Meeting Max Read online

  “Are you going to get me some?”

  “Some what?”

  “Tea, of course. Masala.”

  “Oh, sorry.” He was still in shock. “What else would you like?”

  “Just tea for now.”

  Rick couldn’t take his eyes off her. He even forgot to order her tea. They sat and held each other’s hands across the table.

  “Rick, I have to tell you, I’ve been here for breakfast many times, and I know Mrs.Vidya quite well. She’s a very nice woman. She used to own a restaurant with her husband a short distance from here for over forty years. Their restaurant was the highlight of Jaisalmer. She did the cooking and he was ‘Mr. Personality’. They shared a deep love for each other all those years, but he died recently and she moved to this apartment to live and cook breakfast for people. I don’t think business is great for her. There’s hardly anyone here when I come in. Everything she cooks is delicious, though. The naan and tikka masala are the best.”

  “Something must have drawn me to this place today,” Rick said, shaking his head. “It was destiny. What a wonderful surprise. I’m still halfway in the dream.”

  “A beautiful surprise,” Elena said, glowing. “I’ve thought of you so much. I never expected to ever see you.”

  “Well, there must be some reason our paths haven’t crossed after we left each other at the airport. I couldn’t figure it out. I thought about you a lot. Why we didn’t meet in Delhi…Was there any reason that—”

  “We have now, Rick. We have now.” She glanced away, sighed, and bit her lip.

  Rick felt something was troubling her. “We can get to the reason another time. I’m not in a hurry. Maybe I thought of you so much that the universe conspired to bring us together. I read about that somewhere.”

  “We must have been thinking of each other a lot in order to get the universe involved.”

  Rick looked at her. The circles under her eyes were new. She looked tired, stressed, but still beautiful. Mrs. Vidya arrived with her small green pad and Elena wrote:

  Paratha bread with butter, masala chai.

  “I know so little about you, Elena. Yet it doesn’t matter. We’re so much alike. What matters is you’re here.”

  “We can share some time together in Jaisalmer. Will you be in town for a while?”

  Rick thought for a moment. She said that too casually. He wasn’t sure what she meant by some time. Was she going to disappear again?

  “I’ll be in town, and you better not run off on me,” Rick said.

  “I won’t. I promise. I need you in my life right now, especially now.”

  “I can tell there’s something going on. I feel it.”

  “Yes, there is,” she said with a serious expression. “Maybe the universe put you in this spot for a good reason. I’ll never think of the universe the same way again.”

  “Neither will I. We came to India for reasons of our own. We should be more open.”

  “We will. Where have you been?” Elena asked.

  “Delhi. That was the culture shock of the century for me. I stayed with Rohit and Lubna, had my meals with them, and learned a lot about India. We talked about the problems between Muslims, Hindus, and partition.”

  “Well, you can skip those topics with me.” Elena crossed her arms. “I just want to relax. Something brought us together again. Some force—something. I mean, India is a big country with over a billion people, yet here we are.”

  “Whatever the reason, we’re together. Nothing is going to change that.”

  “Nothing will. I promise you. Trust me this time,” Elena said.

  “I will. One more thing, I don’t know why I’m bringing this up now, but I did have somewhat of a spiritual experience since I’ve been here.”

  “You? Mr. Atheist? Tell me.”

  “You’ll have to wait. I want to make sure to keep you interested so I won’t lose you again.”

  She laughed. ”You won’t, I promise. We’ll keep your spiritual experience in mind for next time. I may have to leave soon, so tell me some of the things you’ve done since you got here.”

  “I made friends with an auto rickshaw driver. He was young and has a great sense of humor. We went everywhere together in Delhi. He helped me search for the person I briefly mentioned on the plane. I’d like to talk about it when we can.” Rick leaned forward, taking Elena’s hands in his. “I won’t be so cryptic about it. I want to tell you the whole story. Maybe you can help me.”

  “I want to hear it,” Elena said, squeezing his hands. “It’s first on our list when we meet again. Where did you go after Delhi?”

