Abhaya by Saiswaroopa Iyer

Author:Saiswaroopa Iyer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Indraprastha

“Ten years of trade operations at Indraprastha!”

Abhaya was in the hall where the traders’ meeting was to be held that morning, some days after having settled into the city. She had arrived early to confer with Srinayana Sreshti, who had been her father’s confidante in matters of trade. The two were alone in the hall at the moment. She frowned, reading the scroll again.

“Srinayana Sreshti, while it is admirable of the trade guild of Indraprastha to invest in our traders, are you sure that this condition is agreeable to us? Why did you not voice any concern about it earlier?”

“How is that a concern, Devi?” the trader replied with the indulgence of one who had known her since her infancy. “They are investing their wealth in us. They want us close.”

“But for ten years?”

“At a practical level, it is negotiable based on the nature of each trade, Devi. But this is the least they expect to invest in us.”

“What if we choose to leave for Anagha?” Abhaya asked, flipping through the scrolls in her hand to find the one that dealt with violations and termination of the arrangement.

“Then we would have to liquidate the trade and they would have the greater share of the resulting wealth. Their share reduces with each year. At the end of ten years, it comes to half,” Sreshti explained.

Abhaya stared at him. “So if we leave, say, after a year, we leave with practically nothing?”

“It would be unwise to leave after a year, Devi. Two years is the minimum the traders will need to stabilise in the new place. Four years is a realistic period for most trades to become profitable. Some may take longer.”

“But that means that you cannot return to Anagha for the next five years even if the gods favour your trade!” Abhaya spoke more to herself than him.

“This is a trade agreement, Devi,” he smiled. “It is not an irrefutable decree of an emperor. There are negotiations at every stage and terms can be changed as we build a stronger case for ourselves with time.”

“But even then, we don’t see a possibility to wind up and return before a minimum of five years!” Abhaya protested. “Why, Sreshti? Why this servitude to their conditions? We are not their slaves.”

“Nobody thinks we are their slaves, Devi,” Srinayana responded. He opened his mouth to continue but stopped, seeing Abhaya’s disappointment. After an uncomfortable pause, he said, “Devi, allow me to speak frankly. Returning to Anagha in the near future is not high in our list of current priorities.”

“Sreshti!”

“I know this is hard on you, Vatse,” the trader interrupted, resorting to the endearing term, invoking his age and experience. “Call us ungrateful but for us, traders, our loyalty lies with the trade and the king who rules the place where we trade. Not with...”

“Not with the failed royalty who fled a war-torn motherland. Not with the motherland.”

“Vatse, please don’t think that the city of Anagha means nothing to us. But considering our present condition, patriotism cannot be the basis on which we can negotiate terms.

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