Chapter 25 - Adrenaline
Arnav felt everything slowing down around him.
His breathing.
The blood flowing in his veins.
The beating of his heart.
The flicker of his eyelids.
Everything faded away.
No sounds penetrated his ears.
No sights impinged on his peripheral vision.
All he saw was Shyam standing in front of him. All he waited for, was for Shyam to move his fingers. One little bit. Just one little bit.
With a flick of his finger, Shyam slipped the lid of the holster. The crowd gasped. His hand flew up, as his finger squeezed the trigger. A flash of light erupted from his gun.
Just after another flash erupted from Arnav's hand. The two shots almost merging into each other, while puffs of smoke cloaked the two men for a second.
Arnav spun around and dropped to the ground on one knee, his back to Shyam.
Shyam jerked once, and brought his gun up again. A flash of light came from Aman's side as he shot from his hip. Shyam kept bringing his gun up even as a red bloom blossomed on his stomach. He fired again. This time Aman went back, jerking as his legs gave way.
Akash had his gun trained on Shyam, and he held it as Shyam let go his gun and slowly toppled backwards. Akash ran to Arnav, kicking away Shyam's gun as he did so, even as Tim ran to Aman.
'Is he dead?' Arnav grimaced.
'I don't know,' Akash shook his head, his knowing fingers flying over the red stain on Arnav's shoulder, as he checked him. 'It's only a flesh wound. Bullet went through. You'll survive,' he declared smugly.
'Help me up,' Arnav groaned, favouring his shoulder.
Akash put his arm around Arnav, helping him stand. The two of them moved over to Shyam. The red dust of the street was soaking up the darker red blood that pumped in gushes from the wound in his leg, and his gut. Shyam's eyes were glazing over.
Akash knelt beside him, feeling for a pulse. 'He's alive,' he said. 'But only just.'
The crowd moved closer. Shyam's eyes flickered open. He looked for Arnav and then raised a hand to beckon him over. Arnav held onto the shoulder that hurt his pride more than it did him. For the first time, El Puma had missed his target. And he knew why. He'd allowed his love for his sister to mess with his concentration. That he couldn't tell his sister that he had killed the man that she'd in all probability been in love with. But he would never admit to it. He crouched down next to Shyam.
'What is it?' he said through clenched jaws. Shyam beckoned him closer. He leant over and growled, 'well?'
'Tell Anjali ... I am ... sorry ... I am sorry I ... brought her ... pain. Not once ... but twice,' Shyam gasped. He breathed deeply through his nose, trying to rid his mind of the aching, burning pain in his gut. He couldn't feel his legs anymore. He made to speak again, but had to wait as another spasm of pain ran through him.
He smiled up at Arnav and Akash, a thin stream of blood trickling from his mouth. 'I really ... love her, you know.' He frowned, breathed harshly, gathering strength for his final words. 'I ... love her ... and those two ... brats. Tell Drew ... and Dev ... I am ... sorry.' One solitary tear trickled down his temple. He sighed and went still, a small smile still on his face.
Arnav and Akash sat stunned.
Then Akash stirred. 'Take them both to my clinic,' he instructed Tim, who was holding up Aman. Shyam's shot had gone high, catching him in the shoulder as well. His eyes flicked at Arnav once and then down at Shyam. 'Take him to the icehouse,' he said softly, slowly closing Shyam's eyes, before he stood up, helping his brother up too.
Aman leant on Tim, looking around him. 'Where's El Coyote?' he asked, peering into the long shadows cast by the setting sun.
All heads turned around, swiveling in every way.
'Gone!' said Big Jim. 'Dammit! The man is gone!'
Aman gritted his teeth. 'Put a Wanted poster out on that man, Jim,' he said.
'Uh. Sheriff,' Big Jim shuffled his feet.
'What?' Aman snapped.
'Without Shyam and his testimony, what would we be charging him with?' Big Jim asked.
