CHAPTER 10:
Its easy to say that the case was 2 year back. But in records it goes much beyond it. its almost 3 years now. Aman had to go undercover to get hold of James, a well known name in the drug mafiya, who had a connection with many in the upper position. To get hold of him, Aman had to go much deeper. Then he was named Rishab, a helpless drug addict with a middleclass background, who could do anything for it. the desperate Rishab won James trust with a lot of effort, it took almost 3 months for that step. And he needed that trust to reach to the 'factory', the adda of stored drugs in Mumbai. James was one among them who was about to be promoted to the level where he could have the direct access to the factory.
That was when he met Nadiya...
She had a pair of eyes that caught his eyes whenever he failed to detach it from hers. The more he tried to know about her, the more she became a mystery. And the 'unexpected' raids which were 'not' from his tip off made it difficult for him too.
And later she came to know the real Nadiya, who was a drug peddler herself. She was under Desai, who was the manager of the hotel were she danced. Somewhere it hit him that she too was a part of the racket which he was about to expose. But why?? That was a question that he couldn't answer.
One day he saw her beating a man who had tried his luck in holding her arms. The ferocious tigress impressed him. She never needed his help when he came forward with it. Instead she growled at him too. "kaafi din se dekh raha hu tumhe, mere peecha karna chod do. Warna anjaam bura hoga"
"par Nadiya..."
"oh, tho naam bhi janthe ho!! tho patha karke dekhlo ke Nadiya ki peeche karne ka kya anjaam hoga. Its my last warning to you..."
And with that she walked away. He could have stopped her then and there and given back his reply but he didn't.
Some days later, he again came across her. Before she could bash in, he took the charge. "Dekho Nadiya, this place is not for you. Chale jao yaha se"
She had given him her glare and walked away.
And all that happened long back...
He was now in his cabin, where he felt a presence of something bigger than life around him. Hecould feel it, but not understand it. Maybe some things are meant to be left like that.
Liza pops in to cabin. "Sir, Rathod sir bula rahe hai". he nods and goes to the hall. All looked fine except the stress in some eyes.
Sam: ok, team we have a case. Mr. Syam Malhotra, head of SM industries got some threatening call few days back, which he avoided considering it as a prank. And today he is found dead in his apartment. His brother have called us for help, so lets move in.
The team goes to the SUV and reaches the spot. It looked at first look that it was a suicide, which was stricked off considering that the victim was a left hander and the bullet was pierced at the right temple.
Sam: Aman, tum aur Sree, Syam ke office jao aur patha lagao kuch miltha hai ke nahi. By that time, mien aur Chotu yaha puchthach karthe hai. Liza, take the body for post mortem.
All nods yes, but Sree seemed lost. Aman noticed it and thought of giving him some time. so he walked towards the SUV. Chotu goes by Sree and places his hands on the shoulder. "Sree, sir tumhare wait kar rahe hai"
Sr: patha nahi Chotu, bohot ajeeb sa lag raha hai.
Ch: I know Sree, but its our work. Aur kaam ke beech me aise koi bath ane nhai chahiye. Arjun sir bhi yahi kaha hai na?
Sr: (exhaling deeply) sahi kaha tune. Ok, I won't make him wait for long.
SUV:
Aman was at the driving seat, occasionally glancing at Sree, who kept himself busy in his ipad. At last it looked he was almost free. Aman took this opportunity. "Sree..."
Before he could say anything, Sree cuts in. "Sir, Victim ke purane phone records check kiya hai. wo call ek fake id pe registered hai, jo koi bade baath nahi hai. it happenes almost everytime now. par unke bank statements kuch aur hi kahani batharahe hai. pichle do mahine mien he withdrew good amount of money, wo bhi 7 din ke gap mien. Kabhi 1 lakh, kabhi usse bhi zyada. Ye 7 days gap between the withdrawals makes it suspicious. Kahi unhe koi black mail tho nahi kar rahe the?"
Aman was pleased with this guy. Kuch bhi ho, ye ladka hai tho kaam ke.
Aman: kya withdrawal ke time aur unse related koi phone record hai. I mean, uss withdrawal ke time me hi koi call ya aisa kuch.
Sree checks it out again. A faint smile comes in. "you are right sir. Withdrawal ke kuch time baad ek number pe call jathe the. Number kisi Arun Mehta ke naam pe hai."
