Next morning at eight it was stll cold. The weather was clean. The sun was peeping from the cloud above trying to chase the cold out. Shyam and Charmi were having breakfasts in the canteen.
“Has the chief come?” Shyam asked, taking a bite of his sandwich.
“Yes,” she answered, “he had come early at four. I’m coming from his office.”
“What did he said?”
“He wants an interrogation of you.” She said through a mouthful.
“Is he doubt me?” Shyam was bewildered, “why do you doubt me?”
“I think we trust you.”
“Oh! I don’t think interrogation suggest your trust.”
“It’s just formality,” she insisted, “I think we are on the same side.”
“You think?” he said, “You should be sure.”
“Okay,” she changed the topic, “if you are ready we can go to the interrogation room now.”
“And?”
“Just some questions and you have to provide honest answers.”
“I’ll try,” he said, “how long does it last?
“Till evening if the head is happy with your answers.”
“Okay,” he said, “let the show get on the road.” his voice angry. Charmi didn’t want his cross-examination but she was helpless against the chief’s decision.
They finished breakfast and went to the interrogation room. The room was bigger than Shyam had expected. In the centre of the room was a big metal table size of a wealthy family’s dining. More than ten wooden chairs decorated with lather were around it.
Charmi signalled him to take a seat and she also got one for herself, so aptly that she can see him while interrogation.
In no time the short man whom Shyam had seen in the canteen and a girl with pale figure sunlight-orange hair age of Charmi entered the room. Her skin was fair but looking sensitive. Her eyes blue and looking as if always-thinking-eyes. His odd outlook told Shyam she was there to study his body language while interrogation. She arranged herself at the left of Shyam and right across Charmi.
That short man sat across Shyam.
“Right across is Mr Patil and Mrs Divya Mishra is beside you.” Charmi introduced them to Shyam, “both are interrogation specialist.”
“Nice to meet you.” Shyam tried to be diplomatic but none of them did so. They didn’t greet him back. Shyam cursed them in mind, thinking why they can’t be friendly like Charmi.
“Are you calm?” that short man started, “isn’t your mind angry?”
“I think I don’t need a doctor. My mind is calm enough to answer you.”
“Are you from Gujarat?” it was Patil.
Shyam looked at Charmi.
“She hasn’t told us anything about you. We haven’t asked her. It’s against interrogation theory.” Patil looked into his face, “let me clarify that she isn’t here officially she is here so we can do cross verification if we need.”
Shyam understood Charmi was also under interrogation like him.
“I haven’t expected interrogation while I came here by my own wish.” He said.
“Many things happened which we haven’t expected.”
“No one knows this fact better than me.” Shyam smiled.
“I know what you are feeling.”
“Thanks to understanding me,” Shyam said, “can I have a talk with Charmi?”
“Sorry to say but it’s against the rule. This is army headquarter and here we do everything as army law. You can’t talk to her or with your lover.” Patil’s voice grew stronger here, “can you understand Mr Shyam you are in the military headquarter and under interrogation?”
Shyam felt he shouldn’t forget they were military officials. Army means never friendly.
“I’m from Gujarat but how do you know if you haven’t asked Charmi?” he said, “Am I under arrest?”
“What difference does it makes, gentleman, whether you are under arrest or not?” Divya Mishra said, “even if you are innocent you can’t go out this camp. They would be searching for you. So we can’t allow you to go no matter you are innocent or guilty.”
“So in both condition, I’m under arrest?”
“Whatever you like to be called,” she said, angrily, “our guest or an under arrest person?”
“Don’t you think you should hunt the real criminals instead interrogating me?”
“Mr Shyam, you ain’t here to teach us what should we do.” Patil’s voice was loud.
“Oh! Sorry but I just wonder why don't you arrest them and let me go if I’m innocent.” He said, “I want to go home and it’s my right as I’m innocent.”
“You are innocent or not will be decided after interrogation.” Patil said, “That’s why we are here. Now, will you please cooperate with us?”
“Have I another choice?” now Shyam wasn’t diplomatic.
“Look, Mr Shyam, we want to know everything. One of our agents had been kidnapped in daylight which isn’t a normal thing. Someone tried to kill her in Pathankot. I think all these happenings have some connection with your kidnapping and escaping.” Divya Mishra said, her blue eyes piercing.
“And two important files have been stolen from home minister's laptop. One of the files is so confidential that if it's going in wrong hand many politicians must have commit suicide.” An impressive voice came.
Shyam looked at the voice. An old man with long moustache and beard had entered the room. His turban told he was Sardarji.
Charmi and other two officers stood up to honour his presence and said, “good morning.”
Shyam stood up but kept mum.
“Sit down, gentlemen and ladies.”
All sat down in their chairs, Shyam understood he was the chief.
“Son, tell us whatever you know. We need to solve this case.” The head looked at others, “officers let your interrogation start I assure you Mr Shyam will cooperate you.” Then he turned to Shyam, “won’t you?
“I’ll.” Shyam nodded.
“I’m in my chamber and I’ll disturb you whenever I need to do so.” The chief said and left the room.
“Shyam, you know who had kidnapped me and how dangerous they are.” Charmi said, “Don’t you?”
“Yes, I know. I’ll try to help. You can start now.”
“Thanks,” Patil said as if he wanted to deliver all talk, “from now every conversation is on record so think before you answer.”
“I got it.”
“Your name?” Patil slapped a switch on at the centre of the table.
Shyam observed table to see many speakers attached with table, each chair had a small speaker right across it.
“I want to clear my mother tongue isn’t Hindi or English. I’m from Gujrat so don’t misinterpret if I make any mistake in answering.” Shyam clarified.
“Do you want interpreter??” Patil said, “We can do it.”
“No, I don’t need.”
