Trembling Shadows
A romantic, psychological thriller
Kotra Siva Rama Krishna
“I cannot explain that. As I have said earlier at first I have got a feeling of someone’s breath on my neck. When I turned abruptly back to see that person that feeling ceased and I started a feeling of hand on my hip. It was very cold and rough” Sunanda inhaled deeply. “It moved on my body also.” Her cheeks were blushed remembering how that hand moved on her body.
“Could not you see any hand, except feeling it moving slowly on your body” Vinod asked her.
“That is what I am saying. Do I need to repeat everything three or four times for your people better understanding?” she said angrily.
“It is alright dear. Don’t get unnecessarily furious. All of us here are trying to help you” putting his hand on her shoulder Vinod said in a soothing voice.
“I know that. I am sorry” Sunanda straightened herself on the bed, went back and leaned on the wall there. “But as you people appeared as if you are not believing anything I am saying now, I got little frustrated”
“Why don’t we believe what you are saying? Why did you get such a doubt?” Tanuja asked her.
“Whatever I am saying to you people is not believable to myself. How I can then expect you people to believe it?”
“That much is true.” Malathi said and nodded her head. “But we are all believing what you have said. Sometimes very strange things as well happen. But we want to assure you one thing here. There is going to be no danger at all to you. You are not going to stay alone at anyplace. You must stay with one of us all the time.”
“That is indeed very best idea” Sameera said. “If it is so I shall stay with my friend and protect her from all evil powers.”
“First protect yourself from them. You yourself have got a feeling like that in the downstairs room just some time before.”Sunanda said.
“Yes, now I am feeling happy that I have got a companion who confirm to the people what I have said is true. Everyone ruled out the feeling I have got in the downstairs room as just my imagination. These people did not give to my eerie experience even half the consideration they are giving to your story now.” Sameera angrily said.
“You did not get that feeling as much longer as Sunanda got that and did not make that much of fuss as Sunanda did. So you could not get that much of attention and credit to your story.” Anand said.
“Anand, I did not expect that you would be more considerate than this to me and it happens as I have expected.” Sunanda said disappointedly.
“Sorry dear. I have just expressed my opinion in a blunt way” Anand said.
“It is alright Sunanda. Don’t worry too much. No such type of thing would happen to you again. Just try to get some sleep which settles everything.” Tanuja said.
“That is what I have been doing unto then and disgusted with it, went into the kitchen and got it onto me like this. Don’t tell me to sleep again.” Sunanda irritatingly said.
“Then do whatever you want. But don’t feel fear at all. Nothing on the earth would dare to touch you again.” Tanuja said.
“How can you assure her so? I have got that feeling in the downstairs room. And Sunanda got that eerie touch experience in the kitchen. It is possible that evil creature touch any one of us in any place in this house.” Sameera said.
“Oh, you are quite impossible” Tanuja said angrily. “When you people have got that experience both of you are alone. From now on none of us are going to stay alone at all in this house. Then nothing like that would happen to any of us”
“What aunty has said appears to me reasonable.” Sunanda said. “If we are together atleast by two, that evil power would not dare to touch us.”
“Better hope like that. I cannot see any loss.” Sameera said. Then all the others went downstairs leaving Sunanda and Sameera upstairs.
“That incident seems shaken you from bottom to top” Sameera said. “To me you are a brave girl. You never have feared like this at any time before”
“Because Sameera, that feeling was that much real, that much shocking” there was fear got into her face again as she was remembering that incident once more “A cold touch felt like ice on my body, moving slowly… Oh… my god” closing her eyes Sunanda said.
“Don’t try to remember that at all if it is that much fearsome to you.” Sameera placing her right hand firmly on the left shoulder of her said.
Sunanda nodded her head. “I am also thinking that it is better to forget about it for some time but appears difficult.” She looked into the face of Sameera and found that there was some gloom in it. “Is there anything new that I may have to know?”
“No. What new would be there just in two or three hours? Everything is as it was when first we have entered into this house” Sameera said and hung her head.
Sunanda put her hand under the chin of Sameera and perched it up. “If what you have said is true there is no necessity to hang your head like this. Sometimes even seconds of time as well enough to something sensational to happen. I can say something happened and it mostly related to Aravind. Tell me what it is.” she remembered the conversation of Rajesh, Tanuja and Sameera while she was going into the kitchen. Then in it she heard something about Aravind as well.
“Yes, it relates to Aravind. There is no use in keeping it as a secret from you.” Then Sameera narrated to her fully what had happened after she took the book from Aravind’s suitcase.
“It is indeed bad that you had taken the book from his suitcase and read it like that” Sunanda said.
