For a few moments Manimekalai stood lost in thought. Had she imagined it? She was not asleep — she touched herself to make sure. The lamp burned steadily. She knew there was a secret door in the wall opposite the mirror. She pressed her ear against it, then slowly opened it and peered into the hunting hall.
Most of the hall was in darkness. In one corner a small lamp burned, its light dimming for a moment before brightening again — as though a figure had passed across it.
She clapped softly from the doorway. "Who is there?"
A bat detached from the ceiling with a whir and resettled elsewhere. Then a very faint cough.
"Chandramathi!"
The maid appeared with a lamp. Manimekalai told her they needed to search the hall.
"Only bats, my lady."
"No. I was looking in the mirror and another face appeared right beside mine."
Chandramathi laughed. "What kind of face? Like Manmatha? Like Arjuna?"
"Are you making fun of me?"
"Not at all. You have often spoken of a face that appears in your dreams. Was it perhaps that same one?"
"Yes. But this time it seemed very real."
"Such fancies come to all girls. Once you see the prince arriving from Kanchi tomorrow, that old face will disappear entirely."
"Leave that aside. Come."
Chandramathi protested — the dust, the cobwebs, the guests arriving tomorrow. Manimekalai ignored all of it and stepped inside. She looked at the floor and noticed footprints in the dust. Chandramathi kept glancing up nervously at the stuffed animals.
"My lady! That tailless monkey — I think it moved!"
"It must be showing its happiness at seeing you!"
"Are you teasing me?"
"Was it not you who said I was imagining things?"
"Perhaps it was that monkey's face that appeared in your mirror. Or the owl up there — look how it stares."
"That owl stares because it is captivated by your beauty," quipped Manimekalai.
"Then whose face appeared beside yours in the mirror?" pressed Chandramathi.
"So you have decided I am losing my mind. The face from my dreams appeared in the mirror, and now my eyes must settle for a monkey and an owl! Come. I want to see if that face appears again."
They returned to the inner chamber.
From behind the tailless monkey, Vandiyathevan emerged, sneezing two or three times to clear the dust from his nose.
"O monkey! May you live long! That maid compared my face to yours — I was so angry I nearly stepped out. Good thing I held myself back."
Even as he said this, another thought struck him — perhaps being caught by those women might not have been so terrible after all. He had heard every word. Especially Manimekalai, who spoke loudly and clearly. What had she meant about the face that appeared in her dreams? Kandanmaran had always told him he spoke of him to his sister. Vandiyathevan remembered barely glimpsing her on his earlier visit.
Could it be that this girl had not changed her heart?
But there was no time for such thoughts. He needed to find a way out. The passage with the ivory handle led into the women's quarters — useless. He examined the walls carefully but there was not enough light. He remembered that a crocodile had been lying near his entry point. He found it and felt along the wall beside it. Nothing.
The only way out seemed to be through the women's quarters. Perhaps Manimekalai might show him sympathy — but what explanation could he give? And what if she was not alone?
His eyes fell on the crocodile with its mouth hanging open.
"Why are you lying there like that?" He gave it a strong kick.
It shifted. Along the base of the wall, a small crack appeared.
"So you were blocking the way! Why didn't you say so earlier?"
He seized the crocodile and dragged it aside. The crack widened into an opening, and steps leading downward came into view.