Honeymoons don't last. Rajan knows, his ended up in the hospital with a broken penis. Finding Kala in Paris was the start of a second honeymoon and it had been even better than the first, now that Kala and he weren't hiding things from each other. Now that he knew her secret, everything would be fine, or so he thought until he met Wolfgang.
It looked so simple at first, despite how dangerous the situation was. His wife, his wonderful Kala, was even more special than he thought. After the first moment of fear, disbelief, and denial (my wife is in a cult, my wife has enemies, her enemies want to kill her, my wife can telepathically talk with seven other people in the world), so many strange things got explained. Once he recovered from the shock, Rajan took a deep breath and decided he loved Kala more than anything, with or without her cluster slash cult. He'd stay until the end to defend her, even when he knew how useless he was next to a Korean martial artist or an American policeman, despite his money and contacts. Rajan was fine with that. He loved Kala. He would support her and work with her to save her friends.
After that, they would take care of his own problems and their relationship issues. Easy.
Daniela had told him something the first day when they had a moment to discuss the situation: "Of course, I was shocked. But isn't it the most beautiful thing in the world, what they have together? It's like religious communion". Rajan had smiled back. He agreed. Making Kala happy and making sure he deserved her love, that was his religion. If he had to welcome eight people and their families from four different continents to do that, he would do it. He would make sure that all of his money was well earned from now and invest back what would be left of his money after he paid his moral debt for selling expired medicine in Africa in Kala's family.
Rajan would have understood if Capheus had hit him when Kala had explained his story to him. He would have understood if she had left him, but she didn't, so he hoped their relationship was stronger than ever.
But then, Wolfgang.
Rajan wasn't stupid. He understood there was something between his wife and Wolfgang, even before meeting him. It was obvious, from the glances the cluster and Amanita threw toward Kala and him, while they planned to get the German back. Had she cheated on him? Was it cheating if it only happened in their head?
This was his life now. Nothing had prepared him for that, neither his education nor movies or the internet. But he hoped he could still repair things between Kala and him. She hadn't left him. It wasn't too late.
But then, Wolfgang.
Nobody had told him that the German was so... There was no word in Hindi, English, or French to describe Wolfgang. Handsome, imposing, feline, dangerous, sexy, troubling, seductive, magnetic... Fuck, but Rajan understood how his wife had fallen in love. He couldn't even blame her, because he would never blame Kala for anything, and because he had led a crazy life at university himself. Men like Wolfgang were exactly his type of man. He had been so relieved to fall in love with Kala and put that behind him. Rajan had been ready to settle down, to find someone who wasn't danger to him, and to become a good husband, a good boss, and maybe even a good father one day.
But then, Wolfgang.
They all took a few days to rest at Jean-Pierre's house. Rajan saw the sweet smiles that Kala and Wolfgang threw at each other, the desire in Wolfgang's eyes, and the defiant looks the Germanthrew at him. After that, everything went so fast. The journey to Naples, Kala's terrible sex appeal when she held a gun, Kala's voice, a little more husky and dangerous when Wolfgang spoke through her mouth and shot in her place, Kala's injury, Rajan's terror seeing her blood all over the place, saving her life together, Wolfgang's hand on his shoulder while they waited at the hospital to know if she would pull through, Wolfgang's increasingly obvious flirting with both of them, the three of them dancing at Nomi's wedding, Wolfgang discreetly entering their room and lying down on the bed to invite them to join him and this night of sex and pure love...
Wolfgang.
Kala.
Rajan was so screwed. The worst part was that he hadn't realized how badly he had it until he woke up the day after the wedding, Kala on one side and his hand on Wolfgang's butt. It shouldn't be so natural to wake up between his wife and another man. It shouldn't be so easy to think he had never been this happy.
Nomi and Amanita started their honeymoon. His ended. It was time to go back to India. Rajan's business took all of his attention. For the next six weeks, he couldn't find a second to devote a single thought to Wolfgang and the cluster. Kala's support meant a lot to Rajan. She'd been a caring wife and friend, always supporting him. She was proud of the man he was becoming. Not once did she give him one of these disappointed looks she thought he didn't see before. Now he knew she loved him. It was difficult to find so few moments to share with her. Work kept him in the office until very late at night. He even slept under his desk twice.
