*From & To Sathish* - Thread 4 - Page 21

Woah! Stunned to read the unexpected twist in "Jannal Oram"...the new avatar of Ram as your icon...and a new, unique username to match it, Satish!!
Happy to see the change. It's warmly welcomed.
Brought a smile to my face too.
Thank you. And keep writing please.

Thank you spain.It really matters and means a lot to me when a member takes time to write back to me and also comments about the story that i am writing.All the best.

Jannal oram 183


Raman continued to stare at her,unblinking,unfeeling,cold as death and his eyes flickered as jeeva opened her beautiful lips and spat ' kill,kill.Kill them all.If someone was the reason behind my sister's death,then don't stop until all traces of them have been wiped out.'


The words uttered in pain,the request from a broken soul,the command from his queen of hearts was enough and Raman nodded in such a subtle manner that even his parents whose eyes were glued to him did not catch what had just transpired and then softly Raman spoke ' i will be out of town for a while and should be back in a couple of days,depending on the work involved.'

Jeeva's eyes opened wider with more tears at the mention of the word work and Raman smiled assuringly ' i am going to keep my mobile switched off and i will call you from a new phone every few hours.So wait for my call and do not speak of this to anybody and i mean not even to my own family.You understand right.'

Jeeva nodded and raman gently hugged her to his chest ' sweetie,you have to be bold and strong for your parents and for my parents too.for they too have been shaken to the core by this tragedy.Will you watch out for them until i come back.'

' I will forward Mr.Devarajan's number and call him if you need anything or if any emergency should arise.Okay baby.'

He cupped her cheeks in his strong hands and stared into her eyes ' i would gladly give up my life,all my happiness just to make you well again and to bring back suja to you and your parents.But i am not a god jeeva and i don't know what to do or how to perform such a miracle.'

Jeeva's tears flowed and gathered in his cupped palms and they clenched in anger and energy as his spoke in that same growl ' I might not be god and i know i cannot bring suja back to life.But i am a man and a monster and i have the power in me to take lives and if i do find the person or person responsible for suja's death,i will deal with them and mete out the same justice that god has given our suja.'

Jeeva's heart broke in pain hearing Raman speak so harshly for what stood before her now was not the sweet,gentle,kind and forgiving man she thought of as a hero for herself and for the world but an avenging angel.

She whispered ' you are going to dirty your hands with blood and violence for my sake.How do i live with that kind of burden my hero?'

' Justice jeeva,justice for you,suja and for all of us is the only balm that can soothe our souls and ease our pain.No god and no miracle can heal us or take away this pain from our hearts.'

Softly smiling ' Leave all that to me for now we have one last thing to do for suja and that is immerse her ashes and send her away to the universe that gave her to us.Come,walk with me boldly and be the strength that everyone so desperately need to get over this difficult period.'

They collected the Urn of ashes and all of them came out and kavita came up to jeeva ' jeeva,your parents refused to go back home and so they are resting in my vehicle.'

Jeeva looked at kavita with gratitude ' Ma'am,i have now words with which to thank you and also show you my gratitude and at this point i can only say that we are in your debt for life.'

She looked at kavita's car and said sadly ' i will take care of them and in a way i am glad that they are here for we are going to the beach to immerse suja's last remains.'

They all watched with tears and immense sadness as Jeeva walked towards kavita's car holding the shiny bras urn which held the ashes of suja and they were still quite hot.

Kamakshi seeing Jeeva coming towards them slowly got out and mani too got out and parents stood facing their remaining child who held their other child in her arms.'

Kamakshi crying raised her hands like a beggar and jeeva placed the urn in her mothers open palms and all three stood in quiet solitude as memories of Suja flashed through all of them.

Mani came home one evening and found jeeva examining her mother tummy and kamakshi with a beautiful smile ' well mister,it looks like that even with your busy schedule you have been busy and naughty with me.'

Mani ran to her and both he and jeeva looked at kamakshi's slightly bulging tummy and jeeva with great curiosity ' yei mani,so another paapa like me is going to come out soon right' and both dad and mum began to laugh.

