For centuries now I had been working on a way to free my son Dhiren. For years I had traced his steps to the Maurizio Circus where he had to be in their performances. This wasn't a particularly bad place for a tiger to be, but he still needed to escape. One afternoon while I was on the veranda with a lunch of vegetables, steaming white rice, and curry I received a call. I nearly jumped out of my chair when I heard Dhiren's voice.
"Mr. Kadam, is that you?"
"Yes Dhiren it is me, how did you reach me?"
"I was somehow able to become a human for a short amount of time, I got out of my cage and asked a circus employee to help me place a call".
"Thank goodness you memorized my number, I shall fly to Oregon immediately and I shall come up with a plan to free you and bring you back home to India."
"Wonderful! However there is one slight thing you also need to take care of. I have made a friend at the circus as a tiger, it is like she sees through the beast to the man who I am through my eyes. She visits me and reads me books, she even drew a sketch of me in her journal. I believe it is because of her that I was able to become a man again after not being able to for so long. It may be too soon to say for sure….. But I think she is Durga's chosen one, her name is Kelsey Hayes. I was greatly hoping that you could arrange to bring her back with us if at all possible."
"All right Ren, I shall try my very best and try to be in Oregon within the next 3 days. Good bye."
"Goodbye Mr. Kadam, thank you so much."
"Anytime Ren, and it seems I have a young women to meet."
Over the next 2 days I made arrangements to go to Oregon to pick them both up in my private Tiger Airlines Plane. Whenever something like this comes up I tend to excessively work and I get lack of sleep. The only thing I was missing was how to get them out. When I was doing business online I discovered an ad for a tiger reserve not far from here in India. It suddenly struck me that it was how I could get them both out.
The next day I entered my private plane while I hammered out the final details for my plan to take action. I made my plan and took the time on the rest of the flight to take a nap.
When I arrived in Oregon I arranged for a rental car to be brought to the airport. A beautiful Bentley GTC Convertible, my tastes always went toward the best of vehicles. I got into the car and smiled to myself as it purred when I put the keys in. I arrived at the circus in the afternoon, and decided I should locate where Ren is and tell him my plan for his escape.
I found him in a large tent off to the side of the fair grounds among all the colorful tents. I swept aside the curtain and saw the brilliant eyes of my white tiger. I walked over to his cage and petted him through the bars. I softly whispered to him my plan, and when I was finished I was interrupted by a kind voice.
""Hello? Can I help you?" she queried.
I could only assume that this was the girl that Ren had described in great detail to me over the phone. She had a chocolate brown hair, and beautiful eyes that looked like a dows.
"Hello! You must be Miss Kelsey. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Anik Kadam. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." I said as I gave her a bow.
"Yes, I'm Kelsey. Is there something I can do for you?"
"Perhaps there is something you can do for me." I spoke warmly before my request of her.
"I would like to speak to the owner of your circus about this magnificent animal."
I could see a little confusion on her pretty face before she replied.
"Sure, Mr. Maurizio is in the back of the main building in the black motor home. Do you want me to take you there?" She kindly offered.
"No need to trouble yourself, my dear. But, thank you kindly for the offer. I will go and see him immediately." I said as I turned on my heel and gave her one last kind look before I quietly closed the curtain behind me. I followed her directions and found the circus director having a quick afternoon snack of caramel apple slices. As I approached him outside the trailer he stood and shook hands with me.
"Welcome to the Circus Maurizio! As you probably know my name is Mr. Maurizio." Her said warmly.
I replied with a smile " It is a pleasure to meet your acquaintance Mr. Maurizio. My name is Mr. Kadam and I am here on a business matter that brought me to your lovely circus."
"Well then my friend, if it is business we shall discuss, then we shall discuss it in the privacy of my trailer." He said as he strolled into his trailer expecting me to follow. I stepped through the doorway and I viewed hundreds of his circus ads with pictures of his performers all over the wall.
"I see you are very proud and fond of your little circus family here." I commented politely.
"Ha, so I am. You are a very intelligent man Mr. Kadam, I love my job and my circus family very dearly. But now we shall talk of business…." He was interrupted by a knock on the trailer door.
