Ravi had been on the road for six days. He was hungry and weak. His wounds were constantly exposed and painful. In an effort to protect the bottom of his feet, he switched his remaining sandal from one foot to the other. It had only resulted in both feet getting cut and bruised.
Spurred on by the voice that told him he must walk, and having no better option, he walked. From morning to night, he walked. Cars flew by him on the country roads, going too fast and passing on hills.
As Ravi limped through the rain, the sun disappeared behind the horizon. A black Mercedes stopped and a well-dressed Indian man, wearing a gold chain, got out and threw his suit jacket over Ravi’s shoulders.
“What happened? Let me get you out of this rain. I’m Mr. Shah.” He gently picked Ravi up and placed him in the front seat, then turned on the heater and pointed the vents toward him.
“Where are you going on a night like this? Do your parents know you’re out?” At the mention of his parents Ravi teared up. Mr. Shah raised his eyebrows and grinned slightly. Ravi anxiously rolled the Silly Putty® egg between his fingers.
“You must be hungry. I’ll take you home, clean you up, feed you.” They arrived at an average-looking house surrounded by a high wall with an iron gate, a two-car garage, and a shed in the back.
Mr. Shah put his arm gently on Ravi’s shoulder as they entered the house.
This is a palace, thought Ravi. The inside of the house was decorated far beyond what the outside would indicate. The first thing Ravi saw was a grand spiral staircase leading upstairs. The walls were rich blue and purple. Ravi gazed at the elaborate crystal chandelier hung from the high ceiling.
It sparkles. In the main hall there was a large carpet surrounded by several leather sofas and chairs. The side tables were elaborately carved teak wood.
He must be rich, thought Ravi, with carpets in almost every room.
A small spider monkey, wearing a fez and a vest with several large pockets, leapt from the back of the couch and landed in front of Ravi. It bowed and tipped its hat. It reached in a pocket and handed Ravi a candy. Mr Shah smiled. It reached in another pocket and gave Ravi a coin.
“Why you little….” Mr. Shah swooped down, grabbed the monkey, and emptied its pockets of a carved elephant, reading glasses, pocketknife, and a small screwdriver while the monkey screeched. He grabbed it by the scruff of the neck and flung it into an ornate cage.
“If it’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s a thief! Well, Ravi, let’s get you cleaned up. Are you hungry?”
Ravi nodded vigorously. “And thirsty.”
Mr. Shah snapped his fingers and the maid appeared.
“Bring a large glass of papaya juice for my friend, Ravi.” The maid returned with the juice. Ravi immediately drank it all and let out a deep sigh.
“Well, you were thirsty, weren’t you, Ravi?”
He nodded.
“Let’s get you cleaned up and then you can eat.” Mr. Shah nodded to the maid who escorted Ravi to an upstairs bedroom. The handrail on the wall helped Ravi pull himself up each step, in spite of his pain.
“You’ll sleep here.” Ravi scanned the room. It was decorated with bright, primary colors, had large pictures of cartoon characters on the wall and several plastic bins overflowing with toys. The thick mat on the floor was in the corner with colorful pillows on top.
“The bath is there,” she pointed. “When you’re done, you will find clean clothes,” said the maid with no emotion.
The bathroom was as beautiful as the bedroom. Blue and orange tile covered the walls and floor. A toothbrush and toothpaste lay on the sink. Ravi took off his blood-stained yellow t-shirt and blue jean shorts and filled the bucket from the sink and stepped into the shower. I’m covered with bruises. The warm water stung his wounds, but it was one of the first normal things that had happened to him since the accident. I am so hungry. He washed as fast as he could, then wrapped himself in the large, fluffy orange towel. He tried to avoid hitting his open wounds as he patted himself dry.
The new clothes were on the mat. He dressed as quickly as his injured body would allow and limped downstairs, clutching the handrail.
Mr. Shah was already at the table sipping chai.
“Welcome, Ravi. I have a great dinner planned for you.” He motioned to the chair beside him, snapped his fingers, and the maid appeared with a bowl of lentil dahl.
