The Puppetmasters (39 page)

K
ENDALL SLOWLY REACHED FOR THE
heavy handgun lying on her side of the tent floor and pressed the safety button. She didn’t dare activate the lighted scope. As she was about to raise it up toward the looming figure, she heard a low voice, “Kendall, are you okay?” It was Rashid. She was never so relieved in her life.

“Yes, but you almost weren’t! My God, I was going to shoot you. What happened?” She was now wide awake.

“The grandfather—the tribal elder—lost his grandchild. The five-year old got up to pee, and didn’t come back. The mother was hysterical, and the whole tent full of relatives woke up to start looking for him. As you saw, they enlisted my help,” Rashid said dryly.

“Well … did you find him?”

“Yes. He was playing. The moon is so bright, that he saw something interesting and stopped to investigate.”

“Why all the hysteria?”

Rashid frowned. “I would think you would know by now.”

“What?”

“There are landmines everywhere! One must remain alert at all times!”

“Oh, that. I keep trying to forget the ugliness around this country.”

“Did you know there was one, just twenty feet from where we went behind the boulder last night?”

“No. Why didn’t you tell me?”

He shook his head. “You have to be alert around here, Kendall! I may not be with you the whole time. At least be able to look out for yourself.”

“Fine! Then tomorrow please show me again what they look like, so I’ll know.”

Rashid vowed to do more than that in the morning. He was very concerned
at her naiveté and willingness to just follow his lead. Her trust was rewarding but misplaced. It could get her killed. She was in an unfamiliar country, and needed to get up to speed as quickly as possible on how to stay alive—by herself, if need be. More than anything, she needed to be alert and always have a plan. He lowered himself to his bedroll and lay back down. The education process would begin in the morning. He could take care of himself, but she certainly couldn’t. He had purposely not pointed out the landmine near the boulder last night, because he didn’t want to scare her. But he now saw that was wrong. If she was going to stay alive, he would need to immerse her in all the unpleasantries they encountered.

He closed his eyes and began to slide into that wonderful state of calmness and tranquility that takes over as sleep approaches.

“Rashid?”

He was feeling grumpy now. “Yes?”

“Why wouldn’t you be with me?”

He was thoroughly confused. “What?”

“You said you may not be with me the whole time. What did you mean by that?”

“Can we talk about this in the morning? We have about two hours more of darkness. We had a big day yesterday and moved around a lot. I’m exhausted. How about some sleep while it’s still dark?”

Kendall was mortified at her insensitivity to his state of exhaustion and everything he had been through, not the least of which was watching Poya get blown up by a landmine. She rolled onto her side and quietly whispered, “Okay.” Rashid knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep if she lay there worrying about their circumstances, so he moved his bedroll up against her and threw his arm over her body. He gave her a squeeze and heard a soft sigh. Soon they were both fast asleep.

In the morning, Rashid rose first and made a fire. When Kendall crawled out of the tent and took in the scenery around her, she was awestruck. She stopped cold, taking in the magnificence. The morning sun was shining on the lake, and it sparkled like millions of diamonds. Their campsite was only twenty feet from the shore, and though they could hear muffled voices in the distance, they had fortuitously found the perfect, isolated spot. She could not get over the pristine waters and azure color of the lake and the mountains surrounding it like a sentry standing guard.

Rashid had wanted to see her expression when she first saw the lake. He smiled. He was not disappointed at her reaction. “Did you know the lakes are referred to as the ‘lakes of jewels’ and are one of the wonders of the world?”

“Yes. You told me so yesterday.”

“Oh. Well, imagine that … here in the savage country of Afghanistan.”

She peered at him, as he handed her a steaming cup of green tea. “You’re making fun of my ignorance.”

“No, I’m not. I just want you to be safe, and aware of your surroundings.”

With that, they launched into a discussion on what she needed to be aware of and how to spot the unmistakable red-topped dirt or stakes in the ground, indicating the presence of a landmine. The opposite were the white-painted rocks that meant the area had been de-mined and was clear.

