The Diamond Thief (12 page)

Fourteen

The Curse

Abruptly, Thaddeus looked away. Rémy felt her face flush, the confusion of the moment – of everything – piling on her like a landslide.

Desai spoke, his deep voice cutting into the sudden silence like a knife. “Do you know where the Ocean of Light was mined, Miss Brunel?”

She looked back at him, blinking. “Yes – at Golconda, in India. Why?”

Desai stepped forward suddenly, raising his free hand to catch Rémy’s chin, holding her still as he examined her face. From the corner of her eye, she saw Thaddeus move quickly, as if he feared Desai were about to hurt her. The Indian must have seen it too, because he glanced at Thaddeus with a brief smile before turning his attention back to Rémy.

“Fear not, young man. I only want to see…” he turned her face, gently, this way and that. “Ah, yes. Interesting,” Desai said, releasing his hold and stepping back as he gazed once more at the opal.

“What?” Rémy asked. “What do you see, in my face? Please, explain.”

“You, my dear, are an Indian baby. You may have a French voice, and I have no doubt that your parents were French themselves. But you were conceived in India.”

“You cannot possibly know that,” Thaddeus protested before Rémy had a chance to speak. “Certainly not from looking at her face!”

“I have to say, that seems rather improbable, Desai,” added the Professor. “I’m not sure that science could use a physiognomy to determine place of conception, let alone the naked eye…”

Desai shot them both another long-suffering smile. “You may believe what you like, of course. But what I say is true.”

“What does it matter?” Rémy asked. “What does it matter where I was conceived?”

Desai nodded. “That is the right question, indeed. It matters because I also know where your opal came from. And together, these things mean that I believe that this curse you speak of is real and dangerous, and running within you as it did your parents. So. Would you like to hear more?”

Rémy nodded, her heart thumping painfully. Before this week, she had heard so little about her parents – less than little, really, nothing – that they had seemed insignificant in her life. But now, now that a past she had no idea about was looming so large in her present, it was all she wanted to know about.

Desai insisted that they sit, and so they all did – Rémy, for one, was relieved to finally rest. Once they were settled, Desai began to speak.

“Your opal, Rémy Brunel, was stolen from a very powerful Raja – one of the only true rulers of India left. He was so powerful that not even the French or the British colonists could displace him. They… tolerated him, instead. He bided his time and fomented rebellion where he could. It was an uneasy status quo. The colonists could not remove him, and he was not quite strong enough to attack them. I travelled to his court several times on behalf of the British government, and it was a wonder to behold, indeed. His collection of jewels was famed throughout the land, not only for their value and variety but also for their powers.”

“Powers?” Thaddeus asked. “What do you mean? Professor, you said something about these powers, too, and I didn’t understand you, either. Stones don’t have powers. They’re just… rocks.”

The Professor smiled. “Thaddeus, my boy, I am sure that Desai will explain far better than I ever could.”

Desai bowed his head, his face growing serious. “For many gems – most, even – it is true that they have no power. But not for all, my young sceptic. A stone may be just a stone, but it took it centuries to become one. Growing slowly beneath the surface, hidden away from prying eyes… one cannot pull such an ancient thing from its birthplace and not expect it to bring the wisdom of those ages with it.” He pointed to Rémy’s opal again. “Take a stone such as this, for example. Some say the colours in an opal are doorways to other places, other worlds. Some say they are angels, trapped by the devil in a fit of rage. Others say that opals are demons in their natural state, which is why they move in their settings.”

Rémy touched the gem again, absently. “Gustave said it had powers,” she said. “Do you know what he meant?”

“Have you ever been able to hear the thoughts of others?” Desai asked. “In your own head, as if they were your own?”

Rémy shook her head. “No, never. At least, I don’t think so.”

Desai smiled. “It may yet be sleeping. Stones do, you see. For centuries, sometimes, until they are woken. But even in its slumber it is a talisman against harm, which is probably why it was given to you in the first place. It was a good choice, too, for it would bestow none of these things upon someone who had stolen it. It must be given willingly and with love, for its powers to work.”

Rémy blinked, unsure whether she believed Desai or not. “The curse,” she said. “Can you tell me about that? Tell me what happened?”

