Crawling to Love
Arjun climbed up the footsteps to his house and used his keys to open the door. The sun had barely risen yet. The second he set foot inside the house, a delicious aroma filled his senses. It took him mere seconds to recognise the fragrance. Attracted to it like a magnet, he paced to the kitchen. Sure enough, his wife was cooking zealously.
He leaned on the doorway: subah-subah gajar ka halwa banaya jaa raha hai?
She jumped, startled by the sudden presence. She smiled seeing him. He stepped forward and dipped his finger in the piping hot halwa earning a cry and scolding from her. But he didn’t care about either the burn or her reaction, he licked the halwa off his finger to taste it.
Arjun: Riya, chini kam hai
Riya: aapko toh meetha nahi pasand na
Arjun: are gajar ke halwe ke liye sab maaf
She chuckled before adding two more spoonfuls.
Riya: jala toh nahi?
Arjun: are kuch nahi hota, waise ek baat kahu? Tumne bilcul perfect din chuna hai halwa banane ke liye
Riya: acha? Woh kyun bhala?
Arjun: woh uh bas yu hi (she raised her eyebrow) jis bhi din halwa banta hai woh apne aap hi perfect ban jaata hai
Riya nodded sarcastically: wah! Aap bhale ACP ho, ETF ke chief ho, crime-fighting expert ho lekin na jab apne faayde ke liye jhoot bolne ki baari aati hai toh bahot kharab jhoot bolte hai
He feigned innocence: jhoot? Maine kab jhoot kaha?
Riya laughed: Arjun, aapko sach mein lagta hai ki mujhe nahi pata ki aaj aapka birthday hai?
His eyes widened: tum… tumhe kaise pata?
Riya: aurat ki kabiliyat par kabhi shak nahi karna chahiye, samjhe ya samjhau?
Arjun smiled: well ab agar tumhe pata hi hai toh theek hai
He proceeded to pick out a bowl from the nearby cupboard.
Riya: are rukiye, ise banne toh dijiye
Arjun: ho toh gaya, mujhe khaana hai
She blocked him, grabbing the bowl: bilcul nahi, jayiye jaakar naha lijiye, tab tak ho jaayega
Arjun: lekin Riya
Riya pushed him out of the kitchen: lekin wekin kuch nahi, go!
She shook her head in disbelief. It seemed Arjun Rawte had the ability to be a child when it came to his favourite sweet.
When Arjun freshened up and reached the hall, he found Riya waiting for him with breakfast and of course, his halwa! He sat down with her, amused that she had shaped the halwa into a cake.
Arjun: ye kya?
She handed him a butter knife: ab aap cake toh khaayenge nahi, toh main isi se kaam chala lungi
He cut the halwa and put a spoonful of it in his mouth. Closing his eyes, he relished the taste. Perfect! Then he offered her the smallest piece that he could cut off, making her giggle. She accepted it graciously nonetheless.
Arjun: mujhe yaad bhi nahi ki aakhri baar kab maine apne janamdin par halwa khaaya tha, thank you Riya
Riya: you’re most welcome! Acha ab ye bataiye aapko gift mein kya chahiye?
Arjun: gift? Ye kaafi gift hai
Riya: oho, aise thodi chalta hai? birthday ke din toh haq se maangte hai
Arjun smiled and thought for a while. But nothing occurred to him.
Arjun: pata nahi, aisa toh kuch nahi hai jo mujhe chahiye
She rolled her eyes: bachpan mein kya gift maangte the aap?
Arjun: uh, aksar, mumma-papa khud hi khilauna le aate the. ek-do baar mujhe kuch video game chahiye thi toh woh lekar aaye the. Aur aakhri baar, jab main 17 ka tha tab papa ne mujhe bike gift ki thi, driving seekhne ke liye
Riya: aur kya karte the aap?
Arjun: aur toh kuch nahi, subah school jaane ke pehle mumma mujhe mandir lekar jaati thi jabki main toh bhagwan mein maanta hi nahi tha, fir bhi zabardasti lekar jaati thi (she giggled) fir dopaher ko jab ghar aata toh mere liye halwa ready hota tha. Papa jaldi aaya karte the office se. Woh tohfa lekar aate aur fir hum teeno dinner ke liye baahar jaate
Riya: hmm, dinner ke liye toh hum bhi jaa sakte hai
Arjun: are uski koi zaroorat nahi
Riya: zaroorat kaise nahi? hum shaam ko jaayenge bas
Arjun: par…
Riya: par gaya tel lene. (she finished her breakfast) main ready ho jaati hun office ke liye
He nodded.
When they reached office that day, Arjun turned to Riya.
Arjun: Riya woh, kisi ko batana mat please ki aaj mera birthday
She smiled: nahi bataungi
The elevator dinged and they made their way to the conference room. The only other occupant, encounter specialist Ayesha Kapoor wished them. Riya replied with enthusiasm while Arjun nodded an acknowledgement.
