Heartprints

                                             

Susan was sweating profusely despite lying in an air-conditioned room. It did not help that she was in an unknown place, surrounded by people she didn’t know, speaking a language she didn’t understand. As another contraction hit her, she screamed out in pain ‘Mama!’ Her mother ran to her side and grasped her trembling hand.

‘Mama, I can’t bear the pain any more. Please get the baby out. Please’

‘Su, I just spoke to the doctor. It’ll be over in few minutes but until then you have to tolerate the pain darling.’

As the contraction subsided, Susan gulped in air as if the baby had been suffocating her. ‘Mama you have given the nurse instructions, right?’

‘Yeah, but are you sure that you don’t want to see the baby’s face? You can’t hate it so much, can you?’ Her mama asked her but Susan turned her head the other way. The tears rolled into the pillow making a wet patch.

No, she didn’t hate the baby, not yet. But she was worried that once she saw the baby’s face, she wouldn’t feel love for it. She’d feel revulsion, she would feel anger and she would be reminded of the horror of that night all over again. When she looked into the baby’s eyes, she would remember those demonic eyes on top of her, lids half-closed in ecstasy as she struggled to escape. This baby wasn’t borne out of love, rather it was the aftermath of a violent rape.  Of course she could have got it aborted but her orthodox Christian values made her believe that she would be committing a sin in doing so. She had decided to give birth to the baby and then put it up for adoption.

As another contraction racked her body in pain, all thoughts were driven away from her mind. She just wanted this ordeal to be over.

Susan opened her eyes groggily. A tiny bundle had been placed beside her and she could see a pair of small legs that were kicking steadily at her sides. Susan opened her eyes wide and she was about to call for the nurse when her eyes connected with the baby’s eyes. The baby was looking at her and the small puckered mouth was making gentle crooning noises as if to placate its mother. For a baby that was just born, it was surprisingly cheery and joyous.

Looking at the baby, Susan was not reminded of that terrible night. Neither did she go through the unspeakable agony that she had experienced in the last nine months. She could only wonder at the way her heart was suffused with an intense love and desire to pick up the baby and shower it with kisses. God works in miraculous ways and if He gives us pain, He also gives us a way to build courage and determination to overcome the pain. The baby was the miracle in Susan’s life, the balm that healed her wound. At last she had understood that.

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows
higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)

                                             (By E.E. Cummings)

This post was written for Write Tribe Problogger Challenge.

#writebravely #writeproblogger

Monster

'Ok, it's time to sleep now. Good night baby,' Sara kept the book that she had been reading to Alex aside and kissed the top of his head. She pulled the duvet around his small body but Alex held onto her arm.

'Mom, can you stay till I fall asleep. Please...' Her 4 year old son pleaded.

'Alex, you know that there are no monsters in your room. Didn't we go through this just last week? Can you see that cross on that table? That's God's symbol and no monster can touch you because God will protect you. Ok?' Sara explained in a soothing voice to little Alex.

'Mom, I'm very scared. Please don't leave me till I fall asleep', he cried with tears in his eyes.

Sara sighed and sat on his bed. The trouble had started couple of months ago. Alex had complained of a monster that came to his room during night after he fell asleep. He would refuse to talk about the monster to his parents but he was so terrified after these incidents that he would plead to sleep in his parents' bedroom for the next few days.

The next morning Sara was preparing breakfast when Alex came in, still in his pajamas. He looked teary eyed and his eyes were red as if he hadn't slept properly.

'Mom, the monster is more powerful than God because even the cross couldn't prevent the monster from entering my room last night.' Alex whimpered while holding onto her legs. Sara's heart broke and she lifted him into his arms and pacified him until he fell asleep again.

Sara powered her laptop to check the CCTV footage. Few weeks back Sara was disturbed by Alex's stories of monsters and she had decided to install a CCTV in his room on a weekend when their house was empty. Of course Alex was not aware of it.

When she saw the feed from the camera her body froze in shock and panic. In the dead of the night, when Sara was deep asleep, the door to Alex's room creaked open. A shadowy figure wafted towards Alex's bed and gagged him with his large hands. As the figure bent close to whisper in Alex's ears, the bedside lamp threw a dim light on the monster's face. It was no monster who slept beside Alex and slowly slid his hand in his pants. 