At least things were getting better. Maybe it was thanks to Kala's daily prayers to Ganesh. Maybe Rajan got a second chance he didn't think he deserved. The corruption investigation against his friend Ajay was about to end. Because he had come clean to the justice without prompting, denounced the whole thing, and offered his collaboration to bring down Ajay and the others, he would not be charged as an accomplice, and the judge would be lenient. At most, he would get a month of jail, maybe just a huge fine. He and his family would be under heavy protection, just in case, and Kala had her cluster to defend her.
He would pay whatever was asked of him, of course. But he was glad to escape jail and stay with Kala. That was why he spent so much time at work, even though the Ajay case was out of his hands by now. He went through all his accounts and the company's accounts to see how much damage he had caused and took money out of his personal accounts to ship crates of medicine to the countries where he had done so much damage. The Kenyan market in particular would receive top-quality medicine. The company wouldn't pay a cent for it, but he woke up a little poorer every morning. Rajan was still rich enough to give Kala the life she deserved, but from now on, he would earn his money through hard, honest work. The company would make less profit, but he was fine with that. And it would force them to be more inventive. Maybe it would be good for the company.
From Korea, Sun Bak had emailed him advice on how to make it all perfectly legal. She swore her bank would help if she ever regained control of it. It had to be perfectly legal so that no one but him could stop him and because there was no way he'd ever put on the wrong side of the law for business. For Kala, it would be different. He would do so much for her. She was his everything.
Rajan was a little ashamed to ask for some of Sun's time when she had her own problems to deal with. He was self-conscious enough to realize he wasn't that different from her brother, but he let her help. Kala's friends were as great as she was.
Finally, the day came when he could find time to sit on his couch with his dear Kala curled up in his arms, not worrying about what might happen tomorrow.
"I don't even have the strength to walk to bed," he moaned. "Can we just fall asleep in front of a movie and I'll make up for it tomorrow?"
"Of course, Rajan."
She got up to get them drinks and grabbed the remote control. One of the latest Bollywood musicals had already started when she turned on the television. They had never seen it before and Rajan struggled to understand the story without the first half hour, but it didn't matter. It felt good just to sit here, falling asleep next to his wife. Kala's soft laugh made him open his eyes, wondering what was so funny on screen, but Kala wasn't looking at the television but at the other end of the couch, as if someone was sitting there. She had that smile, that beautiful smile, and it wasn't for him.
"Is Wolfgang here?"
Kala jumped and blushed. Rajan wanted to tell her she didn't have to feel that way, that he understood, that she had the right to be in love with someone else than him. He didn't.
"He's here," she admitted. "But he's not alone. Capheus is here too."
"Really?"
His voice sounded accusatory even to his own ears.
"He is. They both love movies, but they're more fond of action movies. They're making fun of the movie. It's... not very good."
Rajan could hardly say. He hadn't even tried to follow the story, but he was relieved there was someone else with the three of them in the room. It was silly. Kala didn't need a chaperone, and she had chosen both of them, as was her right.
"Say hello to them for me."
Kala smiled, staring into space like she sometimes did when she visited her friends. Then she turned to kiss Rajan. He gasped. That greed… This wasn't how Kala kissed. This was Wolfgang. Rajan tensed, suddenly very awake how excited he was, and also more than a little ashamed of himself. Not because of his desire for Rajan, but because Kala was just sharing a moment with her cluster and he had spent the last two minutes being jealous of Wolfgang, who must have spent more time with her in the last two weeks than him.
It was his own fault that Wolfgang had insinuated himself into Kala's heart. Rajan's fault that she had almost left him. His fault he hadn't been able to spend the time he should have with her lately because he had huge mistakes to fix. He knew all this, but as Kala's—Wolfgang's—lips detached from his, he wondered how many evenings she had spent in Wolfgang's arms recently. If he kissed her every day like he had just done with Rajan. If he brushed her hand or her shoulder while giving her those looks he gave her in France, which they all knew she was incapable of resisting. His fault. A German gangster with a missile launcher deserved his wife more than Rajan. At least what Wolfgang did, he did to save his life or his family. Rajan had done evil out of ignorance, with only profit in mind. It was worse in Kala's eyes, so it was worse with him, too. Rajan had no right to be jealous. But he was.
