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New Delhi, India... One of the largest centers of human population on the face of the planet.. A city of ten million inhabitants, a city of ten million souls..
Cassidy's eyes wandered as she and Butch pushed their way through the crowds of peddlers and tourists. Sacred livestock shared the narrow roadway, blocking the easy passage of their human cousins..
"A hamburger sure would be nice right now.." she thought to herself with a wry smile as they squeezed between cattle and into a more open stretch of concourse. Many livestock were sacred, and never to be eaten in India.
"It should be just around the next corner."
She nodded and saw a small sign bearing a likeness of a jewel, and some unintelligible indian writing, hanging out from the wall of a building formed of a sort of light brownish orange clay masonry. The two walked into the small shop and were greeted by a short dark man with a broad smile and a white turban. Cassidy was surprised as he immediately beckoned them to the short counter in english.
"Yes, hello, how may I help you?"
"I just would like for you to tell us what this inscription says."
Butch pulled the small gold band out of his pocket and extended it towards the man as he spoke.
"Ah, yes," the jeweler said as he lifted a magnifier to his eye and held the ring under a small lamp that sat on his counter. He seemed to take a rather long while, turning the golden halo over several times before looking back up.
"Hm... I can't be very sure.. this is the old language, but I believe the best translation I can give to you in english would be 'dark rider'. Do you wish to sell it??"
Butch smiled and extended his hand, "No thanks, how much do I owe you for the translation?"
The man reluctantly placed the ring back on Butch's palm, "Charge is only twenty rubles."
Butch produced a wad of bills from his pocket and flipped through them to where he kept his indian money, paying the jeweler in full.
"Hm... dark rider doesn't tell us much.." Cassidy said as they walked back into the crowded city street.
"At least we know we have the right artifact now." Butch said smiling back at her and merging seamlessly into the crowd.
The large figure smashed his powerful fist down on the table in front of him.
"This isn't the right ring! The ring I'm looking for has no stone, and there's an engraving on the inside!"
The tall woman across the table hung her head. She was rather young and wore a sort of fancy dark blue military uniform, but her most distinguishing feature was her light pink hair.
"I'm sorry sir.. I will retrieve the correct item this time.."
"You'd better.."
Without looking up the young woman nodded and turned around to walk out of the room.
The large man also turned around and took an exit on the opposite side of the hall without any further words. The two guards that had been standing silently on either side of the portal followed him through as he exited.
"No! You got us lost in the first place!"
"I'm telling you, we weren't lost, we just hadn't got there yet."
"Whatever." Jessie said as she pushed him away.
The two had found their way into a narrow alley between two short brown buildings where they could avoid being buffeted by the crowds that consumed the streets.
James crossed his arms and sighed as he leaned back against the wall that comprised the west side of the narrow passage. He knew that Jessie was mad, and he'd better just let her blow her steam out. It was times like this that he knew he couldn't win, all he could do was let her have her way.
He looked out past her and into the streets at the people. Some were burdened with large baskets propped on top of their heads, others led cows, goats, or other livestock behind them. James wondered about India.. how there could be so many people in such a small area.. especially with their heavy caste tradition... If you were Indian, you were born into your life.. you didn't have a choice.. you would do what your parents did, and you'd never be any better than they'd been. The rich would always be rich, and the poor would always be poor.
"Ugh! where was that stupid 'Grendane Inn' supposed to be, again?" Jessie lowered the crumpled map to her side as she turned to James with a very unhappy look on her face.
"It's supposed to be on 'Bedvenev', but we can't even read the street signs.. this is going to take forever to find.."
Jessie closed her eyes and raised her hand to her head with a sigh as she slowly massaged her temples.
James put his arm around her shoulders in attempted comfort, but she only shoved him away.
'Still a little too angry..' James thought to himself.
"We'll just have to find someone to ask.." Jessie said crumpling up the map and stuffing it in her backpack.
James sighed again and followed her back into the hot swarm of bodies melting in the afternoon sun.
They walked a few yards but were soon held up by two cows that had decided they'd have more fun blocking the path than getting to where they were supposed to be going.
"Ugh!! I am getting so sick of these cows!" Jessie said as she pushed her way to the front of the mob with James following behind her. "Take this you stupid animal!" she said as James watched her draw her foot back and kick the cow as hard as she could.
