The Astrologer's Curse

By Arunesh Choubey

MULTI-LAYERED | PAGE TURNER | UNPUTDOWNABLE | EDGE OF THE SEAT THRILLER

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

END OF AN EXPERIMENT.
Five strangers on an island.
Go up the mountain.
With a friendly wolf and a dangerous snake.
Lone Survivor. Gets Enlightened.

BACK to the EXPERIMENT.

THE RESULTS?

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After completing a prolonged experiment, a doctor meets with an accident.

Four days earlier, Roy, an Indian teacher lands on an unmapped island in the Indian Ocean. Roy’s quest lies on top of the island’s mountain.

On the island, he meets Camila, a scandal prone Spanish actress, Pushkin, a Russian oligarch on the run, General Mali, the deposed President of the Republic of Mali and Farhad, a former Iranian wrestler.

When they exchange stories of their journey to the island, they uncover similar goals, directed by different astrologers with an uncanny resemblance.

On their journey up the mountain, a wolf helps them and a snake challenges them. As they make progress and challenge each other’s supremacy, it is evident there is more to the journey than first understood.

Finally, when one of them conquers the top, a strange conversation awaits...and a Dr. Walter West fits right into it.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Arunesh Choubey’s first book, The Migrant – A Biography was published in 2007. It was listed as number 1 bestseller in the Top 100 of Amazon’s Australian Ethnic and National Biographies. It was given wide coverage in print and television media for its contribution to emigration issues afflicting Australia.

The Astrologer’s Curse is recommended for fans of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, Dennis Lehane’s Shutter Island, Hanya Yanagihara’s The People In The Trees, Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, Karen M. McManus’s One Of Us Is Lying, and Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist. It is also recommended for fans of movies: M Night Shyamalan’s Split, Christopher Nolan’s Inception and James Mangold’s Identity.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Arunesh Choubey
• Release date: Dec 2, 2019
• ISBN: 9780463695791

Book preview

The Astrologer’s Curse

Arunesh Choubey

Copyright © 2019 Arunesh Choubey

All rights reserved.

Smashwords Edition

ISBN: 9781705946213

DEDICATION

For my daughters, Adita and Anika.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 – Prologue: Dr West at the MEC building

Scene – Four days earlier, somewhere in the Indian Ocean

Chapter 2 – Day 2: The Island, Indian Ocean

Chapter 3 – Day 2: The camp

Chapter 4 – Day 2: He wished it would fade away

Chapter 5 – Day 3: Amen, I hope you win, we win

Chapter 6 – Day 3: The wolf had sensed something

Chapter 7 – Day 3: Roy and the wolf were missing

Chapter 8 – Day 3: There, the forest was thinnest

Chapter 9 – Day 3: Perhaps he was dead

Chapter 10 – Day 3: ‘No survivors.’

Chapter 11 – Day 1: Let’s hide!

Chapter 12 – Day 2: Do I have a choice?

Chapter 13 – Day 2: Everybody had acted as per plan

Chapter 14 – Days 3 & 4: His horrible dream was over

Chapter 15 – Days 3 & 4: Perhaps it had drowned

Chapter 16 – Day 4: In the trees

Chapter 17 – Day 4: Traitor

Chapter 18 – Day 4: It’s a bad omen.

Chapter 19 – Day 5: Perhaps it was ready for the final journey.

Chapter 20 – Day 5: Unbeknownst to them, they were being watched.

Chapter 21 – Day 5: He’s paid the price for it.

Chapter 22 – Day 5: Forgive me!

Chapter 23 – Day 5: Roy pressed the black dot.

Chapter 24 – Day 5: Roy was intrigued.

Chapter 25 – Day 5: The good, the good that we do, brings goodness in the end; the good, the good…

Chapter 26 – Epilogue

About The Author: Arunesh Choubey

Prologue: Dr West at the MEC building

The lights did the trick, Dr Walter West said, a note of triumph in his voice. I think we got him!

Months of hard work and rigorous planning had finally paid off. The doctor’s face glowed and the smile on his bearded face said it all. Adjusting his specs and with starry eyes, he stared at the giant screen. It relayed a man walking with a trance-like gait. His close-up revealed a tanned face, a dark stubble, dishevelled hair, and a sweaty white shirt with holes, mud marks and top three buttons undone. However, like Dr West his small eyes had a twinkle and a smile stretched his cheeks. But there was one odd behaviour. He had pushed his hands into the pockets of his trousers. It appeared he was hiding or searching for something.

I guess so, Brenda Sutton said. We all hope this leads to a cure. The chief program manager turned to their staff. Thanks to all of you. Without your participation, this experiment wouldn’t have been possible. I know we’re all exhausted, and it’s time to go home. Let’s discuss the results tomorrow.

