Posted:
Here I'm with a story I'm actually updating on Sensational South Forum, but thought of reposting it here only as a story and not as a fan fiction. If someone loves reading, do drop your comments. I will update here too if I update the story there, even if people don't actually like reading here.
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Chapter One
Joy sat on his knees checking pulse. A faint thump hit his fingers. Very faint. He then slowly placed his head on the chest. Yes, another faint beep.
The narrow downroad was completely empty. Joy looked up. The steep mountains housed roads on which traversed cars. He was sure of this being an accident. But the car or...or driver or stuffs...were nowhere to be seen. He slowly got up and walked to the edge of the road which was barely fenced. World's deepest cliffs stared back from beneath covered with deep green. If the car had rolled down from above into those forests, its invisibility was quite explainable.
Joy returned and sat again. Water, he thought. He looked around and then remembered something. He quickly walked up to the nearest bend and found the tubewell. He pumped out some water and, filled an empty discarded bottle lying nearby. He returned and sprinkled droplets on the face.
After quite a number of sprinklings, a pair of deep set eyes stared back.
****
Anushka lay on bed, staring at the wooden ceiling which was almost ten feet above her head. She tried to look sideways. "Aaahh!" , she automatically wailed as her shoulders hurt a lot..
She then rather examined her body carefully. Both the arms were immensely bandaged. Blood showed through the elbow. And her right leg was plastered.
She felt extremely uncomfortable, sat up slowly and painfully, and rested her head on the backrest of the bed closing her eyes tight, trying to remember nothing.
The door which was half closed, suddenly opened with a cracking sound, and the man who had brought her here on his arms, walked in with a glass of something.
Anushka stirred, and hardly knew what to say or do. The man smiled, and placed the glass on the bedside table. Through the corner of her eyes Anushka knew it was milk. She hated milk.
The man next sat on the immense wooden chair placed just beside the bed. Anushka had already noticed, the room housed an enormous bed on which she lay, a chair beside that along with a bedside table, an almirah, and a dressing table, all of antique pattern, and there was an immense window which showed the lush green Himalayas. But Anushka hardly looked at the window. Despite the antiquities the room looked old and worn out too.
" I'm Joy. Joy Montgomery. " , the man talked.
Anushka hesitatingly stared at him with wide eyes. She had immediately known this man to be dependable, when he had sprinkled water on her face, and given her his hands, and when she couldn't get up, had carried her blood laden body to this house on his arms..
The doctor had almost immediately arrived, and while Anushka lay stiff on bed, he relieved her pain, dressed and plastered her. The doctor had only smiled, hadn't at all talked but had looked at Joy and said, " Don't worry. Your sister will be fine within days.. no major injuries, only a hair crack down the ankle. "
"...Anushka. Anushka Sarkar. ", she slowly uttered.
" No. Shelly Montgomery. " , Joy walked up to the window and carefully drove aside the already driven curtains, enabling more light to enter the room.
Anushka looked away with her brows a bit squeezed. Shelly Montgomery?
" You are my cousin sister. Do you know what this place is?"
Anushka stared at him. " De...Dehradun..."
" Uhu. Dehradun is 600 feet above. This is a small village in the lap of the Himalayas. Rungpo. If you were on the road just above . .still you have fallen almost a hundred feet. "
An immense fear grasped Anushka. She shut her eyes tight.
" Don't worry. I won't ask you to share the experience of your accident. That's devastating I know. Only that, are you sure it was an accident? Because I didn't see your car. Although that's quite natural. Here accidents create massacres, cars and passengers, drivers and luggages mostly don't end up together. "
" ... I was driving. And then..." , Anushka stopped.
" It's alright. Where are you from? "
A long silence prevailed as Joy questioningly stared at her.
After a really long time, she stammered, " I...don't remember. "
Joy was completely taken aback and that showed on his face.
" But... you remember your name! You remember how the accident happened! "
Anushka blankly stared at the bed. " I do. But...nothing else. "
She could feel his eyes fixed on her as if trying to judge the situation.
" Any phone number? Your car number? Now if your car has rolled down another six hundred feet, it isn't likely that the police would come searching for you in Rungpo. "
Anushka sat silently...not meeting his gaze.
After sometime he spoke again.
" Anyways. You are my sister. Shelly Montgomery. You live in... in... Chandigarh, and you had come to Dehradun and just by chance decided to meet me after a long twenty.no...yeah...twenty years, and... you were on a van rickshaw on your way to my home, but had toppled off the vehicle down the hillside and hurt yourself.
Fine? "
Anushka couldn't make out anything and stared at him.
" Tell this to everyone here. Okay? "
Anushka though couldn't make out what was the harm in bringing home an accident victim, a stranger even. But maybe the opposite gender things mattered in small villages. Though she felt mountaineers were a bit above all these, but maybe not. She realised.
Joy then handed over the glass of milk to her.
" have this. "
Anushka very unwillingly took the glass and drank all at a go.
" good girl. ", Joy smiled.
" Well now, I will have to leave for the town market for sometime. I'll be back within an hour or so. I know you might feel awkward staying alone in a completely new place and house, but I assure you, this ought to be the safest place on earth. Will you mind? If you feel I can lock the door from outside. "
Anushka very strangely stared at him for sometime. Then slowly nodded. Joy smiled reassuringly again and as he turned to go, Anushka uttered, " Mr Montgomery, why did you bring a stranger home? "
Joy turned back, brought his brows close together and said, " What would you do if you found a blood laden individual lying on the road? Leave to die?
And remember, no one does anything for anyone without a reason. No one on earth.
And, don't forget, you are my sister. "
Joy left. Anushka kept staring. She should have comprehended the last statements, but didn't. Strangely enough she didn't know if it was for the place or the person, but a calm happened to her for the first time in last fifteen years.
****
Dr Matthews sat for almost fifteen minutes at the principal's office when Mr Joseph Oliver came in with a smile. Dr Matthews stood up. Joseph gestured him to sit.
Joseph Oliver had founded Holi Child Missionary Schools in Rungpo back in 1984, when he was only 30. He had been the principal and since then the most respected personality not only of Rungpo but of almost all the nearby mountain villages. Almost a five hundred mountain children studied in his school for affordable payments. Not only his school but his house was almost the end station for all villagers. They depended on him for everything, and loved him equally for he was there savior always.
" Sir I heard you summoned me. " , Dr Matthews said.
" hmmm. I did. How are you doing? "
" hehe. I'm doing fine sir. I hope you too are. "
" I am.", he smiled again. " actually... Joy wouldn't turn up today...he takes a day off for going to the town market the second Wednesday every month. And he doesn't use cellphones you know. But I heard from Tudu, that you visited him this morning. ", Joseph bent a bit forward and asked in a low voice, " is everything alright? "
" Yes he's alright. But his sister's home and she's got hurt on her way home. She's lucky enough that apart from superficial bruises she's got only a hair crack in her right ankle. Poor girl. She'll be fine though."
Joseph squeezed his brows in disbelief. " His sister? ! What's her name? "
" Shelly Montgomery. Some very distant relation, he said. "
" I don't know of any sister he has. " Joseph said, distressed.
" now sir, we cannot know every detail of every human can we?"
Joseph said nothing. " Okay thanks doctor. Actually I myself cannot visit him leaving school, so called you. "
Dr Matthews left. Joseph sat still. His face showed clear signs of anxiety. No, everyone could not know every detail of every individual really. But that didn't apply to Joy Montgomery. At least not to him.
Joseph picked up his phone and dialed a number.
" Go to Joy's place. Right now. "
(Continued below)
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