Moving her plate to the side, the pythia transferred her attention back to the view of the ocean. “So where are we exactly?” she asked. “It was dark, and all I remember is a long, long cab ride from the airport.”
“We’re in South Mumbai now—the Back Bay area,” Griffin replied. “That stretch of road curving along the water is Marine Drive. At night, the view from this vantage point is called ‘The Queen’s Necklace’ because the lights resemble a strand of pearls.”
“It’s a pretty impressive view during the day too,” Cassie observed appreciatively. “Marine Drive kind of reminds me of Lake Shore Drive back in Chicago.”
“Yes, I can see the similarity,” the scrivener admitted.
Erik rose abruptly from the table. “I’m going back to my room for some more shut-eye. Come and get me when you two decide on a plan for the day.”
“See you later, Captain Cranky Pants,” Cassie called after him.
The paladin pretended he didn’t hear her.
Griffin watched the retreating figure of his teammate then turned to Cassie with a troubled expression. “Is everything alright between you two?”
She was taken aback by the question. “Everything’s fine. What made you ask that?”
“I couldn’t help but notice you checked into separate hotel rooms.”
“Oh, that.” Cassie laughed. “It isn’t common knowledge around the Arkana that Erik and I are involved. You only know about it because that was unavoidable.”
The scrivener colored as they both remembered their embarrassing encounter in the hotel hallway in Rabat.
“I haven’t told anybody else.”
“Didn’t Maddie question your hotel bill from Tahiti? I’m assuming the two of you shared a room while you were vacationing there.” He shifted uncomfortably in his chair.
“We shared a room some of the time, but the accommodations were separate. As far as hotel arrangements go, I like having a place to myself where I can crash if I want to.”
Griffin glanced down at the tablecloth, unwilling to meet her gaze. “I realize this is an impertinent question, but do you see any future in your relationship with Erik?”
“Hey, look at me,” Cassie coaxed, leaning forward to catch his eye. “It’s not impertinent. You’re my teammate and my friend. You have a right to know what’s going on. The truth is I can’t be sure. Right now, we’re just friends with benefits.” She propped her chin on her hand and sighed. “Though I could see myself falling for him if I had any encouragement.”
“And does he feel the same way about you?” Griffin asked in a guarded tone.
The pythia shrugged helplessly. “See, that’s just the thing. Who knows? Erik’s very cagey that way. He doesn’t like to show his cards—emotionally speaking.”
Griffin reached across the table and grasped her hand. “This is well beyond presumptuous of me, but I don’t want... I mean it would be terrible if...” He sighed with exasperation at his own incoherence. “I don’t want you to be hurt, that’s all.”
She squeezed his hand reassuringly before releasing it. “I’m all grown up now, Griffin. Whatever happens, I can handle it.”
He colored slightly. “Yes, of course. I shouldn’t have meddled. None of my business really.”
Cassie tactfully changed the subject. Her gaze traveled from the promenade along Marine Drive to the buildings on the opposite side of the road. “One high-rise after another. This sure isn’t the image of India I had in my head.”
Griffin perked up instantly, relieved at the distraction of a new topic. “Mumbai is quite modern. A bustling metropolis of twenty million people. The largest city in India and fourth largest in the world. It is also the wealthiest city with the best standard of living, not just in India but in much of Asia. The city represents how India would like to be perceived as a nation.” He hesitated.
The waiter swooped in to clear away the breakfast plates.
Sensing there was more to the story, Cassie asked, “What aren’t you saying?”
“A million people live in Dharavi—a shanty town slum— only a few miles away from the wealthiest residences in Mumbai. The contrast is mind-boggling. India is a nation built of opposites—prosperous urban centers at one end of the spectrum and rural hamlets at the other. Seventy percent of the population lives in small villages and much of that population is mired in poverty and ignorance.”
“Why such a difference?”
Griffin paused to ponder the question. He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms. “I think it’s difficult for Westerners to understand the national consciousness in India because it differs so much from our own.”
Cassie finished her coffee and stared at the empty cup. Before she could ask for a refill, the ever-vigilant waiter glided back with the coffee pot. She gave him a grateful smile and returned to the topic. “Explain, please.”
“Try to think of the United States as fifty independent principalities competing with one another for resources. Then try to imagine that these fifty principalities speak different languages and follow different religious beliefs. You might get some idea of the incongruence within what is now considered a single country.”
“So, everybody in India more or less went off and did their own thing?”
“Yes, and that uniqueness translates to local traditions that diverge from one region to another. At a village level, people stubbornly cling to a way of life they have held not merely for centuries but for millennia.”
“Yikes, talk about people being dragged kicking and screaming into the twenty-first century.”
Griffin sighed, contemplating the ocean view. “The wealthy modern cities of India are somewhat embarrassed by rural backwardness. It’s like the offputting uncle one wishes to hide in a closet when company comes to visit.”
Cassie chuckled. “In the information age, it must be hard keeping Uncle Sanjay under wraps.”
“I also think modern India fears that such behavior causes the rest of the world to view the entire country
