Author Notes

Summary of Chapters 1-22 While on honeymoon in a Thai beach resort, Ayesha, an Australian tourist, buys some panpipes from Bapit, a happy-go-lucky beach hawker struggling to make ends meet. Subsequently, Bapit's friend, Somchai, persuades him to apply for a job at the elephant lodge. He arrives to find an elephant has broken loose and injured her mahout. He calms her by playing his panpipes and is offered a job caring for her until her mahout recovers. Tourists flock to hear him play his pipes to Abharamu, the elephant. Meanwhile, Ayesha's honeymoon is going badly. Her husband, Bruno, is abusive. One day, while repelling his advances, she pushes him. He falls and hits his head. She panics and flees on a tourist bus bound for the elephant lodge. She hears Bapit's panpipes and recognises him. However, delayed shock overtakes her, and she passes out. Bapit takes pity on her, and since she can't return to the tourist resort, he arranges for her to spend the night at Somchai's house. The following morning, Somchai learns from the newspaper that Bruno is dead and that the police are searching for Ayesha. He helps her out of self-interest. Bapit does so because he is besotted. He invites her to watch his brother, Klahan, in his first professional bout as a kickboxer. The police are watching the stadium, but Bapit and Ayesha use the contestants' entrance and are not discovered. After the boxing, they visit the Paradise Complex, an area renowned for its gay bars. She suggests they spend the rest of the night in a nearby hotel. The night porter realises the police want them but decides not to inform on them until morning. Bapit is out of his depth and decides to take his cue from a TV drama and act the macho male. Ayesha is distraught when he forces himself on her. She knees him in the balls and shuts herself in the bathroom. He is mortified, climbs down the fire escape, and gets drunk in a gay bar. A gorilla of a man abducts and sodomises him. The next morning, heavily hungover, he lurches into the path of an oncoming car. Meanwhile, we discover that Bruno is not dead but was only knocked unconscious. He and Major Suttikul, the Chief of Police, have been working together in a drug smuggling operation. Officers of the Narcotics Control Board are closing in on them. Bruno's reported death is a godsend, for it provides a way of getting him out of the country unnoticed. The major organises a make-up artist to give Bruno a deathly pallor and coerces the doctor into anaesthetising him before Ayesha is brought in to identify the body. A death certificate is signed and the major arranges for it to be countersigned by the Examining Magistrate. The hapless make-up artist is murdered and replaces Bruno in the coffin before it is taken to a local temple for cremation. Ayesha can't understand why the major is being so solicitous and not pursuing the suspicious circumstances of Bruno's death with her. She is unaware of the subterfuge. When she hears Bapit has been hit by a car, she is distraught. The hospital staff won't give out any information or let her see him, but Klahan turns up at the funeral and tells her Bapit's leg has been amputated. After Bruno's 'funeral', Ayesha returns to Australia with the cremation ashes, unaware that the major has switched urns and that she is carrying 2.5 kg of heroin. The Drug Squad knows about the smuggling and is shadowing her, hoping she will lead them to the bigger operators in Sydney. Meanwhile, Bruno is in Sydney, thinking all has gone according to plan. He goes game fishing with his mate, Johnno, but suffers a delayed reaction to his concussion and dies on board. Johnno consigns his body to the sharks. He and Bruno's other associates are arrested for drug smuggling. Major Suttikul is also arrested for his complicity in the scheme. However, Johnno is released because of lack of evidence. Ayesha knows nothing of this. She renews her visa and returns to Phuket, where she helps Bapit through the first stages of his rehabilitation while he teaches her how to play the panpipes. The lawyers in Sydney handling Bruno's estate inform her that she will be an extremely wealthy widow when probate is declared. While in Thailand, she spends more time with Bapit. She wants to help him but has to confront his stubbornness and pride. They visit the elephant lodge and discover that Chanarong has had a stroke and Chanin is still abusing Abhamaru. They wonder why Chanarong doesn't fire him. The answer, as Somchai later explains to Ayesha, is that Chanin's father has a part stake in the lodge. Bapit suggests Ayesha should buy Abhamaru out of her misery and forget about buying him a state-of-the-art prosthetic leg. At first, she considers the suggestion absurd, but then she starts to think about it. That evening she receives an email from Bruno's ex-financial advisor, Johnno, asking her to return to Sydney to discuss future investment options for her fortune. The following day she discovers Chanarong has been rushed to hospital with another stroke and that Bapit has picked up a staph infection that has entered his bloodstream. As she cannot visit either of them for several days, she books a flight to Sydney to sort out her financial affairs. When she gets to Sydney, she puts Johnno in his place and terminates his position as her financial advisor. Then she visits the firm of lawyers handling Bruno's deceased estate and meets with Steve Kraft, the junior partner, intending to set up a charitable trust to buy Chanerang's trekking lodge and turn it into an elephant sanctuary. They lunch together and he presents her with some options. Afterwards, she rings Tammy, an old school friend, and arranges to meet her later at the Opera House for a performance of The Magic Flute, followed by a few drinks in Sydney's nightlife area. After the show, she and Tammy get slightly blotto in Dulcie's Bar, where they are accosted by two of Johnno's henchmen. With the aid of the management, they manage to get away. The following morning, Ayesha has a huge hangover and is extremely nervous after her narrow escape. She reads news of an arm being washed up on a beach near Manly. There is a ring engraved BD on one of its fingers. This gives her a start, but she knows Bruno died in Thailand and decides it's just a coincidence. She thinks it is important to liquidate shares that had been jointly held with Bruno and deposit the proceeds safely out of Johnno's reach and she arranges a meeting with the stockbroker. The broker tries to dissuade her, but she's adamant. However, nothing can be done until she produces a certified copy of Bruno's death certificate. For this, she needs to go back to her lawyers. When she leaves the brokers, she's being followed. Johnno has been badly rattled by the discovery of Bruno's ring, but realises Ayesha is the only person who can positively identify it. He needs to make sure she doesn't go to the police. When she gets back to Steve, she tells him about being followed and he offers to escort her to a nearby police station to make a report. They are followed and set upon by two of Johnno's henchmen. They escape, but Steve is apprehended by the police for carrying an offensive weapon (a knife he'd taken from his assailant). However, they sort things out, and Steve escorts Ayesha back to her hotel. Main Characters in this chapter Ayesha, a wealthy Australian tourist who's in love with a Thai musician called Bapit Steve Kraft, her lawyer Somchai, a Thai street hawker and friend of Bapit's Chanarong, owner of an elephant trekking lodge in Kata British English spelling, punctuation, and grammatical conventions are used throughout.

A summary of the preceding chapters is in the Author Notes below.

 

Chapter 24

Somchai was already up and about when Ayesha surfaced. She found him in the garden, stretching into a pomelo tree and picking a yellow globe that hung beneath its canopy like a party balloon. He handed it to her. ‘For your breakfast. Very good. Like a grapefruit, only sweeter.’