Ignored by Sutton, his less technical colleague, West’s eyes narrowed as he glared at her. Sutton continued to address the staff, without a hint of concern at her boss’s disapproval. Staff members’ attention was split. Some looked at her, others at the doctor and the rest at the giant monitor, which continued to beam the subject’s last steps. There was pin drop silence in the room.

Their fragmented states of mind weren’t surprising. More couldn’t be expected of people who had persevered with a complex experiment for the last five days. They were dead tired. Some had even neglected bodily functions at critical junctures in the test.

The seventieth floor of the Mind Experiments Corporation (MEC) building had been their home from the beginning of the investigation. It housed the control centre, a secure location restricted to a select group. Newly created and purpose built, it provided all the amenities for a team that required secrecy above all.

Administration staff occupied the first ten levels. A pharmaceutical firm leased the next twenty floors – MEC had a fifty per cent stake in that company. The secretive Thought Projector team worked on the next thirteen floors and the inventors of the Consciousness Sharing Machine (CSM) occupied the forty-fourth to fifty-seventh. The folks on the next nine levels worked on the Soul Receptor, a device intended to track souls in far corners of the universe. There were many problems with this project and it was running over budget. The rest of the building was reserved for random experiments – those working above the sixty-sixth level were gifted individuals who were highly trained and carefully selected.

Sutton turned to one such intelligent assistant. Joy, can you turn off the live feed? Let’s shut everything down and get going. We’ll reconvene at eight tomorrow morning. Even though she was dying for a smoke, duty came first.

Joy pressed the red button on a black remote and the display blacked out. This was enough to restore life to her transfixed colleagues. Once again, the room buzzed with activity as men and women turned to congratulate each other. West moved through the crowd, shaking hands, slapping backs and doing high-fives, like a ten-year-old. He was supremely confident of the experiment’s success, even though they had yet to confirm the results.

Sutton had a nervous glow on her face as she observed West’s enthusiasm and almost bit her tongue. But with the chatter around her, she had to speak up. Walter, your taxi’s here. It’s time to head off. She was kinder this time. She knew the doctor had worked hard and almost put his life on the line. This whole program was for him. Without his magnificent support, it wouldn’t have been possible.

West turned to her. I suppose I’d better go home, he said with a faint smile. See if my family’s still there.

I’m sure they are. Sutton smiled indulgently at her boss. Your wife called every day. Your kids wanted to speak to you.

Their exchange was enough to hush the room. Everyone waited for West’s reaction. Interrupted in his celebration, the doctor said, Thanks, Brenda. Thanks to all of you. I think we’ve made great progress. Observing the subject, I can confirm he’s cured. He had a tinge of sadness in his eyes. Perhaps he already missed the room, its setting and the people. Bye all! He picked up his bag, binned the plastic coffee cup and walked out humming his favourite song. The good, the good we do, brings goodness in the end; the good, the good…

Sutton, Joy and the others heaved sighs of relief. They thought the results were just a formality. With sympathy in their eyes, they watched West walk into the corridor and take one of the waiting lifts. They prayed for him and hoped he was right.

In the ground floor foyer, the doctor smiled at a security guard. The startled guard scrambled for his radio and hissed something into it but soon changed tack. Hello, Doctor West, how you doin’? A positive response on the walkie-talkie had reassured him.

The doctor nodded his head in acknowledgement and kept walking. He stopped after exiting the sliding doors at the front of the building. For a minute, eyes closed, he stood quietly breathing in the fresh air and basking in the warmth of the morning sun. For a few more seconds he scanned the high rises around him and the hustle-bustle of the small side street. The coffee shop had just opened and Maria, the owner had started arranging the chairs outside. The news outlet guy struggled to fix the small flag pole next to the entrance while his wife barked something to him. A few buskers had started to set themselves up while the usual homeless men snuggled in cosy corners. Dr. West enjoyed this different world.

Ready to make a move, he noticed a cab across the street. He assumed it was waiting for him. In an unusual state of happiness, he marched down the steps and began to cross the road, without looking. Suddenly a dump truck moved into the lane. With excessive speed, it approached West from the left. By the time the driver saw him, it was too late. He tried to swerve but, alas, both men thought alike and aimed for the same side of the street. Seeing that an accident was inevitable the driver braked hard, but it wasn’t enough. The truck struck West and he landed with a sickening thud on the footpath opposite.

His hat, his bag and his glasses flew in different directions.

As the scene turned to chaos, among tapping shoes and voices of concern, he saw through blurry eyes the subject of his experiment. The man appeared from a side door of the MEC building and, as he dashed off in the direction away from the accident, West saw something in his pocket. It was a shining piece of rock: a blue diamond.