The small moo that the cow let out was nothing compared to the sound that flared up in the crowd..
"Oh shit!" was all James said as he jumped over the beast's back and grabbed Jessie, lifting her over after him.
The cow's owner, as well as a few people standing around yelled after them and began chasing..
"Jessie! don't you know that cows are sacred in India!"
"I.. er.. I forgot..." Jessie said between breaths as they raced through the streets, brushing past, and occasionally knocking down other pedestrians.
"This way!" James said as he pulled Jessie into another small side alley and out the other side into another crowded street. "Ok.. just walk with everyone else, I think we'll be ok now.."
Jessie sighed and wrapped her arm around his shoulder to lean on him.
"Hey wait a minute, is that?!"
"Grendane Inn!!" Jessie exclaimed as she looked up and saw what he was pointing at.
"Good thing you kicked that cow, or we may never have found it!" James said as they both laughed.
Butch let out a low sigh as he set his gun back down on the table where it had been and held his hands up... This was the second time he had a gun pointed at his head with her on the other end of it..
Butch and Cassidy had been enjoying their leisure time as they awaited the arrival of the partners in crime that Giovanni would be sending them.. Butch thought to himself, "somehow I don't think these aren't the people we've been waiting for.."
Butch had been quietly reading Orwell's classic '1984', and Cassidy had been working on finishing up Sagan's 'Cosmos' when they were surprised by the door being kicked in. Before they could react they were face to face with three guns. two men in dark suits, and a young woman with light pink hair dressed like some sort of low rank officer.
Cassidy raised her eyebrow as she immediately took notice of the girl's horrible fashion sense and tasteless makeup..
"Ok, handsome, I want the real ring this time.." she said lifting her foot up and setting it on Butch's chair in between his legs. Her arm resting evenly on her knee so the barrel of her gun was only a few inches from his forehead.
Cassidy growled to herself from her seat on the bed.. She couldn't help it..
"Alright.. here.." Butch said as he produced the ring with a dark inlaid stone out of his shirt pocket.
The woman backhanded him as hard as she could and cocked her gun, slowly repeating herself.
"I said I want the real ring.."
Cassidy's hand slowly crept down towards the base of the bed where her gun lay..
"Don't even think about it, tramp."
Cassidy withdrew her hand with a scowl as the woman turned her gun towards her.
"I think you'd better turn around and look behind you.." Butch said his gaze shifting past her.
"You think I'm that stupid?"
Then she noticed a light tapping on her shoulder and turned her head towards it involuntarily out of surprise, only to be met by a crushing right cross from Jessie square in the side of the head.
Butch lost no time kicking the gun out of the wrist of the man closest to himself and finishing him off with a hard punch to the temple. James' kick to the back of the head knocked the other one out before he knew what was going on.
"The nerve of her calling you a hussy!" Jessie exclaimed with a wry smile, "only I'm allowed to call you that!"
Everyone had a short laugh. "It's about time you two got here!" Butch exclaimed with a smile as he extended his hand out to James.
"Well you know how we love to make an entrance.." James said smiling right back.
"And that was quite a punch, Jessie."
"Thanks, Cass," she said as she massaged her fist.
Cassidy picked up their supply bag and pulled out several sets of handcuffs..
"What the?!" She rolled onto her side and craned her neck around to see her hands were secured behind her with handcuffs.. and not just that, her ankles were cuffed together as well.
After awhile she managed to sit up on the bed and saw that Vic and Bert were lying on the floor at the foot of it, handcuffed together.
She was still in the same hotel room, but everyone had left.. all of their bags were missing, even the towels were gone..
She cursed herself for walking into an ambush like she had...
She reached under the hem of her skirt with, and after some stretching, drew out a small pin which she used to unlock the handcuffs, freeing herself..
"Vic and Bert aren't going anywhere.." she thought as she walked out of the room and down the single flight of stairs to the payphone in the lobby..
She noted the time on the clock behind the counter.. She let out a low whimper as she calculated that almost two hours had passed since she'd arrived at the Inn.. As she picked up the receiver on the payphone she took a deep breath and prepared to deliver the news..