Aman stared at him. It was true. They had nothing against El Coyote. But Aman was willing to put it all together, circumstantial though it was. 'We all know he was behind everything,' he said. 'We can link him to Striking-S and to Shyam. It should be enough,' he barked.
Jim nodded, unconvinced.
The small procession made its way to Akash's clinic. Halfway there, a flying bundle rushed down the street and flung itself into Aman's chest. He groaned loudly as it wrapped around his waist. He'd been wounded lightly as well, the bullet grazing across his waist, which was where Ela was now clutching him hard.
'Marry her already, Sheriff,' Arnav called, walking away, leaning on his brother.
The crowd tittered with laughter as Ela brought her lips up to Aman's and kissed him soundly. Catcalls and whoops rent the air.
'What happened to the rest of the men?' Arnav asked Akash under cover of the noise.
Akash shook his head. 'I don't know. I had my eyes on Shyam. I think El Coyote ran right then. Coward as he is, he's probably high-tailed it out of town.'
'We need to follow him,' Arnav grimaced. 'Perhaps we should ask Shining Cloud to track him.'
'Leave it, bro,' Akash urged. 'Circle-R and Box-Lightning are safe. Shyam is dead and the threat is removed. It's time we had a little peace in our lives.'
'Except Sis,' Arnav murmured in an aching voice after a long pause.
'Except sis,' Akash echoed equally achingly.
'Why?'
'Perhaps because there's someone out there for her, and she hasn't found him yet,' Akash mused. A pause. 'Or perhaps she hasn't opened her eyes to see him in front of her.'
For once, Arnav was struck silent by this almost philosophical side of his brother. Thankfully, they had reached the clinic and the crowd went in, some hanging around outside to discuss the strange happenings of the day.
***
The saloon had been crowded, people gathering together wanting to know the truth of the matter and why it had all happened as it had. The strange story of Shyam Manohar Jha would be told around many drinks and fires that night.
It was late when Ela helped Aman climb the stairs to her room.
'I need to go to the office, Ela,' Aman mumbled. He'd been given a tisane by Akash and was feeling pleasantly drowsy, the pain in his side now reduced to a dull throb. 'Paperwork,' he reminded her.
'Paperwork be damned,' she said forcefully, opening the door and helping the two of them into the room. 'You need to rest and let that cut heal.'
'I'm not a baby to be mollycoddled, Ela,' he held up a foot as she tugged his boot off.
'No, of course you're not,' she gritted out, tugging on his other boot. 'But it wouldn't hurt to rest tonight, now would it?'
He flopped back on the bed as the boot came off. His hands on her hips pulled her back to lie down on top of him.
'Ouch!' he grunted, shifting her weight.
She rolled off him, and then turned so her face was in the crook of his neck. Her arms coming around his waist as she hugged him close. He felt her shivering and even in the muddled fog in his brain he knew something was wrong.
'Ela?' he whispered, when he felt the dampness on his neck.
'I was so scared when you went down,' she sniffed, before she slapped his chest lightly. Then she started picking apart his buttons. 'For a moment I thought ... something bad ... had happened to you.' She sniffed.
'I'm too ornery to die so easily, Ela,' he grinned as the fog in his mind receded. He drew a deep sigh and turned to face her, careful to keep his injured side free. 'You were worried for me?'
She nodded, flicking opening another button. He held her wandering hand as she said, 'very worried.'
Soothing calm settled into his heart. 'Marry me, Ela,' he whispered. 'Make me the happiest man there is in Yerba. In all of the United States.'
For a moment he didn't think she'd heard him, for she went completely still. Then she sat up, one arm running up and down his shoulder, his arm, his chest as her other arm supported her. She lifted her long dark lashes and a small dimple appeared next to her mouth.
'I thought you'd never ask,' her voice was deep and husky.
'Why not?' he raised his head so he could look into her eyes. 'You knew how I felt about you,' he claimed.
'I did. But a lady likes to hear it,' she sat up and toyed with the hair on his chest.
