The old man coughed, and Saleem gave him more tea, wiped his chin. He sank back in his chair, his voice growing softer and further away.
“Not only will it forever heal itself, it will heal man, as well.” He pointed at the box. “This is only one piece of the original stone, the largest, as I’ve told you. You must find the other two and unite them. If you cannot, it is your sacred duty to pass this piece of the precious diamond and the truth behind it to your son, so he may continue the quest. Why have I told you, instead of waiting for your father to pass the legend along?” His grandmother smiled, a funny smile that made Saleem want to laugh. “I do not believe in chance, Saleem. I believe in redundancy. Now both descendants know. It is safest, I think.”
Saleem was very quiet. He was confused and upset. All this talk of stones and death and healing, he did not know what to make of it. His grandfather was a very old man; perhaps he was raving mad. He did not understand this redundancy.
Saleem tried to pull his arm away from his grandfather’s clawed grasp, but the old man held tighter.
“The diamond’s prophecy, Saleem. You must remember the prophecy. The world only knows part of it, the curse of the Koh-i-Noor:
“He who owns this diamond will own the world,
but will also know all its misfortunes.
Only God, or a woman, can wear it with impunity.
“Only our family knows the second part of the prophecy. This is our secret:
“When Krishna’s stone is unbroken again,
the hand which holds it becomes whole.
Wash the Mountain of Light in woman’s blood,
so we will know rebirth and rejoice.”
Saleem would say anything to get away now. “I will remember.”
His grandfather’s voice strengthened, echoed throughout the room. “The stone gifted to our people by Surya through Krishna is in three pieces. The largest piece you’ve now seen for the first time. The second piece resides in Tower of London, stolen by the British marauders who knew not the true power of the stone. And the third piece, the reassembled parts from the cut Koh-i-Noor, disappeared in 1852, when Queen Victoria had the stone recut to please her people. You and your father must find the two stones and bring them home, and reunite the three stones together again.”
He fell back against the velvet chair, exhausted. His eyes closed, and Saleem wanted desperately to run from the room.
Yet he wanted to touch the gleaming stone again, hear the shouts and the screams, feel the power and the excitement.
The stone had spoken to him. He had heard its voice.
Saleem’s hand crept toward the box, and his grandfather’s eyes shot open. His voice was strong and clear.
“This is your destiny, Saleem. Your life will be consumed by this quest, as it consumed me and now consumes your father. Know this: all before you have failed. But if you do succeed, Saleem, you must see the stone home.”
“Home?”
“Back to India, to the Kollur mine. You must unite the stones and throw the diamond back into the earth, in its proper place. If you do so, our land will rise again and prosper, using its strength to make the soil strong. You will be recognized as a hero, as the one who restored us to our appropriate place of strength in the world.”
He hugged the boy to his chest.
“May luck be with you always, Saleem.”
? ? ?
The following day, Saleem’s father took him aside in the gardens.
“You were given your duty?”
“Yes, Papa.”
“Do you understand what it means, Saleem?”
He shook his head. “No, Papa.”
Robert Lanighan sat on a stone bench, beckoned his only son to sit beside him.
“When I was your age, your grandfather told me the story of the lost stones. I too did not understand the significance of this task. You are very young, Saleem, but it is time for you to be strong, like me.”
He’d roared then, like a lion, making young Saleem giggle.
“You try.”