That day Sara realized that a monster need not be a creature with two heads or a deformed body. A monster is as normal looking as you and me. It can walk amidst us and act as sane as anybody. The monster if it's there lies in the soul of a person and unfortunately there's no mirror invented yet that will allow us to look into a person's soul.

This post was written for Write Tribe Problogger Challenge.

#writebravely #writetribeproblogger

Theme for this post- Monster

Courage

‘Arjun, what happened? Why are you sitting silently and why is your room so dark’, Mridula asked while switching on the lights in her son’s room. She had been downstairs preparing dinner when she realized that Arjun had not come down from his room the whole evening. He had stayed put in his room after coming back from school. He hadn’t even asked her if he could play cricket with his friends like he usually did most of the evenings.

Arjun had changed his uniform but he was sitting on his bed forlornly. Mridula quickly touched his forehead, because like most mothers, her first thought was maybe he was sick or running a temperature. But he appeared to be well. Maybe something had happened at school. Arjun was a Class VI student and he was good at academics. But clearly something was troubling the boy’s mind because his eyes appeared red and swollen from crying.

‘You remember I was telling you about Karthik and his group’, Arjun started talking hesitantly.

Mridula’s heart skipped a beat. A few months back Arjun had come back from school and reported news of an incident that had spread like wildfire in their school. A group of boys had ragged a student in their school and all though there was no physical violence involved the ragging victim had suffered a nervous breakdown and had to be hospitalized. The leader of this group, Karthik was a senior student, and he was also the son of the local MLA. Karthik was clever enough not to cause physical damage which could be used against him later. The abuse and bullying was more psychological and verbal.

Mridula along with a group of concerned parents had taken up the issue with the Principal but the spineless Principal had vehemently denied the occurrence of any such incidents within their campus.

‘Did they do anything to you?’ Mridula tried to keep her voice low, although she was already seething in anger.

‘No, it wasn’t me Amma. They got hold of Praveen, you know the silent boy in my class who sits next to me. I saw them when I was walking towards the school van. Two boys were holding Praveen and Karthik was emptying the contents of his bags and tearing the pages of his notebooks. Praveen was begging them to let him go but they were pushing him around and shouting lots of bad words. Instead of helping him, I fled from there. I didn’t want them to see me… So I ran as fast as possible... ‘ Arjun explained falteringly.

Mridula now understood her son’s predicament. Arjun was feeling bad because he had ditched his friend at a time when he needed him the most.

‘Arjun, you were too scared to think properly and you wanted to save yourself. I’m not saying that what you did was right, but even I’d have done the same thing if I was in your place. It’s not easy to be brave’

‘But Amma, I’m feeling miserable ever since. Praveen always helps in my class work. He’s a good boy and maybe, if I had helped him we could have escaped. Anything would have been better than running away like a coward.’

“But we can’t change the past, can we? I have an idea. We could go to the Principal and you could narrate what you saw. Maybe it would help put a stop to the menace completely”

‘Oh, like a witness’, Arjun pondered for a while. Mridula was silent, allowing him to come to a decision.

‘If Karthik comes to know that I have complained against him will he not make me their next target’, Arjun asked with a frown on his face.

Mridula had anticipated this question and she had an answer ready ‘Yeah, that’s a possibility. But if you and your classmates stand up against this bully, then Karthik would know that you are not alone. And there’s no guarantee that even if you remain silent now, you won’t be the next target of bullying. You can either choose to ignore what happened and remain in fear or you can choose to take action. But I promise that I’ll see to it that the Karthik is suspended from school if you speak up.’ Mridula had a few contacts in the media and knew that if she made a stink of this issue in papers the Principal would be forced to act. Like Arjun, Mridula had realized that you can choose courage or you can choose comfort but you cannot choose both.

‘Amma will you accompany me to school tomorrow’, Arjun asked after some speculation.

Mridula replied happily ‘Of course, my son’.  

 This post was written for Write Tribe Problogger October 2017 Challenge.

Today's theme is a quote from Brené Brown: You can choose courage, or you can choose comfort, but you cannot choose both.

