Chapter 47
Part 47[MEMBERSONLY][NOCOPY]
Vikram sighed. This was not good. Even if the department put its foot down and removed Sakshi. It would just lead to the channel creating their own stories and tarnishing ETF. However, they could not keep her either, she had done grave mistakes………………………..
Chotu whispered: yaar aise toh kuch nahi honewaala, saara din yahi rahenge kya?
Ayesha whispered back: ye puch kitne din?
Chotu made a face: kya musibat hai (leaning forward) oye Ri! Kuch kar re
Riya turned slightly, shrugging her shoulders.
Shree(softly): ha yaar, ab toh pair bhi dard kar rahe hai
Liza smacked his stomach. Shree glares at her. Ayesha pursed her lips to stop smiling.
Irritated at the murmurs, Arjun looked behind, scowling at them.
Vikram(exhausted): ok stop! Nitin, Rathore… please relax! Aise jhagadne se kuch nahi milne waala
His call for a truce provided relief to the rest of the team members.
Vikram: let’s act like adults and talk it out, ok?
Arjun: BAAT KARNE KE LIYE KUCH NAHI HAI! SAKSHI TEAM KE LIYE LIABILITY HAI! SHE’S A SECURITY NIGHTMARE!
Sakshi tears up.
Rathore: I agree! Uski laparwahi ki wajah se Shree aur uski dono ki jaan jaa sakti thi…
Nitin: gayi toh nahi
Arjun: SHUT UP YOU BA*TARD!
He silenced himself, gulping at the fiery gaze of the ACP. He did not need personal traction from Arjun of all people.
For once, Vikram appreciated his temper. He was absolutely in no mood for another roller coaster. He turned to Nitin.
Vikram: see Nitin, this is a serious breach aur humari aakhri lead ka is tarah compromise hona, it’s a matter of national security…
Sakshi(softly): sir!
Everyone turned to her on her first word since morning.
Sakshi: please kya mujhe ek mauka nahi mil sakta? I didn’t mean for any of this to happen and I’m really sorry. Kya main apni galti sudhar nahi sakti, please?
Rathore clenched his fist: can you bring a dead person back to life, Sakshi?
She lowered her head. Her tears threatened to flow but she controlled herself. Nitin was about to speak again. Realising it, Riya quickly stepped forward.
Riya: sir, maybe… maybe we can find a middle ground?
Arjun: NO!
Vikram: kya hoga Riya? either she stays or not. Hum aisa risk nahi rakh sakte
Riya: I know sir par sach ye bhi hai, ki jo hona tha woh toh ho chuka ab hume future ke baare mein hi sochna hai
Rathore: hum wahi kar rahe hai!
Riya: exactly, so solution ke liye pehle problem dekhna hoga na?
Arjun: problem humare saamne hai! Aur Uska Naam Sakshi Hai!
Vikram: boys!
Rathore: sir aur kya raasta hai? This is…
Vikram: ya last time I didn’t listen to her, I had a scandal to cover up so I’d appreciate the silence.
Rathore(confused): what?
He looked to Arjun if he would say something but he remained mum. Arjun recalled the story Riya had told him. Sighing internally, he decides to put his trust in her resourcefulness.
Vikram held up his hand: ruko, bolo Riya
Riya: Sir, problem basically ye hai ki woh journalist aur hum jo situations face karte hai uski seriousness woh nahi samajti. Jo field par hua lack of discipline that aur jo usne information leak ki woh lack of judgement
Vikram: tum kya suggest kar rahi ho?
Riya: main keh rahi hun ki maybe we can train her, ETF ke paas jagah aur trainer dono hai. Agar woh self-defence aur discipline seekh leti hai toh…
Nitin(crossly): Woh Kyun…
Riya glared at him: SHUT UP!