  “I went to Agra and stayed at Colonel Mehatra’s homestay, went to the Taj, of course, then to Jaipur, where I met my friend, Lalit, who I knew from the States. We drove to Ranthambhore, then...”

  “Hey, slow down again. Sounds like a travelogue. I’ve never been to Ranthambhore. Put that on our list too. I want to hear about it in slow motion.”

  “We better be seeing a lot of each other so I can take a long time telling you about it.”

  “We will, Rick. Stop being so worried about me going off again. Trust me. So, you haven’t found the person you were searching for?”

  “No, not yet, but I get the feeling something is bothering you. Something deep down inside.”

  Elena stood up. She made it seem casual, but Rick could tell it was anything but. “I have to leave now, but maybe we can meet for dinner and talk.”

  Rick shook his head slightly from side to side. “I’m going to lose you again.”

  “You won’t. I will give you my mobile number.” She wrote it down on a napkin and handed it to him. “You can call it now, right here, while you’re still with me.”

  “Okay, I believe you. I’m just sorry we didn’t connect in Delhi.”

  “There was a reason for that.” Elena lowered her head. “I lied to you. Did you ever lie, Rick? Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked that. Knowing you, you probably never did. Trust me when I say it was for a good reason and I give you my word I will explain everything when we meet later. Just be patient with me. You won’t lose me now. You have my number.

  “Where would you like to meet tonight? Trust me, I will be there. I’m staying at the Fort Rajwada hotel.”

  Rick squeezed her hand. “You have my trust. Why don’t you come to my guesthouse? Two brothers run it and there’s a rooftop restaurant with good food. It’s called Jalmir House. I can pick you up if that’s better for you.”

  “Is the place you’re staying outside the Golden Fort?”

  “Yes.”

  “That’s good. I’ll meet you there. Jalmir House?”

  “Yes, the driver will know where it is.”

  “I’ll find it. Seven o’ clock, okay?”

  “That’s great. I’ll meet you on the rooftop. You have my mobile number. Don’t lose it.”

  “I promise I won’t. Would you mind if I left separately now, before you?”

  “Of course not,” he said, wondering why.

  They kissed briefly and said goodbye. Rick felt the warmth of her lips linger on his cheek like soft velvet.

  He left Mrs. Vidya’s place shortly after. He was beaming.

  Did luck bring us together again? How could that be? What was the likelihood of that happening? True, India is a large country, but she did mention Jaisalmer when we first met.

  Rick took the fifteen-minute walk back to Jalmir house and stopped to look at a large ceramic image of the Hindu god, Ganesh, that filled one side of the entranceway. Ganesh was portrayed in a very colorful manner with four arms and the head of an elephant.

  Rick turned his head to see Jalish pulling up on his motorcycle. He asked Rick if he could take him somewhere. Rick said he just got back from breakfast at the fort.

  “Where is it you went?” Jalish asked, talking over the engine noise.

  “I don’t remember the name of the place. It was in a woman’s apartment. Her name was Mrs. Vidya.”

  Jalish turned o
ff the engine and walked to the entrance of the guesthouse, where Rick was standing. “Oh, I am so glad you met her,” Jalish said enthusiastically. “She is a nice woman and very well known in Jaisalmer. You have indeed met a very special person. Jamir and I know her from when we were children. Our family went to their restaurant on special occasions, and always on Diwali, which is like your Christmas.

  “The restaurant was still inside the fort, not far from where her apartment is now. I’m still friendly with their son, Meher. He is a medical officer in the IAF and is posted at the military base right here near the airport in Jaisalmer.”

  “Well, she cooked a very good breakfast.”

  “Yes, indeed. It comes slow, but no one cooks as good. I see you’re enjoying our ceramic Ganesh on the wall.”

  “Yes, I can’t stop looking at it. I don’t know what it symbolizes, but it must have a lot of deep meaning. I have seen it in many places.”

  “Ganesh, or also Ganesha, represents prosperity, but there are many stories about Ganesh, and a myth I remember hearing as a child.”

  “Tell me about it. I love myths.”

  “Ganesh is a Hindu god. Many people believe the myth.”