It had only been two weeks since she had joined the team. For a couple of days, she had held a grudge against Arjun who had busted her undercover operation. Since it was Riya who was the first one who came to know that she was actually an officer, Ayesha had taken an instant liking to her. Later, she was appalled on knowing that she was married to the stone-hearted volcano everybody talked about. Hence, she had taken advantage of the newly formed friendship to get back to Arjun viz. teasing the couple at every chance that she got.
Ayesha: aap dono aaj jaldi aa gaye? Raat ko soye hi nahi ya fir subah office khaali milne ki umeed thi?
Riya turned red: Ayesha!
Arjun sighed. Unfortunately, his anger was restricted to criminals and his officers when they were being lazy.
Ayesha: kya? Main toh genuinely puch rahi hu? Arjun sir ko toh sab pata hota haina? Toh woh mere sawal ka jawab kyun nahi dete?
Arjun: Riya…
Ayesha: are aap abhi toh Riya ke saath aaye sir, itni jaldi yaad aa gayi? Aapke saamne hi toh hai
Riya: Ayesha chup ho jao!
Hitting his head, Arjun walked out of the conference room. Riya feigned a glare at her.
Riya: tum kabhi bhi kuch bhi bolti ho?
Ayesha: oho, kitna sharmaati ho tum.
Shree entered with his bag: kaun sharma raha hai?
Ayesha: Riya, aur kaun?
The technical expert giggled, knowing very well what might have transpired. He enjoyed Ayesha teasing the couple a bit too much. It was a privilege that wasn’t really granted to him or the team’s bodybuilder Chandrakant a. k. a. Chotu. Liza, his and Riya’s batch mate and forensic expert was too scared of Arjun to even think of such a possibility.
Well, he couldn’t blame her. The very first day that she had joined ETF around a year earlier was a bad day for Arjun. it wasn’t a good phase for him, in general. The very first time that she saw her chief, he had been in the midst of beating the hell out of a rapist they had caught. To top it, Arjun had been frustrated at the political pressure that he had been put under to help the persecutor instead of arresting him. Arjun had been so furious, he had slapped attempted murder on the charge-sheet which was falsely proven in court as well. Liza had decided she was a smart person and stayed clear of him at all costs, even after all this time.
Riya controlled her blush desperately: kaam kar le?
Shree: ha kar lete hai, isse pehle ki tera pati aakar humari khatiya khadi kar de
Ayesha frowned: koi naya case nahi hai? paperwork khatam karna hoga?
Riya: aaj nahi toh kal paperwork toh khatam karna hi hoga na Ayesha? Agar case aa bhi jaaye toh bhi?
She whined as she took her seat. She hated documentation. In fact, she hadn’t even filed the report for her undercover operation yet. She was lucky that Arjun was the last person who would be bothered with documentation delays unless the court date was coming up.
The Emergency Task Force or the ETF was an elite team of the Mumbai Police Department. It had been established three years ago as an experiment with Arjun at the head of the operations. The commissioner Gaurav Sinha had envisioned a team of young officers to spearhead the department. In the one year before that Arjun had been serving as a Senior Inspector, Vikram had been impressed with his skills despite his anger issues and lack of adherence to protocol. In his mind, Vikram believed it was what the department needed. A fresh perspective and a strict non-tolerance to criminal forces.
Despite being advised otherwise, he had promoted Arjun to the rank of ACP and made him chief. He had never been proven wrong till date. Then he looked for fresh faces.
Research specialist Riya Mukherjee was roped in. Police work was in her blood. Her father had been one of the finest ATS officers the country had ever seen. Unfortunately, Addl. CP Aditya Mukherjee had been killed along with his wife and younger son in an assassination that did not go unpunished. Riya had followed the footsteps of her father. Although research was her passion, she had inherited the thirst for answers from her father. There was nothing that her methods to gather intelligence could not find. A little over a year ago, she had been promoted to a senior inspector due to her special efforts in bringing down a long standing fugitive from the underworld.
The team needed efficient cyber-support. And that requirement was fulfilled by Shreekant Sen. The youngest son of a millionaire who instead of creating a third share of his father’s IT business was content with sleuthing along with whatever investments that were already in his name. He was a gold medallist in ethical hacking from an Ivy League University. Post his graduation he had moved back to India and applied for IPS. That’s where he had befriended Riya and Liza, they had all taken the same elective.
Brains and skills all done, the team needed brawn. Chandrakant chimed in there. The son of a martyred havaldaar had grown up in poverty. Determined to make life better for his mother and bring her back out of the chawl where they had been forced after his father’s death, he had taken to bodybuilding and eventually joined the commando training of the police department.
And thus, the ETF was ready.
Liza D’cruz had come into the picture much later when Vikram realised the need for the team to have independent forensic analysis. That would increase their speed and efficiency since they no longer would have to wait in the queues at the few government forensic labs that handled forensic analysis of the entire department and were always overworked and understaffed.