"Rajan?"
Kala nervously put a strand of hair behind her ear. She was worried. Rajan worried her.
"I think I'm going to bed after all."
He almost ran to his room, mortified and short of breath. Kala didn't follow. Rajan lay in bed for hours, wondering what was going on in the living room.
The next morning, Rajan left when he heard Kala in a bathroom. He didn't take the time to eat. He had done it before when he hadn't had the time because of his troubles at work, but today he felt like a thief. The feeling of guilt followed him into the car and to his office. He tried to concentrate on his work to forget these feelings, but for the first time in weeks, he had almost nothing on his desk to occupy his mind.
Kala came in without knocking at around noon. Rajan didn't even hear her. He had his head in his hand, staring desperately at the knots in the wood of his desk, wondering what idea he could come up with to make her forgive him. All his ideas, flowers, and chocolate, seemed pathetic to him when Wolfgang could take her for a walk around Berlin and make her taste many foreign foods. Only when she put a large basket on the table, he looked up.
"I brought lunch. Is everything okay? Is it Ajay who is causing you these worries or work?"
"A bit of both," he lied. "But seeing my beautiful wife makes me feel better right away."
She kissed him. It was here this time, not Wolfgang. Rajan tried to show her how much he loved her through that kiss. He hadn't felt that free kissing Wolfgang the night before, but guilt returned when he opened Kala's basket. She had prepared a complete picnic with all his favorite things, while jealous thoughts occupied his mind. Rajan forced himself to smile and helped Kala take everything out of the basket.
"How are everyone?" he asked once Kala had pulled a chair next to his. "I'm sorry. I haven't been there for you much lately."
She kissed him on the corner of his lips.
"It's okay. You had your worries, and you took care of mine enough in Paris and Naples. Now it's my turn to take care of you."
It didn't help as much as she intended. Rajan was even more ashamed of his jealousy. Kala was telling the truth. She'd been there for him every night since they returned to Mumbai. She was even more there for him than before Paris, physically and mentally. Their love was truer. Rajan hadn't been jealous when he knew Kala didn't love him as he loved her, because he was sure no one else was interested in her and he had time to make her fall in love with her, and now he could only think about her moans when Wolfgang had put his hands on her lower back in their room in Paris. It took to dessert until he could pull himself together and ask again how the others were doing. Kala raised a hand and started counting on her fingers.
"Nomi and Amanita are taking a break from all this running. Lito films tomorrow, so you can imagine he's a nervous wreck. We're spending time with him, if only for Hernando and Dani to take a break. Things are moving in the right direction in Seoul, but Sun's busy with other things right now. Will and Riley are back in the States. He wants to see his father's grave and if he can have his job back. The new BPO should help with that. Capheus' campaign looks encouraging, and he's working with our Kenyan friends. Wolfgang..."
She suddenly shivered.
"Oh, it's cold in Berlin. What are you doing in the rain?"
Rajan tensed up and watched her nod while rubbing her arms to warm herself. Her body was with him, but her mind was in another country and her heart stuck somewhere in between. And he wasn't helping. Rajan felt sorry for her.
"Wolfgang loves to stay in the rain for hours without a coat," she whispered to him. "And the rain in Berlin is always so cold, even in summer. I don't understand how he can like it. If I had been born there, I would have fled south a long time ago."
"But you're a true India daughter," Rajan noted.
He hoped she couldn't hear the fear in his voice. Kala laughed. She didn't realize her torment.
"That's what I always thought, but now, I have seven nationalities. I feel at home in eight cities and I love Paris so much. I think I could live anywhere if I took a little of India with me."
Like the coward he was, he changed the subject.
That night, Rajan fell asleep holding his wife in his arms. It was so good to have her here, but jealousy still tormented him.