It opened and a young man poked his head in, he quickly introduced himself as Mr. Maurizio's grandson. He told him his news about the performance later and then Mr. Maurizio told him that we were to discuss business and for us not to be disturbed. That he would join the circus for dinner and announce what had happened. Then the boy left and Mr. Maurizio turned back to me.
"Now, why have you come to my circus to discuss business?" He asked.
"I am a humble business man who lives in India" I replied. "Recently I have been scouring the world looking for tigers to bring them to a wildlife reserve and protection center back in India." I have heard of your beautiful tiger Dhiren and I wish to bring him to the reserve so that he might have a better life, and at the same time hope to increase the wild tiger population." I spoke matter of factly.
Thankfully for me, Mr. Maurizio was a very kind and generous person. After a series of questions and reassurances I convinced him to let me take the tiger after the weeks shows were over. I then had one more matter to settle.
"The only thing missing is an assistant" I said softly. "I confess I do not know how to take care of a tiger. Perhaps I could borrow that lovely girl of yours that takes care of the tiger and bring her with me to care for him while we settle him in the reserve. I have met kelsey, and she seems to have a special bond with your tiger." I said mesmerized. "For this I would offer you a great sum of money if you let me take her from your service. I know other circus attendants are more experienced with caring for your tiger."
"Well, I can see you are a man that is not turned away easily Mr. Kadam." He said at last. "How much money are you offering us to take both the tiger and Kelsey, if she agrees, to go with you?" He inquired.
"I am willing to offer you money to provide for your circus, for an entire two years." I said with a flare.
"It seems I cannot snub a generous offer such as yours my friend, and so it shall be. Are we in agreement over theses terms?"
"We are." I replied.
"Then it is settled! He exclaimed. I insist you stay join our circus family for dinner while I make our announcement." He spoke enthusiastically.
"Very well, I shall join you." I said graciously.
"Then we shall go." He said as he walked out the door towards the dinner tent.
We entered and there were many circus attendants already there that were waiting for a announcement. Mr Maurizio clapped his hands twice to get everyone's attention and then spoke when everything became quiet.
""Sedersi, my friends. Sit. Sit!" Mr. Maurizio said with a beaming smile. This man, Mr. Kadam, has made me the most happy of men. He has made an offer to purchase our belov'd tigre, Dhiren."
Mr. Maurizio continued, "Now, now . . . fate silenzio. Shh, amici. Let me finish! He wishes to take our tigre back to India to the Ranthambore National Park, the great tiger reserve. Mr. Kadam's denaro will provide for our troupe for two years! Mr. Davis is in d'accordo with me and also feels that the tiger will be assuredly happier there."
"It's agreed we will finish the shows for this week, and then the tigre will go with Mr. Kadam con l'aereo, by airplane, to India, while we will move on to our next city. Dhiren will stay with us this last week until we make the grandioso finale next Saturday!"
Then Mr. Maurizio walked me back to my car, for it was late and it was high time to go to my five star hotel in the city. Before I left though I made my way back to Ren's tent by myself. But to my surprise Kelsey was sitting by Ren on the other side of the cage talking to him. She stopped abruptly when I walked in though.
"I am sorry to interrupt you," I said. I glanced from the tiger to her, studying them both carefully, and then stated, "You seem to have . . . affection for this tiger. Am I right?"
She answered unguardedly, "Yes. I enjoy spending time with him. So do you go around India rescuing tigers? That must be an interesting job."
Smiling, I replied, "Oh, it's not my main job. My true job is managing a large estate. The tiger is an item of interest for my employer and he's the one who has made the offer to Mr. Maurizio." I found a stool, placed it across from her, and sat down,
She asked me, "Are you from India?"
"Yes," I replied. "I was born and raised there many years ago. The main holdings of the estate that I manage are there also." I said as she gazed up at me while twirling straw in her fingers.
"Why is this owner so interested in Ren?" She asked
My eyes brightened as I glanced at the tiger briefly and then asked, "Do you know the story of the great Prince Dhiren?"
She shook her head. "No."
"Your tiger's name, Dhiren, in my language means 'strong one.'" He tilted his head and gazed at me thoughtfully. "A rather famous prince carried the same name, and he had quite an interesting history."
She grinned. "You are evading my question and rather successfully too. But I love a good story. Can you remember it?"
My mind fixed on something far off in the distance, and I smiled. "I think I can."
