Dev glanced at the clock as it ticked 4:30 in the morning. He took her luggage which was kept near the door and escorted her to his bedroom. He told her to freshen up and showed her the bathroom. Chandini meekly nodded and taking out a fresh yet worn out pair of her cotton salwar kurta headed to take a nice long shower. By the time she exits, he tried to clean up the mess as soon as possible. He picked up the discarded clothes lying on the floor, arranged the books on the table, collected week old dishes which were stinking badly and put them in the kitchen sink. Once satisfied, he reached his cupboard to take his uniform as he needed to report soon. As he opened his wardrobe, he was shuffling the other clothes to find his pant when his gaze fell on a yellow dupatta. Pulling it out, he touched the piece of fabric which contained stains of his own blood which was now dried up. Caressing it, he was transported to the memories of 4 days back.
Chandini decided to take a warm shower and when the hot water descended down her body, she flinched as it stung her bruises. It was after a long time that she was having a relaxing bath. The hot water soothed amd calmed her senses. Once finished, she turned off the shower and looking at the mirror patted herself dry with a clean white towel. She was about to wear her kurti when her eyes caught the leather jacket she had removed few minutes back. The same jacket which has been providing her cosiness, protecting her from the cold weather, hid her torn clothes and bruises since 4 days. Taking the jacket, she clutched it against her chest as she remembered the happenings of last 4 days.
4 days back
Ramnagar, Mussourie, Uttarakhand
It was a chilly night as the cold wind was gushing making the trees sway and leaves fall. Dev whose right shoulder was hit by the bullet coupled with other grave wounds on his body was desperately looking for a refuge. He and Siddharth had come on a secret mission to bust out the human trafficking racket which was headed by the renowned 'Daataa' of this small village. His duty was to just raid the place and release the girls safely. Well, atleast that was what Tiwari Sir had ordered him to do. But the moment he had seen one of the drunk leech molesting a fairly young and small girl, he couldn't control hid temper. His nostrils flared in anger as he shot the man right on his forehead. This alerted the other men who were equipped with heavy arms as compared to Dev. Nonetheless, he successfully freed the girls and asked Siddharth to direct them to a relatively safer place. Siddharth tried to offer him help but Dev was more concerned about the girls' security. Dev had 2 revolvers with him which meant he had 18 bullets and the men were roughly around 10. Taking a deep breathe, he launched an attack over the men. He killed some of them with directly shooting bullets in their body while he had to fight with some of them one on one. Reaching the climax, he had one bullet left along with one man in his front who had his hands raised. He sensed someone's presence behind him and understood that he was trapped. When he heard the sound of the trigger being pulled behind him, he turned in a jiffy and shot the last bullet at the man behind him. When he again turned back, he saw the earlier man pointing a gun at him. Smartly, he put up a fight with him and ended the combat with a hard blow on the man's nose landing him on the ground. He was about to leave the place when the man got up again and with his weak hands shot aimlessly. The bullet hit Dev's right shoulder and he hissed in pain. Soon he heard the voices of few other men and he knew that it was better to leave from there since the men would outnumber him and was weaponless but moreover he was injured and not in a position to fight them. After walking for about half an hour, he came out of the woods where the girls were held captive. It was stark dark and his body was slowly draining out of energy. He realised that he needed to get the bullet out of his body before it harms his bones or organ. Another fifteen minutes passed and he came across a structure which probably looked like a house. Trying hard to keep his eyes open, he faintly knocked on the door. When he failed to get any response, he banged it hard and then he comprehended that it was locked from inside. With some minimal energy left in him, he kicked open the door and was shocked at the sight in front of him.
Dev saw a girl sitting in the barn with messy hair, lips cut and bleeding, wrapped in a cotton dupatta, tear stricken face, clothes torn; trembling and shivering in fear. When she saw him, she immediately moved 2 steps behind getting frightened and pulled out a knife which she had hidden among the stack of hay. His eyes narrowed at her and moving inside, he slumped against one of the walls of the barn. With much difficulty, he removed his jacket and his breath fractured. Chandini was scared like hell when she felt someone knocking and then banging at the door, she had expected one of those leech men who were searching her but was relieved when she saw this man tumbling due to an injury. His half face was covered in blood and he was unable to stand as well. When she saw him removing his jacket, she shook seeing his white T Shirt soaked in red blood and understood that he was gravely injured. She whimpered as she got up and limping due to the blue and black marks on both her legs, sat in front of her. Dev tried to keep his eyes open and saw the earlier afraid girl near him.
Chandini (in a shaky voice) - Go...go...goli lagi hai? (Are you hit by a bullet?)
Dev nodded not having the strength to form the words.