A noise woke him up a few hours later. Rajan opened his eyes. On his bedside table, the alarm clock told him they were barely midnight. They had gone to bed early and he couldn't have slept for long, but it took a moment for him to realize his phone was vibrating on the other side of the room. Rajan got out of the bed, trying not to wake Kala.
Worst-case scenarios were running through his mind. They canceled the investigation. Ajay was going to harm them. Whispers had survived. Seeing Amanita's name on his phone helped him calm down a little. They had all exchanged numbers in Paris after the wedding, but this was the first time anyone from Kala's extended family had contacted him. He read the series of texts.
"Rajan, it's Amanita. You should call me tomorrow. Or Daniela, she might be more help."
Of course. There was no trying to hide their marital problems from the cluster and their respective partners. Rajan wondered if Kala had talked to the others or if someone had spied on them. No, not spied, visited. These people were not spies, just a family that was too discreet and clingy. Rajan tried not to get annoyed, especially when he was relieved to have someone to talk to, someone who could understand. A last message appeared on the screen.
"Forgot to check what time it is in India. Sorry. Don't make the same mistake."
He stifled a small laugh so as not to wake Kala, briefly thanked Amanita, and went back to sleep.
The next evening, he followed Amanita's advice and slipped out of the living room to call Daniela. She almost screamed with joy when she heard him on the other end of the line.
"Rajan, it's such a pleasure to hear you. Amanita warned me you may call. What's going on?"
"You don't know?" Rajan wondered.
"You met Lito. He made the promise not to hide what's happening on your side from us, but he started shooting this morning. He had other things in his mind and not much time to visit you or anyone else. They're wrapping the last scene of today, right now. It's so beautiful. I can't wait for all of you to see it!"
"I can't wait. Tell him I'm going to see all his movies. And Hernando?"
"Back in Mexico. He's trying to negotiate a sabbatical to join us and work on a book while we film here. We miss him a lot."
"I can imagine. And that's what I need to talk about. How do you do it?"
Daniela clicks her tongue.
"Of course. I should have guessed. Do you want to know how we cope with the distance?"
"How do you make it work, the three of you? I'm... lost."
"I don't know what to tell you. It happened naturally, even if I fucked up a lot before we all met. I'll tell you sometimes, but it's not… it's not a nice story. I don't need to tell you I understood what we were before they did. It's so easy for me to love like that, but I understand it can be difficult. If you want my advice, ask yourself three questions: what do you feel for Kala, what do you feel for Wolfgang, and what do you want for yourself? Once you know that, I think you'll know what to do."
"That's all?"
"It was for me. Why not make it easy?"
"For one, there is jealousy."
Daniela stayed quiet for a long time. Behind her, Rajan could hear someone calling the actors on set.
"I don't think it's in my nature to be jealous," she finally said. "I could love thirty more people if they were like Hernando and Lito."
"But one of them is not invisible to you, while your partner can see them."
"Haven't you discussed it?"
"We should have, right? I don't know. It didn't seem wise to put words on that."
Rajan could see now that was a mistake. He could hear Daniela judging him from the other side of the world.
"Thank you for your advice, Daniela. I'll think about it."
He hung up before she could say anything else, and before Kala asked him who he was talking to. He went back to his wife and kissed her for a long time. Rajan was almost ashamed to keep his doubts from her, but how could he talk about his jealousy? Words never passed his lips.
They ate and went to bed, but while Kala fell asleep, Rajan just stared at the ceiling to ask himself the three questions Daniela had given him. He loved Kala. That was the only sure he was sure of. He wanted Wolfgang, no doubt, not after the night in Paris. They had talked in Naples while they waited for Kala to wake up. They got to know each other. Of course, they talked mostly about Kala, but they also shared a little of their stories. Wolfgang was an interesting man. Rajan's interest in him wasn't only physical. He wanted to know more about him. Wolfgang was his type, even if he was a violent man. Rajan's type was pretty much dangerous people.
The cluster often laughs about Kala being the most dangerous and deadly of them all, with her propensity of creating homemade bombs and blowing up anything. The first time the others told him of the explosions his wife caused, she barely hid a proud smile. Rajan's heart had jumped in his chest. Seeing Kala coldly killing Mafiosi had aroused him. Deadly was sexy. What could he do about that?
