Nine: Vengeance of the Warrior by Shobha Nihalani Read Free Book Online Page B

forehead. Nothing worked. Then he visited black-magic practitioners and gurus who used peacock feathers to beat the ghost out of him. It still didn’t work.
    ‘I was in Rajasthan and some friends wanted to go sightseeing. We went to Bhangarh …’
    Tara noticed the twitching of his chin. His lips curved in pain. ‘Stay calm, Jerry. You are safe here. Tell me what happened next.’
    Although she didn’t want to, Tara tuned in to his sensations. The fear was palpable, she could sense the terror building up inside him, suffocating and turning his breathing heavy and hard.
    She stayed with him. ‘Tell me, Jerry …’
    ‘There is a warning that Bhangarh is not to be visited after dark. It is cursed and dark spirits still haunt the place. But my friends didn’t care. I tried to convince them to return to the hotel, but they had had too much to drink and were in a mood to stay on and challenge … the ghost of that ancient town. An evil sorcerer’s home is in ruins on the top of a hill. And we went inside this place.’
    Jerry trembled. He was agitated and frightened and started crying. ‘No … no … don’t!’
    Tara knew immediately what had happened. She saw the vivid snapshots in Jerry’s head. He and his three friends had entered the ruins. It was as if someone had shut out the moonlight. That deep darkness was so creepy that the four stood in stunned silence. They had no flashlight. The place was heavy with the odour of shit. They stood there for a few seconds, then Jerry spoke up: ‘ I think we should leave .’
    His friends didn’t react immediately. They scuffled. Then there was a sudden panic attack and they all started screaming. Jerry’s friends pushed their way towards the exit. He was the last to leave and stood there for a second or two longer than the others. He had sensed a presence that had made him stop. He shouldn’t have turned but he had. A pair of eyes gleamed in the dark. Jerry trembled and hurried to the door, but not before he felt a hand graze the back of his head. Before he knew it, he tripped and landed on the ground, half his body still within the room. And suddenly, he felt someone pulling him inside. He called out to his friends to help him, but they were already racing down the hill. Using all his strength and willpower, Jerry managed to catch hold of the wall next to the door. Instinctively, he knew that he had to prevent himself from being pulled in. For a brief moment the force that was pulling him relented and he quickly hauled himself out of the structure. He rolled down the hill and landed at its foot. His friends were there to help him get back up on his feet and they headed back to their hotel, subdued and quiet. But Jerry wasn’t the same.
    He had brought back a disturbed spirit with him.
    Tara sensed the strong, angry presence within him. She placed a hand on his chest to calm him. ‘Who are you?’ Tara said in a strong voice. Her heart was on a roller-coaster ride, mirroring Jerry’s turmoil of emotions.

    The voice that erupted from Jerry was gritty and harsh. ‘I am Singha Sevra.’ Abruptly, Jerry pushed Tara’s hand away. He was on his feet. His stance had clearly changed. Initially, he had been calm—head bowed, his tone soft and mannerisms gentle. Now, he glared at her, his fists clenched and lips twisted in anger. The colour in his face had darkened. ‘I don’t like you,’ he said with suppressed rage.
    Tara stepped back slowly. ‘Then you are welcome to leave,’ she said calmly. His expression changed.
    ‘Not before I get a taste of a woman’s blood,’ he grinned. The man scanned the room.
    He was looking for a weapon of some sort. The silence was deep and the air thick with his aura.
    Tara took deep breaths. She focused on him, trying to push him out of Jerry’s head, willing him to leave. There were a few moments of silence as she contemplated the situation. Tara watched the man take deep rasping breaths. In her experience as a parapsychologist,