She took it in both hands. ‘It’s enormous! Thank you so much.’

He grinned with pleasure. ‘You must have been tired after your long flight. Did you sleep well?'

‘I would have, if it wasn't for all your talk about pythons in the attic. I was terrified, and when I eventually dropped off, I had an awful nightmare about a huge multi-coloured snake wrapped around me. I woke in a cold sweat with my sheet twisted around my leg.’

‘A snake with many colours, you say?’

‘Yes, like an Aboriginal Rainbow Serpent. It was terrifying.’

‘You're very lucky, missy. That is a dream many Thai girls are praying for.’

‘You must be joking! What on earth are you talking about?’

‘It means you are meeting your true love today and, because it was a colourful snake, it will be a happy meeting.’

‘What rot! The darned thing was squeezing me to death.’

‘Love is sometimes like that, missy. Not to worry. Time to go inside and have some breakfast.’

Is there no end to these Thai superstitions? she wondered.  First, it’s about wearing a yellow dress on Mondays, now this absurd interpretation of a snake dream. Whatever next? Anyway, the sun was shining and Somchai’s erotic dream analysis had somehow subdued her terror. Too funny to be frightened any more. She smiled and secretly hoped he was right.

 

However, her meeting with Bapit later that morning wasn’t as she'd imagined it would be. He was sitting up in bed playing his panpipes to a young Chinese girl she assumed to be a nurse or ancillary worker. When he saw Ayesha, he tongued a series of rapid ‘t’s that gradually slowed, ending with a deep, low note. He flung the pipes aside with a flourish and held his arms out to her.

‘Who are you playing trotting tarantellas to at this time of the morning?’

‘You, of course! Who did you think?’

The Chinese girl turned to face Ayesha and they instantly recognised each other. She was the girl from the flower shop. 

‘What are you doing here?’ Ayesha’s mind was racing.

‘Delivering flowers, then I thought I’d look in on poor Bapit and see how he's getting on. He’s an old friend and,’ she added with a giggle, ‘my schoolyard sweetheart.’ The expression on Ayesha’s face froze. 'Oh, no! Don't worry! We're just good friends now.’ There was an uncomfortable silence before she hastily continued, ‘I must be getting along—work to do—so I’ll leave you two alone.’ She turned to Bapit and said, ‘It was good to catch up. Take care,’ and she blew him a kiss as she was disappearing through the door.

Ayesha regarded him thoughtfully. ‘You’re a dark horse, aren’t you? How many other ex-girlfriends have you got hidden away?’ Bapit made a show of contrition and cowered like an abused puppy. ‘I’m only joking. It’s lovely to see you.’ She sat on the edge of his bed, drew him towards her, and kissed him. ‘Now tell me what has been happening. It looks as though the doctors have performed a miracle.’

‘I was very ill. Blood poisoning and all that, but they gave me some strong medicine, and as you can see, I’m almost as good as new again. They told me you’d gone back to Sydney. I missed you dreadfully.’

‘Yes, I had to sort a few things out. Lawyers, investment advisors, and so on. Very boring. But I’m back now and all yours. Maybe we can have some more adventures together.’

‘I’d like that, but it can't be for a few days. They want to keep me under observation until they are quite sure I am recovered. Besides, good news! Dr Suriyan says I’m going to be measured up for a new leg today. The medical service is better than people say. I’m very lucky, eh?’

Ayesha was careful not to mention the conversation she’d had with Dr Suriyan. She knew that any help she gave had to be anonymous. Bapit and his damned pride. She was delighted Chalita was getting things moving though.

‘That is good news. I’m so happy for you. Now we can concentrate on getting Abhamaru into a new home. I think I have found a way, but I won’t tell you about it just yet. It’s not good to count chickens before they’re hatched.’

‘What do chickens have to do with it?’

‘It’s just an expression. I don’t want to end up with egg on my face.’

Luckily, before she got tangled up trying to explain these idioms, Chalita came through the door, a stethoscope dangling around her neck and a clipboard tucked under her arm.

‘And how’s my patient this morning? In good hands, I see.’ Her eyes twinkled, and Ayesha moved back while she checked Bapit’s vital signs. ‘All good. Pulse rate’s up a bit, but that might have something to do with the pretty lady at the end of your bed.’

Ayesha said, ‘I hear he’s getting a new leg soon. That’s great news.’

‘Yes. Not quite state-of-the-art, but fully functional. It will make life much easier for him, thanks to you-know-who.’

Bapit watched the conversation like a spectator at a tennis match. Like most patients, he thoroughly disliked having people talk about him as if he wasn’t there. ‘What do you mean—you-know-who?’

Ayesha flashed Chalita a warning glance and said, ‘I think she’s referring to the new health minister. I hear he’s shaking things up a bit.’

Chalita was quick on the uptake. ‘Well, whoever it is, you will soon have your new leg. That’s good news, isn’t it?’ She turned to Ayesha and said, ‘You’d better leave now, Mrs Davidson. I have to measure him up for it, and after that, he’s going to need a little rest. Why don’t you come back tomorrow?’

*****

Ayesha’s next port of call was the trekking lodge. She tried ringing ahead to arrange an appointment to see Chanarong but got no response. However, buoyed up by the knowledge her peace offering had been well received, she decided to go anyway on the off chance of seeing him. The lodge was his home, after all, so where else would he have gone to recuperate?

It was one of those days when tourism companies bring their cameras out and festoon pretty girls with flowers. The air was still and the sky an unbroken blue. On a day like this, nothing could go wrong. Ayesha was filled with optimism. She shook off the image of Bapit playing his panpipes to the flower shop girl. Of course he would have had girlfriends in the past. What about the Muslim girl who had helped him to shop for the hijab? Probably her as well. But that was all in the past. Or was it? There was so much she didn’t know about this elephant boy, this mesmeric player of pipes. If music truly was the food of love ... Stop it! Don’t be so absurd.

A tourist bus had arrived at the lodge a few minutes earlier and was disgorging a small group of holidaymakers eager for elephant rides. She watched as they made their way to the enclosure in their gaily-coloured shirts and straw hats. A faint aroma of coconut oil hung in the air. Above them, in the branches of a banyan tree, a flock of Myna birds squabbled, emitting a cacophony of whistles and gurgles as if in imitation of the invading horde below.

A little to the left, Ayesha spotted the hunched-up figure of Chanarong being pushed around the gardens in a wheelchair. His companion was a wizened man whose shiny pate and fringe of white hair reminded her of a glazed ball of Gulab Jamun settled in a Kunafa nest. He stopped as she approached and fixed her with a stare that, under normal circumstances, would have made her feel like a frog pinned to a dissecting table. But now, with the image of that classic Middle Eastern dessert fixed in her mind, she could barely suppress a giggle.

