Chapter 32

CHAPTER 32

LOST

Karan stared at the packet resting innocently on Colonel Batra's desk. He picked it up again, the picture of the dead body staring up at him. Laxman. He was... dead. And with no arm. The arm was in their forensic labs. He turned it over, staring at the note.

'Humaare kaam mein ghusne ki zyaada koshish mat kar. Aaj iska haath aaya hai tere paas. Kal tera kata hua sar hoga. Aur tere par koi rehem nahi hoga. You'll die bloody, Karan Shergill. Ulte din ginne shuru kar de. Your death is coming.'

"Karan..." Colonel Batra pushed the glass of water towards him. "Peeo."

He grabbed it, taking a sip. He could barely feel it trickle down his throat. He kept it back on the table, idly spinning a pen on the table. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes. The arm stared back at him and he opened his eyes quickly. He looked at the photo again, forcing himself to ignore the body.

A special agent, he told himself. A commando. That was who he needed to be. Not a human, not a person.

Just a soldier.

He didn't have to look far. "Yahan se 15 minute door jungle ke paas ek famous landmark hai. Uske paas ki jagah hai yeh. I think we should start searching there", he said quietly. "Wahan par koi hint milna chahiye. Shayad... Shayad Laxman ki laash. At least... respectfully uska antim sanskaar toh kar paayenge."

'Desh ka kaam kar rahe hain hum khabri. Aate jaate jaan chali bhi gayi, toh koi gham nahi.'

A soldier. Just a soldier.

"Karan... tum theek ho?" Faizi asked.

"Haan", he said. "I am fine." He tapped the table slightly. "Forensic ki report mein shayad koi aur hint mil jaaye. Let's go to the location first."

Colonel Batra sighed a little. "Take a full team", he said. "Tumhaari jaan ke saath main koi risk nahi lena chahta."

"It'll help in the search", he said simply. He stood up, saluting him. "Chal, Faizi." Karan turned away, swallowing the lump in this throat. His hands clenched into fists. He wouldn't stop.

---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---

Bala closed the door behind him quickly. The rest of the six looked up, frowning at his wide eyed franticness. "Academy mein halla macha hua hai", he said, grabbing a chair and sitting down on it. Monami furrowed her eyebrows, clutching the notebook she was writing in.

"Kyun? Kya hua?" Suman ji asked.

"Karan Sir ji ko kisi ne unke khabri ka haath kaatkar bheja hai", Bala said.

"What?" Sid screeched in shock.

Monami's eyes widened. She scooted to the edge of Sid's bed quickly. Was this a bad joke? She wanted him to jump up and laugh and mock them for their reactions. He just nodded in response.

"Headline dekar kya chup ho gaya hai?" Koel snapped. "Aage bol, na?"

"Mujhe sunne mein aaya hai ki 2-3 din se Karan Sir ji ka khabri gayab tha. Usne Karan Sir ji ko koi khabar deni thi, par phir gayab ho gaya. Sab logon ko lag raha tha ki kuchh theek nahi hai isliye hi sab log itna serious the aur sab use dhoond rahe the. Aur aaj subah, kisi ne Karan Sir ji ko ek parcel bheja. Us mein uss khabri ka kata hua haath tha. Aur saath mein uski laash ki photo aur Karan Sir ji ko dhamki."

"#Death threat?" Chitra said.

"Karan Sir theek toh hai, na?" Prem ji asked.

Bala shrugged. "Pata nahi. Unki shakal par gusse ke alaawa toh zyaada kuchh pata hi nahi chalta. Abhi dekha tha maine unhe. Kahin bahar jaa rahe the, gear pehenkar. Faizi Sir ji, Sanju madam, Ustaad ji, sab saath mein the."

"Bahar?" Koel asked. "Par kyun? I mean... Karan Sir ko jaane ki kya zaroorat hai? Abhi thodi der pehle hi toh unhe..." She shook her head. "Why take the risk?"

