The Lost Scroll of Fudo Shin (28 page)

The clacking wheels rolled over the streets and then made turn after turn until Jimmy was thoroughly confused about where he might possibly be.  But whoever had just yanked him out of the danger he’d been in had to be friendly.  He still had his hanbo.  Unless, of course, they didn’t consider the stick too much of a threat.

But he didn’t think they’d leave him with anything if they were hostile.

So he decided to see where this all ended up before he thought about trying to take off on his own again.

The rickshaw navigated through throngs of people.  They were out in the busiest part of Thamel by the sound of it.  Mopeds sped past them and he could hear shouts, laughter, and the general din of the street life.

But no gunshots.

He relaxed and tried to stretch out some in the back of the rickshaw.

“Stop moving.”

Jimmy froze.  This was the first time he’d heard a voice so close to him.  Something about it seemed familiar, but then he decided that it was probably just the cloth material over his ears - which were still ringing from the thunderclap in the alley -  that had distorted his hearing.

The rickshaw turned down another street and then Jimmy thought he heard the sound of something opening in front of them, like some hydraulic garage door.  The rickshaw ran toward that noise and then everything changed.

The portal closed behind them and the sounds of Thamel seemed distant and far away.

The rickshaw slowed but continued forward until at last it drew up to a stop.  The rickshaw man put the carriage down and Jimmy felt himself rolling forward…

…into waiting hands.

“Easy.”

The cloth was taken off of his head and Jimmy blinked.  The first thing he saw was a large statue of Buddha and then the carefully manicured gardens that seemed almost copied from those in Japan.

“You okay?”

He turned and then broke into a smile.  Hideaki stared at him, concern on his face.  “Jimmy?”

Jimmy wriggled a finger in one of his ears and then heard Hideaki better.  “I’m glad to see you.”

Hideaki grinned.  “Sorry about that flash-bang.  We didn’t have much time to be gentle.”

“Flash-bang?”

“The flash and boom in the alley?  That was us.”

“Who’s us?”

"Me," said a softer voice.  Jimmy turned and saw Merlin's face staring into his own.  His heart ticked up a notch.

Merlin put a hand on his shoulder.  “You okay?”

Jimmy nodded.  “Uh...yeah.  Where are we?”

“The temple that Vanessa asked us to find.”

Jimmy frowned.  “When did she ask you to find it?  I didn’t hear her make any phone calls.”

Merlin grinned.  “Told you the kid was sharp.”

Hideaki smirked.  “Vanessa texted us when you guys were coming back down from the mountain.  We were already at the airport and caught an earlier flight over.”

Jimmy glanced around.  He saw no sign of Vanessa.  “Where is she?  We got split up.”

Hideaki held up his hand.  “She’s okay.  Got nicked by a gunshot and she’s being stitched up right now inside.”

“I want to see her.”

Merlin nodded.  “I don’t blame you.  This must all seem a bit weird.”

Jimmy shrugged.  “Not that I don’t trust you guys, but…”

“But you don’t quite trust us,” laughed Hideaki. “We understand.  The paranoia tends to come with the territory.  We’ll bring you to Vanessa.”

“Thanks.”  Jimmy tried to resist staring at Merlin.  How was it she was so beautiful even during times like this?  He kept his eyes lowered and followed the two of them.

They led him into the temple’s interior.  At the entrance, Merlin pointed to their shoes and they all removed them before filing inside.  They passed down a wide corridor with gleaming wood planks that seemed to have been polished by the socks and bare feet of thousands.

At the end of the corridor, they broke right and escorted Jimmy down through a set of screened doors.  Inside, Jimmy saw Vanessa and breathed a sigh of relief.

“We friends again, Jimmy?”  Merlin eyed Jimmy.

Vanessa waved at Jimmy and he exhaled.  “Yeah, sorry about that.”

“Forget it.”

Jimmy went over to Vanessa and squatted next to her.  “You all right?”

She nodded.  “One of those buggers tagged me is all.  In and out, fortunately.  I’m just getting patched up and I should be as good as new.”

A monk with a gleaming bald head tended to Vanessa’s arm, wrapping it in sterile white gauze.  “What you should do is rest, miss.”

Vanessa smiled.  “He’s been trying to get me to do that since Hideaki brought me in here.”

“How’d they find this place?”