There was no denying it. Rajan loved Kala. He desired Wolfgang. He could fall in love with him if he wasn't careful. Kala loved them both, but she loved the German more. Wolfgang adored Kala, and Rajan was pretty sure that he liked him and desired him too. Wolfgang's eyes were very telling. It was the perfect recipe for the most beautiful disaster.
As for Rajan... he didn't know what he wanted more, to make Kala happy, to keep her for himself, or to see how things could turn out with Wolfgang.
Day came. Rajan still wasn't sure what he wanted, except for one thing. He didn't want to be jealous anymore. Unfortunately, it was harder to do than to say. That same afternoon, Kala laughed, seemingly for no reason. She threw a loving glance in his direction, but a little too far to the left for the gaze to be directed at him. Another time, it was an annoyed sigh and a little slap in the air, as if she were pushing away an outstretched hand. The worst was the morning when he heard her let out a moan in her sleep that he couldn't have caused.
His jealousy didn't occupy his thoughts permanently, but any small thing was enough to revive it. At first, he forced himself to ask for news of Wolfgang, but Kala was more and more evasive. After a week, he stopped asking completely. It hurt them both too much.
One day he surprised Kala, apparently talking to herself. She was sitting on the couch, doing her nails, and hadn't seen him. Rajan hid in the hallway to listen when he realized she was talking about him to someone in the cluster.
"I don't know what to do anymore. You know how he is. He closes up and refuses to talk about his problems."
So she had noticed. Of course. Rajan closed his eyes. He was going to have to tell her everything and make a fool of himself in front of her. All these people gave their love so freely, and he was stupidly jealous. He envied them to share their feelings so easily between them. Kala fell silent to listen to her interlocutor, then spoke again.
"No, I didn't tell Rajan about it. We're still trying to see where we both stand with each other. I will not add to Rajan's worries by telling him about Wolfgang's problems. I think he sensed something was wrong. Why? I'm not sure, but on the plane, he asked dozens of questions about Wolfgang, and then he just stopped. He worries too much."
Rajan sheepishly slipped away and retreated to his office. He was angry with himself. His jealousy kept him from seeing how much she suffered from the situation. It would be easy to blame Wolfgang, but apparently he wasn't doing much better. Rajan took his phone before he could think better of it, but stopped instead of calling Wolfgang. He could do it, make a gesture toward him. He knew the cluster's time zone by heart. Instead, he called Felix.
"Indian plan's husband!" the thief cried in delight. "I'm so happy you called. I can't stand seeing Wolfie in this state anymore. If you hadn't called, I would have put him in the trunk, rushed to Hamburg, and shipped him to you in the first container going to India. Is Kala that unbearable?"
His exuberance completely took aback Rajan. Felix was like a puppy.
"How's Wolfgang?" he finally asked.
"He drags himself all over Berlin and he stays in the rain for hours. Wolfie loves the rain, but when he stays under it for three hours, it's because he's trying to make himself sick. It's his way of punishing himself. He's been doing it since he was little. Kala?"
"She's fine, but she's sad, and I wanted to know what was happening on your side."
"That's why we make the second cluster," Felix laughed. "We need to stick together too, otherwise they'll drive us crazy. Do you know what happened? I still don't understand what's going on between you three, but at the wedding, I thought everything was fine, and I'd never seen Wolfie so happy."
Rajan felt a pang in his heart.
"I thought so too."
"Did you say something to hurt Wolfie?"
Felix's tone was threatening. Suddenly, it wasn't hard to remember that he was a gangster too.
"No, they're the ones who said we should take it slow."
Felix swore profusely in German.
"OK. I know what's going on. Wolfie thinks he doesn't deserve to be happy, and that he makes everyone else miserable just by existing. He's sacrificing himself so that you can be happy without being tainted by his presence. I'd kick his ass if I thought it could change him. It's been a lost cause for years."
"And Kala lets him do it because she doesn't want to hurt me."
Rajan understood everything now. Kala was trying to find a balance between them, but Wolfgang and he were so insecure it made things worse instead of helping. And his lack of reaction when Wolfgang kissed him the other night probably didn't help either.