Vikram raised his eyebrow mv “Arjun ne thoda gussa isko bhi de diya kya? Ya fir maine nahi dekha? Nahi gussa toh hoga iske andar bhi, us Chawla ki kya band bajayi thi aur upar se sir ke saamne almost mera raita faila diya”
Riya turned to the others: ha toh main keh rahi thi ki hum use agar 6-8 mahine train kare and then of course, hum use probation par rakh ke check kar sakte hai fir agar Rathore sir aur Arjun sir ko lage ki dusra chance diya ja sakta hai toh hum denge. Probation ke pehle uske paas ETF ke cases mein involve hone ki koi permission nahi hogi aur us time bhi woh sensitive cases mein hissa nahi legi
Sakshi was more than surprised to see Riya taking her side. Before anyone could say anything, she jumped out of her seat.
Sakshi: mujhe manzoor hai! main kuch bhi karne ke liye taiyaar hu!
Nitin: lekin…
Sakshi: please sir, main kar sakti hu
Nitin: tumhara kaam humare liye kaam karna hai, unke liye nahi!
She muttered a curse under her breath: main dono karungi! Main apne hisse ke articles aapko har deadline par de dungi (turning to Vikram) main ready hun sir
Vikram put up his hand for her to wait: Rathore, Arjun?
They looked at each other thoughtfully.
Arjun raised his eyebrow: you want to give her! A gun?
Riya raised her eyebrow: meri shakal par bevkuf likha hai?
Rathore turns to Vikram: aisa kar sakte hai?
Vikram sighs: idea bura nahi hai, we still have a probation period. Police Department mein rehne ke liye, thodi toh police training honi chahiye
Rathore scratched his chin: probation 6 mahine ka hoga. agar gadbad nahi ki usne toh fir sochenge
Sakshi lit up. She controls herself seeing Rathore look at her.
Rathore: 6 mahine training, 6 mahine probation aur uske baad bhi guarantee nahi, soch samaj kar jawab do
Sakshi replied promptly: I am ready
Ayesha whispered: ise andaaza bhi nahi humari training kaisi hoti hai, haina?
Shree: nope!
Vikram: theek hai toh, we’ll go with this
Nitin: ek minute! Agar woh ETF cases mein involve nahi hogi toh humari news aur articles kaha se aayenge? Tumhe yaha rakha isi liye hai, training karne ke liye nahi!
Rathore: woh aap logon ki problem hai, offer lena hai toh lo warna goodbye! No more negotiations!
Nitin: isse behtar hai ki woh humara hi kaam kare, Sakshi tum…
Sakshi frowns again: nahi! sir please… mujhe ETF mein rehna hai
Nitin glares at her. Her mind raced.
Rathore: toh fir problem hi solve ho gayi, Sakshi you are dis…
Sakshi: nahi ek second! ek second! uh main… main, uh, main... ha! main ek saal ka sabbatical le lungi
Nitin: What?!
Sakshi: yes! Aur uske liye aap mujhe mana nahi kar sakte, H.R. policy hai
Nitin gawked at her.
Sakshi: confirm! Main training lungi
Liza(softly): I really don’t know what’s worse
Ayesha whispered back: ye toh waqt hi batayega
Vikram: ok then, it’s decided. Main ise officially paper par transfer karwa dunga, you guys can go. Aur ha, ab ye bomb case ATS ko transfer karna hai so you guys start working on that.
Ayesha: sir, humari investigation is baat ki taraf indicate karti hai ki ye koi terrorist organization ka kaam nahi hai, shayad local gang toh fir ATS ko kyun…
Vikram: main jaanta hun lekin they are better equipped to deal with these things, tum log kab tak iske peeche dead leads follow karoge? You guys get back to your work, ye ab long-term investigation ban gaya hai. I don’t feel tum logon ko iske peeche waqt zaaya karne ki zaroorat hai
She nodded her head in understanding. They started leaving but Arjun came forward and sat. Vikram looked at him questioningly.
