Chapter 9
When Kalyani brought Moksh that evening to play with him, Malhar made sure the mask of indifference and irritation with the baby didn't fall off his face while he was engraving design on an iron pillar that Maanchand assigned to him. Moksh started crying to which Kalyani cooed, "My Baba is hungry. Wait, I'll bring warm milk for you."
"Kalyani, he's not hungry," Malhar wanted to tell Kalyani, but he couldn't. Moksh's wailing became louder and louder. In the end, Malhar couldn't stop himself and lifted Moksh in his arms and wiped tears off his cheek.
After that, it was as if Moksh had forgotten crying. Malhar took him outside in cool evening air. He knew it was Moksh's sleeping time and Moksh could never sleep unless someone walked up and down, with him in arms.
"B...A...B...A..." Moksh tried to look at Malhar but his eyes were getting heavier.
Malhar kissed Moksh's cheek softly, and then his fluffy palms all around, "Haan beta! Main aa gaya...Moksh ka Baba. Baba ka asli Baba."
Malhar said, tears flowing down his cheeks.
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Kalyani dropped off into the coffee shop Malhar visited frequently. Malhar was right when he said she was stalking him. She really was just for the glance of Moksh, though she always lost sight of him abruptly. Sometimes she felt as if she was sitting in a magic show, in which Malhar, the magician was showing only what he wanted her to see. There was something off about Malhar. Sometimes, when she saw him looking at her from the corner of her eyes, it felt as if he was completely a different person. Like he was not the smooth-talking Casanova as he presented himself to the world, sometimes when she looked into his eyes, she felt as if he was just a simple, seedha-saada guy like her, one who's content over just a cup of tea after a tiring day at work. Someone who absent-mindedly searches for the newspaper the first thing in the morning even though it's a scheduled holiday, someone who's just a shy person valuing little things in life not the one who parties everyday toll dawn, is surrounded by girls all the time. She strongly felt Malhar was hiding something from her? But what and why she cared so much about it?
Malhar brought Moksh with him in the coffee shop, which again was odd. It felt as if he listened to each wish, each fear, each dream that whispered in her heart.
As Malhar tilted his neck left and right after ordering a cup of coffee for himself and a milk shake for Moksh, Kalyani initiated a conversation with him, "Had a tiring day?"
"Hmm..." Malhar said. He was wearing a simple blue shirt and black trousers. He was not doing his usual drama. He was not looking like himself, or maybe he was looking exactly like himself.
"Kalyani, I've to meet someone outside," he said getting up, "You take care of Moksh in the meantime." This was their daily routine. Whenever Moksh was with Malhar and she saw him, Malhar always left her alone with Moksh. She felt, no she knew that he knew she was Moksh's mother. Still his impeccable perception of her feelings led her to believe that maybe he was once a father who too was too helpless to call his child his own, too helpless to hold his child in his arms, too helpless to go to the baby even when the baby cried for him...
Malhar handed Moksh to Kalyani and was going to leave, but Kalyani hold his arm with her free hand and said, "I want three of us to together, at least for this coffee."
Moksh caught hold of Malhar's shirt with his tiny hands and said, "Baba!" At which Malhar after lifting him up, made him sit on his lap, and said, "Lo baith gaya mere Baba ka Baba."
"Baba?" Kalyani asked questioningly.
"Oh, he knows only one word to speak-Baba," pride was gleaming in Malhar's eyes, "That's why I nicknamed Moksh as Baba."
As Malhar and Kalyani were drinking coffee and also made Moksh drink milk shake in a Toy story cup, a gunshot was fired.
The robbers followed by police had entered the coffee shop and held a girl of eight as hostage.
The robbers said to the police, "Give us the keys of the police van so that we could escape otherwise we'll kill the girl."
The policemen were at loss on what to do.
"So you'll not do as we say. Fine," The robber who held the gun at the girls head said, "I'm going to shoot the girl in three...two..."
Malhar took Kalyani's cup of coffee from her and then holding both his and her cup walked towards the other robber.
"What are you doing?" Kalyani whispered but Malhar kept walking and collided straight to the body of other robber, with steaming coffee of both the cups over the robber's chest
"Sorry Ji," Malhar sheepishly said.
"What have you done," the robber said, pulling his short drenched with coffee over his head. In the instant, the robber could not see around due to the shirt over his head, Malhar swiftly took the gun from the robber's pocket and shot him on his right leg. The robber screamed in pain.
The robber with his gun on the girl turned around.
"I've only shot his leg," Malhar said. The robber was wriggling with pain on the floor, holding his leg.
"But if anything happens to the girl," Malhar said emotionlessly, then all five of the remaining bullets will pass through your heart. Think again! Do you want to die so early? I won't lose anything if you kill the girl, but if I kill you both, I'll get more stars and my desired posting. Soch lo, I've everything to gain if you kill this girl and in turn I kill you."
People are not upset over their misfortune as much they are upset over another's good fortune. And this was the psychological trick Malhar was using on the robbers. As soon as the robber's hands dropped, the police officers handcuffed them both.
"Thank you, ACP Sir," the police men folded their hands, "We would've have been suspended if anything happened to the girl or these robbers managed to escape."
"As long as ACP Rane Sir is here, we don't need to fear anything," another police officer said
Malhar patted their arms and said, "Just be more alert from next time."
"Jai Hind Sir!" They saluted.
"Jai Hind!" Malhar saluted back.
"ACP Malhar Rane!" Malhar didn't know how to face the pain of betrayal in Kalyani's eyes.
So I'm going to wrap up the story in at most one or two chapters. Please let me know what you feel about this story.
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