Ch-1
As my consciousness was coming back to me slowly, I felt like coming out from the dark tunnel. My head was feeling so heavy due to dizziness and a smell of smoke entered in my nose. When my vision got cleared my eyes fell on the stony ceiling enlightened by the shaking light of bonfire.
With heavy gasp I woke up in jerk and my head spin again. The effect of chloroform didn't left my nerve still.
"Uff!!..." I rubbed my forehead to get over the dizziness. Slowly the fog in my mind was getting clearer by the time. I remembered the whole thing. How I escaped from haveli secretly and rushing on the dark roads. Gun fire sound, Akhil's call, and those guards and then... Someone was there... who dragged me inside. As I remembered that particular incident my whole feature jerked up in shock.
"Uth gayi?!..." a male voice, cunning and sarcastic by nature, mixing with slight childish tone hit my ear followed by a chuckle making my heart jump again. I didn't notice that I was not alone there. Someone is there with me.
I knew that voice really well. For the past few days that voice was sometimes a danger sign, a nightmare or sometimes a real big puzzle just like its owner. Slowly I looked around to search for the source of voice. I had a thorough check of my surrounding and I could see the stony ceiling and stony wall around with a single way out and there was any other artificial light rather than the bonfire whose smoke invoked in my nose earlier. It seemed like I was in some hilly cave like place. I remembered that there was a hill range on the northern area of village and I heard that there were some old caves on the height.
At last I found him, seating on the other side of the bonfire resting his head on the stony wall slightly twitching his head, fixing his eyes towards mine. His hairs seemed a bit messy, falling over his forehead; he was wearing the same fade military print jacket with black jeans like I saw him in morning. Keeping his arm casually over his folded knee he was observing me silently with his dark brown mystic eyes. Those eyes hold their own secret. I saw those eyes getting furious like the destroyer god, burning the flame of eternal rage inside them, sometimes it shows a mysterious agony and vulnerability unlike his undefeatable nature and sometimes there was a mild smile of mischief just like the moment as he was watching me reflecting that mild smirk on his lips as the impression of fire illuminated in the perfect mirror of his orbs.
That smirk of him broke my trance as I understood that I was actually staring him for a long pause like idiot and the realization stuck me that he was the one who chloroformed me on the dark alley and abducted me here. The moment of shock finally left and I could feel the anger rising on my head.
"TUM?!!!..." I asked with a bitter disgusted voice.
"Haan main!!..." he just answered in simple words widening his smirk in a way which indicated as if I was giving him a very good quality entertainment and he was enjoying that thoroughly.
"Mujhe aise idiot ki tarah ghurna bandh karo please!!..." I literally felt uncomfortable while he stared me like that sometimes. That particular gaze had something unusual, a mystical intense vibe which shivers me sometimes. "Kyun layein hoo mujhe yahan?!" I asked with hard voice.
He took a big yawn snapping his fingers in front of his big open mouth throwing a careless attitude indicating that my angry words were nothing effective to him, "Woo kya hain naa,..." he pronounced with indifferent face poking his pinky finger in his ear, "Idhar gaon mein thare raheneke liye five star hotel too naa milega... too jabtak sare dange-hungame thande nahin parte tabtak yahan chupna parega..."
"Chupna parega?!!... Kis sey?!!" I asked in utter confused voice as nothing was getting in my head.
"Rey apne dimag koo haveli chor ayi key?!... Dekha nahin kaise malik ke sare kutte banduk leke raste pe nikle huye the thare ko dhundne!!..." irritation was clear in his voice, "Kutton ki dangal aaj poori raat bhokengey... Iss liye apne ghar pe naa le jaa saka... shak hoo jata..." he said calmly.
"Ohh please!!... You mean to say tum mujhe unn gundo se bacha rahe hoo?!!..." I asked in total disbelieve, "Abb please yee sab dramma bandh karo... Kissi aur larki pe chaho too try kar lo par sorry mujhpe nahin chalega... Mujhe achi tarah se pata hain ki kuchi der mein tumhare malik yahan a rahe hain mujhe phir se kaid karne ke liye... Or I presume ki woo yahin kissi andhere kone mein baith ke tamasha dekh rahe hongey... So what are you waiting for?!... Bulaao unhe... aur tum humesha ki tarah side line pe khare hoo jao apne malik se paise le kar..." I almost burst to him with boiled head. I had spend almost a fortnight with them and knew their traits really well. All of them were born traitor and the man seating over there, was the definition of loyalty, even more faithful than dog. I was sure that he brought me there just to hand over me to his master. Even sun and moon can change their way but not his loyalty.
As I stopped myself after bursting the angry banters I was totally surprised by the sheer silence from his side. His eyes were totally fixed upon me all the time and it got darker with my every word. The silence was not normal like always. It had some danger approaching sign.
"Thara dimag kaa Chula thanda par gaya too mhari baat bhi sun le..." He said as usual quietly but the new found hash edge with shivers down my spine almost. It made me thought that if I had speak anything wrong.