"Koel, Karan Sir ki baat ho rahi hai. Tujhe sach mein lagta hai woh darkar academy ke andar baith jaayenge?" Sid asked. "Never ever."

"Suman ji ne suna hai ki Karan Sir ko log 'Ulti Khopdi' kehte hain", Suman ji piped in. "Chhupkar baithna toh door, Karan Sir toh wahin jaayenge jahan par khatra hoga taaki khatre ke beech se kisi ko uthaakar le aayein."

"Point", Koel muttered.

Monami closed her eyes. 'Bhagwaan ji... hume thodi lambi baat karne ki zaroorat hai. Abhi ke liye... bas itni si request maan lo- Karan Sir ko safe rakhna, and Karan Sir ke khabri ko yaa toh heaven mein achhi si jagah dena, ya please, koi achhi si life dena rebirth ke baad. Yeh waala system mujhe zyaada pata nahi, par please, jo bhi karna, achha karna.'

---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---

Laxman's eyes were closed, face smoothed over and deprived of any expression. He looked asleep. Except... there was a hole in the middle of his forehead and his right arm was missing.

Karan knelt down. "I am sorry", he whispered.

Faizi kept a hand on his shoulder, squeezing slightly. Karan took a deep breath, standing up. He looked at the forensic expert who was inspecting the body.

"Dekhne se lag raha hai ki 3-4 din pehle death hui hai", the expert said.

Karan swallowed a little. "Ise... ise torture toh nahi kara, na?" He asked quietly. "Aur... iska haath marne se pehle kaata hai yaa baad mein?"

"Sir, torture ke koi marks toh nahi dikh rahe, except the cut hand. Par death se pehle cut kara gaya hai ya baad mein, woh lab mein pata chalega", he answered. Karan nodded, turning away from the body.

"Karan Sir, Faizi Sir, thodi bahut cheezen mili hain. Sure nahi hain ki woh Laxman se related hain ya nahi", Raghav said.

"Evidence mein le lo", Faizi said. He glanced around, and the two majors walked around, looking at the scene. "Dekhne se lag toh nahi raha ki yahan maara gaya hai."

Karan paused in thought. "Agar fight karne ka chance mila ho, toh woh zaroor karega. Shayad thoda bahut skin ya hair mil jaaye. Agar spy hoga, toh chances hain ki koi lead mil sakti hai usse."

"Tumhe sach mein lagta spy ne khud maara hai?" Faizi asked. "Yaa koi aur hai, jisne actually maara hai?"

"Hai toh EFR ka hi", Karan said. "Spy ke baare mein barely kuchh pata hai. Kuchh kaha nahi jaa sakta ki spy tha yaa koi aur."

Faizi nodded. He glanced at the dead body. "Koi family thi kya iski?"

He shook his head. "Anaath tha. Ek dukaan mein kaam karta tha, wahin sota tha." He paused slightly. "24 saal ka tha."

'Naam kya hai tera?' Karan asked.

'Laxman.'

'Kitne saal ka hai tu?'

'Sahab, 19.'

Karan took out a photo, sliding it over. 'Dekha hai ise kahin?'

'Haan, Sahab. Roz aata hai, yahan saamne kisi se milne. Lamba hai, 6 foot ka toh hoga. Baal nahi hai. 30-35 saal ka hoga.'

'Sab ko itne dhyaan se dekhta hai yaa is mein kuchh khaas hai?'

'Kuchh theek nahi lagte yeh, isliye jab bhi aate hain dhyaan jaata hai.' Laxman smiled. 'Yeh mujrim ko pakadne waala kaam, bahut pasand hai.' His grin widened. 'Seth yahan TV par CID chalaate hain. Thoda bahut use dekhkar seekh gaya hoon.'

Karan smiled slightly. He wrote his number down. 'Dobara aaye, toh call karna.' He pushed another photo towards him. 'Aur yeh dikhe, toh bhi.'

'Khabri banaa rahe ho?'

'Banega?' Laxman touched his forehead slightly in a lazy salute.

"Karan?" Faizi said. Karan glanced at him, humming. "Tum theek ho, na?"