Kamskshi looked up at the nurse who handed over the tiny form of suja into her hands and mother looked at her babies black eyes and sighed ' i think you are going to be a handful for you have given me many hours of labor pain when your elder sister jeeva slipped out without any fuss.'

Suja had replied by wetting her gown with her first piss and kamakshi howled in frustration ' Quick reaction and an angry reply.'

Jeeva remembered how the tiny suja had curled her tender fingers around hers and she had whispered ' yei doll,welcome.I am jeeva and i promise that i will take good care of you.'

Kamakshi looked at the brass urn that held a few pounds of hot ashes and looked at mani and jeeva ' that is it,that is all that remains of my baby.But she was nearly 5ft 3inches and weighed nearly 55 kgs.what happened to the rest of her? where is it gone.'

She began to cry with the pain of that of a mother for only a mother can feel that for it comes from her womb and the womb of her soul.

They all slowly gathered around her and helped her get into the car and a few minutes later,the procession headed towards the Besant Nagar beach for it was the closest to Saidapet.

Jannal oram 184

With one mighty leap,the giant form of Hanuman sprang into the sky and began to fly towards Lanka in search of Queen sita.After facing many troubles and overcoming all of them,Hanuman finally found Sita in solitary confinement in the garden of Ashoka vanam.He watched with great anger and sorrow as the demon Ravan threatened his queens life but waited patiently.

After a long time,seeing that no one was around he shrank himself into th size of a small monkey and fell to his knees and bowed to sita who asked him who he was.

Hanuman smiled and said he was just a lowly monkey soldier who had been sent by Lord rama to search for her and Listening to these words,Sita with great doubt and anxiety questioned the tiny monkey form of Hanuman as to how he crossed the large sea and how her lord was going to rescue her with only the help of other such tiny monkeys that made up his army.

Hanuman bowed to her humbly and then stood up and revealed his vishwa roopam and sita quivered in fear as she saw the entire universe filled with all gods inside the massive form of Hanuman and shining in his heart was lord rama.

Queen Sita bowed to Hanuman and chanted ' My lord Rudra,the first of all forms and yet here you are here serving my lord.'

Lord Hanuman shrank himself and whispered ' i am but a servant of the one with the lotus feet and all of his avatars.Come my queen,climb on to my back and i will take you away this instant and place you next to the lord himself.'

Sita wiped her tears and shook her head and whispered ' no,i will stay here until my man,my lord,my husband and the owner of my soul personally comes and rescues me.I will wait for my king to come and destroy Lanka,Kill Ravan with his own hands and then,only then will i step out of this forest and this prison.'



While seeking revenge, dig two graves - one for yourself.

Raman sat still,with eyes closed and his thoughts now filled with the form of that Buddhist Monk he had met in Japan many,many years ago.The master's words now rang true.

' My child,you have been blessed with great power of not only the body but the mind too.These blessings are rare indeed and they came with a curse and with consequences.All i ask of you is to be careful when you take on the position of Judge,Jury and Executioner.Think twice,ask twice before you let the blade fall on your enemies neck for taking a life is easy but granting life to a dead body is impossible.'

His cell phone beeped just once and Raman came awake and rose quickly to his feet and carrying a lengthy duffel bag that looked more like a cricket bag began to walk on soft feet towards the front door and then saw a flicker of light fall into the hall between the doors to the room in which his parents slept in and sighed and made a frustrated noise for he had wanted to sneak out quietly and without any interruptions.

The door opened and what had been a flicker of Photons now gathered full form and the bulb from inside the bedroom bathed Raman with its muted yellow fluorescent light.

Shaktivel looked at his only child,standing there all grown up and holding a large duffel bag ' No,i am not going to ask you any questions.But,i will take the liberty as a father and a older man and tell you that it will not fill the void.It will not heal for only time,love and understanding can do those magical things.'

Raman stood with his eyes downcast and whispered ' Time,I have no time and i have only this life.But i promise that i will come back and i will do only what is fair and what is right.'

He began to walk away and then stopped and slowly turned an faced his father,eyes to eyes ' appa you are wrong.It is not only love and time that can heal but justice and revenge too can do that.'

Not waiting for his dad to reply,raman walked out of the house quickly and got into the car and looked at Vijay bhaskar and kavita ' Thank you both of you and i will not forget these moments ever and will remain grateful all my life.'