My voice changed. Losing its crisp cadence, my words took on a rounded, musical tone and I began, "Long ago, there was a powerful king of India who had two sons. One he named Dhiren. The two brothers received the best education and military training.
"Their mother taught them to love the land and all the people who lived there. She often took the boys to play with underprivileged children because she wished for them to learn what their people needed. This contact also taught them to feel humility and to be grateful for the advantages they had. Their father, the king, taught them how to rule the kingdom. Dhiren, in particular, grew up to be a brave and fearless military leader as well as a sensible administrator.
"His brother was also very brave, strong, and clever. He loved Dhiren, but, at times, he felt the piercing stab of jealousy in his heart, for despite being successful in all of his training, he knew that Dhiren was destined to be the next king. It was only natural for him to feel this way.
"Dhiren had a knack for impressing people easily with his acumen, intelligence, and personality. A rare combination of charm and modesty embodied in the prince made him an outstanding politician. A person of contradictions, he was a great warrior as well as a renowned poet. The people loved the royal family and looked forward to many peaceful and happy years under Dhiren's reign."
She nodded, fascinated by the story, and asked, "What happened to the brothers? Did they battle each other for the throne?"
I Shifted on the stool slightly, and continued, "King Rajaram, Dhiren's father, arranged a marriage between Dhiren and the daughter of a ruler from a neighboring kingdom. The two kingdoms had lived in peace for many centuries but in recent years small skirmishes had broken out on the borders with increasing frequency. Dhiren was pleased with the alliance not only because the girl, whose name was Yesubai, was very beautiful, but also because he was wise enough to know that the union would bring peace to his land. They were formally engaged while Dhiren was away inspecting the troops in another part of the kingdom. During that absence, his brother began to spend time with Yesubai, and soon they fell in love with each other."
Across from me Ren snorted loudly and thumped his tail against the wood in his cage.
Kelsey looked at him with a sweet, concerned expression on her face though he was fine.
"Shh, Ren," she admonished. "Let him tell the story."
He calmed down and soon put his head on his paws, put he stayed awake and listened to me tell the rest of his story.
I continued. "He betrayed Dhiren so he could have the woman he loved. He bartered with a prodigious and evil man who captured Dhiren on his journey home. As a political prisoner, Dhiren was dragged along behind a camel and paraded through the enemy's town where the people threw stones, sticks, muck, and camel dung at him. He was tortured, his eyes were plucked out of their sockets, the hair was shaved off his head, and eventually his body was torn apart into pieces and thrown into the river."
She gasped and said "How horrible!"
I could see she was mesmerized by my tale, and from her face I could see she was bursting with questions, but she held them back, wanting me to finish probably. I focused my gaze on her face and continued gravely, "When his people learned what had happened, a great sorrow spread across the land. Some say that Dhiren's people went down to the river and pulled out the torn pieces of his body to give him a proper funeral. Others say that his body was never found. "Hearing of their beloved son's death, the king and his wife, heavy with misery, lapsed into a deep despair. Soon, both of them departed from this life. Dhiren's brother ran away in shame. Yesubai took her own life. The Mujulaain Empire was thrown into dark shadows of morass and disarray. With the authoritative voice of the royal family gone, the military took over the kingdom. Eventually, the evil man who had killed Dhiren captured the throne but only after fifty years of terrible war and bloodshed." As I finished Ren's story, there was a tangible silence. Ren's tail rustled in his cage, which snapped Kelsey out of her reverie.
"Wow," she responded. "So, did he love her?"
"Of whom are you speaking?" I asked
"Did Dhiren love Yesubai?" she stated.
I blinked. "I . . . don't know. Many marriages were arranged in those days, and love often wasn't a consideration then."
"That's a very sad sequence of events. I feel sorry for everyone, except for the bad guy, of course. A great story, though a bit bloody. An Indian tragedy. It reminds me of Shakespeare. He would have written a great play based on that tale. So, Ren is named after that Indian prince?"
I raised an eyebrow and smiled. "It would appear so."
She looked over at the tiger and grinned. "See, Ren, you're a hero! You're one of the good guys!" Ren pricked his ears forward and blinked his eyes, watching me.
"Thanks for sharing that story with me. I will definitely be writing about that in my journal. But, it still doesn't explain why your employer is interested in tigers."