"Thare koo malik ke hatho dena hota too tera 50 kilo weight le kar yun 100 feet ki charayi nahin charta... sidhe patak ke atta haveli pe..." his cold voice was like natural warning and even if I was offended I preferred to stay quiet for a while and to listen to him so that I at least could understand his real intention. I was still not ready to believe that his loyalty suddenly took a 180 degree turn and he was actually helping me out of the mess.
"Yee jagah gaon se thora door hain..." he said looking towards the outward way, "Yahan sayad naa ayein...par kutton kaa koi bharosa nahin... kab sungte huye aa jayein!!" I could see the slight worry in his voice and it amused me even more that he was actually being concerned for someone rather than his master and that too for me. Some days ago, he was hell bent to expose me to his master while I was living in their house with a fake identity. But all of a sudden he was helping me out. As I observed him I tried to detect hard if he had any hidden motive like always behind his so called concern but I couldn't detect anything.
"Apna ankh aur kaan dono khula rakhna aur apna loud speaker kaa volume bhi kam rakhna.." he said in his as usual sarcastic tone. As he finished giving me a commanding look I stood up giving him a hard look of denial, arranging the messed up costly lehenga I was wearing for the function. I should have changed my outfit before escaping but I didn't have time at all. I had only one chance and if I missed that I could have never come out of the place.
He seemed a bit startled by my sudden move. As I arranged the orni looking towards the outward way he might have assumed my intentions.
"Baheri hain ke?!..." he said with harsh annoyed voice, "Kya kahan tha kuch der pahele suna nahin?!.. Abhi bahar jana risk hain!!...Koi dekh lega to..."
"And you think ki main tumhari batein maan ke yahan chup chap baith jaungi?!" I frowned angrily, "Listen mr... mujhe nahin pata ki tum sach mein meri madad karna chahte hoo yaa iss ke piche bhi tum logo ki koi chal hain... But ek baat kaan khol ke sun lo... main uss insaan se kabhi madad nahin le sakti jiskey hath kissi kee khoon se range ho... You get that?!..."
"Ohh madam!!..." he was mad by the time and his harsh voice almost made me stop midway, " Yee Ajmer ke sarak chap gunde nahin hain joo tumhare chappal ke maar kha ke bhag jayengey... sare ke sare pauche huye gundey hain... ekbaar unke hath aaogi naa too tumhe andaza bhi nahin ki kya halat bana dengey!!" he stood up blurting angrily.
"Tumhe woo sab sochne ki zarurat nahin hain okk?!.." I answered back with same angry tone, "Main apna khayal khud rakh sakti hoon... and for your kind information.. agar tum mujhe yahan kidnap kar ke nahin le ate too main abtak iss gaon se bahar bhi jaa chuki hoti..."
"Kaise?!... zara mhare koo bhi bata naa?!..." he asked with a slight comical hint in his eyes, "Miss Chappalwali ban ke unn 100 gundo kee AK 47 koo chappal maar ke urana tha kya?!..." the mock was clear in his voice as he strode nearer me.
"Shut up!!... Would you stop referring me by that idiotic nickname!!" I said in quite loud voice. I got that irritated chappalwali' nickname from him since we met.
"Acha?!... Thare ne joo apna ghatiya saa naam rakha tha uss se too kafi acha hain... Kya naam rakha tha apna... BINDIYA!!!...aisa lagta tha ki sidhe 50 ki black n white movie se nikal ke ayi huyi piece ho... Koi acha saa naam nahin rakh sakta tha?!..." he said snarling.
"Ohh acha?!!..." I crossed my hand, "you mean to say ki yahan ane se pahele mujhe tumhe call kar ke tumhara advice lena chahiye tha... like,... Hello RANGEELA Ji... Hum aap ke gaon mein aa rahe hain aur woo bhi app ke haveli mein rahene ke liye... par problem yee hain ki mujeh wahan apni asli pahechan chupana parega... too please mere liye koi acha saa naam suggest kr dijiye... WOW!!!... Tab too mujhe itni takleef uthani hi nahin parti... kyun?!!"
"Dimag kaa atta bana diya!!..." he scratched his head in irritation, "Madam, tumhare loud speaker ki battery khatam nahin hoti kya?!!"
"Rahene do..." I said angrily, "Tumhe joo pasand ayein wohi naam se bulaa loo mujhe...BTW why should I even be bothered... mera asli naam too sayad tum bhul hi gaye hoo...I even doubt ki tumhe pata hain!!..." I took a deep breath to compose myself. "BTW... main yahan pe tumhare sath bakbak kyun kar rahi hoon... listen mr, I am going... And don't you dare to stop me..." bursting all my anger and frustration upon his confused face I looked away turning to other side and stomping towards exit. I was almost about to step out from then suddenly his tender yet intense voice spoke.
"MEERA!!!..."
And my feet immediately stopped on the exit, thumping my heart in heavy pace as I heard my actual name after long from someone's mouth.