"Haan." He turned away, walking to a distant tree away from Faizi. He didn't want to answer too many questions.

---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---

"Karan Sir ko kisi ne haath kaatkar bheja hai, Faizi?" Koel asked.

Faizi sighed a little. "Haan", he said. He clutched her arm, pushing her gently against the wall. "Don't worry."

"Kaise worry naa karoon? Kisi ne ek... ek actual haath bheja hai. This is straight out of a movie, Faizi. These things don't happen in real life." She shook her head. "Koi... Koi Karan Sir ko maarna chahta hai? Do... do they wanna kill you too?"

"Koel..."

She sighed a little. "I know it's confidential. But I... I don't want the details. Mujhe... Mujhe sirf itna jaanna hai ki tum... tum danger mein ho ya nahi. Can you tell me that?"

He sighed. "Hum ek fauji hain, Koel. We're always in danger. Koi mission, kisi ka badla, being at the wrong place at the wrong time... agar hum yeh kehte hain ki hum completely safe hain, toh woh ek jhooth hoga. Par abhi ke liye, hum target nahi hai. Karan hai."

"So... So Karan Sir danger mein hai." He nodded a little. "Not you?"

"Karan humaara bhai hai. Aur jab use humaari zaroorat hogi, toh hum hamesha uske paas rahenge, aur ho sake, toh uski shield banenge. Agar uski jaan khatre mein hai, toh hum apni jaan laga denge par use kuchh nahi hone denge."

Koel nodded a little. Her hands trailed up to his neck and she pulled him closer in a hug. He hugged her back, gently patting her back. "I... I don't want to lose you", she whispered.

His grip tightened a little. He sighed a little. "Koel... tension lene ki zaroorat nahi hai. Kuchh faida nahi hoga." He pulled back. "Kal Sunday hai. Jao, sabke saath. Try to relax." He clutched her hand. "Hum tumhe bahar lekar jaana chahte the, par... abhi situation waisi nahi hai. Karan bhi thoda disturbed hai. Hum aise use chodhkar nahi jaana chahte."

She nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, of course. Koi baat nahi." She gave him a small smile. "I'll bring something for you. Kya chahiye?"

He smiled a little. He slid an arm around her waist. "Roses", he muttered.

Her smile widened a little. "Done."

---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---

Sanju slammed her fists in the punching bag. It swung wildly. Sweat gleamed from her face, thuds of skin hitting the bag echoing in the quiet room. She panted, as she stepped back, letting it come to a stop.

A bottle was held in her sight of vision. She glanced up. Siddharth. She took it from him, sitting down on the bench. He sat next to her.

"Aap theek hain?" He asked. "Kaafi gusse mein lag rahi hain."

Her jaw clenched. "Ek baar woh insaan mil jaaye, jisne Laxman ko maara hogo, aur Karan Sir ji ko dhamki di hogo, hum usko chodenge nahi." She gulped down some of the water angrily.

"Bilkul mat chodna", he agreed quietly.

She kept the bottle down on the bench next to her with a slight thud. "Karan Sir ji... woh... woh sirf humaare senior naa hai", she said, the words spilling out on their own. "Woh humaare... humaare bhai jaise hain. Laxman ko maarkar unhone bahut dukh diya hai Karan Sir ji ko." Her grip tightened on the bottle. "Woh hum bardaasht nahi kar sakto hain. Upar se Karan Sir ji ko maarne ki dhamki... hum apne haathon se unhe maarenge, aur apni aankhon se unhe tapadta hua dekhenge."

"Karan Sir will be okay", Sid said.

Sanju paused. "Unki jaan ko toh kuchh naa hone denge hum. Par Karan Sir ji ko hum thoda bahut toh jaante hain. Laxman ki maut ke zimmedaar woh khudko maanenge. Aur sabse yeh baat chhupaayenge. Kisi ko kuchh naa bolenge. Bas chup chaap tapadte rahenge. Humne yeh sab dekha hai pehle."