Arjun: we need to talk
Vikram cleared his throat: ok
He gestured to the others to leave.
Outside-
Sakshi rushed to Riya immediately and engulfed her in a hug.
Sakshi: Thank you so…
Riya stepped away immediately: hugs are for limited people. Aur dusri baat (firmly) maine ye sirf ETF ko tumhare channel se bachane ke liye kiya hai isliye zyaada khush hone ki zaroorat nahi hai. Personally speaking, I hate your profession.
Leaving her gaping, she spun on her heel and left. Rathore shook his head and followed.
Sakshi lowered her head. Shree came forward to comfort her.
Shree: hey relax! Bura mat maan uski baaton ka. Kya haina, usually media news dene se zyaada humare problem badha deti hai isliye most of us are not fond of you guys. Lekin iska matlab ye nahi ki tum achi nahi
Chotu: aur kal jo hua usse thodi disturbed bhi lag rahi hai, isliye chidi hui hai, tension mat le
Liza: ha yaar, tu humari dost hai
Ayesha: aur ab toh tum yahi ho, training difficult hogi par I am sure ki agar tune ise accept kiya hai to tujhe sach mein apni galti ka ehsaas hai aur use sudharna chahti hai
Sakshi smiled: thank you guys!
The five of them went in for a group hug.
Rathore: hugs are for limited people?
Riya looked up in startle and smiled seeing him: ha
Rathore: I think I am honoured
She hid her face in her hands: kya sir aap bhi
Rathore smiled and put his hand around her shoulder: par Riya you did good, agar hum Sakshi ko nikaal dete toh media waale atleast ek do mahino tak humara jeena haram kar dete
Riya sighed: I know sir, isiliye main is baat ko baahar nahi jaane dena chahti thi
Rathore: tumhe lagta hai woh training kar paayegi?
Riya: pata nahi sir and frankly speaking, I don’t care much. Hum dono ka aisa koi rishta nahi hai ki mujhe uske liye kuch feel ho. agar baat team ki hai toh main definitely yahi koshish karungi ki koi negative impact na pade. Agar woh kar leti hai toh bhi humare liye acha hai aur nahi kar paati hai toh bhi humare acha hai. It’s a win-win.
Rathore agrees silently.
Vikram’s office-
Arjun: aapne mujhse kuch kaha tha, yaad hai?
Vikram: uh tum kis baare mein baat kar rahe ho?
Arjun: aapne mujhe ETF mein bheja tha ek jhoot bol kar
Vikram squinted: woh jhoot nahi tha, I told you!
Arjun ignored the comment: kuch pata chala?
Vikram: achanak kyun puch rahe ho?
Arjun glares at him. He gulped in fear.
Vikram: ok relax, the thing is thode time pehle humari lead ke thode problems ho gaye
Arjun: What?! Aur aapne mujhe…
Vikram: Arjun shant ho jao puri baat sun lo pehle
He fumed: bolo!
Vikram: humare paas information hai lekin us par aage kaise work karna ye hum figure out karne ki koshish kar rahe hai
Arjun: Saaf-saaf bataiye ki kya ho raha hai!
Vikram sighed: ok I am not allowed to tell you this but suno, humare paas Sikandar ke ek admi, Michael ki information thi in Goa. Humari lead uski wife hai, Lata.
Arjun: uski wife humari help kyun kar rahi hai?
Vikram: kyunki humne use dhamkaya tha ki agar usne humari help nahi ki toh hume uske pati ko arrest karke faasi par chadha denge aur humare paas bahot proofs hai (Arjun raised his eyebrow) nahi, proof nahi hai (he shook his head) jitna Michael use batata hai usme se hume ye toh pata chala hai ki after last time Sikandar ki haalat bahot kharab thi and kyunki Roshni ne hi tumse shaadi ki uski underworld mein izzat bhi zyaada nahi bachi. Is wajah se trust issues bahot hai. ek saal toh woh underground tha aur fir koi uske saath deals karne ke liye zyaada aage nahi aata tha. He is having a really tough time getting back into the game. That would also explain Pathan ka chote assignments mein personally involve hona aur unhe complete karna lekin Sheen ki wajah se woh bhi pakda gaya. and he fell further.
