They shook their heads in disagreement and pointed again to the chilling tracks. I had no explanation for those weird tracks and could only surmise some land of bear peculiar to these mountains. All I knew was that there was a mutilated, torn, shredded body and there had to be some logical, reasoned explanation for it. An abominable snowman was neither logical nor reasoned. The old man had plainly been killed by a creature of great strength with claws and fangs. A giant bear was not only logical but the only probable explanation, except perhaps a form of huge snow leopard. One of the Sherpas had a large blanket in his pack, and we wrapped the bloodied, mutilated form in it and tied it securely. Then we began the slow, dangerous journey back down with our grisly burden.
Finally we reached level land and headed for the village. As we neared, others came over to ask, and the Sherpas spoke to them. I heard the word yeti repeated over and over, and the questioners ran off to spread the word. I knew that before I reached Khaleen, she would have heard it. The Sherpas directed me where to take the body to prepare it for burial. There would be a funeral pyre, of course. Finally I started back to the house. Ghotak was seemingly blessed with luck and I found out he was quick to capitalize on it. As I surmised, Khaleen had heard before I arrived, and I found her kneeling in prayer. She got up and faced me, and the tears were in her voice not in her eyes.
"The yeti has spoken," she said simply. "Ghotak will prevail It cannot be otherwise, now."
"Your father was killed by some animal, Khaleen," I said. "A bear or perhaps a snow leopard. There is no abominable snowman, Khaleen."
"It is best you leave, Nick," she said. "I am yours. I will go with you. But first I must go to the meeting hall. Ghotak has called a meeting, and the temple hall will be filled. I must go and bow to him for my father's honor."
"No," I said sharply. "Don't go. Don't give up to him."
"But I must," she said. "The challenge was accepted and Ghotak has won. It is a matter of honorable custom that I appear for my father and bow to Ghotak."
"All right, go," I said. "But tell the people that it was an animal that killed your father. It was."
Her arms crept up around my neck and she gazed up at me.
"Nick, you are so big, so strong, such a man of action," she said. "You cannot believe there are things beyond ordinary explanation. Your kind of man, whom you call a literal man, does not admit the unknown. You must seek a logical reason for everything. Here, we know better."
I bit my lips. I was up against that stone wall of ingrained beliefs again but this time I couldn't back off. This time I had to meet them head on. I'd played it their way and a good man lay dead and Ghotak was about to pick up the pieces. I'd had enough of Snake Gods and spirit transference and yetis and all the superstitious customs. I had to go in my way now.
"Come on," I said roughly. "I'll go with you to the meeting." I left with Khaleen and started for the temple hall. I could see crowds streaming to the building, and we were nearly there when Hilary Cobb caught up to us.
"I'm sorry," she said to Khaleen, and I'd never heard her voice so softly tender. "I'm terrible sorry." Her eyes flicked up at me as Khaleen nodded her grateful acceptance and clung to my arm.
"I see you've heard of Ghotak's call to the faithful," Hilary said, falling in step beside me. I nodded grimly.
"He doesn't waste any time," I commented.
"What's he up to, Yank?" she asked.
"Still digging for that story," I said. "No dice, Hilary."
"Sorry, I can't help that," she said. "It's my job. It's part of me."
"I hope there won't be a story for you to get," I answered. "That's my job." I took the chance to sound her out again and found I didn't like the answer any better. "And, as I told you, doll, if you get it you can't do anything with it from here," I said.
"And as I told you," she answered, "don't count on it."
Between the news of what had happened and Ghotak's call, the place was filled to overflowing. Ghotak's strong-arm boys had rounded up what stray followers hadn't intended to show. He was addressing the crowd as we arrived, telling them how the events had shown conclusively that Karkotek's spirit and wishes spoke through him. I saw that his men were spread through the crowd, petitions in hand. Khaleen and I walked down the aisle toward the platform. I left her side, vaulted onto the stage and faced the crowd.
"Ghotak lies again," I shouted. "The patriarch Leeunghi was slain by an animal, some wild, fierce animal. But there is no yeti. The yeti is but an old man's tale to frighten children."
I heard the angry rumble from the crowd and saw Ghotak point his finger at me.
"The foreigner laughs at our ways," he shouted. "He scoffs at our legends and violates our sacred beliefs. Look here, each and every one of you." He clapped his hands and I turned to see two of his men appear carrying the long, rope-like form of a dead snake across their arms, letting it drape down on each side.
"The foreigner killed this snake," Ghotak shouted. "It was found by one of my men hanging from the window ledge of the room where he stays at the house of Leeunghi. He takes pleasure in mocking our knowledge and trampling on our sacred beliefs."
I felt my anger exploding. The wily bastard had had this one ready and waiting, all set up for me.
"I never saw that snake," I shouted. "Ghotak lies again."
The crowd rumbled in anger. Ghotak leaned forward toward me. "You say you are innocent of killing this snake?" he asked.
"I am entirely innocent," I answered.
"Then there is but one way to find out," he said, a glitter of triumph in his flashing, black eyes. "The test of the cobra. You will do battle with a cobra barehanded. If you live, it will mean you are innocent and Karkotek has spared your miserable life. If the cobra wins, your death will avenge your evil deed and Karkotek will be pleased."
I looked out at the crowd and then turned to Ghotak.
"It is that or I turn you over to them," he said.
"Either way I'm out of your hair," I said to him quietly.
He shrugged. "What is your decision?"
I was trapped, and the clever bastard knew it. The crowd was seething, boiling. I could feel the desire for vengeance rising up from them like an evil cloud. A little prodding from Ghotak and they'd take me apart bone by bone. But more than that, if I refused it would be an admission of guilt and at best I'd be tossed out. Certainly, they'd never listen to anything I might say, and I couldn't let that happen. I needed another chance at Ghotak, another shot at breaking up his skillfully constructed house of national treachery. I glanced at the monk and saw the thin, triumphant smile edging his lips, and his eyes, glittering in victory, bored into me. Khaleen was in the aisle, frozen in one spot, and I saw Hilary behind her, looking up at me with her blue eyes wide as saucers. Fighting a cobra barehanded sounded like a one-way ticket to the undertaker, but what the hell, maybe I'd be lucky and draw a near-sighted serpent. I turned one last possibility over in my mind. Wilhelmina lay snug against my shoulder, I could take her out, blast a hole wide enough to see Mount Everest through it in Ghotak, and try to run for it. Glancing at the crowd, I decided that my chances were better with the cobra. But more than anything else, if I could somehow survive, I'd come out innocent of Ghotak's charge and be able to take it from there. The crowd would at least hear me out then. It wasn't much but it would have to do. I smiled grimly to myself. I'd wanted direct action. I was sure as hell getting it. I grinned up at Ghotak and saw the flicker of surprise in his eyes.
"Bring on the snake, pal," I said. Ghotak turned to the crowd and I could see he was a little offstride at the casualness of my attitude. He didn't know how good an actor I was.