“Here’s the thing. M. C. Joseph sent for me yesterday out of the blue. It was two at night. His brother-in-law came over in a jeep and told me Joseph wanted to see me right away. What could I do? How could I refuse? Joseph’s been like a brother to me. He’s done me some huge favors. Of course, I have done him some favors too. But it’s not about that. This is about our affection for each other. He feels better when he discusses things with me. So I went. And there he was, wide awake, out on the front porch and pacing like a bear! He told me what the matter was. I asked him just one thing: ‘Annachi, don’t you think it is insulting to me that you will be in so much anguish over such a small thing?’ He said, ‘No, it’s not like that. He is a tough guy, and I hear he has made some money recently, so he’s now got some influence too.’ I got so mad at that! ‘So? What do you propose to do? Do you want to declare bankruptcy and put on a loincloth?’ Those were my exact words. Joseph hemmed and hawed. So I asked him, ‘You are seated on top of an elephant. Why are you so scared about a barking dog?’ Then he said, ‘All right, all right. I won’t worry about this. Now that you have reassured me, I won’t let it bother me. You’ll see, I will be brave.’ Then I thought, I’ll speak to Dhamu and make sure I sort things out. That’s why I came here today . . .”

“And you couldn’t see Dhamu? He’s usually at the store by now.”

“This is all I want to tell him: ‘Look, assembly elections are coming up six months from now. We can get you a ticket there, and we can definitely make you win. But if you cross Chairman M. C. Joseph now, then you won’t find even a single ballot in your name, not even if you turn the ballot box upside down and give it a vigorous shake. So be a good boy now and withdraw your nomination for the municipal elections.’ I am going to have to be firm with him.”

“What if he says no?”

“The pen in my hand will take care of things. Someone once asked Napoleon which was mightier, the pen or the sword—”

Khader waved his hand impatiently. “Forget these old stories, Isakki. We need to focus on what we need to do now.”

Isakki refocused. “All it takes is a few choice headlines,” he said. “He’ll be ruined.”

“Well . . . we’ll see who is ruined. Him or M. C. Joseph.”

“The only way Joseph will be finished is if I die of a heart attack today!”