“I suppose you wish the rest of your fee.”

Jack nodded. “Sounds good to me.”

He pulled the thick envelope out of his tunic and thrust it at Jack. Despite his prior conviction of the utter futility of his ever seeing the stolen necklace again, Kusum had kept the packet with him as a gesture of hope and of faith in the Goddess he prayed to. “I wish it were more. I don’t know how to thank you enough. Words cannot express how much—”

“It’s okay,” Jack said quickly. Kusum’s outpouring of gratitude seemed to embarrass him.

Kusum, too, was taken aback by the intensity of the emotions within him. He had completely given up hope. He had asked this man, a stranger, to perform an impossible task, and it had been done! He detested emotional displays, but his customary control over his feelings had slipped since the nurse had placed the necklace in his hand.

“Where did you find it?”

“I found the guy who stole it and convinced him to take me to it.”

Kusum felt his fist clench and the muscles at the back of his neck bunch involuntarily. “Did you kill him as I asked?”

Jack shook his head. “Nope. But he won’t be punching out old ladies for some time. In fact, he should be showing up in the emergency room here pretty soon to get something for the pain in his hands. Don’t worry. He’s been paid back in kind. I fixed it.”

Kusum nodded silently, hiding the storm of hatred raging across his mind. Mere pain was not enough, however—not nearly enough! The man responsible here must pay with his life!

“Very well, Mr. Jack. My… family and I owe you a debt of gratitude. If there is ever anything you need that is in my power to secure for you, any goal that is in my power to achieve, you have merely to ask. All efforts within the realm of human possibility”—he could not repress a smile here— “and perhaps even beyond, will be expended on your behalf.”

“Thank you,” Jack said with a smile and a slight bow. “I hope that won’t be necessary. I think I’ll be heading home now.”

“Yes. You look tired.” But as Kusum studied him, he sensed more than mere physical fatigue. There was an inner pain that hadn’t been present this morning… a spiritual exhaustion. Was something fragmenting this man? He hoped not. That would be tragic. He wished he could ask, but did not feel he had the right. “Rest well.”

He watched until the American had been swallowed by the elevator, then he returned to the room. The private duty nurse met him at the door.

“She seems to be rallying, Mr. Bahkti! Respirations are deeper, and her blood pressure’s up!”

“Excellent!” Nearly twenty-four hours of constant tension began to unravel within him. She would live. He was sure of it now. “Have you a safety pin?”

The nurse looked at him quizzically but went to her purse on the windowsill and produced one. Kusum took it and used it as a clasp for the necklace, then turned to the nurse.