I cleared my throat while she was looking at me obliquely. I knew I could not yet tell Miss Kelsey the truth, but in the meantime I needed an alibi to explain why I needed Dhiren.
I answered, "My employer has a special connection with this white tiger. You see, he feels he is to blame for the tiger's imprisonment—no, that is too harsh a word—for his capture. My employer allowed himself to be ensnared in a situation that led to the tiger being caged and sold. He has followed the tiger's whereabouts for the last few years, and now he's finally in a position to make amends." I said, grateful I could come up with a believable, not too far from the truth, story.
"Huh. That's very interesting. It was his fault that Ren was captured in the first place? It's very kind of him to continue to be concerned about an animal's welfare like that. Please thank him for what he's doing for Ren."
I bowed my head towards her in acknowledgment, then, hesitating, fixed a somber gaze on her and queried, "Miss Kelsey, I hope it's not too forward of me to ask, but I need someone to accompany the tiger on his journey to India. I will not be able to tend to his daily needs or even travel with him for the entire journey. I have already asked Mr. Davis if he could accompany Dhiren, but he must stay here with the circus." He leaned forward on the stool and gestured slightly with his hands. "I would like to offer you that job. Would you be interested?"
She stared at my hands for a moment, probably thinking that a man such as me should have long, tapered, manicured fingers, but my fingers were thick and calloused, like a man accustomed to hard labor. I leaned forward.
"The tiger is already used to you, and I can pay a good wage. Mr. Davis suggested you as a likely candidate and he mentioned that your temporary employment here is almost at an end.
If you choose to accept the job, I can assure you that my employer would appreciate having someone who can care for the tiger better that I can. The entire trip should take about a week, but I have been instructed to pay for your entire summer. I know that doing this for me will take you away from your home and delay your search for a new position elsewhere, so you will be duly compensated."
"What exactly would I have to do? Wouldn't I need a passport and other paperwork done?" she asked.
I inclined my head towards her. "I can, of course, arrange all the preliminaries for the trip. The three of us would fly to Mumbai, what you might still call Bombay. Upon arrival, I must stay in town on business, and you would then continue to accompany the tiger on the drive to the reserve. I will hire drivers and loaders to assist you on the journey. Your primary responsibility will be to care for Ren, feed him, and see to his comfort."
"And then . . . ?"
"The journey over land is about ten to twelve hours one way. After you arrive at the reserve, you would stay there for a few days to ensure he is acclimating well to his new environment and comparative freedoms. I would purchase a return plane ticket from Jaipur, so that you will be able to ride the Jaipur tour bus that goes from the reserve to the airport, then fly to Mumbai and home from there, making your return trip a little bit shorter."
"So it would be about a week altogether?" She asked.
I replied, "You can choose to either fly back home immediately or, if you like, you may stay on vacation in India for a few days and enjoy touring before you go home. Rest assured, I would provide for all of your travel as well as any other necessary accommodations along the way."
She blinked and stammered, "That's a very generous offer. Yes, my position here at the circus is almost at an end, and I would have to start looking for a new job very soon."
She bit her lip and started pacing, mumbling indecisively to herself as much as to me. "India's very far away. I've never been out of the country before, so the idea of it is both exciting and scary at the same time. Can I think about it and let you know? When do you need for me to give you an answer?"
"The sooner you say yes, the sooner I can make the necessary arrangements." I replied steadily.
"Alright. Let me call my foster parents and talk with Mr. Davis to see what they think about all this, and tomorrow I'll let you know for sure."
I nodded and mentioned that Mr. Maurizio knew how to contact me when you are ready to inform me of your decision.
"I will also be around the circus for tomorrow finalizing paperwork." I told her.
With a thoughtful look, she grabbed her things and walked back to the main building.
I drove to my hotel that night, I sincerely hoped she would say yes. Not only for the brother's sake, but because it would be refreshing to have a female around the house to lighten all our hearts.
In the morning I went about my daily ablutions before stepping into my rental car and going back to the circus. When I arrived I went back to Ren's cage to speak to him. We were a couple of days away from our departure and I could tell by the way he was already up in his cage with his ears pricked. It was either that or Miss Kelsey had been there to see him already, which would also explain his mood. I talked quietly to him in Hindi before I noticed Kelsey come in.
"Good Morning Miss Kelsey, how have you been?"
