Read Online Touch of a Thief by Mia Marlowe - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Mia Marlowe
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order and made the streets of India safer. They worked to stop thuggery and put an end to the hateful practice of suttee, the custom of burning a man’s living widow with his corpse. Using the excuse that a red diamond incited one to commit murder would get short shrift in an English court.
“You think because a white man doesn’t know a thing, it hasn’t happened?” Sanjay cast him a sidelong glance. “For many lifetimes, Baaghh kaa kkhuun rested safe in the eye of Shiva, its evil quiet.”
Then the Thugs stole it for some reason. Several of them would never steal again thanks to him and Sanjay. “Are you trying to tell me the diamond compelled them to steal it?”
“No, but did you never wonder why those Thugs gave it up to the British so easily?” Sanjay asked.
“They gave it up for a serious amount of money.”
“Beshak. Of course,” he amended. Sanjay always tried to speak English to Quinn instead of reverting to his native Hindi. “They had to take the Angrezi money to avert suspicion. But the real reason they gave the diamond to your viceroy was so he would send it to your Queen. Once Baaghh kaa kkhuun resides in the royal treasury, it will call to her, as it calls to all people of power. Your Queen will demand to wear it always and it will destroy her. The Thugs have taken to heart the old proverb, you see.”
“Which proverb is that? A wise man knows jewelry always fits?”
“No.” Sanjay lifted a dark brow at him. “To kill a serpent, one must strike the head.”
Despite the fact that Sanjay compared the queen’s empire to a snake, Quinn preferred that scheme to get rid of the British in India over the fakirs’ cries for the sepoys to mutiny. A new bauble in the royal vault seemed unlikely to result in any actual bloodshed. If the sepoys revolted, hundreds, maybe thousands, would die before order was restored. The return of the red diamond to its rightful place might be all that was needed to show good faith and keep the sepoys from listening to the fakirs.
“Well then, if Baaghh kaa kkhuun is so dangerous to the touch, I’ll make sure Lady Viola wears gloves when she pinches it,” Quinn said.
Sanjay nodded approvingly. “Now you understand, sahib. But since she is a thief, I do not know if gloves will be sufficient. Did you not hear what happened to the thug who dug the diamond out of Shiva?”
Quinn shook his head.
“Even though he had wrapped it in cloth, he would not release the diamond”—Sanjay’s fist clutched tight in demonstration—“so his friends cut off his hand.”
“So they could sell it. Blood-thirsty bastards.”
“No, they did it to save his life. He could not release it. The diamond was feeding on his heart.”
Quinn didn’t believe a word of it, but a superstitious shudder passed over him.
“I will see what else may be done to protect Lady Viola from the jewel’s malevolence,” Sanjay promised. A sailor passed close by them, so Sanjay adopted a more correctly deferential posture. “Shall I clear your dinner away, sahib?”
“Yes.” Quinn turned back to the pitching sea. “And while you’re at it, see if there’s a spare hammock you can string up in the cabin for me. Even if Lady Viola were willing, that bunk is pretty narrow.” Nevertheless, Quinn envisioned several positions from the Kama Sutra that would allow them to share the small space quite happily. “But since she’s not willing, it seems I need other sleeping arrangements.”
Quinn waited another half hour before heading for the cabin. He wanted to give Sanjay time enough to clear out. The space was small enough for two people. Three made it difficult to draw breath.
The companionway was dark and he forgot how low the beams were in places until he smacked his forehead on one. He walked the rest of the way in a half crouch, hand on his head, till he reached the cabin door.
No light showed through the crack under the door.
He pushed his way in, pleased to find the porthole
“You think because a white man doesn’t know a thing, it hasn’t happened?” Sanjay cast him a sidelong glance. “For many lifetimes, Baaghh kaa kkhuun rested safe in the eye of Shiva, its evil quiet.”
Then the Thugs stole it for some reason. Several of them would never steal again thanks to him and Sanjay. “Are you trying to tell me the diamond compelled them to steal it?”
“No, but did you never wonder why those Thugs gave it up to the British so easily?” Sanjay asked.
“They gave it up for a serious amount of money.”
“Beshak. Of course,” he amended. Sanjay always tried to speak English to Quinn instead of reverting to his native Hindi. “They had to take the Angrezi money to avert suspicion. But the real reason they gave the diamond to your viceroy was so he would send it to your Queen. Once Baaghh kaa kkhuun resides in the royal treasury, it will call to her, as it calls to all people of power. Your Queen will demand to wear it always and it will destroy her. The Thugs have taken to heart the old proverb, you see.”
“Which proverb is that? A wise man knows jewelry always fits?”
“No.” Sanjay lifted a dark brow at him. “To kill a serpent, one must strike the head.”
Despite the fact that Sanjay compared the queen’s empire to a snake, Quinn preferred that scheme to get rid of the British in India over the fakirs’ cries for the sepoys to mutiny. A new bauble in the royal vault seemed unlikely to result in any actual bloodshed. If the sepoys revolted, hundreds, maybe thousands, would die before order was restored. The return of the red diamond to its rightful place might be all that was needed to show good faith and keep the sepoys from listening to the fakirs.
“Well then, if Baaghh kaa kkhuun is so dangerous to the touch, I’ll make sure Lady Viola wears gloves when she pinches it,” Quinn said.
Sanjay nodded approvingly. “Now you understand, sahib. But since she is a thief, I do not know if gloves will be sufficient. Did you not hear what happened to the thug who dug the diamond out of Shiva?”
Quinn shook his head.
“Even though he had wrapped it in cloth, he would not release the diamond”—Sanjay’s fist clutched tight in demonstration—“so his friends cut off his hand.”
“So they could sell it. Blood-thirsty bastards.”
“No, they did it to save his life. He could not release it. The diamond was feeding on his heart.”
Quinn didn’t believe a word of it, but a superstitious shudder passed over him.
“I will see what else may be done to protect Lady Viola from the jewel’s malevolence,” Sanjay promised. A sailor passed close by them, so Sanjay adopted a more correctly deferential posture. “Shall I clear your dinner away, sahib?”
“Yes.” Quinn turned back to the pitching sea. “And while you’re at it, see if there’s a spare hammock you can string up in the cabin for me. Even if Lady Viola were willing, that bunk is pretty narrow.” Nevertheless, Quinn envisioned several positions from the Kama Sutra that would allow them to share the small space quite happily. “But since she’s not willing, it seems I need other sleeping arrangements.”
Quinn waited another half hour before heading for the cabin. He wanted to give Sanjay time enough to clear out. The space was small enough for two people. Three made it difficult to draw breath.
The companionway was dark and he forgot how low the beams were in places until he smacked his forehead on one. He walked the rest of the way in a half crouch, hand on his head, till he reached the cabin door.
No light showed through the crack under the door.
He pushed his way in, pleased to find the porthole
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