Shyam felt cold. In a half sleep, his right hand fumbled to get his blanket but couldn’t find it. In his mind, he got angry with Archana. She should close the door if she gets up early and goes to the bath. I’m feeling cold. Shyam thought. Maybe blanket would be at left side. He moved his left hand to find it and cried with pain.
“What happened?” he heard a voice.
“Why you keep the door open?” he shouted, “can’t you shut it before you go to bathe?”
“Mister, we are in the tunnel, not in your bedroom,” Charmi said.
“Oh! Sorry!” Shyam’s mind took a while to get his present place, the tunnel.
“It’s okay.” She said.
“What’s the time?” he found himself.
“Maybe three or four,” she said, “it’s raining, too.”
“Don’t you need sleep?” he asked, ignoring the pain in his limbs which were better than before, “you should get some sleep.”
“No, thanks.” She said, “I woke you up because your body was trembling to toe in sleep.”
“Good job otherwise I have passed in the sleep.” He smiled, “maybe I got shivering due to rain.”
“It isn’t a joke.” Her voice grew serious, “sometimes heart stops in cold and while sleeping the chances are double.” Her eyes had sweet scold.
It wasn’t raining hard, just pouring. Still, in the rain and chill of November pass the night just on a shirt isn’t something you will prefer. His body was trembling to his toes.
“Can a fag help it?” he asked.
“I think you need a drink?”
“I don’t drink.”
“Wine isn’t something bad if you use it as a medicine it can save your life.”
Shyam felt she was right, still confused he was offering himself an excuse or really he needed it to survive.
“And you?” he asked.
“I don’t need.”
“Why?” he asked, “don’t you feel cold?”
“No, I’m in the jacket.” She put it off.
“What are you doing?” he asked, “why are you putting it off?”
“I think you need it badly," she smiled again, “put it on. You are injured it will help you.”
Shyam took it in his trembling hand and put it on.
“How much should I drink?” he asked.
“Half bottle” she emptied the bottle half in a polythene bag.
“Drink it.” She handed him the bottle after filling the remaining half with water.
“The whole?”
“Only half is wine half is water.” She said, “do you need me to force you to drink it?”
“I think no,” he said and finished the bottle in some big sips, though his throat was feeling a strange taste.
His stomach was feeling unusual as if churning, and he felt the hair at nape his neck raised. No cold he felt now. He drank for the first time still didn’t feel tipsy. Perhaps it could only lessen the pain in his limbs.
His mind had no effect of drink. He knew Charmi was in front of him. They had escaped from kidnappers.
She gave him a cigarette. He lighted it and took a deep puff. Then he saw various shapes in the smoke of the cigarette, imagining the face of his beloved Archana inside the rings of smoke.
*
Outside tunnel wasn’t darkness now. The smooth sunrays were chasing it through the veil of the fog. Even inside the tunnel, the darkness was fading. Shyam could now see her face clearly.
He woke her up and handed her a pouch of water, observing the thickened blood over her jeans.
She took pouch but didn’t prefer to wash her face with cold water.
“What’s the time?” she asked.
“The sun has just arrived, maybe seven of the morning.”
“How long did I sleep?”
“Two hours.” He said, “I woke you up as there isn’t darkness longer and we haven’t discussed what should we do at daylight.”
“Let’s make a plan.” She emptied the pouch.
He gave her another pouch and took out a cigarette from the packet, “we have only two.”
“Let’s have them.”
They lit them.
“What’s now?”
“First we need to get today’s paper to know what story the police has fabricated to cover that corrupt officer whom we have shot yesterday.”
“What do you think?”
“As far as my experience says they must have declared us as criminals. Saying we have murdered a policeman. They won’t destroy their reputation accepting one of them was corrupt and had sidecut with criminals.”
“We have to go now.” He said, “we have not much water.”
“And no money.” She said, “just four hundred rupees. We are in a bloody shortage of money.” She showed her anger on polythene bag, tearing it into two and throwing side away.
“I need to change clothes too.” He said, “my clothes stained in the blood can get anyone’s attention which we can’t afford.”
“Can you walk?”
“Yeah, I think.” He said, “Where should we go?”
“To get some clothes and money.”
“My office will open after nine. we can get ten thousand from my boss.” He said, “But it’s in Mani Majra from where we have jacked the bike.”
“And that’s market and risky to go.”
“To go to Archana, we need to go to sector-11 where always police are active. It isn’t safe to go to this sector.” He said, unknown that Archana wasn’t in sector-11, she had moved from there.