"Pretty good Mr. Kadam." I contacted my foster parents last night. They say that they want to meet you and discuss safety measures first, but I think I can probably come. They decided to throw an impromptu birthday party for me tonight here at the circus. If you can come they would be delighted to see you." She said happily.
My face lit up with a radiant, delighted smile at this.
"Wonderful! I would love to come to your party!" I said, and I meant it.
She laughed lightly at me, "Don't get too excited. They're likely to bring soy ice cream and gluten-free, sugar-free cupcakes."
I laughed with her until she had to go attend to her work and I said goodbye until the evening.
Later that evening I put on a tie for the occasion. I combed my hair and went to the big decorated tent where it looked like a party was going on. When I arrived Kelsey saw me and ran up to me with a smile.
"These are my foster parents Mr. Kadam." She said brightly.
"We have heard much about you from Kelsey, I am Sarah and this is my husband Mike. It is a pleasure to meet a man such as you." she said
"It is indeed a privilege to meet you two, we have much to talk about. Shall we discuss it over desert?" asked
"We would love to!" Sarah replied
So we got our cake and ice cream before we sat down to discuss business. For the next hour they both drilled me about various safety measures I would be taking. You can contact her at anytime, and I personally will be in contact with her the entirety of her trip. It is basically the same thing she has been doing here at the circus for the past two weeks, and I assuredly couldn't do the job without her." I said very convincingly.
After that everyone joined in and had fun with the various festivities, which included bobbing for apples. One of my personal old time favorites, along with Parcheesi of course. I saw Kelsey and her foster parents go outside, presumably for a quick discussion on their decision. I waited patiently for their return and was rewarded when they came back in.
I beamed a happy smile and said, "Now, Miss Kelsey, it will take me approximately one week to arrange the transportation. I will also need to obtain a copy of your birth certificate from your guardians and arrange traveling papers for both the tiger and yourself. My plan is to leave tomorrow morning and return as soon as I have the necessary documents."
Later, as I prepared to leave, I walked over to shake her hand and held it for a minute, saying, "Thank you very much for your help. You have assuaged my fears and given hope to a disillusioned old man that has anticipated only calamity and disappointment." I squeezed her hand, patted it, and stepped quickly out the door.
I didn't see Kelsey again until the evening of the last circus performance. The next week sped by in a blur. I approached Miss Kelsey and asked if I could meet with her after dinner.
"Sure, I'll meet you at one of the tables over dessert," She replied.
When she saw me enter the building, she gathered up her paper, pencil, and two dishes of ice cream and then sat down across from me. I began by spreading out various forms and documents for me to sign.
"We will be driving the tiger in a truck from here to the Portland airport. From there we will board a cargo plane, which will fly us to New York City, pass over the Atlantic Ocean, and continue on to Mumbai. When we arrive in Mumbai, I will be leaving Ren in your capable hands for a few days while I tend to some business in the city. I have arranged for a truck to meet us at the Mumbai airport. You and I will supervise the workers who will be loading Ren from the airplane into the truck. A driver has been assigned to take both of you all the way to the reserve. Preparations have also been made for you to stay at the reserve for a few days. Then, you may return to Mumbai at your convenience in preparation for your trip home. I will be providing you traveling money, more than enough for any emergency."
She took notes in a frenzy, trying to copy down all of my instructions.
"Mr. Davis will help prepare Ren and will also load him onto the truck tomorrow morning. I suggest that you pack a bag for yourself that includes any personal items that you might wish to bring along. I will be sleeping here tonight, so you may borrow my rental car and go home to gather your things, as long as you return here by early morning. Do you have any immediate questions?" I asked politely.
"Well, I have about a billion of them, but most of them can wait until tomorrow. I guess I'd better go home and get packed." she softly replied.
I smiled warmly and placed my car keys in her hand.
"Thank you once again, Miss Kelsey. I look forward to our journey together. I will see you in the morning."
She smiled back and said goodnight.
The Caged Soul
Everyday is the same
The routine
Everyday
For hundreds or years
It is enough for people to lose their humanity
Only being a part of things
Will bridge the gap again
Without humanity
You are forced to be the beast forever
Or live with the constants
Everyday
Of every year
Yearning for your humanity
When all people see
Is the beast that I am
Not the man that I once was
Everyone except you,
Iadala