"We're all idiots," he sighed out loud.
"Glad you're seeing that by yourself," Felix replied cheerfully. "Now do something about it, or I'm really going to look up container ship routes to get rid of Wolfie."
Once again, easier said than done. Rajan wanted to do the right thing, but he didn't know how to go about it, or how to keep his jealousy at bay.
"How's Wolfgang?" he finally asked Kala the next day.
"He's fine. He's busy."
His wife always ran her hand through her hair when she was embarrassed. Now that he knew the signs, Rajan would have bet she hadn't even visited Wolfgang to see for herself and that he wasn't in the room either. It was unsettling. To avoid questions, Kala had already buried his head back in her magazine. Something was definitely wrong. After a moment's hesitation, he took out his phone and composed a quick message in English before sending it to Germany. A few seconds later, Kala looked up and gave him a perplexed look. Wolfgang had told her about the message, but had he told her what it said?
Rajan tried to imagine Wolfgang receiving it and the look on his face, but it was too hard. He did not know what kind of place he lived in. Something cold and impersonal, probably. A shabby one-room or two-room apartment, or maybe a large, almost empty loft. Wolfgang might sit on his bed, or maybe there was a couch. It was only eleven in the morning in Berlin. He might have gone out for a run. Rajan checked the German weather on his phone. It was freezing there. Wolfgang might wear a sweater. Rajan didn't know if he was sensitive to the cold.
And just like that, he knew what to do. It was like an epiphany.
"Is he in the room?"
Kala closed her magazine. She looked nervous, unsure of why he asked.
"No."
"Can he not come for, say, ten minutes?"
"I can take blockers, but they work for several hours," Kala grimaced. "Or I could..."
She mentally went away for a few seconds. Rajan used her distraction to check his mailbox. It was empty. If he sent a message to Felix, he would probably keep Wolfgang busy, but he could also get the wrong idea of the situation. Rajan hesitated for too long. Kala was already back.
"Will keeps him busy. He needed help anyway. What did you write to Wolfgang?"
So he hadn't told her. That untied something in Rajan's stomach.
"It doesn't matter. Listen, Kala, I'm not jealous of Wolfgang."
His wife made a doubtful face. Rajan laughed. He was so relieved he had finally said it. Kala's doubts were natural. Rajan had truly believed that he was jealous of Wolfgang at first, but saying it out loud took a huge weight off his shoulders.
"No, really," he said excitedly. "I'm not jealous of Wolfgang. I'm not jealous of you. I'm jealous of the two of you together, or rather of what you share and from which I am excluded. Kala, my wife, I love you, and I was falling in love with Wolfgang in Paris. Maybe even in Naples. Why would I be jealous of him? I told you I wanted to see where this story takes us."
"Are you sure? I would understand Rajan, I really would. I can't choose between you two, but you don't have to pay the price of my indecision. That's why we decided to take it slowly."
No, they had taken that decision for him, and Rajan had let them do it because he was totally out of his element. But now, there was no point in pointing it out.
"It wasn't a mistake to go slowly, but it was a mistake to decide to do it separately. You're only half here because a part of you is in Berlin with him. That's the first problem. The second is that he can come and go as he pleases between Berlin and Mumbai, while I'm stuck here. From your point of view, you may be with both of us, but from mine, it's like you have a hidden lover. I don't see what's happening in Berlin and so I imagine things and panic. It's not working, Kala. It can't work."
Kala lowered her head in defeat.
"What do we do then?"
Rajan hesitated. If he wanted to end all this, it was now or never. Kala said she couldn't make up her mind but she would and whatever she chose, they would all be unhappy. She would choose Wolfgang because she could never break away from him unless she sacrificed her bond with the rest of her family and took blockers for the rest of her life. He would despise her and she would hate him if that was her choice.
But he didn't want that, anyway. Rajan wanted what they had in Paris. He wanted to share amused glances with Wolfgang when Kala was worried sick about unimportant things. He wanted to feel Wolfgang's arm on his shoulders and talk until the early hours of the morning, as they had done in Naples. Wolfgang had talked about his brother, about his failures as Kala's husband. Both had acknowledged the crimes they had to pay for. Rajan wanted to be included in the cluster's madness, even from afar. And if he was jealous of Kala and Wolfgang's connexion and not of Kala and Capheus' it was because he hadn't fallen in love with the Kenyan.
