get a tour of your
lab while we are at it?” he said to Isaac.

“
In a hurry, aren’t
you?”

“
No point in wasting time.”
He wanted to discuss the inagimi with Isaac as soon as possible.
Time was one thing he was short of. Archan would not tolerate any
delay or failure.

A while later, he was standing in
Isaac’s study.

Isaac poured coffee in his mug and took
a delicate sip. “Maya told me you are interested in myths and
folklore regarding African snakes?”

“
Yes, I’m,” he admitted.
He’d already taken the tour of the lab and found nothing unusual
about the place. “Are there any magical or spiritual myths
revolving around snakes you’ve heard of?” he said with a hopeful
note in his voice.