Vijay bhaskar smiled ' Raman,as it is we are in your debt.So please don't drown us even more with these words.'

Raman turned and stared at Kavita who was in the back seat' kavita,what are you doing getting involved in such matters?'

Kavita ' repaying my debt obviously and also helping a friend.'

Raman nodded and thanked her.

Kavita stared at the back of his noble head and thought to herself ' not only a friend but my lover to whom i have lost my soul.'

Just as they exited the area and entered the main road,a few cars came up and blocked the exit and while this was happening,Vijay drove away swiftly into the night and taking many turns and small lanes soon made his way into the highway from a small lane in Chromepet.

Behind them, the men who who had been sent to keep an eye on Raman were stuck in a small breakdown and by the time they managed to get out,Raman had vanished into the night.

It was 3.00 AM when raman stepped out of vijay's vehicle and took the keys to a grey and battered skoda that stood near the chromepet bus stop and thanked vijay.

As he walked away,he heard the car door open and was surprised to see kavita run towards him and even before he could react she hugged him tightly and looked up into his eyes with tears in her own eyes ' please be safe.Please promise you will come back safe.'

Raman gently hugged her ' yes,i will be safe and i will come back for there is so much left to do.'

He looked at her ' Kavita,i am sorry but i cannot give you what you seek for it does not belong to me but belongs to Jeeva.'

Kavita smiled and wiping her tears,slowly stepped away and looked at him ' Raman,you have known Jeeva only for some months.But i have known you and loved you for many years now and yet i never did or said anything that would irritate you or anger you and i am not about to begin now.But,please remember that you cannot stop me from loving you,wanting you and also praying for your welfare.You really don't need two hands to clap for one hand can slap its owners cheek and a slap can be heard.Love is not meant just for two souls but it can exist and survive in just one.'

Raman smiled and extended his hand and kavita took it and both shook hands and with tenderness he whispered ' thank you kavita.I am honored and blessed to have your faith,friendship and love.I will see you soon.'

Kavita stood for a long time watching the car's tail lights vanish into the darkness of the highway and then Vijay came and threw his arm around her and led her back to the car and back home.

In his car, Raman whispered ' whoever you are,it is you who has begun this by digging a grave for Suja and in the process have dug a grave for yourself and those with you.I am coming to bury you in the grave that you have dug and finish what you have started.'

Jannal oram 185


What was night in which a state of darkness had cast creepy,crawly shadows over the world now began to flee as the sun opened its glorious eyes from the east.They raced over the land and pierced their way through the dark tinted glasses of the skoda that Raman was driving on NH 45 and he glanced to his left and smiled and whispered ' Hello and a good morning to you too?'

NH45 or Grand Southern Trunk Road (GST Road) is a highway ( National Highway ) in the state of Tamil Nadu . It leads from Chennai to Theni via Tambaram , Tindivanam , Villupuram , Tiruchirappalli , Manapparai , Dindigul and has a length of 472 kilometers.

The dashboard digital clock showed the time was 5.20 and Raman had reached Dindivanam and the large white on blue boards announced that he was just 40 kms away from Villupuram and decided to have a cup of coffee and also stretch his body,that though tired was strangely pulsating with energy.

Seeing a now familiar board that announce Kumbakonam degree coffee,Raman smiled Kumbakonam or chidambaram,coffee is coffee an will do just fine.

These billboards and coffee parlors announcing boldly to the world ' Original Kumbakonam coffee' had been a recent phenomenon all over the roadways in Tamil Nadu and were spreading like locusts and the man behind the franchise must be minting money,thought raman as he sipped the pretty decent coffee and the owner smiling in a friendly manner ' Sir,if you are so inclined,breakfast will be ready in about ten minutes.Nothing fancy sir.Just idlis and chutney,all freshly made.'

Raman looked at him and nodded ' sure,thank you very much.'

He decided to take up the owner on his offer of breakfast for the last meal he had eaten had been breakfast the previous day in his chambers and he knew in his mind that it was better to load up on food for god knows how the situation was going to turn out and when and where the next meal was going to come back once again.