Vanessa sighed.  “Benefits of having some extra friends around.  With Kotogawa’s people busy looking for us, Hideaki and Merlin were able to find this place.  Just in time, too, by the sound of it.”

“What happened after we got separated?”

Vanessa’s face clouded.  “I had to go on the offensive.  I figured if I jumped them, it would give you more time to escape.  I didn’t expect that they had another team in the area.  There were too many of them and I got shot in the process.  I barely made it out when I spotted Merlin and Hideaki.  We hustled out of there quick.”

“Hideaki grabbed me out of a tight spot.”

Hideaki spoke up.  “He had two of them closing in on him.  I haven’t seen them before.  Real pros by the look of it.”

“Kotogawa has escalated things,” said Vanessa.  She tested her arm and the bandage and nodded.  “Feels good.”

The monk eyed her carefully.  “You are not in pain?”

Vanessa laughed.  “Nothing I can’t handle.  And it’s certainly not the first time I’ve been injured.”

“But you should rest.”

She frowned.  “I’d love to.  Nothing sounds better, in fact.  But the truth is, this place won’t be immune from Kotogawa if they discover it.  They’ll burn this place to the ground and everyone in it if they find us here.”

Hideaki nodded.  “So what now?”

Jimmy looked around.  “If this is the temple then we ought to see about finding out where we’re headed to next.”

The monk looked at him.  He seemed only a few years older than Jimmy.  “And what is it you search for?”

Jimmy glanced at Vanessa quickly, but she only nodded.  “It’s okay, Jimmy.  They can be trusted.”

“The scrolls.”

The monk bowed his head.  “Then you must speak with Khampa. He will know the location of that which you seek.”

Jimmy stood up and looked around.  “Okay, where is he?”

Vanessa held up her hand.  “Jimmy, take it easy.  I didn’t mean we had to leave right this very moment.  Besides, these are friends and it would be rude of us to use their hospitality and then run away.”

“But-“

“We will speak with Khampa shortly.”

Jimmy looked at Hideaki and Merlin, but they only shrugged.  They took their cues from Vanessa and would do what she said.  

Vanessa flexed her arm one more time and then nodded to the monk.  “Thank you for your excellent care.”

He bowed his head and then collected the bloodstained cloths, gauze, and bowl of water.  He stood and then looked at Vanessa.  “I will inform Khampa that you would like to have an audience with him.”

“Thank you for your assistance.”

The monk exited quietly, disappearing down the shadowy corridor.  Vanessa looked at Jimmy.  “There’s a certain protocol we have to follow here, Jimmy.  Don’t be in such a rush.  It would be considered rude.”

Jimmy sighed.  “Sorry.  I just thought that it would be even more rude if Kotogawa finds us here and kills all these guys.”

Merlin smiled.  “He’s got a point.”

Vanessa frowned.  “Duly noted.  But we will observe tradition and await our audience.  Otherwise, they may suspect us of not being the proper ones to go after the scrolls.”

“You mean they wouldn’t tell us where they are?”

Vanessa shrugged.  “I don’t know what the deal here is.  I have no way of knowing if they are true allies or not.  A lot of these temples are content to simply inform and then watch how things play out, believing that whatever happens is the will of the universe.  Goro was a little shy on details.”

Jimmy chewed his lip.  “If that’s so, then what’s to stop them from telling Kotogawa’s people where the scrolls are?”

“I don’t know.”

“Which makes it even more important that we hurry up and get out of here,” said Jimmy.  “A race to the scrolls is the last thing we need right now.”

“You aren’t going to find the scrolls if you keep being rude,” said Vanessa.  “Just let things play out.”  She sighed.  “Besides, I don’t think the monks here would tell Kotogawa’s henchmen where to go.”

“No?”

“No.  I think they would only tell that secret to Kotogawa himself.”

Jimmy smiled but felt a jab of fear lance through his stomach.  “Which means what?  That Kotogawa would have to come here himself?”

“Something like that.”

More fear broke over Jimmy.  He’d never even met the man but just the thought of that much evil almost seemed too much for him to think about handling.  He felt slightly dizzy and then took a breath.  He had to keep it together.  The chances of Kotogawa coming here seemed remote.

The monk that had helped Vanessa returned.  “Khampa is most ready to see you now.”

The four of them started forward, but the monk held up his hand.  “I am sorry, but only the youngest of you is invited to converse with Khampa.”

Vanessa’s eyes widened.  “This is somewhat unexpected.”