Mistaking her for a tourist, he said, ‘I think you may be lost. This area is private property. The elephant enclosure is that way.’

‘Oh, no. I’m not lost. I have come to see how khun Chanarong is getting along.’

On hearing his name, Chanarong squinted up at her. ‘Who is this? Oh, it's you, Mrs Davidson. I’m sorry, I didn’t recognise you. You’re the lady who sent me flowers, aren’t you?’

‘That’s right. I heard you were unwell—and I also wanted to apologise for the way I behaved last time I was here.’

‘Think nothing of it. All is forgiven. Now, I must introduce you to my friend and business partner, khun Runrot. We are discussing what is to be done with the trekking lodge now that I've become a cripple.’

‘I do hope you’re not thinking of closing it. Such a wonderful place. An icon of Phuket tourism.’

‘Yes, but not making money the way it used to,’ Runrot said. ‘Look at the tourist bus that just came in. Only half full.’

‘Have you thought of redeveloping it as an elephant sanctuary? They are very popular these days, you know, and much better for the elephants.’

Chanarong wiped the spittle from his chin and said, ‘Mrs Davidson is a great crusader for the elephants. She and young Bapit were here a few days ago. You remember Bapit, don’t you? The lad with the panpipes who used to work here before his accident. They were both very angry with your boy, Chanin, for the way he was treating Abhamaru. There was quite a scene, I must say.’

Runrot glowered. ‘Yes, I heard. Trying to teach him how to do his job. The cheek of it.’

‘He was being cruel to the poor animal,’ Ayesha snapped. ‘Tourists won't stand for that these days. That's why you're losing money. That's why you would be better off redeveloping the place.’ She paused for breath, then realising she had overstepped the mark, she said, ‘I’m sorry. I got carried away. It’s not my place to tell you how to run your business. Please forgive me.’

‘Perhaps you are right, young lady. Times have changed. But these things take money, a great deal of money, and it would take many years to recover the cost of such an investment. Besides, other sanctuaries on the island have already cornered the market.’

‘None have such an ideal habitat though. This place is a gem.’

‘And none of them are at this end of the island,’ Chanarong added. ‘They are all clustered around the tourist area of Patong.’

‘Precisely. Because that is where the money is,' Runrot said. 'I’ll have none of it. It would be what you Australians call a white elephant.’ He appeared to be rather pleased with his little joke.

‘Please at least consider it,’ Ayesha said. ‘I know of a new charitable foundation being formed in Sydney that is on the lookout for places dedicated to the conservation of elephants. It might look favourably on such a project. I could investigate for you.’

Runrot dismissed the idea with a sardonic smile. ‘Find me some fool with a quarter of a billion bahts to give away, and I’ll consider it.’

‘All right,’ Ayesha said. ‘I will. It’s been a pleasure to meet you, kuhn Runrot. A very great pleasure.’

As she made her way back to her car, Runrot turned to Chanarong and said, ‘Who was that feisty young lady friend of yours, you old goat?’

‘That,’ Chanarong replied, ‘was Mrs Davidson. You will have read of her in the papers, no doubt. If rumours are correct, she has become an extremely wealthy widow. She may not be joking, you know.’

Author Notes

Summary of Chapters 1-23 Ayesha, an Australian tourist, is on honeymoon in Thailand with Bruno, her rich and abusive new husband. One day, she repels his attack, and he loses his balance, hitting his head when he falls. Thinking she has killed him, she flees on a tourist coach going to an elephant trekking lodge. She meets Bapit there, a beach hawker who had previously sold her a set of panpipes. She is in a panic because she has no money on her. Bapit is now working at the lodge, looking after a badly abused elephant called Abhamaru. Tourists are fascinated when he plays his panpipes to soothe the elephant. When he learns of her predicament, he suggests that, until she can find a better alternative, she can stay with his friend, Somchai, a street hawker who can rent her a room. Bapit falls for Ayesha and they go to watch his brother in a kickboxing match. She is disguised in a hijab and they evade the police, who are searching for her. They end up in a hotel together, but his idea of romance is gauche. She throws him out. He gets drunk in a gay bar and is subsequently ruthlessly sodomised. Meanwhile, the hotel night porter informs on them, and Ayesha is arrested by the police in the morning. When Bapit comes around, he is alone, hungover, and filled with shame. He stumbles into the road, is hit by a car, and his leg has to be amputated. Ayesha is distraught when she finds out. It turns out that Bruno was only concussed. He and Suttikul, the Chief of Police, are engaged in a drug smuggling operation. However, the drug squad are closing in, and Suttikul needs to get Bruno out of the country fast. He stages an elaborate deception making Bruno appear to be dead and gets Ayesha to identify the body. He arranges a funeral and cremation, using another body. The urns are then swapped, and Ayesha ends up unknowingly carrying an urn full of heroin back to Australia. The drug squad is aware of the deception and lets the urn through, hoping to catch bigger fish at the Sydney end of the operation. Bruno turns up in Sydney under an assumed name. He goes fishing with his financial advisor and partner in crime, Johnno, but he dies from the result of a delayed concussion while hauling in a big fish. Realising how awkward it would be to explain Bruno's second death, Johnno throws his body to the sharks. However, sometime later, an arm is washed ashore with Bruno's wedding ring on its finger. Major Suttikul is arrested, as are some of the Sydney gang. However, Johnno is released again because of a lack of evidence. Ayesha knows nothing of this. She renews her visa and returns to Phuket, where she helps Bapit through the first stages of his rehabilitation while he teaches her how to play the panpipes. The lawyers in Sydney handling Bruno's estate inform her that she is now an extremely wealthy widow. She decides to use the money to rescue Abhamaru. The owner of the elephant lodge, Chanarong, has had a stroke, and she hopes to be able to buy the lodge and repurpose it as a sanctuary. She returns to Sydney, where Johnno tries to persuade her to let him invest Bruno's fortune for her. She declines and arranges for her lawyer, a young man called Steve, to investigate setting up a charitable foundation with the money. Johnno is after her, both because he wants the money and to prevent her from identifying Bruno's ring, but she escapes and flees back to Thailand. Characters in this chapter: Ayesha, a rich widow Somchai, a street hawker Bapit, an elephant whisperer Dr Chalita Suriyan, Bapit's physician Chanarong, the owner of an elephant trekking lodge Runrat, his business associate British English spelling, punctuation, and grammatical conventions are used throughout.

Chapter 25
Panpipes - Chapter 25

By tfawcus

Warning: The author has noted that this contains the highest level of violence.

A summary of the preceding chapters is in the Author Notes below.

 

End of Chapter 24

 

‘Please at least consider it,’ Ayesha said. ‘I know of a new charitable foundation being formed in Sydney that is on the lookout for places dedicated to the conservation of elephants. It might look favourably on such a project. I could investigate for you.’