He looked at the owner of the small coffee shop ' excuse me' and the owner quickly ran up to him ' sollunga sir.'

' Idli chutney mattum thaana,podi irukuma.'

The owner ' sir,home made podi sir and by my wife's own hands.'

Raman ' great,appo apart from what i am going to eat,please parcel five idlis with a lot of podi thrown over them and no chutney for the parcel please cos it might spoil and it will things messy.And also please add five bottles of water to the bill please.'

As the owner of the coffee shop went about preparing the few tables for business,Raman sat and let his brief conversation with Dr.lakshmi in the crematorium wash over his mind again and again.

The minute,Dr.lakshmi had declared with total conviction that the bruises on Suja's neck had been from a much larger and stronger person and that it was at the most a day or two old,Raman's advocate skills came to play and the ensuing questions and the resulting answers were what had set him of on a trip to Villupuram.


Raman had looked at Dr.Lakshmi who had been with suja and mohan on their medical camp tour of kanchipuram and Villupuram and asked quick and only pertinent questions.

' Dr.lakshmi,when was the last time you saw suja?'

' I saw her today morning as we got out of her train at Egmore station.'

Raman nodded ' how did they both look or appear to you? i mean did you sense something wrong or strained between them both like they had been in some kind of terrible fight?'

Lakshmi quickly shook her head in response ' on the contrary,both of them looked very sad and also scared and kept nervously looking around as if to see if anyone one was watching them or following them.'

' okay,now think slowly and very carefully and tell me the previous days events.Like when you saw them both before wishing them goodbye in egmore station.'

' we were in villupuram for nearly ten days and the last day,i mean the day of our return to chennai,Mohan and suja decide to take a break and mohan hired a cab saying that they were going to go to the Tiruvannamalai temple,Ramanar ashram and if they had time visit gingee fort on the way back.'

Raman had cursed and lakshmi sensing his anger ' I have some photos of that day which suja sent to me via whats app and also Instagram.Will they be of any help,sir?'

Raman shrugged ' maybe,can you show them to me if you have them on your mobile?'

Lakshmi's fingers danced over her expensive and large mobile and unlocking it,opened the gallery and handed the phone to Raman who quickly scanned the pics and memorized every single detail that were available in them.'

' Lakshmi,please send them to my phone immediately ' and then looked at both the brother and sister ' i have to warn you that you might have placed yourselves in danger and you need to be careful and watch out for any strangers that might catch your eyes.'



The owner nimbly balancing a large tray,picked a plate of steaming idlis and carefully placed it in front of raman and then quickly placed two large bowls of chutney and another bowl which held three different varieties of idli podi and then finally placed two small beakers of oil,one gingelly and another with ghee.

Raman smiled at the owner and thanked him and slowly began to demolish the food that was laid in front of him and after paying off the owner went back to the car and switching on the ac,pushed back the seat and closed his eyes for a little precious sleep.


Shaktivel had tried hard to resist but the love he had for his son and for his safety overwhelmed that resistance and he dialed the number.

Devarajan's voice reflected his age,tiredness and mental weariness and he answered ' Shakti sir,good morning.This indeed is a surprise.How are you doing?'

Shaktivel slowly ' I am okay sir.It's just that raman left early in the morning and i think he suspects something sinister behind suja's suicide.I am worried about his safety and also because he has not been himself from last evening.'

' shakti sir,what do you mean raman was not himself?'

' I mean i could not recognise my own son and also the manner in which he spoke.I am not saying that he showed any disrespect or offended me in any way.But,just that he looked very angry and both me and valli were pretty scared to see him in that mood.'

Devarajan remained quiet and shativel continued ' i think jeeva knows where raman is and what he is up to for he looked different after speaking to her.Something is wrong sir,something is really wrong.'

Devarajan agreed ' i guess you are right about raman for both of us know that he will not do anything without a strong and valid reason.'

' It is about 6.00 am now and i will see you by about 7.00 am and we will go and meet jeeva and find out what is going on.Okay sir.'

Redemption 260

As of today,Japanese passports have the most travel freedom and are ranked the No.1 while Indian passports languish somewhere in the position of No.78.