Chandini (softly) - Mai kuch karti hu (I will do something)
She brought the dagger she pointed at him earlier. She stood up and stumbled again as she fetched a container full of water. With droopy eyes, Dev was trying hard to gauge as to what this girl was upto. Chandini gathered some hay and wooden sticks and was thinking as to how to light a fire. Dev fathomed that she was preparing the items required to remove the bullet from his body. He was quite impressed with girl's intelligence and a sense of respect made his way to his cold heart as she saw the girl who herself was in immense pain due to her injuries but was taking so much efforts to treat him. Looking at her face, he could decipher that she was trying hard to think of something. When he looked at the items she collected, he concluded that was finding ways to light a fire.
Dev (in a stammering voice and loudly) - Su...sunnn...
Chandini at once turned as he called out to her. He motioned her to come to him and she neared him quickly. Dev pointed towards his front right pocket and indicated her to insert her hand in it. Her cheeks turned red with anger as she looked scandalous at his audacity. Shaking his head, he forcefully held her hand and put it inside his pocket. She gasped at it but when she found some object, she fished it out. Dev always carried a cigarette packet and a lighter in hid pocket and hence thought that the lighter would help her. Chandini mentally scolded herself to think ill about this man. She lit the fire amd put the water to heat up. She sat in front of him with a knife.
Chandini (looking down) - Yeh...yeh...yeh utaarna hoga (You need to remove the T Shirt)
Acknowledging her command, he tried to raise his hand up but shouted in agony. Her eyes moistened seeing him in pain.
Dev (in between fractured breaths) - Chaaku se cheer de isse (Tear it with the knife)
She nodded and with shivering hands tore his T Shirt with the dagger. In order to make her comfortable, Dev looked sideways while Chandini liked his chivalrous behaviour. Chandini kept aside the pieces of the torn cloth and was momentarily shocked to see his body smeared with blood. For a second she looked away and closing her eyes opened them again filling them with courage.
Chandini (kneeling in front of Dev) - Goli kaha mehsoos ho rahi hai (Where do you feel the bullet?)
Dev pointed at the middle of his right shoulder blade. She heated up the knife and once it was hot enough, she told him to hold her tightly. He knew his tight hold would pain her more and hence he bunched some hay in his fists and closed it
Dev (in between ragged breaths and closing his eyes) - Taiyaar hu (I am ready)
Chandini knew that the more time she takes, it would be more painful. Therefore, she quickly placed the hot knife on his wound while he squirmed in pain. Chandini kept the edge of the knife around the skin where the bullet was present and Dev writhed in pain. After 2-3 attempts, Chandini successfully removed the bullet and Dev opened his fists gasping for air. The blood trickled down his body and Chandini frantically searched for a something to stop the blood. Having no other option, she unwrapped her cotton and tore it in several pieces some small and long. Dev looked at the girl who was not even caring for her dignity in the wake to treat him. When she discarded her dupatta, he was flabbergasted to see purplish marks on the skin visible on her neck and ripped kurta. He looked away at once so to not let uneasiness to creep in. Chandini dipped one of the pieces in the warm water to clean his wounds and stop the bleeding. Before she could touch his wound, Dev gestured her to wear his jacket. She looked at him stunned with tears glistening her eyes and in that moment her respect for this man increased manifolds. She took it without any hesitation and covered herself. Resuming her chore, she firstly cleansed the cuts and gashes on his chest and stomach. Then wiped the blood off his face while he continued to look away. For once, she even slightly smiled at this injured man and ceased for a second to check out his handsome face. There were some bruises on his forehead as well; for that she folded a piece of her dupatta and tied it around his head like a headband. Eventually she came to the bullet injury on his right shoulder which was a quite a big patch. Probably, he would ven require few stitches but till then it was important to tightly cover it. Taking a long piece of her fabric, she sealed all his injuried in such a way that it sprawled over the expanse of his back and front across his right shoulder enveloping all of them. Once done, she made him drink some water and asked to sleep. His phone rang and it was Siddharth's call. He urged her to pick up the call and explain the address to him.
Siddharth - Hello, Dev kaha hai tu? Thik toh hai na? (Dev, where are you? Are you fine?)
Chandini (softly) - Aapke dost ko goli lagi hai. Par fikra ki koi baat nhi hai, maine goli nikaal di hai (Your friend has been hit by a bullet. But don't worry I have removed it)
Siddharth - Aap kaun...matlab...(You..how..)
Chandini - Yaha ka pata likh lijiye (Note down the address)
She dictated him the address and urged him to reach as fast as possible. When she was about to return his phone, something crossed her mind
Chandini - Mujhe bhi ek call karna hai. Aapki ijaazat ho toh, kya mai aapka phone istemaal kar sakti (I want to make a call too. Please let me use your phone)
He nodded and she moved few feet away dialing some number. After few minutes, she came back and handed his phone muttering a thanks. Dev saw her lips turning blue, rubbing her palms and shivering slightly.