“Okay, then let we go ahead.” Patil said, “Where do you live in Gujarat?”
“I’m from Banaskantha district which shares borders with Rajasthan and Pakistan.”
“What did you do there?”
“Private coaching class.”
“Do you have Aadhar card?” it was Divya Mishra.
“Yes, but kidnappers have my wallet now and unfortunately it was in my wallet when they took it.” He said, “even my mobile number which is linked with my Adhar is now they own.” He glanced both of them, in turn.
“Tell us your mobile number.” Barked Patil, his voice reminding him of dog.
He told them his number. They noted it on a piece of a paper and hit the buzzer on the table.
An insignificant man entered the room and Patil handed him that paper, “give it to Rinki Ma’am.”
That man left the room without a word.
“Why did you come to Chandigarh?” Patil continued.
“It’s a long story.”
“Tell us, we are here to listen to you.” Divya Mishra gave him an awkward smile, “but don’t miss the smallest detail.”
“Do you believe in coincident?” Shyam shocked them by asking what they haven’t expected.
Patil was about to react angrily but Divya interrupted, “we handle every case as personal.”
“Okay.” Shyam filled a glass with water from the jug and sipped it in hasty sips. He took a deep breath placing the glass on the table and told them about his reoccurring dream to his conflict with his father.
He wasn’t sure they have believed him or not.
He tried to read their faces but they were awkward to read, not giving anything and taking everything.
“Was your life boring?” Patil asked.
“He means the whole day just teaching small children would be boring,” Divya asked the same but politely.
At the same time, Patil slapped the buzzer and a man came inside. His uniform told he was a peon.
Patil ordered him for tea and coffee in the room.
Shyam understood it was sure sign of Patil’s boredom. He himself was bored though he preferred to continue.
He told them about how he fell in love with Archana and about Archana's job. When he finished it seemed Divya was getting interested in his story. As a woman or as an interrogator, who knows?
“Which matrimonial site you met with Archana?”
“MarryMe.com,” he answered, stress on both M to indicate they were in capital letters.
Mishra dialled Rimpi’s number and instructed her, “MarryMe.com. All data. From starting, if possible otherwise since 2010.”
“Where did Archana work?”
Shyam told them how Archana got a job at the secretariats.
As he finished they heard the voice of the chief through a speaker in the room, “have you got any doubt on Archana, ever?”
“No,” he answered, “never. I can’t imagine she can do any worse with me. of so was why I would have continued our relation?”
“I’m not asking what you think. I mean have you ever noticed any sudden change in her behaviour or something strange about her which is incomprehensible?” again the chief’s voice in the speaker
“I have.”
“What?” Divya interrupted.
“In starting when we chat on GoogleTalk her English wasn’t good, she even misspelt common words like Sorry to Sori but after some months it suddenly changed. She started to use fluent English with no spelling mistake. Even her vocabulary was strong.” He paused for a while, “but I thought in starting or at later one of her friends would be chatting instead her.”
Divya Mishra noted something in her diary.
And then it was a break.
*
After the break in the room, Divya dialled Singhal’s number first of all, “Archana, a handicapped girl working in the secretariat. I need all her data.”
“Not working but was working.” Shyam interrupted.
Divya repeated Shyam's words in the phone and ended the call.
Shyam finished how he got a job after many failed interviews.
“Aren’t you bored?” Charmi asked.
“No, not at all.” Shyam smiled, “I have got chance of speaking after three months alone in a dark room and I can assure you I am fine in talking.” He paused a while, “contrary, I am feeling light, I was a talkative man before they kidnapped me and today I again can feel myself back.”
“Okay then got yourself back totally,” Divya laughed, “by talking as much as you can.”
“1 April 2015, it was my first day at the job. A good job with Sunday total holiday and Monday to Saturday 9:30 to 7:00, no forced overtime.” He said, “for the first week I travelled in city bus…”
“And then?” Divya hurried to cut him off.
“I bought a second-hand bike. My house owner was also a good woman. She had got me some private tuition too. Now my life was almost settled, morning and evening tuition and the whole day at the office. Every Sunday I would go to Sukhana lake on my own bike and there, Archana too join me. she would come and go on her activa.”
“Why not on your bike?” Patil asked.
“We were living in the same area and we don’t’ want people to gossip about us.”
“Oh! So was it.”
“Yes,” Shyam said, “sometime we would visit Sai temple. Once my house owner saw us there and then the whole area knew about our affair.”
“Then?”
“On August 2015, Archana got a quarter in sector-11. Now we had no problem with gossips. In sector-11, a girl and boy having date were common. People in sectors didn’t poke their nose in other’s personal life as that area is wealthy, not poor like Khuda.”
“Hummm..” Divya’s eyes shone by hearing his affair.
“Now I used to spend more time at her quarter than my own room. After office, I would go to her, often.”
“Did her family know it?” Divya asked, out of feminine interest.
“I have met with her father through the help of one of her co-worker but her father didn’t give me a positive response. Not he gave me a negative answer.” He said, “and except her father, all in her family knew about us.”
“Have they no objection?”
“No, they haven’t any objection. Her brother never talked with me but he never opposed our relation.”
Charmi was watching his facial expression with sympathy.
“Sometimes her father would stay with her and for that period we have to cut our meetings.”
“Nothing seems doubtful.” Divya interrupted.
“I’m giving all details.” He said, “Don’t you need every small detail?”
“Yeah, we need.” Divya smiled, “I am listening.”
“Till Dipawali the same continued. Then we married secretly at a notary and we were waiting to be this notary paper old enough to give us legal support.”
“Okay,” Patil said, “let’s have a small break.”
Shyam understood they want some discussion in his absence but he didn’t bother as he knew he was innocent.
“Okay.” He smiled back.
Charmi led him to the canteen.
***
To be continue...