The ranking by Henley & Partners, a citizenship and planning firm, takes into account how many countries can be visited without applying for a visa. Japanese citizens can travel to a record 189 out of a possible 218, most recently Uzbekistan, while Germans can visit 188 and Britons 186.

Holding a Indian passport can get you visa free entry to 25 countries while visa on arrival is required for 33 countries and visa in advance is required for 140 countries.

Foreign nationals entering USA regardless of any nation definitely need a visa and this visa requirement is waived only for the head of state of another country who is visiting America,although he is given A class visa status while all others accompanying him,like officials,family members are given A1 or A2 status visas while help such as of domestic nature are granted A3 status visas.


The Boeing 777 crossed the North Atlantic ocean from London to its destination,La Guardia airport in New York in 10 hours and touched down smoothly and glided to a halt.

The ten member diplomatic team from Israel were the first ones to get off and a special bus was waiting for them and whisked them off to a separate immigration line that was meant for diplomatic passport holders.

It was not very busy and the smart looking African-American lady went through the first five in a matter of minutes and then looked at the next person who was dressed in a two piece navy blue suit and took the passport that the man handed over and went through it slowly and looked at him with a hint of a smile ' first time in America Mr.Azrail Binyamin' and the handsome man flashed a brilliant smile that showed all of his perfect white teeth and with charm pouring out of his eyes,spoke in flawless but accented English ' yes ma'am.I have heard so much of this great country and i have been dreaming of it for a very long time.'

The Immigration officer,Jennifer Higgins stood up and handed back the passport to the man and softly asked ' If i may so,could you tell me the meaning of your name Mr.Azrail?'

The man put out his hand and Jennifer automatically took it and felt an incredible sense of emotion as it was held by the tall and handsome man who leaned forward ' The name Azrail in Jewish means ' Angel of death.'

Jennifer felt a bit weak at her knees and also lightheaded and then sat back watching the man slowly walk away with another older man who was obviously his senior and thought what death would be like in his arms.

Dr.Otto Hauptmann looked at Rudran ' what was all that about rudy?' and rudran smiled and opened his passport ' nothing,just that the lady slipped in her telephone number' and showed him the piece of paper in which a name and number had been hastily scrawled.

Dr.otto furious ' W*F,you get the genes,you get the girls,you get all the glory and are also a certified hero.Too much for one man i say.'

The angel of death smiled ' thank you doc.Thank you for all the love and for the timely help.'

Doctor otto shook his head ' you still haven't told me what the hell is going on? Do you know how many favors i had to call in to get you to New York?'

Rudran smiled ' yes sir.I know and i totally appreciate it.'

Dr.otto shook his head ' f..k if i know what he is up to.God help us all and to top it the name Azrail.I wonder who selected that name for him for it does suit his character to the hilt.

Rudran aka Azrail stepped out into a cool New York night and getting into the black Mercedes disappeared into the night and towards the Israeli consulate.

Jannal oram 186

Suja being the bubbly,trusting and innocent soul had taken hundreds of photos with mohan and without mohan and importantly for Raman,had taken many pics of the cab and its driver along with it.

Raman looked at the man who must have been in his early 60's and was dressed neatly like tourist cab drivers in a white shirt and white pant and looked like a person who was calm and relaxed and also very shy,typical nature of most people who come from small towns and villages that lie far away from chennai.

The Toyota Etios,a disel engined cab had its registration number painted in small letters on the sides as now required by the states transportation rules,along with the number plates in front and back.

Raman was going over these pics in his mind for he had memorized all the pics and the important details they had to offer and using the details that each pic had embedded in them in the properties,Raman had traced a timeline from the time they had hired the cab and had gotten into it.

Suja had shot many pics from inside the cab and on the way to thiruvannmalai from villupuram and many from Ramana maharishi ashram and also the sights from there to Gingee fort.He deduced that they reached Gingee fort at about 3.00 pm for the pics showed them having lunch along with the cab driver who sat along with them even more shy and timid than before.

But then that is where it stopped for suja sent a few pics of gingee fort and that was it and Raman knew in his heart that what ever had happened had had taken place there,in that ancient ruins of a fort.

But,Raman did not want to jump the gun and go so far ahead and knew that the best way to build a case was step by step and not ignoring even the smallest details for many a time the answers to many cases had come from small and ignored details hidden deep in the case files.

