entered the hut and fell asleep. At some point in the night she awoke and saw the leopard pacing up and down outside the hut. As Hariaksa had taught her, she sent him vibrations of kinship. To her joy, the beast turned and gazed at her through the window, his yellow eyes glowing. Now she felt certain this was the same leopard she had glimpsed as a child. “Vegavat!” she cried. The word rose spontaneously to her lips and it meant ‘swift’. Over a decade had elapsed since she had seen him racing up the slope of the valley, and last night he had carried Maruti and herself here in an effortless burst of sustained speed. Yes, she would name him Vegavat and love him as if he were the respected senior male member of her new family.

The big cat halted briefly in the moonlight, as if heari...

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