Chapter 29

 

EPISODE – 41

 

Neetika and Maya entered in the building right in front of the Radio Station with their binoculars. They went to the second floor of the multi storey building and found a window from where they could see the Radio Station just perfectly in order to figure out the position and number of terrorists there.

 

Neetika tried to locate the terrorists and did manage to figure out that the terrorists have held up the staff of the Radio Station as the hostages in a room on the first floor and in another on the second floor.Bt she could see neither the number of terrorists nor the number of hostages held up. Suddenly she saw something and retreated.

 

"Maya... let's go!"

"What? But why? We are not yet through Niti..."

"I'll explain you later Maya... Let's go for now... QUICK!!" She shrieked and ran out in full speeed dragging Maya along with her and did not stop before she reach Rajveer and Navin. They were shocked to see them coming like that, running and Neetika, somehow, looked terrified.

 

"What happened?" Rajveer asked them.

"Even I don't know. Ask Niti." Maya answered him. She herself was confused.

"Niti kya hua?" Navin was growing skeptical.

"They spotted us spying from there."

"What?"

"Haan and...."

 

********

 

She was shivering badly. Her eyes were closed. She was close to tears. Very slowly she opened her eyes and felt a little relieved after seeing those familiar faces. From the window of the room, where she was standing at the gunpoint of one of the terrorists she could see Neetika and Maya running out of the building she was facing. The small hope inside her strengthened. Her eyes automatically started searching for someone and within a few seconds she found him. She was right. He was here.

 

Rajveer was standing inside the premises with Navin. He was looking at Neetika and Maya. Naina could finally see the person she wished to... Her dearest wish... Her first and her last wish. She forgot about the gun pointed at her, she forgot about the situation.

 

As she saw him talk to Maya and Neetika her heartbeats began racing up. She knew he would now turn and look up at her. Her eyes were glued at him and with the kind of reaction he gave to something that Neetika told him, Naina knew now he would turn and he did. He turned quickly looking up at the window. But he wasn't as quick as the terrorist. The moment he tried to look up she was pushed away from the window. Naina's anticipation had dragged her into a state of trance and this push was too unexpected and she could not handle it. She collapsed on the floor and hurt her elbow.

 

********

 

Rajveer and Navin were looking at the window hoping to see a glimpse of Naina. But she wasn't there anymore.

"Naina theek to thi na?" Navin was sounding too helpless and depressed.

"She looked scared."

"Usne life mein pehle kabhi bhi aisi situation face nahin ki hai aur na hi woh ab kar payegi. She's all alone."

"Nahin Navin... She's not alone. Jab tak hum sab hain woh kabhi akeli nahin ho sakti." Rajveer tried to console him though he was the only person who knew what it took him to curb down his own anxiousness and worries for her. At the end of day the fact remained that Navin was right. Naina could not face this situation. But for him the bigger fact was that he'll fight till his last breathe to save her.

 

********

 

Naina sat there next to Alekh. She was in a tremendous pain. But it wasn't the pain of her injury. It was the pain of her broken anticipation. She wanted to see in Rajveer's intense eyes for once. She knew it would give her the courage to withstand all of this. Tears were flowing out of her eyes uncontrollably. Alekh sat next to her looking at her tears.It said it all. He didn't have to ask her about anything.

 

The terrorist who had held him up at the gunpoint has left the room the moment he pushed Naina on the ground. It has been 10 minutes and he hadn't returned. But 5 minutes later he did. He came directly to Naina and pulled her on her feet holding her tightly by her arms. He dragged her with him out of the room to the top floor where two more men waited for them outside her Radio console. They all took her inside the console and threw her on the chair.

 

"Kya chahte ho tum log?" She asked them in a trembling voice.

"Apni baat Dilli ke logon tak pahunchana chate hain. Unhein batana chahte hain ki hamare Commander ko pakad ke yeh army waalon ne kitni badi galtoi ki hai. Aur agar in logon ne apni galti nahin sudhari to is galti ki Dilli waalon ko bahut badi keemat chukani hogi."

One of them answered her leaning down on her table. His face was very much close to hers and she could see the cruelty in his eyes. He meant every word he said and she had no doubts over that.

 

Naina was visibly very scared. The man chuckled.

"Ek Army waale ki behen aur doosre Army waale ki maashooka ho ke bhi itna ghabrati ho.... RJ Naina Singh Ahluwalia."

His words scared her all the more. Rajveer had told her once that she is the biggest weakness of three of the four officers working on the case and this man was very well aware of the fact. She was now in a bigger trouble than she thought. She knew why they targeted Radio Mirchi out of all the other placed in Delhi and why they held her up on the gunpoint just a few minutes ago.

