Page 29 of Aru Shah and the End of Time

From the end of the room, Aru saw a lovely woman walking toward them. Urvashi had been beautiful in the way a rose was beautiful. The mind was already trained to find it exquisite.

But this woman was beautiful in the way that a bolt of lightning shattering the sky was beautiful. Almost scary. Definitely striking.

She was slim and tall, with shiny black hair that was piled in soft curls on the top of her head. When she smiled, Aru saw a crescent of sharp teeth behind her red lipstick.

“Did you come here for a haircut?”

“No?” said Mini.

Aru elbowed her in the ribs and said, “We didn’t mean to, but we could get one?”

Aru wanted to spend more time with the stunning woman. Just being around her made her feel entranced. She had an overwhelming desire to please this person.

“No way,” said Mini firmly, reaching for Aru’s arm.

“What’s wrong with you?” muttered Aru, yanking her arm away. The woman just wanted to cut their hair. Plus, she was so…pretty. “We need to look around anyway.”

“Businesshasbeen a little slow,” said the woman. Now she was standing right in front of them. “I’m Madame Bee. What are your names, lovely girls?”

“Mini…” said Mini, her voice getting squeaky. She wasn’t looking at the woman. Her eyes were on the wall.

“Aru.”

“Pretty names,” crooned Madame Bee. “Usually I only cut older women’s hair. Their beauty is a little more, well,potent.” She grinned. “It has steeped longer, like tea, and therefore it lasts longer. Here, have a seat.” She ushered them to two of the empty salon chairs.

“I’ll only be a moment,” said Madame Bee. “Just need to get some supplies from the back.” Before she left, she smiled. It made Aru feel like she’d eaten a stack of waffles: rather warm and syrupy…and sleepy.

“Look!” hissed Mini. She grabbed Aru’s face and turned it toward the wall.

The woman in the nearest portrait was still screaming. But there was something else: her eyes…they were moving. Following Mini and Aru. Another cold twinge coursed through Aru, waking her up.

“She trapped these women, Aru,” whispered Mini. “We’ve got to get out of here!”

Aru slid out of her chair. Mini was right.

But there was another problem.

“The first key has to be here,” said Aru. She held up her hand, where the design glowed brighter and brighter. “We have to find the sprig of youth before we leave!”

The girls scanned the room. It was pristine. With the mirrors on the ceiling and floor, they should have been able to find it easily. But they didn’t see anything that looked like the mehndi design.

“It’s got to be around here somewhere…” said Mini.

“Why couldn’t the gods have given us more useful gifts?” grumbled Aru. She couldn’t call Indra “Dad.” It was too weird.

Mini took out her compact. When she opened it, a strange thing happened.

In the small mirror, Aru saw an alternate version of the room they were standing in. The walls were studded not with gemstones but with bone fragments. Instead of a polished floor, they stood on packed dirt. And when Mini angled the compact to reflect the portraits of screaming women, the paintings revealed something very different: skulls.

“The compact sees through enchantments,” said Mini, in awe.

A sound made them jump.

They both looked up to see Madame Bee coming toward them, carrying a small tray that held two miniature jars. “Had to find small vessels for your ashes,” she said, grinning.

Aru and Mini glanced at the compact. Where there had been a beautiful woman, now they saw Madame Bee for what she really was:

Anasura.