Runrot dismissed the idea with a sardonic smile. ‘Find me some fool with a quarter of a billion bahts to give away, and I’ll consider it.’

‘All right,’ Ayesha said. ‘I will. It’s been a pleasure to meet you, kuhn Runrot. A very great pleasure.’

As she made her way back to her car, Runrot turned to Chanarong and said, ‘Who was that feisty young lady friend of yours, you old goat?’

‘That,’ Chanarong replied, ‘was Mrs Davidson. You will have read of her in the papers, no doubt. If rumours are correct, she has become an extremely wealthy widow. She may not be joking, you know.’

 

Chapter 25

Ayesha arrived in the carpark to find Chanin slouched against the bonnet of the Yellow Peril with a cigarette dangling between his lips. He was punching the buttons of his mobile phone and appeared to take no notice as she approached. She ignored him and slid into the driver’s seat, expecting him to move away when she started the engine. Instead, he swung around, opened the rear passenger side door, and slipped in behind her.

‘What do you think you’re doing? Get out of my car.’

He leant forward and blew smoke at her. The air was filled with a slightly sweet, woody smell that made her eyes water.

‘I need a lift into town.’

Ayesha fumed. How dare he! ‘Like hell I’m taking you. I’m not going there anyway. Get out this instant before I call the police.’ 

‘Oh, I think you are, missy.’ His voice was low and sinister. She felt the cold face of a blade pressed against the side of her neck. ‘Do what I say, and you won’t get hurt.’ He sat back in his seat and waited.

She glanced in the rearview mirror. He was watching her through narrowed, bloodshot eyes. An insolent smile played around his lips. He brought his fingers to his face and drew a last lungful from his reefer, letting the smoke trickle from his nostrils.

 

She thrust the car into gear, thinking for a moment that, if she were to slam her foot on the accelerator, she might be able to throw him off balance. As if he were reading her mind, he flicked the butt out of the window and brought the knife up into her field of view and toyed with it, moving it casually from one hand to the other.

When they reached the outskirts of Kata Beach, he tapped her on the shoulder and pointed to a bank up ahead. ‘Pull in over there. I’m short of cash. Hand me the keys and bring your credit card. No funny business.’

He opened the car door for her and helped her out, making sure she could feel the knife pressed against her side. He put his arm around her as though they were lovers and propelled her towards the ATM. She dared not make a false move. ‘How much do you want?’

‘This one will let you take out three thousand bahts. That will do for now.’ He leant over her shoulder as she entered her passcode, and with the transaction complete, he walked her back to the car. She got in and looked up at him, her eyes ablaze with fury.  He dangled the car keys just out of her reach and swung them on his finger. ‘Now the credit card, and your mobile phone.’

As soon as she’d handed them over, he threw the keys into the back of the car, slammed the door, and loped off down the street, disappearing into an alleyway between rows of shanty houses. For a moment, she sat with her heart palpitating. The colour had drained from her face and the sweat on her brow made it cold and clammy. She buried her head in her hands and started to sob.
 

Gradually, she pulled herself together, took several deep breaths, and scrambled out of the car to retrieve her keys. Her first thought was to cancel the card. She ran back to the bank and burst through the doors, elbowing other customers aside. A security guard put his arm on her shoulder and led her towards the window, presumably hoping to avert an incident. She pushed him away and shouted, ‘Let go, you ape! I want to see the manager.’

In a trice, her arm was pinioned behind her back. By now, there was a wide circle of onlookers. An old lady Ayesha had nearly knocked over came forward and shook an umbrella in her face, hurling a tidal wave of abuse at her. The manager came hurrying out of his office. ‘What seems to be the matter here?’ he said. A rapid exchange in Thai took place between him and the security guard. Ayesha tried to interrupt but was restrained.

Eventually, he turned to her, and she blurted out, ‘I’ve been robbed. A thief has stolen my credit card, and I need to cancel it before he starts drawing money from my account.’

The bank manager said, ‘Come this way, miss. I’ll see what we can do for you.’ He led her into a side room. ‘There’s nothing to worry about. You can cancel it online with your phone. Do you know how to do that?’

She looked at him, and her bottom lip started to tremble. He slid a box of tissues across the desk and waited patiently while she composed herself. The story of her kidnapping and assault came tumbling out.

‘This is a serious matter. We must inform the police immediately. Meanwhile, if you could write down the details of the stolen card for me, I’ll arrange to have it blocked.’ He passed her a biro and a pad of paper and picked up the phone. She looked at the paper blankly. This was turning into a nightmare. She could end up being here for ages and not getting anywhere.

‘I can't remember my card number. Look, I’m sorry to have wasted your time—and don’t worry about the police,’ she said. ‘I’ll report it myself. Major Kamul is a personal friend of mine. I know who the thief is. It shouldn’t take long to track him down.’

 

‘Give me your name and bank details. Cancelling the card will take a little longer, but there should be no problem. We may be able to stop him from draining your account.’

 

She took the pen and paper and wrote everything down for him and then, thanking him once again, returned to the Yellow Peril and drove to the police headquarters in Patong. It was a building she had no difficulty in finding. Her last visit, when she had been escorted there by Kamul and a less-than-friendly policewoman, was etched deep into her psyche. The thought of Major Suttikul sent a shiver up her spine. How glad she was that he was no longer in charge. She had plenty of time to dwell on that previous visit, as she became snarled up in the tourist traffic along the coast road. It took almost half an hour to get there.

By this time, she had calmed down and was more civil than she’d been at the bank. She approached the front desk and said, ‘I need to see Major Kamul. It’s urgent.’

The desk sergeant was impassive. He finished what he was writing and said, ‘Have you got an appointment?’

‘No, but I’m sure he will see me. Tell him it’s Mrs Davidson.’

‘May I also tell him what it’s about? The major is a busy man.’

‘I’ve been assaulted and robbed. My mobile phone and credit card have been stolen.’

‘I’m sorry, Mrs Davidson, but these are not matters for the major. You need to report the theft at the Tourist Police Station in Karon. By car, it’s a quarter of an hour south of here on the coast.’ He pointed to a map on the wall behind him. ‘Here.’

Ayesha wasn’t going to be fobbed off. She said, rather more brusquely than she’d intended, ‘I know where it is. I drove through Karon on my way here from Kata Beach.’ She had no intention of being given the run around by the tourist police so she changed tack. ‘Thank you, sergeant. You have been most helpful. However, I would still like to see the major. It’s on a personal matter relating to his predecessor. I’d appreciate it if you could tell him I am here.’

Knowing Kamul as she did, she felt sure he would get things moving. More importantly, she wanted to quiz him about Bruno’s death. She still couldn’t understand how his arm could have been washed ashore on Manly Beach when she had personally identified his body here in Phuket, attended his cremation, and flown back to Adelaide with his ashes. Yet the evidence of the ring was incontrovertible.

