GOLDEN REBEL HEART

Chapter 2

She can't sleep. The heaviness within her heart is keeping her awake. At least she finds comfort in the moon's company, as its light filters through the window and caresses her calves and feet. The soft sound of the calm wind playing with the trees should lull her to a deep slumber, and for a moment, she forgets that there's a civil war going on outside. Everything seems so quiet and so peaceful. She turns her head towards the table a few meters away from the bed she is laying on, and looks at the container of her mother's ashes. The moon is kissing its sides, lighting up its silver color. She stares at her mother's death date, carved into the receptacle's front along with her name. Ishwari Suri. She sighs out loud, going back to watch the boring and dull ceiling of her shanty. Why was everything so complicated? Why was that damn temple so far away from her? She knew that the answer to all of her thoughts was one: to stay here and help those people fight. But what if they wouldn't win? What if they're not strong enough to beat Pagan Min's troops? Hope wouldn't save them. It could help them, but it wouldn't let them win.

She sits up and rubs her hands against her face, taking a deep breath. Thirty one years old and here she is, obliged to take the decision that would change her entire life. If she stays, she could help win a war that's been going on since 2010 and then grant her mother's last wish. If she departs, she will feel guilty for leaving behind a country in desperate need of help. At this point she isn't even sure if she's able to leave the country, since there were so many roadblocks around the border. Her experience with them hadn't been wonderful at all, and for the time being, staying seems like the best option.

She gets up, puts some shoes on, and exits the shanty, wanting to get some fresh air. She quietly closes the door behind her, careful not to make any sound. An olive-skinned old man was sleeping against the wall of the smaller building in front of hers, a monkey reposing between its owner's arms. Taylor looks to her right and then to her left. Everything is peaceful, and when she looks up to the sky, the moon hangs high along with shining stars. Everyone is sleeping, and once again she forgets about the civil war. About the decision she has to make. About the rebel movements. Everything momentarily slips away from her mind as she begins walking on the pathway made of cobblestone. Banapur is probably the smallest town she's ever seen, with just twenty six shacks and two buildings that sold food, weapons, bullets, and everything that involved guns. It's situated against a mountain and it's divided in four sections. Karlie's shanty is at the top, and narrow stairs made of cobblestone connect each section to the others. Taylor walks towards the small balcony that faces the two sections beneath hers and stares at the peaceful and sleeping town. To her right, she sees endless amounts of woods and mountains, and she's sure that she spots the Himalayas on the horizon, its mountaintop covered with white snow. Smoke appears in between the forests, and Taylor presumes it is probably caused by the various outposts scattered all over Pradesh.

"Isn't it beautiful?"

Taylor startles as she looks behind her back, an olive-skinned man - who she presumes is a soldier, since he's wearing the light blue uniform and yellow bandana around his forehead - approaching her with a gentle smile. "Yeah," she replies, going back to stare at the nature to her right. She grips the stony wall of the balcony, aware of the other man's presence.

"Pradesh turns into something magical, at night," he says after a while. He stands beside the American, both of them admiring the same landscape. "With the moon and the stars hanging and protecting us from above, I believe that this country will be beautiful even during the day,"

There's hope and determination in his voice, a sparkle of confidence in his brown eyes. Taylor stares at the side of his face until she meets his gaze.

"Karlie told me who you are," he says slowly, quietly. "She told me you're Ajay's daughter and that you're here to grant Ishwari's wish," he continues. His tone is gentle and not accusatory. "She told me that you don't know if you want to stay here or leave."