He shifted himself so that he could lie down with his head on the pillows. Holding his hand out to her, his eyes half-closed, almost asleep, he said, 'I love you and I want you in my life every day of my life, Ela,' in his honey-flavoured voice with a deep rasp of sleep running through it. 'Tis no joke.'
She searched his eyes, resting her chin on her hands, which rested in turn on his chest. 'I know,' she said equally seriously.
'Well?' he quirked an eyebrow.
'Yes, of course,' finally her smile came out like the sun. 'Of course, I will.'
'Come here and make me believe it, woman,' he growled, his hands wandering to the hem of her gown and bunching it up.
'Gladly, my husband-to-be,' she acquiesced, snuggling into his side.
***
It was quite early the next morning when the knock came on Akash's door. Arnav was fast asleep, the tisane having worked on him with none of the distracting effects that Aman's had.
Akash however, was awake and just rinsing his face after shaving. He frowned, wondering who it could be this early in the morning. He opened the door to see NK standing there.
'NK!' he exclaimed, smiling broadly, really glad to see Arnav's foreman. He threw the door wide open. 'Come on in,' he said.
'Doc, is ASR here?' NK asked, stepping into the cosy living room. He looked like he hadn't slept all night.
Akash noticed the shadows under his eyes. 'He's here. He's hurt but alive. Aman's injured, too.'
'Shyam?' NK asked hesitantly, his eyes narrowed, tension taut in every fibre of his body.
Akash sighed. 'Dead.'
NK raised his brows. 'How?'
The two men sat down at the dining table as the housekeeper brought in two cups of coffee. They glanced at her and nodded their thanks before they went back to their conversation.
'Arnav confronted him. He drew first, but Arnav fired first.' Akash frowned. 'For the first time that I can remember, in a very long time, mind you, Arnav missed. I don't know what was wrong with bro that he would miss at that close a distance.'
NK narrowed his eyes. 'ASR missed killing Shyam?'
Akash nodded. 'Gutted him though. But Shyam winged him, then tried to take out Aman and was shot in the leg. Must have hit an artery.' Akash could remember how the blood had pulsed as it flowed. 'He lost too much blood.'
NK sipped his coffee, unwilling to break the quiet. Finally he looked up at Akash and said, 'what of Miss Anjali?'
Akash shook his head, much like he'd done the previous day. A soft thud made them both turn their heads towards the sound.
'Sis will be okay,' Arnav stood in the doorway, leaning his jean-clad hip against the jamb, his hair tousled from sleep, a sling holding his arm in place. He strolled into the room, and pulled out a chair, sitting down and looking for coffee. The housekeeper placed a cup in front of him. He took a deep appreciative sip, only to see that both Akash and NK were looking at him peculiarly.
'How's Sis?' he asked NK.
'Holding up so far,' NK said. He moved his gaze away when Arnav narrowed his eyes at him. 'She's been down, ASR. What would you do? '
Arnav shook his head, more to try to dispel the underlying thread of anger in NK's voice. 'I didn't mean anything by it, NK.' The men sipped their coffees in silence for a while.
'How bad is it?' NK gestured at his shoulder.
'Could have been worse,' Arnav drawled.
'Never known you to miss a target, bro,' Akash remarked, 'and one at thirty paces?'
A slow flush stained Arnav's cheekbones as he in turn dropped his gaze.
Akash watched it with growing understanding. He hadn't wanted Shyam's blood on his hands! He didn't want to have been the one who killed the man his sister loved! He reached out a hand and gripped Arnav's.
NK looked from one to the other, reading the message just as Akash had done.
'Khushi's been quiet, too,' NK offered. Arnav looked up at him from under his brows. 'She's been missing you, I think,' he turned a too wide-eyed innocent gaze at Arnav. Akash pressed his lips together to stop himself from laughing.
Arnav glared at him before getting up and disappearing inside.
'I brought the gig to take you back, ASR,' NK called after him as both he and Akash chuckled at Arnav's disgruntled look.
'You can ride it back,' Arnav yelled at him.
****