"Why is he still in Berlin?"
Kala rolled her eyes.
"Because Felix is there, and he's making himself miserable there, even though he pretends everything is fine. He doesn't want to come between us. Wolfgang knows it's a lot for you to take in."
"Did he ask me? No, of course not. Soon, it would be my fault if we never moved past the awkward stage!"
"He never asks," Kala sighed. "He always thinks he knows better. It doesn't mean he thinks he's better than us. It's because he's sure he'll suffer less if the decision comes from him."
Rajan knew a little of how much suffering Wolfgang had lived through, but only now he understood how much it had damaged him. No wonder he thought he knew better than Kala and Rajan. He just saw them as privileged rich kids, and he wouldn't be that wrong.
Kala nodded at someone invisible.
"Riley says Will won't be able to keep him busy for much longer. And he must be very curious about what we say here after your message. What do we do?"
"We have to bring Wolfgang here."
"He'll refuse. I've already talked to him about it several times."
"I think I can change his mind. Trust me?"
Kala smiled back at him and kissed him deeply.
"He's here," she whispered when they pulled away from each other. "He's watching us."
Rajan couldn't hold back a moan at the thought. Postponing his plans, he captured his wife's lips again.
Kissing Kala was so addictive Rajan forgot his plans for a few hours. Maybe he had taken some pleasure in getting back at Wolfgang. After they made love, Kala fell asleep in their room. Rajan quietly got back up and went to his desk room. Using online translation software, he wrote a quick message on his phone.
"Wir wollen dich an unserer Seite haben. Es ist Zeit, dass wir drei uns wiedersehen. Sag uns, wo und wann. Wir akzeptieren kein Nein als Antwort."
We want you by our side. It's time for the three of us to meet again. Tell us where, and when. We won't take no for an answer.
He could only hope the translation was close to what he meant, and that it would show Wolfgang how serious he was. Rajan didn't think he could be more explicit other than sending Wolfgang plane tickets for himself and Felix. He would only do that as a last resort because Wolfgang wouldn't react way to that. Anyway, learning German would be the next step.
Rajan pressed send on his phone before he could change his mind then settle to wait. It wasn't that late. Maybe he should work, but he knew he could never concentrate. He sat back in his chair and watched the sun slowly descend toward the west, toward Europa and Wolfgang. Rajan hated the wait. Kala wouldn't have to wait for an answer because she could visit Wolfgang and see his reaction at any time. It wasn't funny to be jealous of his wife's lover, and even less so to be jealous of his wife while thinking of her lover. Rajan wanted to find the situation funny. Maybe it was from the outside. Maybe one day it would be.
In the distance, he heard Kala's phone ring. He didn't pay attention to it until she entered, her phone in her hand.
"Rajan? It's for you."
He took the phone, a little worried until he heard Wolfgang's voice in the receiver.
"Not bad German for a beginner," he said in perfect Hindi.
Rajan flushed. It was so unfair he wanted to glare at the phone. Kala patted his shoulder and pointed to the corner of the room near the window. Rajan glared at the curtain, feeling a little ridiculous, but a little more comfortable knowing where Wolfgang was, and that the German knew he didn't find it funny.
"I don't need to take lessons from a cheat," he said. "You only know Hindi because Kala knows it. Good evening, Wolfgang."
"It's still afternoon here, but good evening," Wolfgang said, still in Hindi.
Rajan could hear the smile in his voice. The fucker knew what he was doing. He could see Rajan's reaction to his voice. In Paris and Naples, they had all spoken mostly in English to make things easier. Wolfgang's accent in Hindi had a huge effect on Rajan. He should have been forbidden to speak their language.
"Are you calling us to arrange the details of your travel?"
"I'm not coming."
Rajan nodded as if he found it reasonable. Wolfgang might be a gangster who wreaked havoc with a rocket launcher, but Rajan was a businessman. He knew how to get what he wanted.