"Aap unse jaakar baat kar sakti hain?" He shook his head slightly. "Guilt mein rehna... that's not healthy."

She shook her head. "Koi Karan Sir ji se kuchh naa bulwaa sakto hai. Woh kahenge ki woh theek hain, kisi ko yeh naa dikhaanaa chahenge ki kuchh bhi galat hogo." She looked at Siddharth. "Kuchh saal pehle bhi kuchh hua tha. Mission mein Param Sir ji, Karan Sir ji ke bhai, woh kaafi zakhmi hue the. Unka career khatam ho gayo uske baad. Aaj tak Karan Sir ji apne aap ko uske liye gunehgaar tehraate hain, par kisi ko yeh baat bolte naa hai."

Sid hesitated a little. "Can I ask you something?" She nodded. "What's guneh... whatever you said?"

Sanju sighed. "Chirkut..."

"Sorry."

---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---

Karan stirred his coffee idly. He stared into the swirl of the traces of the coffee in the froth, pausing.

"M-Mujhe nahi p-pata tha c-coffee itni in-interesting d-dikhti hai", Monami said quietly. "K-Kya d-dikh r-raha hai aa-aapko jo m-mujhe iss c-coffee mein n-nahi d-dikh r-raha?"

He looked up at her. He shook his head. "Kuchh nahi." He took a sip. "Bas kuchh soch raha tha."

"K-Kya?"

"Just... things", he said.

She nodded a little. "Aapko b-baat k-karni hai?"

"Nahi." He looked at her. "Kya kara tumne poore din?"

She shrugged. "Cl-Classes, p-padhai."

"Kal kya karogi?"

"M-Mandir j-jaana hai. M-Mujhe Bh-Bhagwaan ji se k-kuchh b-baat k-karni hai." She paused. "Aur... aur P-Papa se b-baat k-karni hai." She tilted her head. "Aap gh-ghar jaa r-rahe hain k-kya k-kal?"

He shook his head. "Nahi. Kuchh kaam hai academy mein." She nodded. "Monami, can you..." He glanced away. "I... I need a little distraction. Please?"

She hummed softly. He took another sip of the coffee, listening to her quietly. Just the hum, not the thoughts that were swirling. He needed to listen to her. He closed his eyes. Just the hum for now.

---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---

Monami listened to the phone ring for a few seconds. She had been putting it off for too long.

"Hello?"

She bit her lip gently. She hadn't heard his voice in weeks. It had been a long time since she went so long without talking to her father. "P-Papa", she got out.

"Monami... tum waapas aane waali ho kya?"

She closed her eyes. "Aap p-pehle yeh bhi t-toh p-puchh s-sakte ho, na, ki m-main th-theek h-hoon ya n-nahi?"

He paused. "Tum waapas aa jao, Monami. Sab waise hi theek ho jaayega."

"S-Sab th-theek nahi hai k-kya?"

"Tum agar yeh pretend karna chahti ho ki sab kuchh theek hai, toh woh tumhaari marzi hai. Par yeh baat toh tumhe pata hi hogi ki mujhe nahi achha lag raha hai ki tum uss academy mein ho."

"K-Kyun?"

"You know why. Tumhe exactly pata hai mujhe kyun nafrat hai army se, kyun main chahta hoon tum iss sab se bahut door raho."

She closed her eyes. "Papa... M-Mumma ki sh-shaheedi ki w-wajah a-army n-nahi thi. It's n-not their f-fault."

"Of course it was", he snapped. She flinched slightly. "Saari galti unki thi. Aur tumhaari Mumma ki. Tumhaari Mumma tumse chhini nahi thi, Monami. She chose her life. Aur iss life ka yeh hi end hai. Aur ab, tum bhi wahin jaa rahi ho. And I want nothing to do with it."

Her eyes snapped open. "Matlab?"

"Jab tak tum apni yeh zidd nahi chod deti, waapas ghar aane ki koi zaroorat nahi hai", he snarled. "Apni shakal bhi mat dikhaana mujhe. Call mat karna mujhe."