Author Notes

Summary of Chapters 1-24 Ayesha, an Australian tourist, is on honeymoon in Thailand with Bruno, her rich and abusive new husband. One day, she repels his attack, and he loses his balance, hitting his head when he falls. Thinking she has killed him, she flees on a tourist coach going to an elephant trekking lodge. She meets Bapit there, a beach hawker who had previously sold her a set of panpipes. She is in a panic because she has no money on her. Bapit is now working at the lodge, looking after a badly abused elephant called Abhamaru. Tourists are fascinated when he plays his panpipes to soothe the elephant. When he learns of her predicament, he suggests that, until she can find a better alternative, she can stay with his friend, Somchai, a street hawker who can rent her a room. Bapit falls for Ayesha and they go to watch his brother in a kickboxing match. She is disguised in a hijab and they evade the police, who are searching for her. They end up in a hotel together, but his idea of romance is gauche. She throws him out. He gets drunk in a gay bar and is subsequently ruthlessly sodomised. Meanwhile, the hotel night porter informs on them, and Ayesha is arrested by the police in the morning. When Bapit comes around, he is alone, hungover, and filled with shame. He stumbles into the road, is hit by a car, and his leg has to be amputated. Ayesha is distraught when she finds out. It turns out that Bruno was only concussed. He and Suttikul, the Chief of Police, are engaged in a drug smuggling operation. However, the drug squad are closing in, and Suttikul needs to get Bruno out of the country fast. He stages an elaborate deception making Bruno appear to be dead and gets Ayesha to identify the body. He arranges a funeral and cremation, using another body. The urns are then swapped, and Ayesha ends up unknowingly carrying an urn full of heroin back to Australia. The drug squad is aware of the deception and lets the urn through, hoping to catch bigger fish at the Sydney end of the operation. Bruno turns up in Sydney under an assumed name. He goes fishing with his financial advisor and partner in crime, Johnno, but he dies from the result of a delayed concussion while hauling in a big fish. Realising how awkward it would be to explain Bruno's second death, Johnno throws his body to the sharks. However, sometime later, an arm is washed ashore with Bruno's wedding ring on its finger. Major Suttikul is arrested, as are some of the Sydney gang. However, Johnno is released again because of a lack of evidence. Ayesha knows nothing of this. She renews her visa and returns to Phuket, where she helps Bapit through the first stages of his rehabilitation while he teaches her how to play the panpipes. The lawyers in Sydney handling Bruno's estate inform her that she is now an extremely wealthy widow. She decides to use the money to rescue Abhamaru. The owner of the elephant lodge, Chanarong, has had a stroke, and she hopes to be able to buy the lodge and repurpose it as a sanctuary. She returns to Sydney, where Johnno tries to persuade her to let him invest Bruno's fortune for her. She declines and arranges for her lawyer, a young man called Steve, to investigate setting up a charitable foundation with the money. Johnno is after her, both because he wants the money and to prevent her from identifying Bruno's ring, but she escapes and flees back to Thailand. Characters in this chapter: Ayesha, a rich Australian widow Chanin, Runrot's son, a mahout at the trekking lodge Major Kamul, Chief of Police in Phuket British English spelling, punctuation, and grammatical conventions are used throughout.

Chapter 26
Panpipes - Chapter 26

By tfawcus

See the Author Notes below for a story summary.

 

Chapter 26

The desk sergeant picked up the phone. He leant back in his chair and used his free hand to twirl a biro between his thumb, index, and middle fingers. The movement was slow and automatic, and while he performed it, he stared disinterestedly at a point a few inches below Ayesha’s right shoulder. After what might have been ten seconds or an eternity, he stopped rotating the biro, and he reached forward and replaced the handset in its cradle.

‘I’m sorry, Mrs Davidson. The major isn’t answering his phone.’ He handed Ayesha a notepad, together with his biro. ‘Write down your contact details, and I’ll try again later. Meanwhile, I advise you to report the matter to the tourist police as I suggested.’

There was no sense in arguing with the man, so she wrote her phone number on the pad. Then, remembering that Chanin had her mobile, she scratched it out angrily and wrote down Somchai’s address. ‘Tell the major I am staying here. He knows where it is.’ But, when she looked into the desk sergeant’s disinterested eyes, she held little hope of the message reaching Major Kamul.

 

The tourist police at Karon were more helpful. They listened attentively to her story and promised to let her know as soon as they had any news. They also advised her about ways she could mitigate the risks. Fortunately, like any prudent traveller, she had a record of her mobile phone IMEI number along with her passport and credit card numbers. The credit card was already blocked, and they helped her through the process of blocking the phone as well. She was reassured by their efficiency and concern, which went some way towards restoring her faith in human nature.

Meanwhile, back at police headquarters, Kamul was in a quandary. True to his word, the desk sergeant had reported Ayesha’s visit. On the one hand, the major was relieved not to have been involved in her current problems. On the other, he would have welcomed the opportunity to meet with her and reestablish cordial relations, using the occasion to gently probe her knowledge about another matter. The headlines in yesterday’s Sydney morning papers had gleefully blared the news of Carl Erikson’s upcoming trial. An abbreviated version had even found its way into the middle pages of the Bangkok Post. The sordid story of drugs being smuggled into Australia in a funeral urn would no doubt have had editors rubbing their hands in anticipation of boosted circulation. Kamul knew of Carl’s relationship with Bruno Davidson and wondered if Ayesha knew of it too. If so, she might start making connections.

As far as Kamul was aware, the urn he’d given to Ayesha contained the ashes of the unfortunate make-up artist—a ruse enabling Mr Davidson to slip out of the country unnoticed, evading arrest by the Narcotics Squad. He had not been privy to the second level of deception. As became apparent at the time of Major Suttikul’s arrest, there was much he hadn’t known about the major’s devious machinations.

Mr Davidson had apparently gone to ground. Nothing further had been heard of him. Kamul wondered if Mrs Davidson realised he was still alive. He thought it unlikely. However, if she read the news of Erikson’s arrest, her suspicions might be aroused. Would she connect Erikson’s trial with the importation of her husband’s presumed remains? Her return to Phuket made him nervous. She and Dr Piyawat were the only two people who could directly implicate him in the elaborate subterfuge that had taken place. Self-interest would seal Piyawat’s lips, but what about hers? If he had also known of the disembodied arm carrying Bruno’s ring on its third finger, he might have been tempted to follow Suttikul’s lead and arrange for the disappearance of an inconvenient widow. He was basically an honest man, but self-preservation can be a powerful motivator.

*****

Blissfully unaware of the potential danger hanging over her, Ayesha returned to Somchai’s house and related her tale of woe. ‘So much for your multi-coloured serpent. A fat lot of good it did me today.’