“I agree. I apologized profoundly to him as well. But he did not hear me at all. He is still very angry with me.” There was sorrow in the voice of Sameera.
“Don’t take it very seriously. His anger would not last longer.” Then she smiled a little and said. “No sane boy on the earth can afford to forego the companionship of a beautiful girl like you for longer”
“I am not having that much of confidence on me at all” Sameera ruefully said. “If I am as much beautiful as you are saying, it would not have happened in this way at all. That Aravind just not heard completely whatever I have said. He is not caring whatever I am saying to him. He is not even bearing my presence with him”. There was lot of distress in her voice.
“It may be for some time like this as this Aravind is a little different guy. Just be patient for a little longer. Everything would come into your way.” Sunanda said.
“The present problem is not at all that” Sameera said to her. Then she explained about the bad book and her parents’ reaction towards Aravind’s queer interest. “My mother is insisting on me not to be friendly with Aravind. Now it is just impossible.”
“But what your mother has said as well is reasonable. Why Aravind is keeping that type of literature with him? Whe should he show interest on shadow world? He must be made to come out of that. Those black world things would not do any good to us.” Sunanda thoughtfully said.
“My opinion as well is that. But I don’t think he would hear to me at all. There is no one who can make him hear and stop going after those bad things.”
“Yes, except you, there is no one who can make him to come away from that.” Sunanda said.
“I am the first person whom he is not liking at all now. And I have got his anger in full as well. How can you say that he would hear me? You must be kidding” Sameera angrily said.
“That dislike would not last long. It would evaporate just in one hour or so. Approach him exactly after one hour and try to talk to him. He will certainly talk to you” Sunanda confidently said.
“But I am not sure that I can make him listen to me.” Sameera said. “In that matter he may not hear anyone else either. It seems he is besotted with it very much.”
“I see” Sunanda fall into deep thought again. “Then as you have said it is a difficult thing to get him out of that”
“But we must” Sameera said. “I cannot see him as a freak of witch-cult. Just tell me a way to make him not even to think about that.”
“If you want it so” she paused a moment looking into the eyes of Sameera straight “There is only one way to accomplish that” her voice was like telling a secret.
“What it is? Tell me fast” Sameera curiously asked.
Sunanda made another pause “just give it to him.” she said in a slow voice. “then I am sure that he certainly listens to you.”
“Just give it to him.” Sameera repeated what Sunanda said. “I cannot understand what you have said to me.”
“Give yourself to him. Then he will start listening to you. I am sure” Sunanda said with a firm voice. “A man would listen to the voice of a woman who traps him with her body”
“Sunanda, my God! What you are suggesting to me? To give myself to him before marriage! How sinful it is! And the word ‘trap’. I don’t like trap or cheat anyone.” Sameera said angrily. Red colour shot into her eyes instantly and her cheeks were blushed to maximum.
“If it is that much sinful before marriage, it remains so after marriage as well. The status of it would not change just because of a ritual dear” Sunanda said. “All these customs we have made just to curb unwanted sexual affairs. Nothing else. And our body is like a weapon to us sometimes to get our aims to be achieved. I am trying to be practical to you. If you don’t like it, I cannot help it. There is no other way in fact.”
“Then too.” Sameera tried to say something but she could not think of what to say.
“Just see carefully. You need to change Aravind. To get a change in him you need to make him listen to you. To make him listen to your words, you must offer something to him for which he comes to you again and again.” Sunanda said. “You are in love with him and desperately trying to make him yours. So there is no wrong in it at all. Only your beautiful body can provide the means for it. Nothing else. Whatever you may think of me.”
Sameera did not say anything, but remained looking into the expressionless eyes of her friend. Sunanda released that Sameera had come to a decision in herself about what to do.
&&&
Aravind was in downstairs and he was in a different mood then. Usually he would be cheerful trying to make other people laugh but at present he was in a dismal mood. He did not like at all Sameera’s going through that book so. He never had let anyone did so with that book. He always kept that as a big secret. But Sameera could manage to go through his suitcase and looked into that book. If he had expected that to be so, he would have kept the keys with himself. Now she had got a different opinion on him. He knew that Sameera had got lot of interest in him. Until they entered into this house she did not like him at all but what happened and why he could not understand, she started liking him. He liked it very much that Sameera developed interest in him so. The love and liking he had already got on her strengthened even more with the reciprocal love and liking of Sameera. But unfortunately she had seen that book and gone through that. He knew that it would not at all create a good impression in her about him after seeing the things in that book so.
(I hope that you enjoyed upto here. I shall publish the next chapter as soon as possible. Please don’t forget to rate and review.)