 

"Humein apni baat Dilli ke logon tak pahunchani hai... radio on karo."

He commanded her.

Naina knew the impact this message, they want to convey, would have on the people of Delhi. The terror and panic Rajveer feared and the efforts they have put into keeping the news under the wraps would all go down the drain.

 

"I won't." She tried to sound resolute trying to hide her fright under her tightly closed eyes.

"Na sunna mujhe pasand nahin hai ladki... Jo maine kaha hai woh karo."

"Nahin." She remained firm.

 

A resounding slap hit hard on her face. All his fingers leaving their impression behind.

"Ahhhh..." She covered her face with her hands. It was throbbing with pain but she didn't let that affect her firm decision.

"Main aisa kuch bhi nahin karungi.... Do you hear me!"

 

Next moment she felt the cold sensation tracing down her cheek. He was running a dagger's tip over her cheeks. He lifted her chin with the dagger.

"Jaan ki salaamati chahti ho to chup chaap woh karo jo hum kehte hain."

"Jo karna hai kar lo." Her eyes were red with fury.

"Tum itni bhi kamzor nahin ho... Lagta hai kafi kuch sekha hai tumne apne Bhai aur apne aashiq se."

She turned away her face breathing heavily with anger. She didn't like the way he talked about Rajveer, at all.

 

"Ahhhhhhhh........." She screamed... This time much louder than the previous one. He had slit her arm with the dagger and it was bleeding badly.

"Maine kaha na main Radio on nahin karungi."

"Mujhe cheekhen sunna bahut pasand hai..... Phir chahe tumhari ho ya kisi aur ki!" Naina looked at him with horror.

 

"Sahi samajh rahi ho tum ladki. Tum apna dard to bardasht kar rahi ho kisi tarah lekin main soch raha hoon ki chot kisi aur ko aaye... Jaan kisi aur ki jaaye to tum use bachane ke liye kya karogi!"

"Tum aisa kuch nahin karoge."

"Aur tumhein lagta hai main tumhari baat maan lunga. Chalo theek hai... Khoobsurat ladkiyon ka dil nahin todna chahiye. To ek kaam karte hain... Tum meri baat mano main tumhari baat maanta hoon."

 

She clenched her fist tightly to control her anger and helplessness. She wasn't left with any choice. She turned on the equipments and within a few seconds she had put them on air.

 

********

 

Rajveer received a call from one of his senior officers from the head Quarters.

"Yes sir."

"Captain Shekhawat... Tum radio sun rahe ho."

"Radio? Nahin sir. Kya hua?"

"Captain Radio on karo... Jaldi."

"Yes sir."

He hung up the phone and started the radio on his mobile putting it on loudspeaker.

 

"Main ek baar phir apni baat dohrata hoon.... Agar Dilli sarkar ne 5 ghante ke ander ander hamare Commander ko azaad nahin kiya to is waqt hamari qaid mein yahan ke takreeban 80 mulaazimon ki jaanein chali jaayengi aur iske zimmedar hum nahin aap sabki sarkaar hogi. Aur yahi nahin... Maut ka silsila to yahan ke logon ke saath shuru hoga lekin yeh yahan khatam nahin hoga. Aur bhi kai jaanein jaayengi iske baad. Isliye Dilli waasiyon ki behtari isi mein hogi ki hamare Commander ko riha kar diya jaaye. Hum 'Sipah-e-Sahaba' ke sipahi is poori ghatna aur yahan se shuru hone waali Dilli ki tabaahi ki poori zimmedari lete hain. Agar hamari baat to sanjeedgi se nahin liya gaya to hum yahan khoon ki nadiyaan baha denge. Is imaarat ko is waqt Army ne gher rakha hai lekin agar unhone koi bhi chaalaki karne ki koshish ki to hum ek-ek karke yahan ke logon ko maarna shuru kar denge."

 

********

He signaled Naina to disconnect and she did. She lowered her head on the table. The pain and helplessness was way too much. A tear rolled down her cheek. The three other men inside the console were discussing something. She took no interest in that but could not ignore it when she heard few of the words she heard them utter. She got up from her chair as she heard that. Her eyes were wide with horror.

 

"Yeh hum abhi tak pata nahin laga paaye hain. But it will be something terrible... Kuch bhi ho sakta hai... Mass destruction, some sort of hijacking, abduction of some highly influential person, another attack on parliament... Just anything!" She could hear Rajveer's words reiterating in her mind.

 

He was right. They had their own plans. Taking over the Radio station looked nothing more than a distraction to her. Their plans were something big... BIGGER!