Hidden behind the thicket of screw-pine bushes, Poonguzhali stood holding her breath. Though the sorcerer and Nandini spoke in hushed voices, much of their conversation reached her ears.

When Nandini said that she did not believe the prince had been taken by the sea, the sorcerer replied, “Queen! You never have faith in my words. Why do you now harbor such doubt?”

“Haven’t you heard about the strength of the prince’s horoscope? Even just now, the priest of the Kuzhagar temple spoke about it.”

“Madness! My magical power is stronger than the force of planets and stars. Do you know that I chanted my spells over the calm sea and summoned the cyclone? At first, even that spy from Kanchipuram did not believe it. But later, when he was drowning in the sea, he must have believed for certain!”

“Did you see him drown and die in the sea?”

“What if I did not? I saw the ship he was on catch fire and burn.”

“They say the prince jumped into the sea to save him from the burning ship, didn’t he?”

“Did the one who went return?”

“He did not come back to the Pallava’s ship…”

“Then what? I left Vandiyathevan alive only so that both enemies would perish on the same day.”

“No matter what you say, my heart does not believe it. Something within me keeps telling me that both of them are still alive. Do you know Poonguzhali?”

“I know her well. In Lanka, she was a nuisance to us. She too may have perished in the cyclone.” “That’s not it. A little while ago, a boat was seen approaching from a distance. Raakkammaal saw it from the top of the lighthouse. Suddenly, it vanished from sight. She thinks there were two or three people in the boat.”

“In that case, take the elder and leave at once. I will stay here and keep watch.”

“What if we stay?”

“If the elder is here, he will try to give the prince royal honors and escort him with all ceremony. Everything will be ruined.”

“Witch! I ask you—why is it necessary for them to disembark? If everyone has agreed to crown Madurantakan…”

“Ammani! Do not let your womanly wit betray you now. The spy from Kanchi knows all our secrets. He would have told the prince everything. Before dawn breaks, you must leave and inform them. Raakkamma! If Poonguzhali brings them, where would she hide them in the forest?”

“There is a hidden mandapam. That is her secret sanctuary. She once hid the Kanchi spy there for an entire day. Later, I discovered it.”

“Good; I too know the place where that hidden mandapam lies. I will go there and wait. Queen! How is the Emperor? Is there any news?”

“Which emperor do you ask about?”

“This mouth will never call the ailing Sundara Chozhan ‘Emperor.’ I ask about our Emperor.”

“Ten days ago, word came that he was well. Ah! How many days it has been since we heard…”

“Enough, enough! Set out quickly. Who knows what that fool Pallavan is planning to do.”

“We are taking him to Thanjai as well.”

“Be careful with him.”

“I have no worries about him. He waits eagerly to do with his head whatever I set with my foot!”

“Even so, it is best to be cautious. Did you not, after all, get somewhat deceived by that Kanchi spy, Vandiyathevan?”

“That is true; and that is precisely why I wish to see him alive once more.”

“Abandon that desire altogether, my queen!”

Speaking thus, it seemed they began to move away from that place. Poonguzhali hid herself even more carefully within the thicket, making sure they would not see her. Fortunately, they did not come in her direction; instead, they went off another way.

The things Poonguzhali had overheard by chance filled her with great alarm. When she thought of the many dangers that surrounded Ponniyin Selvan, her hands and feet trembled; her vision darkened; her throat went dry; her heart was thrown into turmoil. Only one thought stood out clearly in her mind: she must return at once to the boat she had left behind. She hurried in the direction where she had left the boat.

The prince was afflicted by a terrible poison. The Pazhuvettaraiyars were waiting to capture him. Assassins lay in wait to kill him. A sorceress in the guise of a woman was aiding them. Parthibendran too had fallen into her web of enchantment. Even the hidden mandapam where she had hoped to take the prince and keep him safe was known to these enemies.

Poonguzhali felt the burden of protecting the prince from all these dangers had fallen upon her shoulders. That was why her mind was so agitated. Never before in her life had she experienced such a thing: the fear of being lost in the forest.

A thought crossed her mind: “Are we wandering in circles, only to end up where we started?” If, while wandering thus, she were to encounter any of the prince’s enemies, what would she do? What explanation could she give them? How could she escape from them?

“No, no! I am on the right path. There—the canal is visible. The spot where I left the boat is right there in that corner.” Poonguzhali rushed toward that place. Her heart almost stopped beating—for the boat was not there where she had left it!

“Oh no! Where could the boat have gone?”

“Could it be that, in my absence, the men of Pazhuvetaraiyar have already come here? Have they come and captured the prince and Vandiyathevan, and taken them away? Even if that has happened, it would not be the worst. Has something even more dreadful occurred? Could Vandiyathevan have carried the prince away, searching for the hidden mandapam? If so, wouldn’t the murderers be waiting there? Alas! What a terrible mistake we have made...”

A restless urgency took hold of Poonguzhali’s heart—the need to go at once