After a meager but nourishing meal of fruits, nuts, and dried meat, Rashid helped her into one of Jangi’s wife’s full
chador
and headdress worn by the local women. The only skin showing was her face. She had now been in the sun so much the last week that her skin was warmly tanned. She blended in nicely with the Afghanistan locals, and didn’t need to hide her face other than to avoid eye contact with other men.

They drove to the tomb of the Amir, where Rashid left her at the women’s beach. He walked to the nearby bazaar to purchase more goods and some fresh biscuits. He listened to the men talking. Apparently, the fishing was good. Since hand grenades were no longer allowed for fishing, he had to purchase a small, rickety fishing pole, which already had a reel and line attached. The toothless merchant pressed a shiny lure into his hand. Rashid’s mouth watered at the thought of fresh, hot fish for dinner.

There had been two women leaving the women’s beach when she arrived. She hurried past them. She appreciated having the place to herself. Kendall luxuriated in the cold lake water. It was close to Noon, and the sun was high and the air hot. She didn’t have a care in the world as she washed her hair with the little bottle of hotel shampoo she had shoved into her field bag and splashed about. She didn’t even mind that she had no bath towel. Rashid had given her a small, but clean, piece of cloth to use as a towel. When she was through and re-dressed, she washed out the soiled clothes she had been wearing since she left Jangi’s. Looking back, she thought, that hurried departure seemed like a lifetime ago.

As she looked out over the spectacular reflection of the mountain range over the jeweled lake, her eyes brimmed with tears at the thought of her mother. The sweet lady would have basked in the hot dry air and turquoise waters of the lake and would certainly have appreciated the otherworldly landscape. Kendall sighed and gathered her clothes. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and turned to rejoin Rashid.

He was patiently waiting for her when she came down the path around the corner of the mosque-like tomb. He tried to suppress a smile at the awkwardness of Kendall’s gait under the cumbersome
chador
that flapped about her legs. In truth, she would have liked to grab onto both sides of the
chador
and hitch it up, so she could walk unencumbered.

His eyes twinkled as he guessed her thoughts. “You look well scrubbed. Let’s have some tea at the Hotel Dir over there,” pointing down the unpaved road towards the dusty-looking stone building. They seemed to blend in with the locals. They stowed her newly-washed clothes in the jeep and headed to the hotel. Kendall was delighted there was a somewhat modern restroom down the hall from the lobby.

The proprietor rolled out little rugs for them on the floor and brought them
chapatti
or flat wheat bread. As they sat in the dark and dingy dining room enjoying their tea, Rashid noticed the big screen TV on the far wall in the back. He asked the proprietor to turn it on, and they moved—with their rugs—to the back table for a clear view of the TV. Rashid was anxious for the news. Given their local Afghan garments, he was not concerned they would attract any attention. But he noticed that Kendall kept looking around out of curiosity. Since Afghan women would never be so bold—at the risk of being severely punished by their husband or other male family member—he had her sit facing the television with her back to the rest of the room.

Kendall was restless and wanted to look around, but Rashid distracted her. “Did you know this place is called a
chaikhana?”

She shook her head. “No. What’s that?”

“It’s a tea house that also provides meals. Some have rooms to rent, like this place. The name ‘
chaikhana
’ is very old and came about even before the invention of a café or restaurant.”

Finally, the television came on, distracting Kendall again. Sure enough, the news was all about them. They were thought to have been spotted in Bamiyan, where it was reported they had disrupted a local sporting event by setting off a bomb near the field and causing the death of a young boy. Locals were urged to stay away from this dangerous pair, and to turn them in for a handsome reward. Rashid translated for Kendall. She was amazed at how the facts had gotten twisted. They were being portrayed as dangerous criminals to be avoided at all cost. They were last seen heading west in his jeep. A photo of the jeep was flashed before the cameras. Rashid quickly scanned the room to see if anyone else was watching. The only other patrons were sitting close to the door … out of sight of the television.

