Chai on the Mountaintop

The Village Of Tonga

The old clock on the side table read 5 AM. I hadn't slept at all the other night. I remembered my last conversation with Velu, meeting Rachel, the inn keeper and bolting my door and shoving a table in front of it as I tried to sleep. What I had gotten myself into was unknown to me then. Questions flooded my mind. A while later I concluded none would be answered lying in bed. I got my things ready. I held the only reminder of my friend, his journal, and vowed to bring justice to whoever had harmed him. 

I moved the table and with a breath of courage, opened the door. In front of me, standing in survival gear, was Velu. He looked like a completely different person. 

"Mr. Hess. You're late. Let's go and might I suggest wearing something more suited to the wild?" He commanded

"I'm not moving an inch until I get an explanation" I replied, trying to sound brave.

"Hmm..Alright. I hope you like tea" He said

I sat at his shop, in the cold mountain air, sipping a surprisingly good cup of tea. Then a worrisome thought came up. What if he had poisoned it. I stopped drinking abruptly.

"It's not poisoned Mr. Hess" He laughed which seemed more sinister than funny.

"How did you know who I am and why I'm here" I questioned.

"We have very good sources. Like I said, folks here value their privacy." His reply had a little touch of sadness. 

"Why?" I further asked

"That's not my secret to tell. What you need to know is that we mean you no harm. Just like we meant your friend Mr. Sacharin  no harm. We are sad the way things turned out for him and we are sorry for your loss" He answered. It sounded sincere. 

"Do you think he was murdered?"

"We do not know" He answered solemnly. It was strange however that he always referred his opinion as that of the people's or was it the other way around. 

The cup was empty. So was the plate of food that had been kept. 

"Let's go Mr. Hess, before the rain." Velu got up and so did I. We walked to his 'garage' of sorts and he uncovered the trap. Underneath was a Jeep, with military engravings. "Everyone has a past" was his remark as he got in.

"Do you know where we're going?" I asked skeptically 

"Who do you think helped your friend?" He smiled.

The roads were, well, nonexistent. I bounced around like a kid on a trampoline. 

"Where are the rest of the people...or is it just you three?" I asked Velu to fill the time, not that I cared about what secrets Tonga hid, as long as they didn't come to bite me. 

"Most get up early. Work is never scarce here. We don't sleep in. Most return late at night"

"What sort of work is here?" I asked the Jeep started to climb through rock faces with surprising ease. 

"You talk too much Mr. Hess" He replied rather rudely. The vegetation was very thick now. I had to hold the side door for dear life. Something told me hehad been doing this for a long time. We finally reached a point where we couldn't go any further. I got off and looked down the way we'd come. The village was just a tiny speck. The sheer cliff face was on the other side.

"Up that way is where I dropped your friend off. He set up camp on the landing on top. That was the last I saw of him." He said.

"Up what way?" I asked as he unloaded his climbing gear. In retrospect, I should've seen this coming.