Somchai reminded her that the snake dream only covered matters of a romantic nature and did not predict other events. ‘…and your meeting with Bapit went well, didn’t it? Surely, you’re not worried about being displaced by a young Chinese flower girl?’

She glibly tossed the suggestion aside and changed the subject. ‘Why would Chanin do such a thing? It was sheer madness. He must know he has no chance of getting away with it. It’s not as if he was taking advantage of a random tourist.’

‘You say he smelt of ganja? People act strangely under drugs. Perhaps he needed money to buy something stronger and didn’t care how he got it. I have already told you how he was sent home in disgrace from Lampang Province. His father and Chanerong hushed it up at the time and have kept an eye on him at the trekking lodge ever since. But now...’

‘If you don’t mind me asking, how do you know all of this?’

Somchai shot her a sidelong glance and said somewhat shortly, ‘Chanerong and me, you mean? The humble street hawker? We were in the army together during the Communist uprising. Runrot, too. All in the same unit.’

Realising she may have offended him, Ayesha moved quickly on. ‘Maybe that explains his mood swings and his cruelty to the elephants.’

‘Maybe. My guess is that he’s back on the yaba.’

‘Yaba? What’s that?

‘A mix of meth and caffeine. Very dangerous. They call it the crazy medicine. Long time in prison if you’re caught with it. Ten years, maybe.’

‘How awful. No wonder they wanted to hush it up.’

‘Yes, missy. People in the drug trade make much misery.’

*****

There was good news for Ayesha the following day. The tourist police had recovered her mobile phone. Chanin had tried to sell it to a second-hand dealer who became suspicious when he discovered it was locked. During the subsequent questioning, he had panicked and fled, leaving the phone with the dealer. Yes, they said, she could pick it up from them any time that suited her. Chanin was still at large but they didn’t anticipate it would be long before he was caught.

She dropped in at the Karon Police Station on her way to the hospital. It took some time to get the carrier to unblock the phone, but here again, the police were able to expedite matters by verifying its theft and subsequent return. There were several messages from Steve Kraft, each more cryptic than the last, and each screaming for her immediate attention. The last one contained only five words. He hadn’t even bothered to sign it. Urgent you contact me soonest.

When she rang the offices of Suttle and Kraft, Sarah answered the phone. ‘I’m so glad to hear from you, Mrs Davidson. Steve has been at his wits’ end trying to contact you. There has been a bit of a crisis.’

‘You’d better put me through, then.’

It was not Steve but Ken Suttle who came onto the line. His voice oozed thinly veiled sarcasm. ‘Ah, Ayesha, my dear. How good of you to find the time to call us back.’ Before she had time to frame an appropriate response, he continued, ‘I’m afraid we have some rather disturbing news for you. It appears that your husband may still be alive.’

‘Impossible,’ she snapped.

‘As unlikely as it seems, Carl Erikson, an associate of his, professes to have seen him in Sydney the day before you flew into Adelaide with his ashes. The police are checking his story at the moment. They are running tests on the contents of the urn you delivered to Mrs Davidson senior. There’s little chance of a positive ID, but there may be some residual DNA in the crushed bone fragments.’

‘That’s absurd. I identified Bruno myself, in the mortuary in Phuket.’ A chill ran through her body. It wasn’t absurd at all. Bruno had died at sea... torn apart by sharks ... the arm with his wedding ring. The facts fired up her synapses like a series of electric shocks.

‘Are you still there, Ayesha?’

‘Mrs Davidson to you, Mr Suttle, and don’t forget it.’’

‘As you wish, my dear. It’s probably a storm in a teacup. You will doubtless have read that Mr Erikson is currently on trial for smuggling drugs across the country in a funeral urn. It is headline news here in Australia. I suspect this may be a ruse to shift the blame to your husband, his employer.’

‘Carl? Smuggling drugs? You must be joking. He met me in Adelaide and drove me to Ethel Davidson’s house in Glenelg to deliver Bruno’s ashes. He’s a lovely man. A perfect gentleman.’

‘Have you considered he might have had an ulterior motive? If those ashes in Glenelg are not your husband’s, whose are they?’

‘How should I know? Anyway, what are you trying to get at?’

‘Would he have had any opportunity to swap the urn for another one? The question is, what was in the urn you brought into the country from Phuket? Drugs—or the remains of a murdered man? I advise you to tread carefully, Mrs Davidson. You could be in a great deal of trouble.’

‘Now you really are being ridiculous. What a libellous suggestion. How dare you?’

‘Do try to calm down, Mrs Davidson. I’m not accusing you of anything. However, I must tell you that I can’t continue with the business of settling your husband’s estate while there is still some possibility that he’s alive.’

‘He’s not! And I can prove it.’

I hope so, Mrs Davidson.’
 

‘I want to speak to Steve Kraft. Put me through please.’

 

‘I'm afraid that’s not possible. He’s with another client.’

 

There was a click, and the line went dead.

Author Notes

Summary of Chapters 1-25 Ayesha, an Australian tourist, is on honeymoon in Thailand with Bruno, her rich and abusive new husband. One day, she repels his attack, and he loses his balance, hitting his head when he falls. Thinking she has killed him, she flees on a tourist coach going to an elephant trekking lodge. She meets Bapit there, a beach hawker who had previously sold her a set of panpipes. She is in a panic because she has no money on her. Bapit is now working at the lodge, looking after a badly abused elephant called Abhamaru. Tourists are fascinated when he plays his panpipes to soothe the elephant. When he learns of her predicament, he suggests that, until she can find a better alternative, she can stay with his friend, Somchai, a street hawker who can rent her a room. Bapit falls for Ayesha and they go to watch his brother in a kickboxing match. She is disguised in a hijab and they evade the police, who are searching for her. They end up in a hotel together, but his idea of romance is gauche. She throws him out. He gets drunk in a gay bar and is subsequently ruthlessly sodomised. Meanwhile, the hotel night porter informs on them, and Ayesha is arrested by the police in the morning. When Bapit comes around, he is alone, hungover, and filled with shame. He stumbles into the road, is hit by a car, and his leg has to be amputated. Ayesha is distraught when she finds out. It turns out that Bruno was only concussed. He and Suttikul, the Chief of Police, are engaged in a drug smuggling operation. However, the drug squad are closing in, and Suttikul needs to get Bruno out of the country fast. He stages an elaborate deception making Bruno appear to be dead and gets Ayesha to identify the body. He arranges a funeral and cremation, using another body. The urns are then swapped, and Ayesha ends up unknowingly carrying an urn full of heroin back to Australia. The drug squad is aware of the deception and lets the urn through, hoping to catch bigger fish at the Sydney end of the operation. Bruno turns up in Sydney under an assumed name. He goes fishing with his financial advisor and partner in crime, Johnno, but he dies from the result of a delayed concussion while hauling in a big fish. Realising how awkward it would be to explain Bruno's second death, Johnno throws his body to the sharks. However, sometime later, an arm is washed ashore with Bruno's wedding ring on its finger. Major Suttikul is arrested, as are some of the Sydney gang. However, Johnno is released again because of a lack of evidence. Ayesha knows nothing of this. She renews her visa and returns to Phuket, where she helps Bapit through the first stages of his rehabilitation while he teaches her how to play the panpipes. The lawyers in Sydney handling Bruno's estate inform her that she is now an extremely wealthy widow. She decides to use the money to rescue Abhamaru. The owner of the elephant lodge, Chanarong, has had a stroke, and she hopes to be able to buy the lodge and repurpose it as a sanctuary. She returns to Sydney, where Johnno tries to persuade her to let him invest Bruno's fortune for her. She declines and arranges for her lawyer, a young man called Steve, to investigate setting up a charitable foundation with the money. Johnno is after her because he wants the money and to prevent her from identifying Bruno's ring, but she escapes and flees back to Thailand, where she is assaulted and robbed by Chanin. Characters in this chapter: Ayesha, a rich Australian widow Chanerong, owner of an elephant trekking lodge in Phuket Chanin, Runrot's son, a mahout at the trekking lodge Somchai, a Street Hawker Major Kamul, Chief of Police in Phuket Steve Kraft and Ken Suttle - Ayesha's solicitors British English spelling, punctuation, and grammatical conventions are used throughout.

