The Deadly Conch Read Free Page B

family! She had nothing to worry about except Layla. Tara repeated this over and over again, but it gave no comfort at all.
    Her mind returned to her dream and she shuddered. Not one, but three of the most evil people she had ever known were haunting her. But two of them were gone forever. Or were they? She pushed the thought out of her head and focused on something else that nagged at her. The second scream? Now that she thought about it, she was sure it wasn’t in her head. Who had it been?
    â€œPsssst.” The sound came from behind the low wall which circled their courtyard at the back of the house.
    Tara sat up, straining to see who it was. A snake? An intruder? Layla? Her heart slammed against her ribcage.
    â€œPsssssssssssssst.” She heard it again. More insistent this time. And then someone whispered. “Tara, it’s me.”
    Gayatri-ma! Tara jumped off the cot and raced barefoot to the edge of the courtyard. She opened the rickety wooden door as quietly as she could and peered out.
    There stood Gayatri, a ghostly apparition in her white saree. Her eyes had a hunted look. In one hand she clutched a pooja-thali. The other fluttered at her throat like a trapped bird.
    â€œIs everything all right?” asked Tara. “Ananth? Is he —”
    â€œYou have to come with me, now!” Gayatri-ma’s voice trembled. “Quick, wear your mojris and follow me.”
    Tara raced back to the cot. She slipped her feet into the mojris, taking care to shake them out first. Scorpions, spiders, even tiny snakes were known to crawl into shoes during the night and bite the toes of a person foolish enough to slip her foot inside before checking.
    Tara’s head whirled with a million questions, making her dizzy. Whatever it was, it must be serious. The usually serene Gayatri was definitely rattled. But what or who could have scared her so much?
    Tara looked around for the gold and green dupatta she had curled up with that night, but it was nowhere to be seen. She was tempted to run inside the house and get another. Leaving without it made her feel as if she was half-clad.
    â€œHurry, Tara!” whispered Gayatri-ma from the doorway. “Before the sun rises and the rest of the villagers awake. We have to go now .”
    Tara heard the deadly fear in Gayatri-ma’s voice and decided to skip the dupatta. Hopefully she’d be back before any of the village gossips awoke and accused her of running around improperly attired. Now that she was thirteen she was considered to be a young woman and expected to act her age and dress accordingly.
    â€œWhere are we going?” said Tara. Gayatri had set off down the road at a fast clip, darting fearful looks around her. It was just before dawn and no one was about.
    â€œGanesh temple,” said Gayatri. A hare streaked past them suddenly and they both stopped in the middle of the road, watching it go. A faint breeze lifted the edge of the saree that always covered Gayatri-ma’s face and the full moon shone on it. Tara gaped at her. She looked so young, so beautiful. Somehow, it seemed like she was looking at Ananth’s mother for the first time. In spite of the urgency of the moment, Tara couldn’t help the sadness that filled her at the thought of Gayatri-ma’s joyless existence.
    â€œDid you go to the Ganesh Temple last night?” said Gayatri suddenly.
    Tara jerked out of her reverie. “No.”
    â€œAre you sure? You better tell me the truth!”
    â€œI am telling the truth!” said Tara. “I had no reason to go anywhere. I was so tired, I didn’t even change before falling asleep. I woke up screaming because of a bad dream and then I think … I think I heard another scream. But I’m sure I must have imagined it.”
    Gayatri swallowed and shook her head. “That was me. And we’re very, very lucky that no one else heard the scream. We better hurry. There’s something you need to