“One of my Classmates lives in Mohali,” Charmi said, “feeling it could be a shelter, at least for a short time.”
“Mohali isn’t safe. I have a friend, office mate, who lives in Kansal. We can get to him without entering the city. Safely, only if we can get auto or lift by someone.” He said as he recalled his friend.
“Can we get money from him?”
“One or two thousand, not more but he can help us with clothes.” He said, “And if luck is with us, we will get food too.”
“Why so?”
“Because he is single.”
“And what if he isn’t at home?” she presented her doubt.
“I don’t know.” It confused him.
“No matter, we will decide later if he isn’t at home.”
“Then let’s go.”
“Yeah.”
She gathered water pouches, bread, medicine and other stuff into her bag. Hid gun at her waistband under her jacket, of course safely pin off. Shyam put a bottle of wine in the pocket of the jacket. They were ready for the journey.
They left the tunnel and came on the road.
“If we go to the nearest temple, we will get auto or lift.” He said.
“How far is the temple?”
“One kilometre.”
“Can you walk to there?”
“Is there any option?” he smiled, and they headed to the temple.
They took fifteen minutes to reach temple as Shyam was limping, wounded and exhausted.
“Please help us.” Charmi found an old man with a scooter who had come to visit the temple.
“What help?” he asked.
“A dog has bitten this boy. I had him treated at Mani Majra at night but now we need to send him at Kansal.” She pleaded, “will you please drop him there?”
“And what about you?”
“I will get a lift on someone else.”
“Here we have no problem of two pillions. This is village area.” He said, “I will drop you both.”
“Thanks.” She said, “This help means too much for us.”
They got on the scooter and Charmi continued to talk with that old man till Kansal.
“Here is your destination,” Oldman said, stopping his scooter.
They got down and thanked the old man again.
When they knocked on the door of Shyam’s office mate Vijay, luck was with them. Vijay opened the door, and he wasn’t tipsy.
“What happened, Shyam?” he asked seeing him.
“Won’t you welcome your gest?” he smiled.
“Oh! Sorry! Come in.” Vijay blushed.
They got into the house and Vijay closed the door behind them.
Shyam handed him the bottle. They were working together for a year and Shyam knew Vijay was dying to drink. He would be ready to do anything if you offer him a bottle.
The habit of drinking had got deep inside him. he needed to borrow money every month from his co-workers and Shyam had helped him many times. However, Vijay had returned him his money every time as soon as he got his salary.
If something made Shyam wonder, then it was about Vijay’s family. If anyone asks him about his family he had a fixed reply – it’s better to forget some things.
Shyam had never asked him again about his family as he hadn’t a habit of poking his nose in other’s family matters. A good habit.
“What will Ma’am prefer, tea or coffee?” he asked Shyam instead Charmi. He wasn’t good at talking with strangers.
“Anything as you wish,” Charmi answered. she was good at making friends.
Vijay made tea, and they gathered in his bedroom cum hall.
“What happened?” he said, “now tell me where have you been since long? No call, no message as if you were disappeared.” His voice complaining.
Shyam told him everything thinking it wasn’t risky to tell him. Though he fabricated some parts and removed some facts. Mostly about police as he knew no one wants to leap in the matter with the police.
“Oh! Sorry to hear it.” He said as Shyam finished his tale.
“We need some money.” He said, “and good clothes too if you have any…”
“Don’t you think we should go to the police?” Vijay suggested him.
“We can’t,” Shyam said.
“Why?”
“No one knows I have fled with Shyam, not even my family.” Charmi spoke, “now I can’t go to the police.”
“But your parents must have reported a complaint.”
“Maybe but I will tell them I was angry, so I have gone to my friend’s house.” Charmi was good at it. Enough good to answer him aptly, not earning any doubt.
“As you wish.” He said, “I have only two thousand. I had one thousand and five hundred notes but the government declared them invalid.”
“Why?” Shyam shocked,
“Modi, our prime minister has declared demonetisation to reduce black money.” Vijay opened the bottle Shyam had just given and filled a glass with liquor. Feeling no need of formality he poured it inside his belly.
“No matter. Two thousand aren’t bad.” Shyam said.
“Yeah, something is better than nothing.” Charmi agreed to him.
“You know, Vijay, it will take me time to return this money.” Shyam made clear.
“No matter, even you don’t pay back. That’s what friendship. Haven’t you helped me many times?”
Vijay gave them clothes which were loose for Shyam. But better than blood-stained one. Shyam changed into his clothes. He didn’t prefer a bath in cold water.