“I believe that your parents stole a diamond from the same Raja that owned this opal. It was a famed jewel, at that time – as big and as valuable as the Ocean of Light, or even the Mountain of Light.”

“And?” Thaddeus asked, apparently as eager to hear as Rémy was herself. “What happened?”

Desai paused as one of his men appeared with a silver tray bearing a tea service and poured a cup for each of them before joining the circle. They all sipped the hot liquid gratefully.

“The story was,” Desai went on, “that the Raja welcomed a troupe of performers from Europe into his court and they stole the gem. They left as soon as the performance was over, intending to head back to their ship and escape. But the theft was discovered almost immediately and the Raja sent his best men after them. There was a struggle, and the stone was lost forever. It tumbled into the sea at Chinna Ganjam. The Raja was incandescent with rage, and ordered his magicians to send a curse after the thieves, their families and their master. It would only be broken when they returned a stone of equal power, beauty and worth to the Raja or his descendants.”

There was a brief silence as Desai stopped.

“Don’t stop there!” J said, evidently enthralled by the tale. “What was it? This curse you said ‘e sent after ‘em? What’d it do, like?”

Desai paused for a moment and sighed before continuing. “The curses were different, because the Raja perceived that the thieves and their master were different. Their master was greedy, and wanted only wealth. So he was cursed to never attain it, no matter how hard he tried. The two thieves… it was said they were very much in love with each other. And so their curse was to lose that love, and to drive each other away with enmity. The curse continued that their offspring would do the same to those who loved them.”

Rémy felt something cold clutch at her heart, but shook her head. “Well, that cannot be me. I am loved and I love. I love my friend, Claudette, and she loves me, I know she does. And her daughter, Am
é
lie, she may as well be my own. So, I cannot carry the curse you speak of. Can I? It can’t have been my parents in your story.”

Desai looked at her steadily for a moment, before he said, “I do not think that is the kind of love the curse was concerned with, my child.”

Rémy tried to laugh. “What other love is there? If you are talking about being in love… who would want that, anyway? It is only another burden to carry, another owner to make happy,” she shrugged. “And so, if I never am – what does that matter? It sounds like a blessing to me!”

Desai smiled gently. “Be careful what you wish for, Rémy Brunel. If what you have told me is true – about who gave you that opal and who told you to steal the Ocean, then I believe this story must be about your parents. And I have never known a curse like this to turn out as a blessing. It will find a way to wound, unless you break it, which I believe you must.”

“This is all just nonsense!” Thaddeus Rec’s exasperated voice spoke into the hush that had fallen at Desai’s pronouncement. “All this talk of curses that crush love and powerful jewels – it’s all rubbish. And it’s not going to help us right now, is it?”

Desai turned to the policeman. “Isn’t it?”

“No! What we need to do is sort out this Abernathy business! What he’s doing down there in those tunnels is far more important than a stupid gemstone, whether it’s got powers or not!”

“I should say so,” J piped up. “You didn’t see it, Mr Rec, but ‘e ‘as got slaves down there, just like everyone’s been saying. And I saw Tommy, me mate. We’ve got to get him out – we’ve got to get ‘em all out!”

“We will, J,” said Thaddeus, standing up. “Thank you, Professor, for finding Mr Desai, and thank you, Mr Desai, for our rescue from that accursed place. But if you are, as you say, in hiding from the establishment, then this is where we must part ways. Because it is to the establishment I must now go with this information.”

“And what information is that, Thaddeus?” the Professor asked.

“Why, the information about what is going on down there, of course, below our feet at this very moment!”

Desai nodded slowly. “You are proposing to tell people, are you?”

“Of course!”

“And then what?” the Indian man asked. “What proof do you have? What evidence is at your disposal to make them listen to you?”

Rémy watched as Thaddeus tried to think of an answer. His shoulders sagged as he realized the truth of Desai’s words. He sank down onto the cushions again.

“Your dilemma is mine, too, Mr Rec,” Desai told him. “We have both seen fearful things happening in this city, but we have no one but ourselves to turn to for help.”

“I only feel sorry that I have had my head so buried in my own inventions for so long,” said the Professor, shaking his head. “To think, that there have been such terrible things going on for so long, without me even realizing it.”

