Peak by Roland Smith Read Free Book Online

"He's a Buddhist monk now. Lives at the Indrayani temple. The Lama there has given him permission to forgo his vows for a few weeks to take you up to Base Camp."
    "Forgo his vows?"
    "It's not as big a deal as it sounds. I don't know all the details, but leading you to Base Camp was considered to be auspicious, meaning the right thing to do." Josh smiled. "And I'm sure the donation I made to the temple didn't hurt. They're a little strapped for money."
    "So, Zopa is okay with this?"
    "Absolutely. He's curious about you. And he didn't say this, but I think he's getting kind of bored with being a monk."
    "What's he like?"
    "Cagey," Josh said with a smile. "If he agrees to do something, he'll do it, but he may not be doing it for the reason you think he's doing it. And he'll never let you in on why he's doing it."
    "Huh?" Josh was beginning to sound like Paula and Patrice.
    "It's hard to explain," he said. "You never know what Zopa's real motivation is. I asked him to take you up to Base Camp. He said he would, but he's not taking you up there just to do me a favor or because I gave money to the temple. There's another reason—more likely half dozen reasons—he agreed to do it. And you and I will probably never know what all of them are.
    "It was a sad day when he retired, I can tell you that. He's been on the summit of Everest more than any other human being. At least that's the rumor. Zopa says he can't remember how many times he's reached the top, but I think he knows exactly how many times it's been. He speaks perfect English, and although he doesn't talk very much, when he does you need to listen very carefully to what he's saying. The Sherpas do. A lot of them drop by the temple before they climb to have him do a reading. If he tells them not to go, they won't go up, no matter how much money we offer them."
    "How do I get in touch with him?"
    "He'll come by in a day or two. In the meantime, you need to sort through this gear. Most of it's yours and you'll need all of it to get up the mountain. I wasn't sure on the sizes, but if something doesn't fit right tell Zopa and he'll swap it out at one of the shops downtown." He looked at his watch. "I'd better get going."
    He started toward the door and stopped. "Charge whatever you eat at the restaurant to the room. Do you have any cash?"
    I shook my head.
    He pulled out a thick wad of money and peeled off several bills.
    "It's not as much as it looks like. Seven thousand rupees is about a hundred and fifty bucks U. S."
    I took the bills and set them on the dresser.
    "I'll see you in a couple of weeks," Josh said. "Maybe less if Zopa thinks you're ready. Oh ... Before I leave town I'll call your mom and tell her you're okay."
    I interpreted this to mean that he would call and lie to her about where we were and what we were doing. Better him than me.
    "Enjoy the trip," he said, and with this he was gone.
    I stood there for a few seconds, staring at the door. My head was kind of spinning, but it wasn't from altitude. I think it was Josh's energy that was making me dizzy.
    There was a light tapping on the door, so faint I barely heard it. I opened it.
    It was the concierge. He gave me a slight bow.
    "I will turn down your bed."
    He wove his way through the junk as if it weren't there, pulled the comforter back, and fluffed the pillows. When he finished he looked at the window. The curtains were drawn.
    "This will not do!" he said. "You are missing the setting of the sun."
    He pulled the curtains back with a flourish.
    Behind them were the Himalayas washed in orange and pink light. They were much bigger than I had ever imagined.

GEAR OF THE DEAD
     
    THE NEXT MORNING, after a huge breakfast in the dining room, I came back upstairs and started sorting through the gear.
    All the stuff didn't make up for all the birthdays and Christmases Josh had neglected, but it came pretty darn close. It was all state-of-the-art equipment, most of which I'd only seen advertised in climbing