Disobedience

Joe advanced menacingly towards Brett, his bloodshot eyes narrowed to slits.

“You dare to speak against me, boy? You dare to disobey me?” Joe loosened the buckles on his belt and coiled the belt around his fists. Brett cowered in the corner, with his arms around his head, flinching at the first whip on his legs.

Brett was 8 years old then.

Brett, now, is 30 years old and he has learnt the rules from his father. He knows how to tackle disobedience. Imitating his father’s actions, he loops the length of the belt around his hands, but this time it’s his wife and child at the receiving end. They quake in a corner, the same corner where Brett once, many years ago, acquired from his Pa, his lessons on “how to be a man”

Note: I’m not justifying domestic violence, because there is nothing that can justify it. But these people (both men and women can be victims of domestic violence) who raise their hands against their family have obviously learnt from somewhere that dominance is an appealing quality. And more often than not this violent psychology is a legacy that’s passed from one generation to next. Changes begin at home!

This post is written for WriteTribe Problogger October 2017 Challenge. The theme for today's post is disobedience.

#writebravely #writetribeproblogger

Friday, The 13th

It was Friday the 13^th, but Jaya didn’t believe in these ridiculous superstitions. She was happy, doing the thing that she did best-cooking. And she was preparing her favorite dish today, Alu-Gobi. Her comfort food! She had come back early from work because they were predictions of heavy thunderstorms and rain. Jaya picked up the local newspaper as she cooked.

“Dangerous psychopath’s incredible escape from maximum security prison”. A small shiver went down her spine as she read with bated breath that the man convicted of killing his family, including his aged parents, his wife and two children, had miraculously escaped from his cell where he was serving his life sentence. The media had nicknamed him as The Ripper because of the violent and gruesome nature of his attack.

Jaya wondered what would happen if the killer came at her doorstep and felt a little jittery. She blamed it on the stormy night-the deafening thunder, the heavy downpour and today’s date had spooked her-that’s all. That was when she heard the knock on her door…

C…R…E…A…K…

Ashwin stopped typing on his laptop and whirled around in his chair with a frown on his face as the door to his study opened with a squeaking noise. He was sure that he had locked the door before starting his work. How had the door opened? He looked back at the incomplete sentence on his laptop. He was so engrossed in writing Jaya’s story that he couldn’t think clearly whether he had latched the door. Maybe he had just imagined that he had done it.

Ashwin thought it better to shut the door. Just like in Jaya’s story, the night outside was going to be a stormy one and a fierce wind was howling through the windows. He walked quickly and closed the door firmly, latching the bolt. He walked towards the windows to stare at the gloomy night outside. A sudden chill in the room made the hairs on back of his neck stand on end. He could feel his skin break out in goosebumps. He knew that there was something terribly evil in the room…

“Behind you, you idiot…”

Just as Ashwin whirled around, the knife slashed in his face and there was a terrifying scream of agony.

Jasmine paused the movie. “What a useless horror writer! Doesn’t he know that the killer always attacks when you have your back turned towards the door or window.” Jasmine pulled the blanket closer and settled snugly on the sofa. She loved watching these slasher movies and today had seemed like a perfect day for a horror movie marathon. Unlike her friends who were scared to watch horror movies, Jasmine was a horror film junkie. She was addicted to them. Today was Friday the 13^th, and she decided to binge watch all the horror movies in her collection. Alone! I told you she was not your typical girl who grasped her boyfriend’s arm in theaters after being coerced to watch slasher movies.

A slight noise in the kitchen distracted Jasmine’s attention but she didn’t budge from her cozy perch on the sofa. She lived with 2 other girls and 3 stray cats from down the road. So midnight snack attacks were common in their house. But Jasmine, you’d’ve been paralyzed with fear had you known that The Ripper had broken one of your kitchen windows and was now gazing lovingly at the array of knives on your shelf.

Behind you, Jasmine. You should know better, after all you watch horror flicks, don’t you?

This post is written for WriteTribe Problogger October 2017 Challenge. The theme for today was Bated Breath. #writebravely #writeproblogger

If I could...(Fiction)

‘I’ve known about it for some time now. But I didn’t know how to break the news to you’, Sid spoke into Maya’s hair as she hugged him tightly. The tears were streaking her mascara and drawing dark lines down her cheeks.