“Nevertheless, it is Khampa’s wish that only one of you be permitted to speak with him.”

Vanessa nodded.  “All right then.”

Jimmy frowned.  “Wait a minute, don’t I get any say in this matter.  These are my friends….”

The monk bowed his head.  “I am sorry that is has to be this way, but Khampa was most insistent in this regard.”

Vanessa nudged Jimmy forward.  “It’s okay, Jimmy.  We'll wait here for you.”

“You sure?”

“There doesn’t seem to be much choice,” said Vanessa.  “Just be sure to mind your manners in there, all right?”

“Yeah.”  He looked at Vanessa, Merlin, and Hideaki and felt a pang of loneliness wash over him.  Why was he being singled out for this audience?  He didn’t know what to say to some monk.

“Are you ready?”

Jimmy looked back at the young monk.  “I guess so.”

“Then please follow me.”  The young monk turned and sped off down the darkened hallway.

Jimmy looked back one final time and then hustled after him.

Into the unknown.

Chapter Thirty-Two

Jimmy followed the young monk down the hallway.  Small candles flickered in their holders, casting dancing shadows about the corridor.  In the dim light, it was tough to make out the direction they traveled in, but Jimmy felt that they were getting deeper into the temple.

Finally, they emerged from the corridor and stepped into a small sitting room.  Jimmy saw two tea cups set up next to a small brazier that heated a tiny pot.

“We are just in time,” said the young monk.  “The water is just about ready to boil.”  He sat down and motioned for Jimmy to do the same.  Jimmy crossed his legs and watched as the young monk lifted the pot and poured the steaming water into the two cups.  Tiny crushed leaves caught the hot water and turned it a dark green.

“It will be hot when you first drink it, so please be careful.”  The monk handed one cup to Jimmy and then lifted his own to his lips, blew a few times and then took a sip.

Jimmy glanced around.  “Uh, I don’t mean to be rude, but will Khampa be joining us soon?”

The young smiled.  “He is already here.”

Jimmy whirled around almost spilling his tea.  But there was no one else in the room with them.  Jimmy looked back at the monk and frowned.  “Is this some kind of joke?”

“No joke.”

“But it’s just us here.”

“Indeed.”  The young monk took another sip of his tea.  “You should try the tea.  It’s quite good.  I grow the leaves here and then dry them before they’re suitable to use in this brew.  But they do wonders for the relaxation of the spirit.”

Jimmy brought the cup to his lips and blew once before sipping the scalding tea.  He recoiled from the heat but the flavor on his tongue was delicious.  “It is very good,” he said after a moment.

“Thank you.”

Jimmy took another breath and blew again on his tea.  This time when he tasted it, it didn’t scald his tongue.  He drank a deep sip and then put the cup down.  “I hope you will not think me rude, but-“

“-but you wish to know where Khampa is if I tell you he is here and yet you do not see him.”

“Well…”

“Trust your eyes, Jimmy Dolan.”

Jimmy frowned.  “How do you know my name?”

He shrugged.  “It’s not important to the conversation at hand.”  The monk’s eyes gleamed.  “You may call me Khampa.”

“You?”

“Yes.”

Jimmy almost grinned.  Surely, the monk had to be joking.  “But you’re...like, young.  You can’t be much older than me.”

“And how old are you?”

“Fourteen.”

Khampa smiled.  “Ah, yes.  I remember being fourteen.  An interesting age if I recall it correctly.”  He shrugged.  “Regardless, I am Khampa and you and I must talk now about more pressing matters than whatever age you believe me to be.”

“What matters?”

“Your quest to locate the scrolls that are also pursued by the man known as Kotogawa.”

“You know where they are?”

Khampa inclined his head.  “I know where the scrolls are, but I know not how to actually acquire them.”

Jimmy sighed.  “And what does that mean?”

Khampa grinned.  “I do recall now.  Fourteen was the age of being perpetually in a state of impatience.”

“Sorry.”  Jimmy took another sip of his tea.  “It’s just that this guy is out there after the scrolls and I think it’s pretty important that he not get his hands on them.”

“Why?”

“Why what?”

Khampa shrugged.  “Why should he not have them?  What gives you the right to possess them over Kotogawa?”

“He’s not a nice guy!”

Khampa smiled and Jimmy thought that for someone who looked so young, the smile seemed ancient.  “It always fascinates me that when we change our perspective, how much things change.”