"Papa..." A lump formed in her throat. "K-Kya bol r-rahe ho aap?" He didn't reply. She pulled the phone away. The call had ended. Tears welled up in her ears. She dialed the number again, listening to it ring.

No one picked up.

---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---

Sanju stepped into her room, halting in surprise. She glanced around the room, eyebrows furrowing at the decoration. Siddharth smiled at her, leaning against the table.

"Chirkut, kaa hai yeh sab?" She asked. "Monami laane hogo kaa?"

"Nahi. Aapke liye hai."

She frowned. "Humaare laane? Kaahe?"

He shrugged. "Aap... Aap kal itna tensed thi. Mujhe laga thoda relax ho jaoge iss sab se. I figured kaam hoga, toh academy ke bahar toh shayad nahi jaa paoge, toh yahin hi le aaya sab kuchh." He grinned at her. He pulled back the chair, nodding to her. She smiled slightly, sitting down. "Aur..." He lifted the plates that covered the food. "Your favorites. Street food."

She chuckled in surprise. They were all arranged neatly, but they had undoubtedly be brought off the street. She recognized the scents. "Tujhe toh naa pasand, na, yeh sab?" She asked.

He rolled his eyes a little. "Abhi aapka mood kharaab hai, toh we'll think about you, okay?" He said. "This is about you, not me." He grinned. "You like it?"

"Bahut achha hogo", she said. She smiled a little, glancing around the table. "Gol gappe", she said happily, grabbing the plate. She paused a little. "Humaara mood kharaab hogo, toh ab tujhe humaari baat maanni padego." She held one to his mouth. He hesitated. "Please keh raho hain."

He sighed a little, before nodding. She smiled, feeding him the bite. He chewed for a couple of seconds, before his eyes widened. "Mirchi", he squealed, grabbing the glass of water. Sanju burst out laughing, as he gulped the water down quickly. He fanned his mouth, letting his tongue hang out. "Aap... aap meri misery par has rahi hain?"

She laughed a little, eating one herself. She shrugged a little, nodding. Sid narrowed his eyes, staring at her for a few seconds, before sighing and chuckling along. She held one out. His eyes widened and he shook his head. "Iss waale mein mirchi naa hai."

He took it cautiously, eating it. His other hand was wrapped around the bottle, almost as if ready to gulp some down. He relaxed slightly. "Is mein nahi thi", he said happily. "Not bad. I like it."

"Humne kaho tha, na?" She said.

"Yeah, yeah", he grumbled a little. "But you still haven't tried 5 star restaurant ka khaana. Toh... ho sakta hai main bhi sahi hoon."

She smiled, shrugging. "Dekhto hain."

"Hey, you are not allowed to lie", he warned. "That'll be cheating."

She nodded. She placed the sweet ones on his plate, keeping the spicy ones for herself. She watched him eat quietly as she chewed, her stomach tingling slightly.

'This is about you, not me.'

She smiled to herself a little.

---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---

"Haath Laxman ka hi hai", Faizi said. "Note handwritten hai par dekhne se lag raha hai ki writing badalne ki kaafi koshish kari hai. Writing se match milna possible nahi hai."

"Fingerprints?" Colonel Batra asked. Faizi shook his head. "Laxman ki body ke aas paas kuchh mila."

"Thoda evidence mila hai. Abhi sab kuchh fully inspect nahi hua hai. Thoda time lagega. Kuchh khaas mila nahi."

"Laxman ka haath marne se pehle kaata tha yaa baad mein?" Karan asked quietly.

Faizi looked at him. "Baad mein. Goli lagne ki wajah se mara hai. Torture ke koi marks nahi hain. He... He died instantly." He nodded.

"Aage kya soch rahe ho, Karan?" Colonel Batra asked. "Koi plan of action?"

"Kuchh hai hi nahi clue, toh kaise proceed karein, Sir? We need something to base it on. Hum totally blind hain", Karan said.

"Humne files nikaali hain. EFR ne kaafi time se koi attack nahi kara hai", Faizi said. "Almost a year."