Raman knew what he was going to do and how he was going to go about it and entering Villupuram town made his way to the railway station ' Villupuram junction' and parked his car there.

He was dressed casually in a cotton shirt,left untucked over cotton trousers and his feet were covered by an old but still going strong pair of adidas sneakers.

He wore his dark coolers so that he could view and observe the outside world without being observed in return and slung a digital camera around his neck that had been gifted to him by a client a few years ago.

He slipped a 50 rupee note to the man who was handling the parking fare in the station and asked him to watch over his car and the man all teeth and smiles,bobbed his head happily like Gandhi himself who smiled from the 50 rupee note.

Raman went into the small restaurant that was opposite the station entrance and ordering a coffee sat facing the parking space that had been allotted to cabs and autos and waited,waited and waited for a few hours and then true to all old and wise sayings,his patience was rewarded and the man and his cab he had been waiting for slowly drove in and parked itself in the slightly empty space of the railway station.

Raman waved to the waiter and leaving another 50 rupee note as a tip slowly made his way to the man who stood waiting expectantly for a passenger.

Raman went up to him ' anne,thiruvannamalaikku poganum.freeya.'

The man with smiles of gratitude ' sure sir.Please enter.' and getting in quickly switched on the ac and took off in the direction of the holy temple of shiva that is one of the panchabhoota stalam in tamilnadu and the temple stood shining as a jyotir lingam and it meant Fire,Agni and so the spark that had been lit was now well and truly on the way to a raging inferno.

Jannal oram 187

The scales of reckoning with mortality are never evenly weighted, alas, and thus it is on the shoulders of the living that the burden of justice must continue to rest. Wole Soyinka


The driver looking at Raman in his rear view mirror,politely attempted a conversation ' sir,from chennaiya?' and Raman replied with a lie ' no' although he did not think much about it for in truth he was from Trichy.But,he thought it was prudent and wiser not to divulge too many details about himself,at least not for the present moment and then very smoothly and politely asked the driver Gurunathan,how far gingee fort was from their current position.

And just as Raman suspected,the very mention of Gingee put a very nervous and anxious expression on the driver's face and he hurriedly replied ' sir,sorry but you wanted to go to thiruvannamaali kovil and that is why i agreed to drive you there.I am sorry,gingee is too far away and the road is pretty bad on vehicles.Next time maybe sir but today not gingee sir.'

Raman tapped the driver on his shoulder and with a bit of roughness in his voice ' stop the car please.'

The driver in confusion but also in a bit of panic slowly brought the car to a halt under a very large tamarind tree and but for them and the car,the road was deserted and alone in its twists and turns.

Gurunathan tiredly lowered his head on to the steering wheel and then twisted the handle on the door and got out and stood under the shade of the large tree looking in the direction of the famous jyotir lingam temple and turning to Raman who himself had gotten out said ' when the fires are lit during karthikai theepam,one can see it from nearly 50 kms away and maybe more.'

His face resigned to defeat and drowned in sorrow,he looked at raman ' the sight of flames that sprout and blow in the wind from the top of the mountain,really looks like the golden,blazing hair of lord shiva and the mountain does look like he is sitting lost in deep meditation.'

He folded his hands and pleaded ' sir,i don't know who you are or where you are from but i know that you have come in search of answers and also the people who were behind that ugly incident a few days ago in gingee fort.'

Raman continued to stare at Gurunathan ' you are not a career taxi driver but a person who has taken up it only very recently.Am i right sir?'

Gurunathan nodded ' i just retired from the post of a school teacher in Villupuram govt school a few months ago.I purchased this car with a little bit of capital from my PF money and for the rest of the money,i took a loan from Indian bank,villupuram where i have had a savings acct for nearly 35 years.'

Raman ' i guess having daughters will put that kind of pressure on a retired man,ille sir?'

Gurunathan ' yes sir,two girls and one is doing her PHD in micro biology and the other is doing her final year in computer engineering.It takes a lot of resources for giving the children a good education and i cannot do that with my pension money.But with the resources that i have been getting from my new career i am doing okay sir.'