Chapter 27
Panpipes - Chapter 27

By tfawcus

A summary of Chapters 1-26 can be found in the Author Notes below.

 

Chapter 27

Not only did Ken Suttle’s condescension and innuendo sicken Ayesha, but she was also alarmed by the suggestion of her complicity in a sordid drug-running scheme. Was that really the source of Bruno’s wealth? If only she’d taken more interest in his business dealings. The possibility that her inheritance was built from the charnel bones of drug addiction filled her with revulsion. She felt dirty and in need of cleansing.

When she got back to Somchai’s, she donned a bikini and slipped a loose-fitting embroidered kaftan over it. Although the afternoon sun had lost some of its bite, the cab of the Yellow Banana was intolerably hot when she climbed back in. She wound all the windows down to let a cool breeze wash through as she drove to the public parking lot at the northern end of the beach. After renting a beach chair and dragging it into the shade of an overhanging palm, she wriggled out of her kaftan, dropped it onto the lounger and headed for the water. Crab Island lay like a stranded whale a few hundred metres offshore. She struck out towards it with the lazy overarm stroke of an Australian crawl, luxuriating in the cool ripple of the water against her skin.

 

After covering half the distance, she rolled onto her back, spread her arms wide, and floated in the gentle swell, inhaling the salty tang and gazing at a wisp of cloud hanging like a fiery dragon above the island. What was she to do? It was clear that she had been duped. Thinking back, she remembered feeling something was wrong when she identified Bruno’s body, but she hadn’t been able to put her finger on it. Could that deathly pallor have been applied? Perhaps, but what would have been the point of such a subterfuge? Questions buzzed through her mind chasing answers that lay tantalisingly beyond her reach.

 

Some things were certain. Bruno had not died in Thailand. His remains had been washed ashore on a Sydney beach. The cremation at Kata temple had been a hollow farce, and the urn she had carried back to Australia had not contained Bruno’s ashes. Did she dare confront Kamul with her suspicions, or would that be the signature on her own death warrant? She rolled onto her stomach and headed back to shore.

Exhausted after her swim, she spread her beach towel over the lounger and lay watching the sun as it melted into the molten sea. The sky softened to a tangerine glow on the horizon and a cool night breeze sprang up. Shivering, she put the kaftan back on and wrapped the towel around her hair like a turban before returning to the car to comb it out and retrieve her handbag. The covered night market was only a five-minute walk and she decided to go there for a light supper. Skirting past the jostle of tourists photographing trays of fried insects, she bought a dish of grilled meat on skewers and settled herself at a quiet table in the corner. Then she tried ringing Steve again. This time she had an immediate response.

‘Thank goodness I’ve got hold of you at last. I had the most awful conversation with Ken Suttle this afternoon. What an odious man he is. I can’t imagine how you can stand working with him.’

‘He’s not so bad when you get used to him. A bit of a misogynist and I can see how he would get under your skin, but a damned fine lawyer. Sharp as a tack. He’ll no doubt have told you about the court case against your ex-husband’s associate, Carl Erikson, and the possibility it throws up that he may still be alive ...’

‘Yes, but I have definite proof that he isn’t. You must have read that story of an arm being washed up on Manly Beach recently. Well, it had Bruno’s wedding ring on the third finger. I’m absolutely sure of it. I recognised it on a poster when we were in the Day Street Police station together. I have an identical one.’

‘Then why on earth didn’t you report it? You’d have saved yourself a heap of trouble.’

‘Yes, but it would have caused all kinds of delay, police paperwork, formal identification, and so on. All I wanted was to get the hell out of the country before Johnno’s thugs closed in again. Now I’m not sure what to do. If I report it to the police here, Major Kamul will know I’ve caught onto Suttikul’s horrid little scheme. There’s no knowing how he’ll react. He was up to his neck in it, too.’

‘Look, don’t say anything to anyone just yet. It would be best if you could come back to Sydney to sort things out from this end, but if you can’t, I’ll fly out to join you. He’ll have to tread carefully if you have a lawyer as a witness.’

‘The trouble is, Steve, I haven’t any money. Certainly not enough to pay your fees or your airfare, and I’m not coming back to Sydney with the prospect of Johnno hunting me down again.’

‘Don’t worry about the fees. We can sort that out later, but talking of Johnno, my father and his are both members of the Sydney Yacht Club. Mr Johnson senior happened to mention he’d lent his boat to his son to go fishing with a friend recently. In view of what you’ve just said about Bruno’s death at sea, I wonder if there could be a connection. If he’s implicated, it would certainly explain why he’s after you. You’re probably the only one who could assist the police in their enquiries. As for your present cash shortage, Ken came up with a suggestion you may not have thought of. The house in Lane Cove is in joint names, isn’t it?’

‘Yes, but I don’t see how that helps.’

‘It means you can divert the rental income into your own personal account. That should be worth at least fifteen hundred a week. Enough to get you by until everything is sorted. He says he can arrange that for you. I told you he’s a smart bugger. Oh, and there’s one other thing. I’m thinking of bringing Sarah with me. I’m planning to propose, and a few days’ holiday in the sun would provide the perfect backdrop.’

Ayesha was drawing a lump of meat off a skewer with her teeth at that moment, and she dropped it into her lap. ‘Damn and blast!’ she exclaimed, then to make matters worse, she let go of her mobile and it clattered to the floor.

