Read Online Mosquito by Roma Tearne - Free Book Online Page B

said, clearly thinking he did not recognise her. ‘You live at Sumaner House, don’t you?’
    Vikram nodded. Nulani Mendis fumbled in her satchel. She took out a small battered notebook.
    ‘Look,’ she said, showing him a drawing.
    She was laughing. He could see her teeth, white and very even. Vikram took the book reluctantly. Then, in spite of himself, he too grinned. It was a picture of a teacher no one liked. Nulani Mendis had drawn a caricature, catching his likeness perfectly. Suddenly, Vikram felt shy. The girl was standing close to him. He could smell a faint perfume.
    ‘You’re good,’ he ventured at last, hesitantly.
    For some reason she scared him. There was an air of determination, a certainty about her that confused him. He felt as though she might ask him for something he could not give. He saw she was still smiling at him and again he felt an urge to run away. Then he noticed that close up she was even prettier than she had appeared from a distance. Tongue-tied, he continued to stare at her, hardly aware she was still speaking.
    ‘Has your brother gone to the UK?’ he asked finally, with some difficulty, not understanding and wanting to distract her.
    The girl shook her head. ‘Not yet,’ she said.
    She smiled again, but this time it was she who hesitated. Then she seemed to withdraw slightly. He thought she appeared older than he remembered, and he saw her eyes were very dark and deep and sad. They seemed full of other puzzling and unnamed things. He stared at her for a moment longer and nodded. Then, making up his mind, he loped off.
    That afternoon, after he had finished his target practice with the silencer on the gun, Gerard told Vikram he had something important to say.
    ‘First,’ he said, ‘well done!’ He took the gun from Vikram. ‘Congratulations! You’ve worked hard and as a reward I shall take you on a little operation with me at the end of the month. If you do well at that, there will be bigger and more interesting assignments ahead, OK? And then, in a few months’time you will go to the Eastern province for something extremely important.’
    ‘What?’ asked Vikram. ‘The Eastern province? Isn’t that where the Tigers are trained?’
    ‘Vikram,’ said Gerard, ‘you must learn not to ask too many questions. You’ll be told everything. But, all in good time. Don’t ask questions. You aren’t going to be an ordinary member of the Tigers, believe me. You are both intelligent and a good shot. So now you’re going to be trained for something top class. Trust me, men.’
    ‘When?’ demanded Vikram.
    ‘Patience, patience,’ said Gerard, holding up his hands mockingly, shaking his head. ‘Patience is what’s required now. We’ve both waited a long time to prepare you for this. Don’t ruin things. I promise you the time is coming when you will avenge your family. I fully understand how you must feel. Just wait a little longer. And for heaven’s sake, Vikram,’ he added, ‘do me a favour. Go back to school for your exams. You don’t want to attract any notice at this stage. If the Mendis girl knows you’re absent, then others will too.’
    Vikram picked up the gun and held it below his crotch. He stroked the tip of the barrel. He laughed, a high-pitched out-of-control scurrilous screech.
    ‘That’s enough,’ said Gerard sharply. ‘Put it down. It’s not a toy. You can have all the things you want if you show restraint. You’ve been earmarked for great things. Now, go back to school.’
    Gerard was aware that underneath his silent exterior Vikram was coiled like a spring. He knew whatever simmered in Vikram was dangerously near the surface. And that it was best to keep a tight control over him. Just in case.
    A few days after his exams, Vikram saw the Mendis girl once more. She did not see him. She was hurrying in the directionof the beach. Interested, he decided to follow her. He watched her body move darkly beneath the lime-green skirt, in the sunlight. Her hair