Ayesha had been busted by the ETF barely weeks ago. And Vikram saw it fit that the proud lady was stashed in the same team that had gotten her caught. She had fought her family, broken off her engagement and eloped from home to join the force. She had internalized the need to prove to her misogynistic family that she was very capable of handling herself and others. Besides, she would be a great asset. She knew the internal workings of the underworld, having spent almost a year in its cradle.
And thus, the ETF had grown.
Riya: acha suno na
Shree: suna na
Riya: main zara thodi der mein aati hun. Arjun sir puche toh koi bahana bana dena
Ayesha: ye kya Riya? tum Arjun sir ke peeth peeche kya kar rahi ho?
Riya whined: Ayesha bas kar yaar… Shree!
He giggled: ha baba, hum bana lenge bahana. Main unse kahunga ki tu khabri se milne gayi hai, theek hai?
Riya: you’re a darling
Shree: thank you lekin tujhe jaana kaha hai?
Riya: woh bas aise hi, thoda kaam hai, aati hun aadhe ghante mein. Agar koi case aaye toh mujhe crime scene ka address bhej dena. Main directly wahi aa jaungi
Shree: theek hai
A few minutes after she left, Chotu and Liza arrived too. And before they all could greet each other, Arjun entered the conference room. He noticed Riya’s absence but presumed she was around somewhere.
Arjun: Vineyard Apartments ke ek flat mein ek shadi-shuda couple ki laash mili hai. Liza, get your team ready!
They nodded. Within 7 minutes, they had all assembled in the parking lot, ready to leave.
Arjun: Riya kaha hai?
Chotu: pata nahi sir, humne toh dekha hi nahi
Shree piped in: dekha hai! mera matlab, sir woh keh rahi thi ki kisi khabri se milna hai. Maine use address bhej diya hai. Woh wahi aa jaayegi
Arjun nodded skeptically. Informer? Early in the morning? That was odd. Usually, whistle-blowers operated in the darkness of the night. It helped their line of work. It must have been something urgent. While he drove, his thoughts kept going back to what the emergency could be. He should be prepared to side-line the current case.
On the other hand, Riya had gone to a nearby temple. She prayed before the Shivling. She made the customary offering of milk and bael leaves.
Riya mv “Unhe humesha khush rakhna”
Lowering her head a last time, she stepped out of the inner sanctum. Her phone pinged with the address. She replied that she would be there and proceeded to catch a cab.
The crime scene investigation had already started by the time she reached. Arjun glanced at her. She smiled warmly and started working with the others. But his mind fixated as he gazed at her.
So that’s where she went. She had not met any informer.
A warmth built in his chest. She could have just told him, couldn’t she? But she hadn’t so now, he was going to harass her. The thought made him smile. He stiffened himself, focusing on the case first.
A young couple, maybe in their late twenties, had been stabbed to death. There were clear signs of struggle.
Bending on his knee, he checked the hands of the victims.
Arjun: Liza, inke nakhoon mein chamdi hai. Shayad attacker ki ho sakti hai. DNA sample le lo
Liza, who had been taking blood samples at the time, looked up at him calling out. She nodded obediently.
Riya stepped out of the bedroom: sir! ye kuch photo albums mile hai. In mein toh koi bacha bhi hai
Arjun took the album from her: ye 2 ya 2 ½ saal se zyaada bada nahi hoga
Riya: lekin bacha hai kaha?
Arjun glanced at the bodies: yaha khoon bhi teen logon ka lag nahi raha
Chotu and Ayesha returned from questioning the neighbours.
Ayesha: sir ek important baat pata chali hai, Neha aur Sahil…
Arjun: ka bacha hai, pata hai. Naam pata chala?
Ayesha: oh uh, ha sir, uska naam Samay hai. 2 saal ka. Unki families ke baare mein toh kisi ko kuch nahi pata. Aur jaha tak padosiyon ko pata hai Neha maayke bhi nahi jaati thi. Lekin building waalon se toh koi dushmani thi nahi in dono ki
Chotu: sir, kisine bhi kisi anjaan insaan ko aate jaate toh nahi dekha
Arjun: toh kya khooni hawa mein se aaya tha?
He lowered his gaze: sir woh watchman se CCTV mangwaya hai
Arjun: Shree, recording room mein jaa kar dekho ki system se koi chedkaani hui hai ya nahi
Shree: yes sir
Arjun: Riya, in dono ki families ke baare mein pata karo.
Once they finished gathering evidence, they regrouped and returned to the office. Arjun turned to Riya as if he had no clue what had happened.
Arjun: kya kaha tumhare khabri ne?
Riya was startled at the sudden question: ji? .......................................
Edit: guys there seems to be some problem with the pms hopefully temporary. What's happening is that the select friends wala list is coming blank so I had to manually type in everybody usernames. Toh I have pmed everyone I think follow the stories. Sorry if I missed someone, please let me know.
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