‘I’ve to fly tomorrow because the specialist was saying that the treatment has to start soon. You know, the chemo and all that stuff’, he made a face as he said it and that brought a fresh tide of tears.

‘Let me come with you, Sid. I know that we can both beat this thing together, baby. I want to be with you. Please let me come along with you.’ Maya pleaded but she knew that it would not break Sid. She had already asked him a dozen times to accompany him to Delhi, to his parents’ house. But Sid persisted that it was better that they cut off their relationship now. He didn’t want to cause her the pain of seeing him in battered condition, weakened, sick and in a hospital. He wanted her to think of him always as the young, spirited boyfriend with whom she had spent the last 2 years together. Maya considered her time with Sid as the best two years of her life. In fact, she had hoped that their relationship was moving forward, she wanted to introduce him to her parents, maybe move in together.

The goodbye was heart-wrenching for Maya. She couldn’t digest the fact that Sid, all of 26-years old could be diagnosed with a terminal disease- lung-cancer that was spreading ominously but unquestionably through the cells in his body. He had pulled a wry face when he said that he should have thrown away the cigarettes all those times when Maya looked at him disdainfully. As she lay beside him in his flat, sharing his bed maybe for the last time, she looked at his sleeping face and felt a tug at her heart. Did she think that she could endure the pain of seeing him suffer? Could she give up everything- her career and her life in Bangalore and accompany him to Delhi? Did she love to him such depths really? She had no answers.

*********

Sid was in a bar in New York, 3 months later, his hands around the waist of a blonde who was plastered. Sid’s life was good, in fact it was great. He had a new job, he was in a new country and he had finally got rid of his clingy girlfriend. He was living his dream life, the grand American dream.

“Yaar, she had become so clingy and she kept dropping hints of meeting her parents. I mean officially, for Shaadi-vaadi. It got to me. We had good times, we really enjoyed each other’s company and then she had to do this typical Indian girl thing on me.” He had tried to explain to Ajit, their only common friend. Maya had apparently called Ajit to ask how Sid was doing and Ajit had a shock of his life when he heard that his childhood friend was suffering from Cancer.

“You could have just said that to her. Why do this drama of cancer? You are a complete asshole”. Ajit had somehow got Sid’s new number and blasted him with a slew of expletives when Sid had answered the call.

“You know me. I didn’t want all the drama of break-up, the emotional blackmailing. I know Maya had all our future built in her mind, the marriage, the suburban house, the pets and the kids. Hell, I was not ready to settle down. I know I’m a coward, but I didn’t have any other way of escaping” Sid hated Ajit for making him feel guilty. Deep down, he knew that he had wronged Maya. He knew that Maya and he made the perfect couple, but he was just not ready for the life-long commitment. He ordered another round of whisky and started necking the blonde. He just wanted to wipe out the memories of Maya that kept haunting him.

***********

Sid was in the middle of another coughing bout. He puked the little breakfast that he had managed to force down his throat. His mother and father rushed towards him just as he saw the blood that he had coughed up. His mom looked haggard, as if she had aged twenty years in the last six months. Bloody cancer, it had finally gotten to him. Six years after his little fib.  Well, if it had been lung cancer he'd have said that Karma had been served in a platter with a sprinkle of astounding coincidence. But he had been diagnosed with blood cancer. It made no difference to him. He had, what, 1 -2 years left? Despite the forced optimism in the faces of his parents and doctors he knew. It terrified him but he had come to accept it as his fate. He only wished that he could apologize to Maya. He had written a long letter to her begging for her forgiveness. But he knew what he had done was unpardonable. He had imagined Maya reading his letter and laughing at the line where he had written his fate. He pictured her tearing the pages in a fury and throwing it away in trash. And he did not blame her. He deserved this. He let the pain wash over his body and hoped that it would redeem his sin. He let the sleep engulf him and his tired body.

This post is written for Write Tribe Problogger October 2017 Challenge.

