Biff was putting the ruby back into its bag. Chandra paused to hand him the chain with the waterproof bag, suggesting that he put the packet in that, which Biff decided was a good idea. As they started on again, Biff urged:
"Tell us more about this Kali business, Chandra."
"People say Kali was a great goddess who killed a huge monster that wanted to destroy the world," Chandra related. "But each drop of monster blood sprang up into a new monster. So Kali taught men to strangle monsters with a special cloth called rumal, about this long"—Chandra spread his hands approximately a yard apart—"and after monsters were all gone, men began to strangle men in the same way, never shedding any blood. And so they do today."
"But all that was stopped a hundred years ago—"
"You mean the time when British Raj said there should be no more thugee? Look there"—Chandra stopped abruptly and pointed to an anthill at the side of the road—"and you see white ants. They are dangerous, like thugs, so I stamp them out." Roughly, Chandra trampled the anthill and the insects teeming around it. "But are they all stamped out? No, some have gone under—how do you say it?"
"Underground," returned Biff.
"That is it," nodded Chandra. "That is the way the thugs went.
Underground. Now they have come up again."
"But why do they want the ruby for Kali?"
"Because they think that rubies are drops of demon blood that will become new demons unless Kali stops them. Your ruby would make biggest demon of all, so they want it most. So Jinnah Jad tells me."
"How many thugs do you think were on the train with us, Chandra?" Biff asked.