  “You mean like Santa Claus?”

  “No, kind sir, definitely no. Ganesh is maybe something like in your bible. Some people believe it and others don’t, but it is known well in India that Ganesh represents many things. He is known as the gatekeeper.”

  “Gatekeeper? Why?”

  Jalish began to speak as if he were telling a fairy tale. “Ganesh is the god of good fortune. The story goes that Lord Shiva, the Hindu God of death and destruction, was away at war. His wife, Pavarti, wanted to have a bath, but she had no one to guard the door to keep her privacy, so she decided to instantly conceive a full-grown son to do that for her. So Ganesh was created.”

  “Instant immaculate conception?” Rick smiled.

  Ganesh shook his head. “It’s better to not be so literate, so you can let the myth flow. Gods and goddesses have the power to do those things.”

  “Okay, sorry.”

  “Ganesh guarded the door to the bath and was told not to let anyone in until she said it was all right. When the Lord Shiva returned from the war and wanted to enter the room where Pavarti was bathing, Ganesh did not allow it. Shiva was enraged by Ganesh’s impudence, drew his sword, and cut off Ganesh’s head.”

  “Hmm. His own son? But he didn’t know it. Why the elephant head?”

  “Well, Pavarti opened the door of the bath to find Ganesh decapitated and flew into a rage. Shiva was upset with Pavarti’s rage, but she made Shiva sorry for what he did. She made him swear to make amends by taking the head of the first living thing he saw and use it to replace Ganesh’s head.

  “The first living thing to pass was an elephant, so Shiva took the head from the elephant and placed it on Ganesh’s body. That is why Ganesh is pictured with an elephant’s head, and because of his role as protector of Parvarti’s door, he is now associated in Hindu culture as someone who protects entrances, a gatekeeper, or remover of obstacles.”

  “Interesting. How did Pavarti create her son? I know she’s a goddess, but did she just will it?”

  “The story goes,” Jalish related in a soft tone, “that she made a figurine from the turmeric paste that she used to cleanse her body and she infused life into it.”

  “Interesting. I remember when I was in the Hindu temple in Jaipur, I watched a show about Lakshmi, goddess of wealth and prosperity. It was very dramatic, with flaming torches, drums, and smoke. I also saw a statue or something about Ganesh somewhere in the temple. Why do Lakshmi and Ganesh each have four arms?”

  “Four arms represent omnipresence. Ganesh was in the Hindu temple with you because he is everywhere. I am a Hindu, but I don’t know everything about Hinduism. It is very complicated and what I know is very little. Ganesh’s potbelly means that he is all-encompassing. The four arms represent the mind, intellect, the ego, and something else that I don’t remember. Also the four arms represent the idea of four directions, which symbolize that Ganesh is everywhere,” Jalish said with a huge grin on his face. “So Ganesh is worshipped on Diwali to remove all obstacles and Lakshmi is worshipped to give us a comfortable life, each requiring four arms to do it.”

  Despite his disbelief in the existence of God, Rick acknowledged there was a space in his thinking he was never able reach. He realized it when he was alone in the desert. Jalish got him thinking about spirituality, even if the story of Ganesh was a myth, but for Rick to be in India and not learn something about the spirituality of the people would leave a gaping hole in his understanding of Indian culture. There are many religions in India, mostly Hindus in the north, but also Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Jains, and Buddhists.

  Keeping it simple in his own mind, he understood that, for Hindus, everything was God. For Muslims, everything belonged to God. For Jains, God was the perfect being, and for Sikhs, God was the universe itself. It would take a lifetime for Rick to begin to completely understand those differences.

  He looked forward to meeting Elena that night.

  Chapter 19

  Everything about the small, casual rooftop restaurant was romantic. With its cushioned seats and couches, candlelit tables, and roof open to the stars, it could be nothing else.

  Rajeev, a slim, clean-shaven Indian waiter, greeted Rick. He looked so young without a mustache.

  “Namaste, would you be liking a couch, sir, tonight? I know you prefer it,” he said in his lilting Indian accent.