Aman: patha lagao wo kaun hai. aur Rathod ko bhi inform karo. Send that address to him.
Sree acts immediately. By that time they reach the office. Sree was about to get down when Aman called him back. "Sree..." he turns to Aman.
Aman: I know tum mere aane se uthne khush nahi ho. and I wont blame you too. Dekho Sree, mien tumhare Arjun sir ko zyada nahi janthe. But ithna tho janthe hai ke wo ek bohot kabil offcer the. Aur tum logonke bathon se ye bhi patha chala hai ke tum unke kaafi kareeb the.
Sree looks down. He wished to run away from there. But Aman was his senior, and he was bound to listen to him.
Aman: mien kabhi bhi tumhare Arjun sir ko replace karna nahi aye hai Sree. Aur naahi kabhi kar paunga. I know we need some time to know each other. I hope you would give me some time too.
Sree nods his head slightly. Aman could see a glitter in his eyes behind those specks. Aman gets down the SUV leaving Sree in it. After a while Sree takes his side, almost composing himself. "sir, I'm sorry if I have hurt you. Baath sirf ye hai ke, mien unke jagah kisi aur ko dekh nahi paraha hu. It hurts."
Aman: unke jagah pe nahi Sree, mien sirf unke cabin use kar raha hu. Ho sake tho mujhe bhi ek jagah dedena is team me.
Sr: aapko bohot bura lag rahe hai na sir? After all you are our senior. Aur hum apko aise welcome kar rahe hai.
Aman: bura nahi laga Sree. In fact I'm surprised in the way you guys form a family over here. Mien usually undercover missions pe jathe the. Tho aise group works mien zyada time nahi mila. Its good to see a family atmosphere.
Sr: family atmosphere... I wish aap thode jaldi athe... you could have seen a bigger family in our team.
Aman knew where this was leading to. "Sree, personal problems apart, lets solve this case, and that too as a team"
Sree gives a sad smile to him. "yes Sir, lets go for it"
Aman gives him a reassuring smile and they walks off to the office for the interrogation.
The case was solved easier now. The team work was evident. It was an easy to crack case, with the victim being murdered by his own brother to take over the business. The fake call in the name of Arun Mehta and that blackmail were a part of the plan to mislead the police. But by the end of the day, it was cracked up.
Sam: team complete the paper works. Mujhe Com. sir se milna hai.
The team gets back to work. Rathod was with Coelho.
Co: bolo Rathod, hows the team with Aman?
Sam: well pehle kuch starting trouble the. Par now it's going fine it seems.
Co: tumhe kuch bathana tha shayad.
Sam: ha sir. (he looked happy) Sir, Aisha ne reply kiya. She may be coming soon.
Co: that's good news Rathod. Kuch aur bathaya? Time ya day?
Sam: nahi sir, bas ithna hi kaha hai ke zyada kuch math expect karo. But I'm sure sir, ek baar usse ane do, fir usse hamare baath manna hi hoga.
Allahabad:
She was ready to go. The train was fixed for the next night. The whole day she was busy completing her unfinished work. Her going away was a shock for the school authorities and the students. But she had to take this step. She wrote a good bye letter for Swati and placed it inside her door.
It was her last night in this house. She was pacing up and down feeling the air that was accompanying her for 2 years. She sat back in her rocking chair with her laptop with her. He was still smiling at her.
She opened the folder that had some hidden memories with the team. Sameer Rathod, Sree, Chotu, Liza, herself and Arjun...
How was she going to face them? They would be angry with her for sure. But how long? She couldn't blame them. They are right in blaming her. After all she had just vanished in thin air after...
A tiny drop of tear rolled down her cheeks. He caught it in his hands. She looked at him.
"wo sab naraz hoge Arjun... aapke saath meine bhi unhe chod diya tha na... sab bohot naraz hoge..."
"daro math Aisha... naraz unhi se hotha hai, jo dil ke bohot kareeb hothe hai. look ahead Aisha... there is still life ahead of you... kya patha kahi na kahi..."
She looked at his face again. There was a slight smile on his lips. "kahi na kahi kya Arjun..."
She felt his hands on her hair. She closed at the feel. "Wapas Mumbai pohoncho Aisha... tumhare har sawal ke jawab wahi hai..."
Cricket
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