Arjun nods: problem kya hai?
Vikram: problem ye hai ki kuch din pehle Michael ki ek gang rivalry shoot out mein maut ho gayi. Lekin humare kuch aur sources jo us incident par work kar rahe the unhe aisa lagta hai ki shayad Sikandar bhi tha waha aur…
Arjun stiffened: kaha
Vikram: wahi Arjun, Goa, aur kaha?
Arjun: toh fir hum manhunt kyun jaari nahi kar rahe hai?
Vikram: it’s risky Arjun, agar humne aisa kiya toh woh firse underground ho jaayega
Arjun: jab itne time se Lata information de rahi hai toh kya use Sikandar ki exact location nahi pata?!
Vikram: nahi Arjun use nahi pata, woh use itna sab kuch kyun batayega?
Arjun(angrily): use ye toh pata hoga ki uska pati kaha jaata hai, kya karta hai? agar waha raids maari hoti toh aaj nahi toh kal Sikandar apne aap hi haath mein aa jaata!
Vikram sighed: we can’t be sure, tum kyun use firse bil mein bhagane ke suggestions de rahe ho? Arjun saare cases immediate action se solve nahi hote. We have to be careful. Maine tumhe kaha na ki uski haalat bahot nazuk hai, there’s no way we can predict ki woh kaise react karega. Woh bhaag sakta hai, palat kar kuch ulta-seedha kar sakta hai, ya fir permanently desh chod kar chala gaya toh? kaise pakdoge fir tum use?
Arjun: Main Uske Andar Apni Goliyaan Khaali Karunga! Use Pakadne Ke Sapne Na Hi Dekhe Toh Behtar Hoga!
Vikram slapped the table: That’s Not The Point!
Arjun looked away, gritting his teeth. Silence set in for a few moments. He took a deep breath and looked back at him.
Arjun: status kya hai?
Vikram: hum Lata ko convince karne ki koshish kar rahe hai ki woh humare liye kaam karti rahe by hopefully, Sikandar ke gang mein shaamil hokar. Humne use kaha hai ki Sikandar ne jaan buchkar Michael ko marne diya
Arjun: Even if she buys it, kya gurantee hai ki Sikandar use apni gang mein shaamil karega?
Vikram: she has actually, bas use join hone ke liye convince kar rahe hai. Mostly ho jaayega aur Sikandar ka risk toh lena hi padega, try karke hi pata chalega. Aur agar aisa ho gaya, we will have a much better picture of what is going on inside. Aur ab tum batao
Arjun: kya?
Vikram: you found something, didn’t you?
Needless to say, he was surprised. Vikram smirked. After all, he wasn’t the commissioner for nothing.
Arjun: That gang, Jagdish waali woh jis gang ke saath deal kar rahe the. mujhe shak hai ki woh Sikandar ki gang hai. ek admi pakda gaya Birju. Maine use ek baar dekha tha, jab Rathore par humla hua tha
Vikram: use pata hai?
Arjun: nahi Rathore nahi jaanta
Vikram: main Birju ki baat kar raha hun
Arjun: nahi, use bhi nahi pata, maine sirf use dekha tha waha se bhaagte hue. Humla karne waala mere haath mein tha toh maine use hi pakda. ETF ke cameras mein main uska interrogation nahi karna chahta tha
Vikram: hm, acha kiya. (thoughtfully) maybe you should get Riya involved…
Arjun bangs his hands on the desk and stands up: Maine Aapko Pehle Bhi Warn Kiya Tha Ki MAIN AAPKO USKA USE KARNE NAHI DUNGA!!.........................................
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