#writebravely #writeproblogger

Love in Times of Terror- Part 4

I am writing fiction after a long, long break and ‘Love in Times of Terror’ is a short story that I have decided to publish in 4 parts over the next few days. I hope you’ll like it and do leave comments and feedback J

You can read the previous chapter here- Part 3

Source- istockphoto

Shirin got up and sat on a boulder near the edge of the mountain. Her face was showcasing the fury inside her.

“What do you know about me Rakesh? Do you know how it feels when your brother is dying in your arms, pleading with you to save him but you are too scared to even move. Do you know how it feels to see your parents’ dead right in front of your eyes but you can’t hold them, can’t hug them a last time? Do you know how helpless it feels?”

Rakesh was silent as he let Shirin cry out her tears of frustration.

When she was calm again he spoke. “No, I don’t understand your grief. Neither will I pretend to. But what I do know is, killing innocent people for no fault of theirs is not a right thing to do. Would you have felt satisfied if you had sacrificed the lives of those poor men and women or would you have gone killing others, till you feel that the murder of your family was vindicated?”

Shirin looked at him helplessly.

“What do you want Shirin? Do you want a hundred more young boys and girls like you, out on the streets, seeking revenge? Because when you kill innocent people, you are doing exactly what you had experienced, to the loved ones of those dead. Their children, brothers, sisters, wife, husband will seek revenge, just like you did. An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind but it will not ease your pain.”

Shirin started pacing, wringing her hands in frustration.

“I don’t know Rakesh. Few years back I was restless, every day I had dreams of my parents dying, of my hands bloodied with my brother’s blood. I hated myself for being helpless, for not avenging the death of my family. That’s when I met Rashid Ali, who goaded me on about how Indian Army killed innocent civilians in war. He held speeches, well attended by young men and women, on how Kashmir deserved to be independent and not a bone of contention between two countries. I met other victims of war, who were members of Azad Kashmir and they spoke of how they had suffered and how Rashid helped them to overcome their grief. We were taught how to handle arms and guns. We underwent rigorous physical training and learned how to survive in extreme conditions.

And then I met you Rakesh. You, with your soft words and gentle demeanor captured my heart. My resolve broke. Rashid knew that I was becoming weak in my purpose. And he gave me this mission, this mission to plant a bomb in the IT Capital of India. I knew that backing out would mean irking Rashid’s ire. And Rashid can be a dangerous adversary. In fact I’m sure once he realizes that his mission has been botched, a plan would be hatched to destroy me.” Shirin held Rakesh’s face in her hands.

“I’m scared, Rakesh. I want to know how life with you would be like. I want to know how our children would look like. I want to build a family with you. I want to grow old in your arms. I want to live with you.” The tears streamed down her face.

Rakesh wiped them and kissed her wet cheeks.

“Then you have nothing to be scared of. I’ll be with you every step of your way. I’ll never leave your side, and that’s a promise. Let’s go to the police and confess everything. Do you trust me?”

Rakesh extended his hand forward and Shirin placed her hand in his.

