Pain so evidently surged up in his eyes as he drove on the roads of the city he belonged, travelling down the memory lanes. His most beautiful days, fondest of memories, his smiles and his happiness all laid buried deep into his past in this city that he now detested. But still he was here.... Feeling incomplete and ripped off his emotions. He was too inhuman to feel any emotion...or atleast he believed so.... Completely ignoring the fact that in his case even his numbness was an emotion. He couldnt just get over his heart-wrenching agony of........
It has been three days since he has given his unwilling consent for 'Mission Parinda'. But he still wondered why he did that. 'Missions' were so not him... He had re-engineered himself to indulge only for the 'Projects' where the stake were not human beings....where failure didnt mean someone's life..... where sucess was nothing more than an addition to his lists of achievements in his CV. His life had been through many dramatic twists and turns that someone who knew him earlier couldnt even recognize him now. The sparks in his eyes had now been replaced by a numbing coldness. He knew he have had enough of raw deals from his life but was absolutely clueless of what awaited him just around the corner.
His car was running at a good speed on the Western Express Highway when his thoughts broke down at the sight of a young lady standing next to her car with an open bonnet. Apparently it had broken down and she was stranded at a lonely highway in the middle of the night. He did what any 'gentleman' would do in such a situation. He stopped his car.
"You need some help?" He asked the lady who was looking down on the engine without understanding what's what and what exactly is she suposed to do.
"What do you think.... Its my habit to open the bonnet of the car and stand staring at the engine post midnight."
The moment she turned to him with her statement dipped in sarcasm he,for a moment, felt that this actually may be a case with this weird lady. He knew her....well....kind of!
He without any word got down from the car, shook his head and a little smile came on his face. He took out the flashlight from her hand and it didnt take him more than a minute to figure out the problem.
"Engine aapke dimaag ki tarah garam ho gaya hai.... just cool them both." He said pointing out at the water bottle inside her car and went back to his car without noticing her fuming reactions.
"Aur haan I think atleast once in a while you should allow problems to stay away from you."
Her reactions changed from anger to confusion. She couldnt figure out what the hell did he mean.
"Tum ho kya cheez?" He heard her say as he was about to enter back into his car .
His hands freezed.... Body transfixed with the ground. His eyes soared with uncontrollable pain and those words echoed in his ears again and again. Someone used to say that...long back.... almost all the time. And he just used to flaunt a naughty smirk but today he hurriedly got inside his car, slammed the door, put his car in the top gear and vanished within a matter of few seconds leaving behind bedazzled, lost Naina who felt a strong hunch inside her telling that this was the guy who had helped her the other night.
She turned back to take out the bottle from her car and saw an envelope next to the bottle marked 'Private and Confidential' . It was from some 'Amardeep Huda'. Suddenly her reactions changed. The man was out of her mind and the letter contents and the sender replaced him.
That man's car stopped at few kilometers with a screech. Something about himself had surprised him.
'Did he actually........ smile after he saw that girl?'
'Did he still remember how to smile?'
'What was more surprising.... His momentary smile or him not smiling for last 6 years?'
***********************
Yudi was sitting comfortably on the chair. His eyes were closed and he wore a smile. He was alive and safe.... He had survived.... Both the guards and the security system of the minister's bungalow and also Naina. He couldnt believe she let him go so easily. He was waiting for the newspaper carrying the biggest news of the hour that was being telecasted simultaneously on all the news channels. He was relishing his sucess and the good bucks.
Alekh wasnt home. He had gone out for something since last night and hadn't returned. It was a bit worrying but he knew Alekh could take good care of himself. It was 6:30 in the morning. Time to check for the newspaper. It should have come. He opened the door and surprisingly couldnt find it. After a few minutes the newspaper came but in an unusual manner...... Flying inside the house through the balcony hitting him directly in his head. He was amused but wasn't interested in anything else but the newsflash. He read it twice...just for his own satisfaction before reading the newspaper and was surprised to see the same news again on the 8th page...only the words had been redrafted. He was confused at the repetition of the news but something caught his attention. It was the only news on that page that wasn't black and white. But 8th page never had any article in colors. Something was weird. He read that article again and again and half an hour later sat with a pen marking something in that article. Another hour went by and he had what this newspaper was meant to carry for him.
"Corruptions Galore in the State Government."
Corruption is not a new word associated with the ministers and high level officers , but in a sensational disclosure by freelance journalist Yaduvansh Sahni, a new scam came into picture of Indian political scenario. Another minister of state government was found making billions through secret transactions ,taking undue advantage of his position. His services were terminated immediately as the news broke out and currently he has been taken into custody. This has reactivated a word of caution in the political lobbies of Maharashtra State Government.'Karma' ,as it is said, decides the destiny of human beings, has ensured that guilty is punished. His career and the overambitious intentions of making quick black money has not only been threatened but crushed. The proofs secured also includes an agreement paper with a Chinese company to supply substandard material at exorbitant rates to one of the government agencies. This revelation means an end to all of his superfluous raptures his post assured him of.... both legally and illegally.
Very carefully he picked up one word from each sentence and the mesage was crystal clear.
"Indian-Secret-Services-reactivated-Karma-threatened-Chinese -Rapture."
He had to attend a meeting of Indian Secret Services (ISS) at 'Chinese Rapture', a chinese restaurant in the suburb. The date and timings were not given in the 'Article' but he knew the technique of finding that. 8th page of the newspaper meant 8th of the current month and the article was in the 6th column.... that meant he had to be there at 6. He had a new mission.....Apparently larger than anything he had done before.
5 days to go!
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
Anupamaa
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