  “Yes, thank you, Rajeev. I’m expecting a guest, so if you would bring the menus, we’ll order when the lady arrives. By the way, how old are you?”

  “Oh, sir, you want to know at what age I will be turning?”

  “Yes. I’m just curious. You look so young.”

  “I will be nineteen years of age when January arrives.”

  “That’s a good age, thank you.”

  “You are most welcome, sir.”

  Rick stood when he saw Elena at the top of the staircase and gazed at her until their eyes met. She was stunning. Elena’s blonde curls appeared to be frivolously tossed around her face. She wore a colorful paisley silk top that flowed to the top of her dark blue jeans, showing a braided brown leather belt.

  “Namaste, Rick,” she said with a huge smile. “Our paths cross again.”

  “They do indeed, and will many times,” Rick said, trying to act cool. “Namaste, Elena.”

  She sat next to him, took his hand, and held it on the red and white checkered tablecloth. Rajeev appeared.

  “Mr. Rick sir, madam, would you be liking something to drink?”

  “Elena?” Rick said, looking at her and smiling.

  “How about a Kingfisher. It’s still the best beer in India.”

  “Two Kingfishers please, Rajeev. Also, please bring us an appetizer. Your famous small vegetable samosas,” Rick added.

  “Shukriya, sir, madam.” Rajeeve bowed.

  Rick looked at Elena. Her face glowed in the candlelight. “So there you were, on the plane with me for almost a full day, then poof, gone.”

  “Yeah, sorry about that,” Elena said, running her fingers through her hair. “I’ll explain later, but first tell me what’s going on with you, and let’s start from that quick hug we shared at the airport in Delhi.”

  “Oy vey,” Rick said with a bit of a Yiddish accent. “It’s a long story.”

  “I’m here for the night.”

  “Well, after I left you, I thought about the person who picked you up. The car didn’t look like a hotel car. I wondered about it.”

  “Yeah, again, I’m sorry about that, but go on.”

  “I took an auto rickshaw to Rohit and Lubna’s place. Tried to sleep, but the jet lag hung on. I don’t want to go into every detail.”

  “Awww, please. A few details at least. I want to know.”

  “Okay. The next morning, after a good breakfast with the family, I went to the Lodi Gardens.”


  “I love that place,” Elena said, wide-eyed. “It’s a great respite to get away from the madness of the city. Maybe the two of us can take a Tiffin box full of sandwiches and have lunch there.”

  “That would be wonderful,” Rick said, squeezing her hand tighter.

  Rajeev returned with their Kingfishers and a basket of poppadums along with a platter of vegetable mini-samosas.

  “Rick, I haven’t had small samosas since we were on the plane. It feels like we’re really picking up where we left off.”

  “It does, and I want it to go on.”

  Instead of reassuring him, she merely smiled sweetly and sipped her drink. “Tell me more about Delhi.”

  Rick heaved a deep sigh. “This might be a good time to tell you the reason I’m in India.”

  “Your secret, yes. You were searching for someone. Tell me.”

  “When I was eighteen, I was a student at NYU and I had a girlfriend named Julie who was studying nursing. I was a political science major.

  “I thought you were a biologist.”

  “That was after I discovered political science wasn’t for me. Anyway, Julie and I were very much in love. She came from a small town in upstate New York.” He sipped his beer. “Well, here goes. She got pregnant and we decided to give the baby up for adoption.”

  “Oh my God, why?”

  “Times were different then. People didn’t live together so much without being married, not like now, where different living arrangements are acceptable.”

  “You loved each other, so what was the problem?”

  “We came from different backgrounds. Julie was Catholic, and I’m Jewish. The details are too involved, but briefly, Julie was killed in an automobile accident almost two years ago.”

  Elena covered her mouth and squeezed his hand. “Oh my God, I’m so sorry.” She paused and took a deep breath. “And then?” She whispered.

  “It tore me apart. I was driven to find my son, Eric, the only one on Earth who is a combination of both of us. I learned he is working in India and has a son named Maxwell who is living back in the States. What I told you is the short version.”