So hungry, but I must mind my manners. Ravi put the napkin on his lap and took a modest-sized bite, resisting the urge to pick up the bowl and hurriedly drink it.
“Well, Ravi. I see you are quite the cultured gentleman. Did your parents teach you manners?”
At the mention of his parents, Ravi stared at the soup and fought back tears.
“Where are your parents?”
Tears spilled over Ravi’s cheeks as he continued staring in silence.
Good, thought Mr. Shah, no one to look for you.
“Ravi,” he said, laying his arm around his shoulder, “I’m going to take good care of you. Have some more of that soup. Did you see the toys in your room?” Ravi shook his head and took another bite, while his left hand felt for the plastic egg in his pocket. It wasn’t there. He jumped up, wailing.
“Where is it? It’s in my old clothes.” He hobbled up the stairs, his body aching and his heart pounding. The towel and his old clothes were gone. A wave of despair washed over Ravi, and he hurried, as fast as he could, back down to Mr. Shah. “My clothes, my old clothes. It had my egg. IT HAD MY EGG!”
“Calm down, Ravi. I’ll help. What do you need?”
“My egg.” He flailed his hands as he shouted. “It was in my old clothes. I need my egg. Please, please, help me.”
Mr. Shah rose from his chair and wrapped his arms around Ravi, rocking him back and forth. “Calm down, Ravi. I’ll help you.” He called to the maid. Ravi continued bawling.
“Will you please bring Ravi’s old clothes?” Mr. Shah shouted to the maid. “It seems there was something quite valuable to him in the pocket.”
The maid disappeared while Mr. Shah tried to reassure Ravi. She entered carrying the red plastic egg.
“Well, don’t delay; bring it to the boy. Can’t you see he’s half mad?”
Ravi clutched the egg to his chest and stood breathing deeply.
“It’s OK, Ravi,” he hugged him again. “You and your egg are safe. I’ll protect you both. You can trust me.” As he spoke, he felt Ravi’s tight little body relax slightly into his arms. After several minutes, he released him.
“Sit down and eat, Ravi. I know you are hungry. Dry those tears and act like the big boy I know you are.”
Each dish the maid brought seemed to taste better than the one before. Ravi ate in silence as Mr. Shah talked on and on.
“My wife and I had three daughters, but Ravi, I always longed for a son. I can tell you’re a fine boy..”
When dinner was over Ravi was full. He laid his napkin on the table and loaded the remainder of the flat bread onto it.
“Ravi, what are you doing?”
“For tomorrow,” he said, somewhat embarrassed.
“Ravi,” said Mr. Shah with a smile. “I told you I’d take care of you. When you wake up, breakfast will be waiting. Trust me. Remember, I promised I will protect you, and I will.”
It was hard to do, but Ravi obediently returned the bread. He looked to Mr. Shah for directions.
“Let me take you to your room, son.” Mr. Shah gently picked him up and carried him up the stairs. “I saw you limping.” He opened the door and set Ravi on his feet.
“There are plenty of toys to keep you busy. Here are some crayons and paper and a few books on the shelf.”
“I like to read,” whispered Ravi, who stared at the floor.
“What did you say?”
“I like to read,” he spoke a little louder as he perused the bookshelf for an astronomy book.
“From the time I laid eyes on you, I said to myself, ‘Now here’s a smart boy.’ You stay in your room tonight and I’ll come get you for breakfast. Good night, Ravi, sleep well,” said Mr. Shah as he shut and locked the door behind him.
Nothing in the toy box was appealing. He picked a comic book off the shelf and climbed on the mat. As he read the first page, he carefully mashed the putty flat and pushed it on the main character. He peeled it off and smiled. “Tall,” he stretched the putty vertically. “Fat,” he stretched it horizontally. After copying several more characters he wadded the putty back into a ball, put it in the egg, and clutched it to his heart. He was soon asleep, his body battered and exhausted and his soul even more so.
Ravi was in a deep sleep when the maid knocked on his door the next morning.
“Time for breakfast. Get up,” said the maid with a terse voice. She unlocked the door and tossed Ravi’s old clothes inside. “Put these on and hurry down to breakfast.”