“I would trust you with my life, Rakesh”. Silently they walked away from the sun, setting below the horizon, hopeful of the future that lay ahead of them.

~~~

Love in Times of Terror- Part 3

I am writing fiction after a long, long break and ‘Love in Times of Terror’ is a short story that I have decided to publish in 4 parts over the next few days. I hope you’ll like it and do leave comments and feedback J

You can read the previous chapter here- Part 2

source- istockphoto

Rana was getting impatient and nervous. He was pacing the parking area with a cigarette dangling from his lips. Four hours had passed since they started the search but they couldn’t find the bomb. The parking area had few cars and bikes that were parked from yesterday. Employees were allowed to park their vehicles for 24 hours after which there would be a fine to be paid.

His men had checked the vehicles, the underground drainage sewers, the over-head pipes but they couldn’t locate the bomb. Rana knew that time was running out on him. He had to take a decision to vacate the IT Park soon. If the alert was a genuine one and his men failed to locate the bomb then he would not be responsible for the consequences. He had argued with his seniors that this was a risk he was not ready to take.

Shaken by the threat in his voice, his seniors had decided that if Rana’s men couldn’t locate the bomb by 1 PM, the IT Park would be vacated and the situation would be made public.

Rana looked around him. It was a huge empty space and he wondered why anyone would choose it to plant a bomb. He answered his own question by guessing that this place was least secured and completely free of any electronic surveillance. There were two guards posted at the entrance and exit who were now looking at the proceedings with curiosity. There were small guard posts at the entrance and exit where the guards could rest during the night.

The nondescript structure was so small that only one person could sit at a time. Rana was about to throw the cigarette butt on the ground when he was struck by a thought. He ran to the guard post at the entrance. His men had completely ignored searching this cramped place. The small one room was filled with empty plastic cups, some clothes belonging to the guard, few keys, a torch light and a couple of registers.

Rana started rummaging through the litter piled in the tiny room. But he didn’t find what he was looking for. The security man came running when he saw the officer messing up his den.

“Sahib, what are you doing? Do you need something?” cried the man clearly ruffled.

“The room at the exit, is it same like this one?”

“Yes Sahib”.

Rana ran to the other side of the parking lot, hoping and praying fervently that his hunch be true. When Rana reached the exit post, his eyes immediately fell on the box kept at the corner of the room. He called the guard assigned at the exit, and asked him to open the box.

“Sahib, this is just a tool box. It has not been opened from a long time”

“Just open the damn box, you idiot”, Rana swore some more as the terrified man forced open the rusty box.

Inside there was contraption with wires entangled together and a small red digital clock ticking away furiously.

Rana heaved a sigh of relief just as the bomb detonating squad reached the spot.

***

Rakesh rode his bike silently with Shirin sitting behind him. Her head rested on his shoulders even as her hands clutched his waist.

“Isn’t the multiplex the other way”, Shirin asked, noticing that Rakesh was driving in the wrong direction.

“I have a surprise for you. You do trust me, right?” Rakesh spoke with the wind blowing past his face.

Shirin tilted her head to hear him and replied, “I would trust you with my life, Rakesh”.

Rakesh had a grin on his face as he continued to drive. After an hour of riding, he stopped and Shirin saw that they had left behind the hustle of city.

“Where are we?” she asked Rakesh.

Rakesh took her hand and guided her to a place where a tall rocky mountain stood smugly as if daring the visitors to scale it and conquer. Rakesh started climbing it deftly. Shirin had no difficulty in following Rakesh’s cue. Shirin reached to the top of the mountain first, panting and gasping for breath.

As she looked around, she was struck by the absolute splendor of the beauty around her. Her eyes could only see vast greenery covered in thick foliage. It was calm and serene. She sat down gazing at the open sky. Rakesh joined her and their eyes locked. Rakesh spoke, his voice sounding low and faint.

“Shirin, I know about your involvement with Azad Kashmir extremist group.”

Shirin was suddenly as still as a statue.

“I heard you speaking on the phone yesterday night about the bomb that you had planted”, he spoke, but his tone was not accusatory.

Shirin remembered the call she had got from the private number.

“Is it done?” was all he had asked her.

“Yes, I have planted the bomb in the parking lot of our office and it’s set to explode at 3 PM tomorrow. Rashid Bhai, I still have my doubts if I have done the right thing. The bomb will kill thousands of innocent men and women. Is this the mission of Azad Kashmir? Will Allah forgive us for that?” Shirin had talked in a whisper so that she wouldn’t wake up Rakesh, who she thought to be sleeping soundly.

