Robin Cook - Foreign Body

Jack responded first, getting to his feet and crowding the Dom out of the doorway. “We’re just finishing up. We’re doctors. We wanted to make sure these two were truly dead. But we’re done.”

Jawahar, Laurie, and Arun pushed out of the temple right behind Jack.

Although the Dom were initially confused by Jack’s statement, it didn’t last long. “Body thieves!” he yelled out at the top of his lungs, and tried to grab onto the front of Jack’s shirt.

“Run!” Jack yelled in response. Laurie did not need further invitation. She threw herself into the stairway, her legs churning. Jawahar came next, followed by Arun.

Jack gave a karate-style chop to the first Dom’s grasping arms, only to have the second latch on to him from the side. At that point Jack used a closed fist, hitting the second Dom square in the face. In the background it looked like Dom were coming out of the stonework. Jack followed with another closed-fist body shot to the first Dom, who buckled. In the next instant Jack was on the stairs.

When he reached the narrow alleyway at the base of the stairs, it took him a moment to see Arun, who’d stayed in sight to wave him on. Jawahar was taking them in the opposite direction that they’d come. Jack ran toward Arun, who’d recommenced running. Behind them they could hear a very vocal horde of Dom coming down the stairs.

In fabulous physical shape, Jack quickly overtook Arun, but then they both ran into Laurie and Jawahar, who’d gotten bogged down in pedestrian traffic. The dark, empty, very narrow lane had butted into a larger but more crowded alley complete with a prone cow chewing its cud. Laurie almost fell over the animal in her haste.

For another five minutes the group pushed and shoved their way to put more distance between themselves and the angered Dom. When they were confident they were no longer being chased, they stopped, each with his or her chest heaving from exertion — everyone, that is, except Jack. They looked at one another, and partially from the anxiety the episode had engendered, they laughed.

After they had recovered their breath, Jawahar led them through the labyrinthine lanes back to Vishwanath Gali, the shopping street that had initially taken them to the Dasashvamedha ghat. There Jawahar managed to hire two cycle rickshaws, which transported them back to the Taj Ganges hotel.

“What I want to do more than anything else,” Laurie was saying as they approached the front desk to get their room keys, “is take a long shower.”

“Are you Dr. Laurie Montgomery?” the desk clerk asked before Laurie had a chance to say anything. His tone was exigent, immediately catching Laurie’s attention.

“I am,” Laurie responded with concern.

“You have several urgent messages. The caller has called three times, and I’m supposed to ask you to respond immediately.”

Laurie took the messages with alarm.

“What is it?” Jack asked, with equivalent unease. He looked over her shoulder.

“It’s Neil,” Laurie said. She looked at Jack. “Do you think it could be about Jennifer?”

As Laurie got her mobile phone out of her bag, the group moved over to a sitting area overlooking the hotel’s extensive grounds. Not knowing Neil’s cell phone number, she called the Amal Palace Hotel and asked to be put through to Neil’s room.

Neil picked up before the first ring had completed, as if he were hovering over the phone.

“Jennifer has been kidnapped,” he blurted, even before he was sure it was Laurie.

“Oh, no!” Laurie cried. Hastily, she repeated the news for Jack’s benefit.

“It must have been this morning when I was with you guys,” Neil said. “When I came back, I thought she was sleeping. I didn’t find out she wasn’t here until almost six o’clock. I’m so angry with myself I could die.”

Neil went on to tell the whole story, including how the missing safety chain was the only clue. That and the fact that nothing is missing from her room.

“Has there been any note? Any demands?” Laurie asked.

“Nothing,” Neil admitted. “That’s what scares me the most.”

“Are the police involved?”

Neil laughed derisively. “They are involved, but a lot of good that’s done.”

“Why do you say that?”

“They refuse to fill out their First Information Report for twenty-four hours. And an FIR has to be filled out before they do anything. It’s like an Indian catch-twenty-two.”

“Why won’t they fill out an FIR?”

“Get this! They won’t fill one out because they’ve had too much experience, especially with Americans, that whoever is missing, whether supposedly kidnapped or on their own, end up reappearing and all the work required to fill out the FIR is for naught. The lazy bastards are willing to give the kidnappers a twenty-four-hour free getaway time because the paperwork is too demanding. It makes me sick.”

“How has the hotel been about it?”

“The hotel has been terrific. They are as upset as I am and have a whole private team on it. They’re also busy watching all the security tapes they have for the lobby and the front entrance.”

“Well, I hope to God they find something and find it soon,” Laurie said. “I’m sorry we’re not there.”

“Me, too. I’m a wreck with worry.”

“At least we got the urine samples we came for,” Laurie said.

“I hope you’re not too disappointed that at this point, I couldn’t give a flying crap about the urine samples.”

“I understand completely,” Laurie added. “I feel the same. I just mentioned it because we’ll be coming back to New Delhi first thing tomorrow morning, and we’ll see if we can help you get the local police more involved. Wait, Jack wants to speak with you.”

“Listen, Neil,” Jack said when he got the phone. “What we have to do tomorrow is get ourselves over to the U.S. embassy and get in touch with one of the consular officers. He or she can then get us together with a regional security officer. They know how to deal with the local police. What you’re dealing with is probably no more than a station house officer. What we’re going to have to do is get the FBI invited to join in. The FBI’s hands are tied until they are invited.”

“When will you both get back here?”

“While you were talking to Laurie, I checked. The first flight leaves here at five-forty-five. We should be at the hotel before you’re awake.”

“Don’t count on it. I’m not sure I’m going to sleep at all.”

Jack gave the phone back to Laurie.

“I heard that,” Laurie said. “You have to sleep. We’ll get to the bottom of this. Don’t you worry.”

After saying good-bye, Laurie disconnected. She looked at Jack. “This is a major disaster.”

“I’m afraid so,” Jack agreed.

October 20, 2007

Saturday, 3:00 a.m.

New Delhi, India

By three a.m. the bungalow was finally completely quiet. Only an hour earlier, Veena had heard the flat-screen TV in the living room, suggesting that someone couldn’t sleep. But whoever it had been had turned it off and had disappeared back to their room.

Avoiding turning on a light, Veena felt for the pillowcase full of clothes she’d put on her night table when she’d turned her lights off at midnight. When her hand touched it, she picked it up, then moved to her bedroom door. Luckily, Samira was spending the night with Durell. Samira had been one of her worries, and for the three hours Veena had lain awake in bed, every time she’d heard a noise she’d worried that it was Samira returning to spend the rest of the night in her own bed, across from Veena’s.

Another worry was the key. If it wasn’t where she hoped it was, all bets would be off.