Four days earlier, somewhere in the Indian Ocean…

Day 2: The Island, Indian Ocean

It was a strange journey. To leave the comforts of a large cargo ship and step alone into a small utility boat required not only guts, but also a lot of conviction. He had that and loads of it.

Are you nuts? the Cypriot’s captain asked.

The captain had scratched his head when Roy, a first-time passenger, came up to him and said, Captain, this is where we part ways. This is where I wish to be lowered.

Roy had jumped aboard just before the ship set sail. Penniless, he had barely been able to pay for the journey.

Is this a death wish? I know of better ways to die. The captain tried to talk some sense into the serious-looking Roy.

Roy was adamant. I have some important business and remember; this is what I paid for. You can’t renege on our deal.

Roy, man, come to the Maldives. I’ll drop you there, or come with us to Africa.

Roy kept quiet and just stared blankly at the captain.

How about a job? You need a job. I need a deckhand. How about that? You’d be good at it.

Still Roy kept quiet.

Okay, tell me about your return journey. The captain challenged him to give something away, but still there was no response.

Roy knew he couldn’t say a word. His journey had to be secret. Moreover, he wasn’t sure if he would live or die, get stranded or lost forever. He had arranged for this perilous journey with great difficulty. Most ships frequenting the route had rejected the idea of lowering him at the coordinates he had provided. Obviously, he couldn’t talk about the hidden island and give away the details of his destination. The less he said, the better it was. It didn’t matter what others thought of him. He had to stick to his guns.

Fed up of Roy’s stares, the captain scratched his jaw and his eyes travelled to the sea. Unease slithered down his spine as it dawned on him that Roy’s wish had to be fulfilled. After all, Roy had paid him and he was obliged to abide by their verbal contract. He reached for his radio and barked, Johnny, prepare a boat.

Soon a small utility boat was lowered from the port side of the ship and Roy jovially hopped into it. The boat had enough food and water to survive the ocean for a week. After that, the captain reckoned someone would rescue Roy or he would have to stick it out or, alas, there would be death. It wasn’t unusual for people to survive for months, but the captain was confident Roy wasn’t that type. His was a strange case and, in twenty years of seafaring life, the captain had never met a stranger man with such an odd request.

As he said goodbye to the curious crew of the Cypriot, for the first time the swooshing sea breeze hit Roy’s sweaty brow. Alone in that small boat, his heart pounded his chest as he realized that now he was the Captain and sole passenger on that spec that bobbed wildly on the waves. Perhaps, he had made a terrible mistake. The oars of the boat were long, hard and cold. With one in his left hand and the other in his right, he slashed at the waves which threatened his tiny vessel. From time to time they raided his boat and drenched him without notice. The best he could do was just stab them with his oars. From the deck of the Cypriot the ocean had seemed calmer, but in the tiny boat Roy was up against its full might. For him, this was all new. He had never rowed a boat. Not even in a pond.

Multiple questions crossed his mind. Was he going to be alone on the island? Would he be able to get to it? And would he live or die?

The boat bumped up and down while he rowed vigorously, using every inch of his muscles. The Cypriot’s first mate had given him a crash course on handling himself at sea and he made the best use he could of that advice. Once in a while he stopped rowing and checked the compass to ensure he was on the right course. He knew he could easily drift away and disappear with the slightest mistake. However, it was his day, a rookie boatman’s day. Soon enough, scarily, the island loomed in the distance.

The Sun had to navigate the afternoon before it could say goodbye to that cloudy day. Nevertheless, to be exact, it was hard to predict sundown because, through large swathes of the ocean, Roy couldn’t imagine where the Sun could go and hide. The absence of rain was making his life easier.

He reflected. There were a lot of firsts to count on this journey. Apart from many other firsts, it was the first time he had ever stepped out of his village, the first time he had left his country, the first time he had been on a ship and the first time he had seen the large, scary, frothy ocean. He was sure there were hideous animals swimming underneath his boat, while giants and midgets inhabited islands across the world. Gulliver, Robinson Crusoe and Jim Hawkins had painted his vision. He’d grown up with that adventure literature and taught the same at the village school. He had always dreamt of visiting an island, but surely not like this.

As the island magnified in the horizon, it revealed its secrets, the biggest of which was a very tall mountain. It was probably a climb of three to five days. Its densely forested peak was Roy’s destination. It was good that he had come prepared. Tightly packed in his baggage was all the mountaineering gear that the frightened, lonely and diminutive schoolteacher could afford.