“Shirin, for any cause there are sacrifices that one cannot avoid. When the Indian Army bombed your house in Kashmir and killed your parents and your little brother, just to extricate a few Pakistani militants, did they think about the innocent civilian causalities? Weren’t your parents and brother innocent too? Why did they die when it was not their battle?”

“Yes Rashid Bhai, my family was killed for no reason. I still remember that night when I hugged my brother’s little body as he bled to death in my arms. I was scared to come out, even though I knew that my brother was dying. In front of me, I saw my parents dead with their eyes still open and their mouths frozen in a scream. I’ll never forget that horrible night. Allah saved me for a reason and that reason is revenge. To avenge the death of my family.” replied Shirin, her voice shaking from fury.

“We have to teach the Indians a lesson or two. Kashmir is ours, it’s a paradise that belongs to us rightfully and they cannot take it away from us. You have assured yourself a place in heaven because you have done His bidding, my daughter. Tomorrow will be a new dawn for us”, commended Rashid Ali, the mastermind behind Azad Kashmir.

Rakesh who woke up to have a glass of water couldn’t believe his ears. How could his Shirin be a terrorist? He went back to sleep to think things over. When he was sure that Shirin had fallen asleep next to him, he went out, his mind a whirl of thoughts. He came back only during the wee hours of morning.

When Shirin was showering, he called the police and informed them about the impending bomb attack. He just hoped that the police would act upon the threat and not take it as a prank call.

He also decided that if the police were unable to find the bomb, he would force Shirin to come clean with the police. He would not sacrifice the life of thousands of men and women for the sake of his love.

But when he saw the flurry of activity involving the bomb squad near the parking facility, he was relieved. He had let out a sigh of relief realizing that the police were successful in detonating the bomb. All he had to do now was to convince Shirin to surrender to police. But knowing Shirin’s past, Rakesh fathomed that it would not be an easy task.

***

Love in Times of Terror- Part 2

I am writing fiction after a long, long break and ‘Love in Times of Terror’ is a short story that I have decided to publish in 4 parts over the next few days. I hope you’ll like it and do leave comments and feedback J

You can read the previous chapter here- Part 1

Source- istockphoto

Chapter 2

Inspector Rana listened to the voice on the tape umpteenth time.

“…please don’t take this lightly”. He replayed the whole conversation again but he couldn’t guess if the voice belonged to a male or a female. The person seemed to have intentionally muffled his/her voice. But why would the person refuse to come to the station and talk? Was he or she involved in the attack?

Geetha who was standing next to Rana was nervously swaying from one foot to another.

“Sir, I think we should take some action. I have a gut feeling that this call is not a prank”, she said adding her two cents of wisdom.

Rana scowled at her. The last thing he needed was a bomb threat in his precinct. He looked at his watch. It was already 8. The parking area of the IT Park was spread over several square feet of land. Combing the area for the bomb would be like searching for a needle in a hay stack. A tough task but definitely not impossible. Rana decided to act swiftly.

He placed a call to his senior officers and soon there was a meeting conducted in the station.

Rana barked out instructions to the men surrounding him, after bringing them up to date of the bomb threat.

“Inform the bomb squad to be ready and get the sniffer dogs to start searching the area. We have limited time, since we don’t know where the bomb could have been placed. Check for vehicles. Check for underground drainage running through the parking area. Check for pipes. Check for everything that you lay your eyes on. I don’t need to tell you that this is a major disaster. If the bomb is for real, it has the potential to kill thousands. So be alert and act smart.”

An officer asked him if they could shut down the IT Park and send the employees home.

The same thought had crossed Rana’s mind too, but the calls put to intelligence agencies confirmed that they had not received any terror alerts. So it was only this call that had put the officers on high alert. If this news became public and the threat turned out to be a false alert then they would become the laughing stock. He had to handle this carefully.

“No, we don’t make this news available to public yet and that means no talking to the media. For now, we are just closing down the parking area in guise of maintenance work. Let’s just hope that we get the bomb or this alert turns out to be a joke.”

Rana quickly dismissed the men and took out a cigarette. He had cut down to a pack a day, but this case was already getting on his nerves. He knew that he was walking a tight rope. If the threat was indeed real and he couldn’t locate the bomb then he wouldn’t be able to live with the guilt. He walked inside his office to speak to his seniors again.

***

Rakesh and Shirin met during their tea break. Although they worked on different floors they always had tea together. Today, some of their colleagues had joined them too.