"Of course, I imagine you have business to take care of first. How long will it take? A week, two weeks? Three at the most, I imagine."
"You don't understand me. I'm not coming. I..."
Rajan hung up on him. Kala let out a gasp of surprise. Her eyes went from Wolfgang to Rajan.
"He said..."
"If he has something to tell me, he can call me back himself. On my phone."
Kala smiled broadly and sat on the desk without taking her eyes off Wolfgang.
"You are wise, husband. He can do that."
Rajan's phone rang.
"I'm not coming," Wolfgang insisted.
The hurt in his voice didn't escape Rajan. The German hated to say no, he only thought he should do that. It confirmed Rajan he should keep insisting.
"Then we're coming. If not to Berlin, at least to Paris."
"No you won't."
Rajan hung up a second time. Kala laughed, truly amused by his antics. Rajan was very proud of himself. He was using the sensitives' weapons against them and it felt right. He couldn't wait to tell the second cluster, as Felix called them. They would love the trick he played on Wolfgang.
"Is he angry?" he asked Kala.
"His face is so red. You made him furious Rajan!"
"Is Felix in the room? If so, can I ask him to take a picture?"
Kala shook her head negatively, visibly disappointed as well. This time, Wolfgang took almost half an hour to call them back. Rajan didn't have time to worry too much as Kala described to him what Wolfgang was doing in real-time, how he paced around his apartment like a caged bear before going out to buy beers, going home, and sitting in his kitchen without opening them. When the phone rang again, Rajan didn't even give him time to speak.
"Since my legal problems are mostly resolved, I can conduct some of my business remotely, at least until the trial. Maybe it would be better for us to leave. We've got police protection, but too much precaution can't hurt. Besides, I'd quite like to meet the leaders of the new BPO to talk about partnerships and spy on them a little from the inside."
Wolfgang cursed him. Rajan heard a thud and Kala jumped, before rubbing her hand as if she had just bumped it. Did Wolfgang punch the wall? Did it make a dent?
"What am I supposed to say to that?" Wolfgang finally asked. "Nothing except to give us the dates you're coming here or a place where you want to meet us."
At the other end of the line, Wolfgang laughed. His smile appeared on Kala's face. Just before their lips met, Rajan thought that if he could already recognize that smile that hesitated between irony and seduction on his wife's mouth, he was in much greater danger of already being in love than he thought. The kiss was so intense Rajan dropped the phone on the floor. Then, reluctantly, he pushed Kala and Wolfgang away. He stood there for a moment, watching her, or them, until he caught his breath. It was the most intense kiss he had ever been a part of.
"No," he said as he picked up the phone.
"No?" Wolfgang asked through Kala's mouth.
"This relationship is already complicated enough without the two most beautiful people I've ever met teaming up to seduce me. If you want to do that, you'll have to be there physically."
"Are you trying to make sure I won't change my mind?"
"Did it work?"
"A little too well. I guess I'm supposed to be happy that I got so well screwed?"
"I'd be honored if you were."
Wolfgang laughed and hung up. He may have left them alone, but Rajan had no trouble imagining his half-exasperated, half-amused smile as he looked at his phone.
"He really likes you," Kala smiled, gently squeezing an invisible hand.
"It's mutual."
"And I'm proud to say that I married a man who can make Wolfgang Bogdanow do his bidding. He's looking at the ticket prices right now."
Rajan forced a smile. He pulled Kala into his arms and hugged her tightly, taking in her delicious perfumed scent.
"Wife, promise me he'll never be in the room with us until he's here. You can go to him, I would never stop you from seeing him. I don't care what you do when you are there, but I cannot continue missing half of what's happening around me."
He said nothing about his jealousy, but he didn't need to. Kala's loving eyes told him enough. She kissed him softly on the lips.
"Then I won't go there either unless he needs me. If he wants us, he's going to have to work for it."
Rajan imagined Wolfgang's face when he heard that and smiled. It was the German's turn to suffer a little, and the thought made him feel so good that he couldn't blame himself for his pettiness. In any case, they would all be reunited soon and they could work on solving all their problems and building something together. That day could never come soon enough for his liking.