Even though his hurting, exhausted body wanted to stay under the fluffy comforter, Ravi forced himself to get out of bed with the promise of a wonderful breakfast.
Why can’t I wear my new clothes? he wondered as he dressed. He transferred his Silly Putty® to the pocket of his dirty, blue shorts. In just a few minutes, he was downstairs. Mr. Shah sat at the table finishing what was obviously a lavish breakfast. He lay a half-eaten pastry on his plate and stood to greet Ravi.
“Good morning, son. Did you sleep well?”
Ravi nodded to the floor, yes.
“My clothes?” he looked toward Mr. Shah. “They still have the….” He pointed to the bloodstains. The maid brought a carafe to refill Mr. Shah’s coffee.
“I’m sorry, Ravi; it was the maid’s fault.” He scowled at her. “You know I told you to get Ravi a new set of clothes today. What happened?” She lowered her eyes and remained silent.
“Well, Ravi, you can wear them for now and change a little later on. Right now I must take care of your wounds, Ravi. Let me have that arm.”
Ravi held up his left arm, showing Mr. Shah the long gash.
“The other arm.”
“But it’s only bruised.”
“The gash will be OK. Let’s leave it exposed. The air and sunshine will do it good.” He wrapped gauze around Ravi’s right arm from wrist to shoulder, then lavishly spread Mercurochrome on even the smallest scrapes. Ravi looked at the dark orange stains on his skin. Mr. Shah ripped off a scab on Ravi’s knee, then handed him the half-eaten pastry.
“What a beautiful day today. It’s too nice outside to keep a fine boy like you cooped up inside. I’m going to take you on an errand today. How does that sound?”
Mr. Shah led Ravi outside. There were two cars. The shiny black Mercedes and an older model green Honda with a crack in the windshield and covered with rust. Ravi looked at the cars. So different.
“Jump in, Ravi,” said Mr. Shah, pointing to the Honda. As he turned right out of the drive, he put his hand on Ravi’s shoulder. “Remember last night, Ravi, I said I would take care of you and protect you? A fine young man like you can’t be living on the streets; you’d get killed out there. You wouldn’t last more than three days and some gang would get you. You can believe that because it’s true,” he said, moving the stick shift into second gear.
Ravi reached in his pocket and held his egg.
“You need someone like me to care for you and protect you from the evil on the street, and I’m going to do that just like I promised you, son, but I need something from you in return. I need you to make some money so I can afford to look after you. That sounds fair, doesn’t it? I know you’d never expect me to take care of you for free since I’m going to be feeding, clothing, and protecting you.”
Ravi stared at the floor, squeezing the plastic egg.
“But don’t worry. What I’m asking from you is not hard. I’m going to drop you by this shopping center. A lot of people come here. You’re going to ask them for rupees. That’s all. It’s easy. I’ll come back for you tonight before dark.” He pulled over and put the car in park.
“Here’s a can. Get out now, Ravi. Do what I say. I’ll have a hearty dinner waiting for you.” Ravi sat, not knowing what to do. Mr. Shah walked to Ravi’s side and opened the door. He picked Ravi up and carried him to the sidewalk where he put him down.
“I know you can do this, you’re a smart boy. You just come back with the can half full tonight, and everything will be just fine.” He grabbed Ravi’s egg and held it over his head.
“I’ll just hold this for safe keeping, and you’ll get it back each evening.” Ravi started to cry out and jump for the egg.
“Now get out there and beg.” Ravi continued screaming and jumping. Mr. Shah shoved him and sent him sprawling on the sidewalk. “If you aren’t here tonight when I come to pick you up, I swear I’ll find you and kill you. I can be your best friend or your worst enemy. It’s up to you.” He got in his car and rolled down the window. “Don’t cross me, son. I never forget.” He drove away.
Ravi curled into a fetal position and sobbed. His hands sought in each pocket for the red egg that wasn’t there. His body ached; several scabs were torn open from landing on the sidewalk. After being stepped over, kicked, and spat upon, Ravi struggled to his feet.
The same voice told him to keep walking. So he did.