Rashid suddenly felt uneasy. They were going to have to lose the jeep. It stood out, was unusual, and would most certainly call attention to them … if it hadn’t already.
My God,
he thought. If they were spotted in Band-e-Amir, they would be cornered. There was only one road in and out. He had banked on the idea that the thick-headed and not-too-bright General Omar would never contemplate Band-e-Amir as their refuge due to its remoteness and isolation. Since they had been spotted in a city, Rashid hoped Omar would believe they were staying in cities, to blend in.

He decided they would ditch the jeep in the morning. In the meantime, he would cover it up and go looking for an alternate means of transportation. He knew what that would mean and was afraid to tell Kendall. He tried not to be obvious about hurrying them through the afternoon tea and light meal, but he wanted to get them and the jeep back to their campsite at the end of the road.

Finally, they were back at the campsite, and Kendall hung up her wet clothes on the nearby brush. Rashid removed quite a few of their belongings from the jeep and shoved them into every nook and cranny of the already much-too-small tent.

He announced that he was going swimming and would wash his clothes nearby. Kendall was surprised to hear that women were not allowed to swim in the lakes. With hands on her hips, she looked like she was going to give him a piece of her mind, but he held up his hands to stop her. “Don’t lecture me! It’s not my law. I just live here. I was hoping we could keep our heads for another day.”

At that ridiculous notion, she stopped and laughed. “Oh, go have your swim.” She stalked off to find some brush she could pee behind, and see if she could identify the minefield. She was shocked to see how close it was to the campsite.

After his much-needed and refreshing swim, he set about to fish, hoping they could have something hot for the evening meal. He climbed up on a nearby cliff ledge with steep walls descending right into the lake. He was delighted to see hundreds of fish swimming in the clear cold water below. Within fifteen minutes he caught his first fish.

Kendall ran up to see and wrinkled her nose at the strange fish. She didn’t recognize it … being used to salmon, trout, and halibut, back home. “What kind of fish is that?”

“The locals call it ‘milk fish’. You know it as carp.”

“Is it good?”

Rashid nodded. “Yes, you will find it soft and tasty.” He hesitated, deciding not to finish his thought. Before the afternoon was over, he had caught ten fish. He cleaned them and then set aside one large one for dinner. Kendall watched with interest as he hung strips of the meat in the hot sun of some nearby bushes and then salted them and covered them with netting to protect against local wildlife. He didn’t know if that would work, but they would need food for their journey … the one he had yet to tell her about. He cooked up the fish, and threw in some of Jangi’s potatoes and a wild onion he picked from the area close to their camp. Kendall finally had her fill and finished with some dried fruit.

She sat back with her hot green tea and looked over the lake. It was still fairly warm out, and she squinted as her eye caught something moving further down the lake towards the visitor-type center. She pointed to the strange-looking bird thing, “What’s that? It looks like a gigantic swan!”

Rashid laughed. “Yes, it’s a
pedalo.
You know, one of those paddle boats. Motors aren’t allowed on the lake, but these
pedalos
are. People rent them.”

“That’s amazing, because you’d see a sight like that in the U.S. too. Sometimes we’re not so different.”

He nodded and then asked, “So, how did you like the fish?”

“It was good. It had a funny aftertaste, but I figured it was just new to me.”

“Sometimes it can have a muddy-like taste, particularly if caught in fresh-water, which is why it is not a favorite in the U.S. It’s really an Asian fish. We don’t have a lot of choices here, particularly when it’s free. So we just adapt and don’t complain.”

“Oh, I’m not complaining. Aside from the warm food that Poya brought from the market, this was very tasty. Besides food is the least of our problems.”

Rashid nodded. “Yes, and that’s why we need to discuss what our next plan is.”

Why was she suddenly fearful of the news? “And where are we going tomorrow?”

He decided the direct approach was best. “We’re ditching the jeep tomorrow.”

Her brow furrowed. “Oh. So, we’ll take one of those tourist minibuses? But how will we carry all of our stuff? We have a lot of things.” Logic told her there was no way they were getting on public transportation.

“No public transportation for us, Kendall. We’re going to buy a camel tomorrow, and maybe a donkey.”

She laughed at the absurdity, because it sounded so foreign to her. “What are we going to do with them?”