Dev - Ya..yahaa pe koi aisa kona hai jahaa thodi garmaahat hogi? (Is there any corner where it would be a bit warmer?)
Thinking for a while, she informed him that it would be warmer at the far end of the barn. He got up with much difficulty and signaled her to lead. Reaching there, he again slumped against the wall.
Dev (regaining his strength a bit) - Mhaare muh par paani maar. Aur tu yahaa aake sojaa. Thaara bhi haal kuch thik nahi hai (Sprinkle some water on my face and you come here and sleep. You too are not well)
As said, she sprinkled some water on his face and took a seat besides him. He supported his head on the pillar besides him and stretched both his legs in front. Chandini was finding it hard to find a comfortable position to sleep and that is how Dev noticed her.
Dev (hesitatingly) - Tu chaahe toh mere god me sar rakhkar so sakti hai (If you wish, you can rest your head on my lap and sleep)
Initially reluctant for few minutes, she finally shred off her inhibitions and slept laying her head on his lap. Sleep took over her almost immediately while Dev kept staring at her innocent face for a long time and eventually fell into a deep slumber
He could hear someone calling out his name and when he opened his saggy eyes fully he saw Siddharth patting his face. Dev got up at once, but shouted in pain as he realised that he was injured. He lookes around to see the girl who saved him yesterday but she was not present
Dev (gasping) - Woh...woh ladki (That...that girl)
Siddharth - Ham jab aaye tab koi nhi tha yaha pe (There was no one when we came here)
But Dev didn't hear him as he slipped into unconsciousness. He woke up to find himself in a hospital covered with tubes. The doctor came and asked as to how he was feeling.
Dev - Much better Doctor
Doctor - Good that you had removed the bullet at the right time otherwise it could have been a bone injury. Must say, you had bandaged the wounds with great expertise. Because of which you didn't lose excess blood as the bleeding was stopped due to the tight dressing
Dev - How many days to heal this wound?
Doctor - 2-3 days are enough. But you ought to be careful with it
The 3 days when he was in hospital, not for once did Chandini's thought leave his mind. Where she would be? Will she be fine? All these thoughts were bugging him making him restless. He just hoped to meet her once and thank her for her help. Once he was discharged, he took his bike and resumed his journey to Delhi by road. On the way, he stopped near the Kalighati forest for some camping as he needed to refresh himself and removed Chandini from his senses. That is when he had received an SOS from ATS stating an emergency in this area at 1:30 am in the night.
Present
He was jolted back to present when he heard the click of the bathroom door open. Dev took his clothes and left the room. Chandini came in the hall drying her hair with the towel while Dev was lost as she seemed like a fresh dew drop. He closed his eyes and inhaled her scent. She gave a jerk to the towel and hung it dry that is when he came out of his reverie. Dev dashed into his room to take a bath. Minutes later, he emerged dressed in his uniform looking breathtakingly handsome. Chandini was awestruck seeing him in the uniform as he looked much different from his casual avatar.
There was always something distinct and unique about the men in uniform. They were a perfect blend of pride, respect, handsomeness, patriotism and class. Her trance was broken when he snapped his fingers at her. Her cheeks turned red as he caught her openly staring at him and looked sideways to hide her embarrassment. Dev took her to the kitchen to explain her
Dev - Khaana banana aata hai? (Do you know cooking?)
Chandini looked down and nodded
Dev - Yeh bread aur ande hai, jam hai, butter hai..jo jee mei aaye naashtaa banake khaa lena. Fridge mei sabzi rakhi hai dopahar ke khaane ke liye bana sakti hai. Yeh raha namak, aataa, chai ki patti, shakkar. Abhi ke liye itna kaafi hai shaayad (This is bread, eggs, jam, butter...whatever you wish you can make and eat. There are some vegetables in the fridge which you can use to make lunch. This is salt, flour, tea leaves, sugar. For time being, this is enough)
Then taking her to the hall, he showed her the cordless phone. He wrote down something on the piece of paper and gave her
Dev - Yeh mera mobile number hai aur office ka number. Kuch bhi puchna ho toh bejhijhak manne phone laga dena. Mai chalta hu. Der ho rahi hai (This is my mobile and office number. Whatever you want to ask, feel free to call. I should leave now)
As he neared the door, Chandini said
Chandini - Suniye (Listen)
Dev (turning back) - Bol (Tell)
Chandini - Apna khayaal rakhiye (Take care)
He nodded and left with a rare smile pasted on his lips.
Shiv Shakti
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
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