Raman turned away for the question was a very painful one and he knew what it would do to a father such as the one who stood before him and looking at the few green fields that lay in front of him like a scene from one of Bharati raja's movies,he asked ' sir,what would you do if one of your girls is in great danger and there is a threat to her life?'

Raman had expected an answer,some sort of a clue through which he could learn more about the tragedy that had occurred to suja but he certainly had not expected the older man to fall and grab and grovel at his feet.

Raman stepped back in surprise and also a bit ashamed with himself for he knew the question was a harsh one and a cruel one for any parent to be asked and also expected to answer.

Raman hesitated and then bent down and lifted the weeping gurunathan and spoke to him ' sir,i just asked you a question and you are reacting with so much pain.Now think of the parents who are actually going through all this pain and that which is all real for that question has been asked by life and destiny to the girl's parents and i mean the very girl who drove to the periya kovil and then to gingee fort.'

Gurunathan began to cry ' i knew it sir.i knew that it was not going to end well and that it was just the beginning of my bad luck.'

He looked at Raman ' sir how are they both doing sir? that child suja is about the same age as my second child although much more smarter and more educated then both my girls.So kind and such a wonderful soul sir.How is she doing sir?'

Raman looked at Gurunathan ' suja must be okay sir.I am not very sure about other worlds and only hope that they are better than what we live in here on this planet?'

Gurunathan ' sir,what do you mean sir,what do you mean by other worlds?'

Raman's eyes turned angry and violent and he growled ' i mean that suja is no more.I mean that she hung herself yesterday morning and we cremated her last night.'

Raman looked at both his palms and showed them to gurunathan ' i scattered her ashes,her memories in the sea with these hands and now i have come to villupuram to find out what happened and why suja did what she did?'


Ex-school teacher and now a taxi cab driver,Gurunathan knew that everyone has a day of reckoning and that when faced with it,there is no turning back and hearing the man's words that suja had hung herself was enough to make him realise that at a certain point in life,nothing,not even children,family and friends are more important than justice for those who had been wronged and that righteous anger will consume all that it comes in touch with.


He began to speak and raman closing his eyes, listened,absorbing every word that was being said and after the man had finished,he took out his phone and showed him all the pictures that suja had sent to dr.lakshmi and who had forwarded all of them to him.

The man looked through a few pics and then pointed to one pic near the temple and showed it to raman whose instincts had been right and also sadly thanked mohan and suja for taking many selfies in all the places they had visited.

Taking back the phone from gurunathan,raman called dr.lakshmi and asked her to send all the photos of their medical camp both in kanchipuram and villupuram.

It took about twenty minutes for most of the photos to reach raman's mobile and then he requested dr.lakshmi to mail all of them to his email account and after thanking her ended the call.


There was one red maruti swift in many of the pics that suja and mohan had taken and yet they all were discreetly in the background and only a glimpse of it could be seen here and there.But Raman's eyes did not miss anything and after scanning all the pics once,twice,he knew that four men had been following mohan and suja from the last days of their medical camp in Kanchipuram and had followed the group to Villupuram.
But,the most important and significant clue came from the few photos that suja had shot from gingee fort and there in the corner and hidden away behind a rock was that same red maruti swift.

Raman showed gurunathan the pics of the red swift and some blurry images of the men who were in the car and he shook his head ' sorry sir,they are not from around these parts and i happened to see that car for the first time when i drove mohan and suja to gingee fort.

But sir,these people are still staying in hotel grand kubera in villupuram.'

Raman turned sharply and facing gurunathan ' you mean today,now' and the man replied ' yes sir.I saw their car parked in the hotel's parking lot on my way to the railway station where i met you.'

Raman smiled all though gurunathan thought and felt differently for he felt a scary emotion seeing raman's smile and now knew what the word reckoning meant.


"In every life, there comes a day of reckoning - a time when unsettled scores demand retribution, and our own lies and transgressions are finally laid bare.? Emily Thorne

Dear readers,

Please accept my humble apologies for the many spelling mistakes that appeared in yesterdays chapter of jannal oram.

Simple reason and that was i was in a hurry to finish it off and rush off to work,since i had to be in the location pretty early.