‘What was that?’

‘Don’t worry. I just dropped something.’ She hastily composed herself. ‘That’s great news. Congratulations. Look, I have to be going now. Drop me a text when you know what flight you’ll be on, and I’ll come and pick you up from the airport.’

She ran her greasy fingers through her hair and repaired the damage to her dress as best she could with a paper napkin before making her way back to the car. What was Steve to her anyway?

*****

A few hours earlier, the police had run Chanin to ground. He was semi-comatose in a back alley in the red-light district. When they approached, he backed away like an animal at bay, wide-eyed and trembling. There were traces of white powder around his nose. They rushed him to hospital, where he was put on oxygen and stabilised. Blood and urine samples indicated a methamphetamine overdose, and an empty Marlboro packet in his jeans was found to contain twenty yaba tablets and a roll of 1000-baht notes. Major Kamul had official business in Kata that afternoon and decided to pay Ayesha a visit before heading home.

When she drove up the hill to Somchai’s house, she saw a sleek grey car with blue and yellow Battenberg markings parked outside. Major Kamul was deep in conversation with Somchai on the verandah.

She gathered herself to her full height and walked across to greet him. ‘Ah, major, how good of you to call by, and congratulations on your promotion. You look very handsome in your new uniform. It suits you.’

Kamul, who had expected to take the high ground, found himself at a disadvantage. He shuffled his stance slightly. ‘Kind of you to say so, Mrs Davidson.’ He cleared his throat and continued, ‘I apologise for the late hour, but I’m a busy man. I had other business in Kata this afternoon and thought I’d drop by on the off chance.’

‘That’s very kind of you. Quite all right—but before we get started, I want to thank you for all you did to comfort me in my time of grief. You went well beyond the call of duty.’ She itched to add what a fine performance it had been but restrained herself. This was neither the time nor the place to make an explosive accusation. Nonetheless, she could see no harm in lighting the fuse. ‘I’m told one of my husband’s acquaintances is being tried on drug charges in Sydney, but I’m sure it would have had nothing to do with him. Just a coincidence.’

 ‘Quite so, Mrs Davidson. A coincidence.’ Kamul’s earlier discomfort was a mere ghost of the way he felt now. How much did this blasted woman know? ‘But now to the matter in hand. I’m glad to say your assailant has been caught and is in police custody. He was found with a quantity of drugs and a number of 1000-baht notes in his possession. I believe the bank can trace the serial numbers back to the ATM that issued them, in which case you may eventually get some of your money back.’

‘That is good news, major. How clever you all are. I must say, I’m developing a high regard for the Thai police force. But what about Chanin? What will happen to him?’

‘That depends on whether he is charged with possession or trafficking. The number of tablets found on him is borderline. Add the armed robbery to that and he will be spending a long time behind bars.’

Ayesha was silent for a moment. A thought had crossed her mind. This turn of events would cause Runrot a huge loss of face in the local community. He would be devastated, and even more so when he discovered she was the one who had accused his son. But there was a way she could turn matters to her own advantage, enabling him to save face, and putting him in her debt. It was worth considering.

‘Thank you again, major, for bringing me the good news. It’s most kind of you. Now I expect you’ll be wanting to get home to your family. You have once again gone out of your way to assist me, and I’m most grateful.’

Kamul departed with the distinct feeling that his world was about to come crashing down like a house of cards. 

 

Author Notes

Summary of Chapters 1-26 Ayesha is an Australian tourist, initially on honeymoon in Thailand with Bruno, her rich and abusive husband. One day, she repels his attack, and he loses his balance, hitting his head when he falls. Thinking she has killed him, she flees on a tourist coach going to an elephant trekking lodge where she meets Bapit, a beach hawker who had previously sold her a set of panpipes. She is in a panic because she has no money on her. Bapit is now working at the lodge, looking after a badly abused elephant called Abhamaru. Tourists are fascinated when he plays his panpipes to soothe the elephant. When he learns of her predicament, he suggests that, until she can find a better alternative, she can stay with his friend, Somchai, a street hawker who can rent her a room. Bapit falls for Ayesha and they go to watch his brother in a kickboxing match. She is disguised in a hijab and they evade the police, who are searching for her. They end up in a hotel together, but his idea of romance is gauche. She throws him out. He gets drunk in a gay bar and is subsequently ruthlessly sodomised. Meanwhile, the hotel night porter informs on them, and Ayesha is arrested by the police in the morning. When Bapit comes around, he is alone, hungover, and filled with shame. He stumbles into the road, is hit by a car, and his leg has to be amputated. Ayesha is distraught when she finds out. It turns out that Bruno was only concussed. He and Suttikul, the Chief of Police, are engaged in a drug smuggling operation. However, the drug squad are closing in, and Suttikul needs to get Bruno out of the country fast. He stages an elaborate deception making Bruno appear to be dead and gets Ayesha to identify the body. He arranges a funeral and cremation, using another body. The urns are then swapped, and Ayesha ends up unknowingly carrying an urn full of heroin back to Australia. The drug squad is aware of the deception and lets the urn through, hoping to catch bigger fish at the Sydney end of the operation. Bruno turns up in Sydney under an assumed name. He goes fishing with his financial advisor and partner in crime, Johnno, but he dies from the result of a delayed concussion while hauling in a big fish. Realising how awkward it would be to explain Bruno's second death, Johnno throws his body to the sharks. However, sometime later, an arm is washed ashore with Bruno's wedding ring on its finger. Major Suttikul is arrested, as are some of the Sydney gang. However, Johnno is released again because of a lack of evidence. Ayesha knows nothing of this. She renews her visa and returns to Phuket, where she helps Bapit through the first stages of his rehabilitation while he teaches her how to play the panpipes. The lawyers in Sydney handling Bruno's estate inform her that she is now an extremely wealthy widow. She decides to use the money to rescue Abhamaru. The owner of the elephant lodge, Chanarong, has had a stroke, and she hopes to be able to buy the lodge and repurpose it as a sanctuary. She returns to Sydney, where Johnno tries to persuade her to let him invest Bruno's fortune for her. She declines and arranges for her lawyer, a young man called Steve, to investigate setting up a charitable foundation with the money. Johnno is after her because he wants the money and to prevent her from identifying Bruno's ring, but she escapes and flees back to Thailand, where she is assaulted and robbed by Chanin. Characters in this chapter: Ayesha, a rich Australian widow Chanerong, owner of an elephant trekking lodge in Phuket Chanin, Runrot's son, a mahout at the trekking lodge Somchai, a Street Hawker Major Kamul, Chief of Police in Phuket Steve Kraft and Ken Suttle - Ayesha's solicitors British English spelling, punctuation, and grammatical conventions are used throughout.

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