The mountain loomed haughtily over the surrounding beaches while greenery scurried up its slopes. It was hard to say if the mountain was rocky, as nothing was visible under the trees. Clouds concealed its top. It seemed the mountain needed a haircut.

Roy hoped the forest was free of cannibals and carnivores. However, he wasn’t very positive. Animals of all kinds, even the feral village dog, unnerved him.

Pack this, pack that. Did you pack your toothbrush? His wife’s words echoed in his head while he stared at the mountain. However, she wasn’t actually present. Worse, she was gone. Gone forever. Dead! Unpaid for the last six months, Roy had lost his wife during labour. His family life had been further complicated by a drought that had parched his village and the entire state. It was then that he had sold off everything and planned this trip. Now he was almost there.

He rowed harder to get past the last few waves. Finally, as the boat approached the shoreline, a cool breeze welcomed him. Again, insecure thoughts crossed his mind. Would he be alone? Was the island inhabited? Would he survive? Would he accomplish his goal?

As if the island had read his thoughts, pat came a reply. What Roy saw next confirmed that he wouldn’t be alone. On the white sandy beach, there were two figures. The remaining distance to the shoreline prevented further scrutiny. It was strange that he had not noticed the duo straight away when he had first scanned the beach. Perhaps, in his thoughts about the mountain, he had missed them.

Then he saw two more. Each walked towards the two on the beach from two different sides of the island. Roy was sure; he couldn’t escape their eyes. In frustration he closed his eyes as his face dropped and he huffed in annoyance. Funnily enough, now he longed to be alone on the island. He would have preferred to stay out of sight until he had completed a full reconnaissance of the island. But now that was impossible. He cursed his destiny and let out a low grunt of exasperation. For a moment he balked at his bad luck but soon saw it as a health issue: he was never alone.

To seem friendly, he waved his right hand. Next, he pulled out a white handkerchief and waved that too. He knew the chance of a war was non-existent, but sending a sign of peace wasn’t a bad idea as he was closing in on an unknown, uncharted island.

The duo on the beach reciprocated by waving back.

Closer to shore, he stopped rowing and jumped off the boat. In high spirits, he pulled it through the water without worrying about crabs, clamshells or seaweed. He reckoned if the captain of the Cypriot had seen the smile on his face, he would have guessed Roy was not the same man who had come to him a week before.

When he glanced back, he noticed for the first time that the boat had a name: SENTINELI. This didn’t make any sense. How could the ship and its boat have different names? With the waves crashing into him and Sentineli, Roy decided the name confusion should be the last of his worries.

As he struggled against the waves, two men came to his help. Together they dragged the boat out of the frothy ocean. Two others, a man and a woman, waited for him on dry ground. The men who helped him were the ones Roy had seen approaching from two different ends of the island, while the man and the woman were the duo, he had seen at first glance.

Hello, said the first man who had come to his aid.

Hullo, Roy responded sheepishly as he limply shook his hands.

Once he had extended his hand, one by one the other three shook it. Strangely enough, they didn’t give their names and neither did they ask his. Jealous, agitated and unable to work out how they had reached the island ahead of him, Roy wrapped the lump in his throat with a smile. With the sun directly in his eyes, he placed his left hand across his forehead. As he scanned them, he concluded that he was the strangest and poorest of them. They all looked affluent. He further observed that one man was black, another one was white, the third one was fair but with a yellowish tinge to his skin, and then there was this beautiful woman.

The black man was as black as coal, but not as brittle. He was the strongest of them, probably stronger than the yellow-skinned man, who resembled a wrestler. In addition, he had an air of royalty about him and his physique appeared to reflect years of military training and a good life. A broad brimmed hat ruled his head and he wore khaki shirt and trousers. On his thick left wrist was an expensive gold watch while a gold chain dangled from his neck. His black shoes were sturdy enough to withstand any kind of adventure.

The woman was extremely charismatic. Perhaps she was an actor or a model in those foreign films, which Roy had never seen. She had a long face, an enchanting smile and brown eyes. Her dark hair plunged to the waist, which curved upwards to form an attractive cleavage. Like the black man, she too wore black shoes, khaki trousers and a stylish ladies gold watch. She differed with a tight black T-shirt and cap.

The white man who stood next to the woman seemed to be clever. At least this was a safe assumption to make, him being a white man. He had a slender frame and wore gold-rimmed glasses. In fact, without the glasses and the racial make-up, he resembled Roy. He wore sneakers, khaki shorts, a pink T- shirt and a broad brimmed hat.

The yellow man had a square jaw and yellow teeth. He had a large belly that pushed out like a balloon. He also had dark, shoulder-length hair and a goatee which ranged over most of his sharp chin. He was over six feet four inches tall, a few inches taller