But I couldn’t get the image out of my mind. That terrified little girl staring into my eyes. Terrified of those sweaty men vying for the right to take her innocence. Terrified of me, too. Not even losing Sushmita forever would haunt me the same way. I knew I couldn’t live with myself if I did nothing to avenge the fear and horror that child had endured that night.

I was aware that my decision to betray Willy Smets was, in part, selfish. It was a way to rid my conscience of at least a small measure of the guilt I felt for my gutless behavior. I could have tried to save that girl. And, yes, I most likely would have been slaughtered for my interference. But I’d let her go to her sentence without a word. She was a child, for God’s sake. And I was nothing but a coward. Just days before, I’d been living in a dream, hiding from the world and its evils so I could enjoy my own selfish pursuits in the arms of a woman. A woman who might well have been even more craven than I was.

FRIDAY, AUGUST 1, 1975, 6:03 P.M.

Sushmita met me at Poona Junction alone. Willy was busy. She was smooth and easy, no emotions, as if we were merely acquaintances, until we got inside the car. There, she slapped the dashboard hard and demanded to know what the hell I was doing.

“I lost my job,” I said. “I needed some help.”

“And you thought of Willy? Mad or what? We’ll be discovered and everything will be ruined.”

I assured her that it was temporary, that I could handle the situation. And we’d at least be able to see each other.

“If you mean to sleep with me, you’re mistaken,” she said, throwing the car into gear and pulling away from the parking spot. “Not here. We can’t risk it.”

I noticed she hadn’t ruled out sleeping with her elsewhere.

“Danny Boy!” said Willy at the door.

He wrapped his arms around me in a great bear hug. Yes, I felt a pang of guilt as he did. Guilt about Sushmita. But then I conjured the image of the little girl in Kamathipura. That was all the inspiration I needed. Now the thought of betraying him gave me pleasure. A delicious, righteous pleasure. I relished the prospect of helping to put him away for his crimes and, if the breaks went my way, I’d get Sushmita, too. I didn’t really care about the drugs or the alcohol smuggling or, for that matter, the prostitution, provided it involved willing adults. But I drew the line deep in the sand when it came to little girls. And, for all I knew, he might have traded in little boys as well.