Rémy frowned, watching the Professor with narrowed eyes. Everyone else around her seemed completely willing to accept the Professor’s presence here, and his explanation. She wanted to, as well – he was Thaddeus’ friend, after all, and the policeman clearly trusted him. And yet… she was uneasy. Something didn’t feel quite right. She just wasn’t sure what it was.

Desai inclined his head. “It is a pity we have not met before now, Professor,” he said. “But I am glad that you have tracked me down. You have provided us all with an exciting opportunity. Perhaps together, with our talents combined, we can prove a force aligned against Abernathy.”

“But what is he doing?” Rémy asked. “All those machines down there… What are they for? What do they do?”

Desai smiled grimly. “Let me assure you that I know Abernathy of old, and whatever his intentions, they will not be good. His is another name I know from India, a man I have been keeping an eye on ever since I came to England.”

“He took the diamond,” Rémy said, “the Darya-ye Noor. I know he did.”

Desai nodded. “I believe you, Rémy Brunel.”

“But – but who is he?” Thaddeus asked, frowning. “Is he really a lord? And if he is, how did he get caught up in all this?”

“Oh yes, he was born a lord,” said Desai. “But he aspired to more than the life he had been born to. When I met him, Abernathy had disguised himself and entered the ranks.”

“Disguised?” Rémy asked. “How? And why would he do that?”

“It was not as uncommon as you might think,” said the Professor, drawing her attention with a smile. “Young men – young women, even – who wanted to explore outside the lives they had been given, would hide their true identities in order to enlist. In either the Army or the Navy. I was one of them, in fact.”

“You?” Thaddeus asked in astonishment. “You were a military man?”

“Oh, indeed,” nodded the Professor. “Though not for as long as I would have liked. Afghanistan, you know. A harsh place. But that, my dear,” he added, reaching over and patting Rémy’s knee, “is why I can disguise myself, even now. It is an old habit. I just keep thinking of new ways to do it, that’s all.”

Rémy narrowed her eyes. “But why would you need to disguise yourself to be a recruit? When you could just sign up as yourself?”

The Professor smiled. “Age, my dear. I was too young, and looked it. So, I made myself look older and no one questioned me at all. Once I was inside, no one cared how young I looked as long as I could carry a rifle.”

“You never told me,” Thaddeus said. “I had no idea!”

The Professor smiled, holding up his empty cup for Desai’s man to refill. “Ah, well – a man must have his secrets, Thaddeus.”

Rémy shook her head with a frown. “But what about Abernathy?” she asked Desai. “He was in the army?”

“Yes, he was serving as a British officer,” Desai told them. “An engineer, in fact, and a gifted one at that. He was assigned to the court of the same Raja who cursed your parents. I met him there twice and on both occasions our conversation revolved around the Raja’s gems and their mystical value. He had, as the British so vulgarly describe it, ‘gone native’. He was obsessed with the idea that he could harness the power of the Raja’s diamond for his wild engineering ideas. On the night that the diamond was stolen, he joined the Raja’s men to chase after the thieves. I distinctly remember thinking at the time that I would not trust him with my most valued possession – and his rage at the stone’s loss almost eclipsed that of the Raja himself.”

Rémy shook her head. “So… so what? You think he has waited all this time, just as Gustave has, to find another stone of equal worth? And he found that in the Darya-ye Noor?”

Desai shook his head. “No. I do not think that is quite what he is looking for. Abernathy is in search of something else.”

“What?” Thaddeus asked, his voice irritable. “For goodness’ sake, I’m tired of all this double-talk!”

“You mean what ‘e’s building,” J said, quietly. “Down there, in the mines. Don’t yer, Mr Desai? That’s what yer mean.”

“Yes, young man, that is what I mean. That place you found, all those mysterious machines and contraptions you saw? That is a graveyard for all his inventions that have not worked because he could not find a way to power them. He needs a power source. And I think in the Darya-ye Noor, he saw a way to get one. It just so happened that his quest brought him up against you and your master, Rémy.” Desai shook his head. “Is it not strange, how often the universe conspires to throw us all together, over and over again?”