"They're gathering information", Karan muttered. "Woh hume koi lead nahi de rahe hain." He leaned forward a little. "I think unka alag target civilians nahi honge. It'll be something else. Army base, ministers, yeh sab. Not civilians. Isliye inhone attack nahi kara."

"Aur yeh note? Laxman?"

He shook his head. "Unhone Laxman par sirf isliye attack kara kyunki use kuchh pata chal gaya tha. Yeh note sirf daraane ke liye hai. They don't plan on doing anything."

"Tum yeh kaise keh sakte ho, Karan?" Faizi asked.

"Tu spy ke baare mein yaad kar, Faizi. From the time hume pehle shaq hua to now, kab EFR ne kisi par bhi attack kara?"

He frowned. "Monami aur Laxman."

"Aur dono mein kya common hai? They both stumbled on something. Aur Monami ko kuchh nahi pata chala, isliye unhone Monami ko nahi maara. Par Laxman ko kuchh pata chala, isliye unhone maar diya. Mission Blue Bird, Mission Euphoria, inn sab mein unhone sirf apne log peechhe kare hain, apna paisa peechha kara hai. They're gathering their strength. Agar woh iss time par humse bahut zyaada engage hote hain, toh they're risking clues jo woh nahi chahte. Isliye hi 2-3 din baad unhone hume yeh bheja, probably Laxman ko achhe se check kara ki koi clue naa bacha hai. They're making sure we're blindside, aur yeh sirf ek fear tactic hai."

Colonel Batra nodded. "I agree. Toh ab kya karna chahiye? What do you propose?"

Karan paused. He shook his head. "Mujhe thoda time chahiye next move sochne ke liye."

---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---

Monami walked down the stairs of the temple, pausing where her shoes were. She frowned. What was that? She bent down, grabbing the note that was tucked on her shoes. She opened it.

'Warnings ko ignore karna kisi ki sehat ke liye bahut haanikaarak ban jaayega. Keh de Karan Shergill ko ki peechhe rahe. Ek minute ka chain nahi milega use. Marne se pehle sau baar marega. Aur jab maut aayegi, toh khushi ke aansu royega.'

Monami stared at the letter, her throat drying up. She looked around the temple. Who had left it? Who was... She quickly pulled her shoes on and walked out.

She walked to the jeep and the person that had drove her glanced at her. "Chalein?" He asked. She nodded. She clutched the note tightly in her hand, her heart pounding in her chest.

The ride seemed to last forever, and she muttered a quick thank you to the person before quickly walking into the academy. Karan wasn't in his room, nor was he in the training room, the mess or the terrace.

"Monami", a voice called. She turned around. Ustaad ji. "Kya hua? Kise dhoond rahi ho itne der se?"

"K-Karan Sir."

"Woh Batra Sir ke cabin mein hai."

"M-Mujhe... M-Mujhe m-milna hai. B-Bahut im-important hai."

"Kuchh zyaada hi important hai?" She nodded. "Aa jaa." She followed him, the note in her pocket heavy.

Ustaad ji knocked on the door, opening it when the colonel called. He gestured to Monami and she walked in, hand reaching into her pocket and clutching the note tightly. Three men- Karan, Faizi and Colonel Batra- looked at her with furrowed eyebrows.

"Kya hua?" Karan asked. "Yahan kya kar rahi ho?"

She held out the note. "M-Mere shoes m-mein tha, m-mandir mein."

He glanced at it before up at her and then at the other two. He accepted it, unfolding the paper and reading the words. He straightened up. She swallowed thickly, her hands trembling slightly.

"Shergill?" Colonel Batra said.

He passed it to him, before standing up and moving closer to her. "Tum theek ho?" He said quietly. He glanced her over. "Unhone kuchh kara toh nahi, na, tumhe?"

She shook her head. "I am f-fine."

Karan's jaw clenched tightly. There was something coming, alright. But he wasn't going to let it sway in the wrong direction. They were crossing too many limits.

And he won't sit quiet.