I have corrected the many mistakes and have also added a few new words which will give a more complete feel to the thoughts.

Lots of love and wishes to all of you and your families.

Jannal oram 188


Shaktivel,valliammai and Raman had wanted to stay the night in jeeva's house for not only moral support but in any case of medical emergencies because mani's health had declined rapidly and kamakshi was herself on the edge of a mental breakdown and one which would be difficult to come out of without being scarred.

But,Raman's questions and her chilling answers had somehow sparked a bit of energy and life in jeeva and with new light in her eyes,she took over the house of broken souls and told raman and his parents that they would be okay.

But apart from this,the requirements of their religion that one should have a head bath after coming back from a funeral had forced their hands to return to their own homes and even then they had come back to jeeva's house and had spent time until 1.00 am and only after jeeva's insistence had raman and his parents returned home and had fallen into a deep sleep.

Raman had slept but the sleep was a cure for his tired body and not for his mind that was ticking like a time bomb and then he had left home early in the morning but not before being stopped by his dad.


It was nearly 9.00 am by the time former Cop Devarajan came to shaktivel's house and all three went to see jeeva although all of them knew in their hearts that questioning jeeva would be a futile process and they held no belief in getting answers leave alone getting anywhere with jeeva and that too when it came to raman.

But unknown to each other,all three had thought of certain questions which jeeva would be forced to answer or at least shed some light as to raman's leaving and that too so early in the morning.

Shaktivel,devarajan and valli entered jeeva's house and found the family of four that had been now educed to three sitting around the dining table while in front of them stood cups of coffee that had long ago lost their heat and had turned cold as if trying to match the feelings of the house and its occupants.

Jeeva tried to get up but shaktivel requested her to be seated and then stood uncomfortably taking turns to look at her and devarajan who stood next to him.

But devarajan had been a cop and steeling his heart,boldly dived in and asked jeeva ' amma,any news from raman?'

Jeeva remained quiet and then without looking at them and with her eyes on the stale,cold coffee replied ' no.'

Shaktivel worried sick about his son ' jeeva,any idea what he is up to or where he is right now?'

And jeeva replied again ' no.'

Valliammai gently embraced the still seated jeeva and then falling to her knees ' jeeva,ammadi,chellam.We are here with these questions because we are worried sick about raman.'

Jeeva took a deep breath and slowly lifted her head ' i don't know amma,i really don't know where he is or when he is going to call me or when he will return?'


Now,shaktivel too fell to his knees and with tears glistening softly spoke to jeeva ' jeeva,i know that raman means more to you than what he means to us.But,he is my child,my baby and the only baby that we have.Tell me,how can we not worry about where he is or what he is up to?'

Gently gripping her face,shaktivel turned it towards him,so that both their eyes meant ' i am worried because i have never seen my son in that angry or terrifying mood that he was in.Never in all these years have i heard him speak in that horrible and scary tone and i know in my heart that he has headed into some terrible danger and that too all alone.'

As far as Devarajan was concerned,Raman was like his own son,his pride and for him to be in any sort of danger was too much of a burden to bear and now spoke without mincing his words and bitter and harsh words.

Jeeva ' it is better that you tell us what little we know and so that i can reach out to him and assist him in any way possible.Please don't delay further for who knows what sort of danger raman is already in or if he has been terribly injured.'

Jeeva looked at all of them ' no,nothing can harm him and he will come back safely.I have faith in him and it looks like more faith in him than you people do.'

An angry and panic stricken valliammai now just lashed out like a typical mother and staring daggers at jeeva ' one life has been lost and you have sent another into danger and for what,may i ask jeeva.'

Jeeva screamed back ' yes,you may ask and i will tell you this much and that is raman suspects something triggered suja's suicide and he thinks that someone or somebody was behind it.Is that enough.'

Realising that she had raised her voice and that too in anger at raman's mother,jeeva began to cry and slowly fell into her arms.

Devarajan began to curse and mumble ' oh crap,this is bad.This is really a sticky situation and god only knows what is going to happen now?'

Jeeva now began to feel their fears and also began to wonder and doubt if it had been right to send of raman on his own and he was out there all alone searching for answers to suja's mysterious and tragic suicide.