Vijay had no clothes for Charmi so she had to wrap herself in a shawl to hide her blood covered clothes.
Vijay got him a glass of water. Shyam swallowed two tablets with it and asked his contact number.
“Add it to your contact list.” Vijay said, “986…”
“Sorry,” Shyam cut him off, “I have lost my phone, write it on a paper or card for me.”
“Why don’t you take my phone?” Vijay said.
“What will do you without your phone?”
“I have a spare one.”
“But I can’t.”
“Oh! Come on,” he said, “don’t you know I am a fool and once a fool is always a fool?”
Shyam knew he was stiff to help friends. He could sell even his house and so do for liquor.
“Charmi has a friend who will provide us one.” Shyam insisted, not wanting to take too much favour from him.
“As you wish.” he said, “so where are you going now?”
“Gujarat.”
“Forever?”
“No, for some months.” Vijay knew nothing about Archana so he believed him.
“Okay,” he said, emotionally, “don’t feel shy if you need any help and don’t forget me after reaching Gujarat.”
“I won’t.” Shyam said, “I’ll call you as reach Gujarat.”
They thanked Vijay again before leaving his house.
Now they had new clothes and two thousand rupees too. They got an auto and went to Naya Gaav.
When they reached Kansal, they felt one thing eating their stomach – the Hunger.
They found a roadside Dhaba and ate Chhole-Paratha. There they glanced over the Dainik Bhaskar but no headlines were about them on the front page. They were lucky not to get heading on the front or back page.
They again took an auto for Mohali, thinking now police won’t be active in their search. They expected police checking only in Mani Majra and Industrial area.
“We need to walk now,” Charmi said as the auto dropped them half a kilometre far from Mohali bus station.
“Where are we going?”
“Bus station.”
“Then why we left auto before it.”
“Precaution.” She said, “May our auto driver be got in contact with police. He won’t be able to say where we have gone in Mohali, at least not an exact place.”
“I wonder what we would do if there were CCTV cameras in the entire city.”
“Then we wouldn’t have been kidnapped.” She smiled.
Mohali wasn’t much a familiar for him. There most of the people speak the Punjabi language. Shyam had visited the area twice but only business visits.
However, Shyam’s leg had a pain he wasn’t limping. Maybe painkiller was good.
“Have you told store owner I have been bitten by a pit bull?” he asked.
“Yes.” She frowned, “why?”
“The painkiller is good so I think.”
“When an army man gets shot and it’s impossible to take him the hospital. We use this painkiller, Dynapar.” She explained, “it had more power than a whole bottle of wine.”
They were using narrow streets instead of the main road. It was Charmi’s idea. She must give a show on TV how to survive after escaping from kidnappers. Shyam thought.
“How long we should walk yet?”
“Ten minutes.” She answered.
“On foot or by car?”
“Have we a car?”
“Nope?”
“Then take it as by foot.” She smiled.
“I got it.”
After ten minutes they stopped near a house. An aged woman opened the door as Charmi knocked on it.
“Good morning.” The old lady said.
“Good morning.” She replied.
“Does Gurpreet live here?”
“Yes,” old lady answered, “who are you of her?”
“A friend.”
“What’s your name?”
“Charmi.”
“Okay,” she murmured, “she lives at first floor.”
“Is she at home?”
“Yes.” The old lady said, “Today is a holiday.”
They went upstairs to see a room with a double door. Charmi knocked on the door.
A young lady came out, opening the double door. She was in Panjabi dress, a formal one and blond face with charcoal black hair, her attitude revealing her as a government employee. Especially her braids in a tight bun and glasses with an odd round frame.
*
Victor was in a huge dining room decorated with a broad mahogany table and more than five chairs made of same costly wood. The tablecloth over the table was of pure silk.
In front of him was Harris. Both seated in deep thoughts, unaware their tea getting cold.
“Can you think of any reason why army and detective agency is helping Shyam?” Victor broke the deadly silence, taking his cup.
“I can’t find any reason if Shyam isn’t agent Malik,” Harris said, he also took his cup.
“You are right.” Victor said, “the only connection between army and Shyam is possible if Shyam is no one but Malik disguised as a common man.”
“What about Simon?”
“Uncertain but I think Malik had killed him before disguising himself as Shyam.”
“What should we do now?” Harris was bewildered.
“Find Christy and Rosy, immediately.” Victor replaced cup on the table.
He rose from the chair and passed through an open door to BMW waiting outside for him.
Harris sat there, still empty cup in his hand, thinking something and his eyes were closed while thinking means he was thinking something sinister.
***
To be continue...