Rakesh kept glancing at Shirin. He couldn’t believe that a beautiful girl like Shirin had fallen in love with him. The day Shirin had accepted his proposal he had been on cloud nine. He knew that she was lonely and had no one in this world except for him. It made him more protective about her. They had met a year before and last week Rakesh decided that he would propose to Shirin.

He was an orphan too, like Shirin. They acted like anchors in other’s life providing support and comfort. He knew that those beautiful eyes belied the pain and suffering that her heart felt. He wanted to take care of Shirin, he wanted to make her happy, he wanted to wipe the tears off her face forever and put the smile back on her lips.

Shirin caught Rakesh staring at her and smiled a thousand watt grin. Only Rakesh could make her smile like that and it made her love him even more. If that was possible!

As they were heading back to their desk, Rakesh caught Shirin’s hand.

“Hey, so that movie date is still on, right?” quipped Rakesh holding onto her hand.

“Of course, have I ever said no to you”, Shirin said with a slight smile.Both headed back to their desk, happy and content of the future that lay ahead of them.

***

You can read the next chapter here- Part 3

Love in Times of Terror- Part 1

I am writing fiction after a long, long break and ‘Love in Times of Terror’ is a short story that I have decided to publish in 4 parts over the next few days. I hope you’ll like it and do leave comments and feedback J

Source- istockphoto

It was 7 AM in the police control room located in Bangalore. Geetha, who was manning the calls during the morning shift sat back in her seat with a cup of hot tea that had been bought from the neighboring tea stall. She had asked Ramu, the boy who supplied the tea, to add an extra spoon of sugar in her tea. She liked her tea to be hot and sweet and the extra sugar had begun to show in her expanding waistline.

No longer had she taken a sip of tea, the phone line started to ring. With a sigh she picked the receiver and said in a disgruntled voice, ‘Police Control room, Bangalore’.

“Listen carefully, today around 3 in the afternoon a bomb is going to explode in the IT Park located in Springfield. The bomb is so powerful that it can wipe off the whole IT Park from the map of Bangalore. It can kill thousands of men and women who work there."

“Who is this? And how do you know this?” Geetha had been receiving such hoax calls ever since the terror attack in Mumbai, so she did not feel the need to panic.

As if sensing her lack of trust in the authenticity, the caller immediately said, “Do not think that it’s a hoax call. If you ignore my warning, thousands of innocents may die. The bomb has already been planted in the parking area. I don’t know any other details.”

Now Geetha was a little worried. It did sound like the caller was scared and telling the truth. The voice was muffled to an extent that she had difficulty in identifying the gender of the caller.

“Why can’t you come to the police station and tell us in person”, probed Geetha hoping to get more details.

“I can’t. Listen I have got to go now. But please don’t take this lightly." The call was cut abruptly, leaving Geetha staring at the phone.

The audio equipment had recorded the entire conversation and Geetha replayed the conversation multiple times until she was convinced that the call required the senior office to look into the matter.

She went in search of the inspector in charge. She even forgot to gulp down her now tepid cup of tea.

***

As Rakesh came out of the shower, he saw Shirin already dressed for work. She was applying kohl carefully to her eyes. Rakesh came and stood beside her. Her eyes looked hypnotic and entrancing as she looked at his reflection in the mirror. He took her in his arms and kissed the nape of her neck.

“You look so beautiful”, Rakesh said admiring her beauty. She had worn the light blue kurta that he had gifted her on her last birthday.

“Stop it or we will be late for work”, reproached Shirin lightly with a slight smile on her lips. But the smile did not extend to her eyes. It never did. Cocooned in her own grief and busy in fighting her inner demons, she failed to recognize the pall of gloom that hung heavy on their relationship.

Shirin sat behind Rakesh on his bike and they headed off to their office located in the Springfield IT Park. It was a cold, wintry morning and Shirin hugged Rakesh tightly, holding him more for warmth than for safety.

She felt blessed and lucky to have him in her life. Had it not been for Rakesh, she would have been a lost soul in this world, without parents, family or friends. Ever since her parents’ death, she had isolated herself from the rest of the world, shutting down her contacts with her family and friends. It was only Rakesh who had been able to break down her barrier and invade her heart by his charming and loving persona.

He had provided her comfort and peace in a storm and for that she would be ever grateful. She couldn’t think of living without him, she loved him so much that it sometimes hurt her and terrified her. To place so much trust and to love someone unconditionally made her anxious but she was slowly learning to enjoy her life again.

Rakesh turned back slightly and asked her “Hey, can you take off from work at 2 PM today? There’s this new movie and I thought we could watch it together. What say?”

“I was about to suggest the same. You know me very well” Shirin replied.

***

You can read the next chapter here- Part 2