Scarred Love - Chapter 43

It had been more than two days since Rudra had gone missing. The SGH security team was relentlessly trying but still nothing. And, yes controlling the media had almost become a never-ending task, that to a disastrous one.

Kabir came into his office and threw his phone on the sofa as he sat down. Rubbing his temples, he closed his eyes; another press conference and one more fiasco. Being a patient guy he had never been the one to lose his cool but today he had almost lost it. If it hadn’t been for Viman, he would have smashed that reporter.

“You need to control yourself,” Viman said as he came inside.

Anger burst inside him as he heard his brother.

“No, I am not going to. Those vultures need to stay off Bhaisa’s case. It’s none of their business,” he said grunting hard.

Viman placed a hand on his younger brother’s shoulder and pressed hard.

“We all know that but they are the media. You of all the people should know how they behave when these things happens. So, please get a grip.”

Kabir sighed and shook his head as his emotions slowly came under control. Bhaisa was missing for more than 4 days and these news hungry leeches had the audacity to ask if this was a publicity stunt for SGH upcoming hotel.

“Calm down,” Viman reiterated.

He just nodded and was about to take a swig of water when someone knocked on his door.

“Come in!”

Manna and Mayank entered followed by Ram Singh. From the look on their faces, it was evident they hadn’t slept a wink for the past days; well, none of them had slept properly not even his parents. He had even seen Radha Bhabhi pacing in the balcony yesterday night.

“Any news?” Viman asked hopefully but it plummeted the moment Manna shook his head.

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Ishani followed the doctor out of the boarding house and stopped as he did near the entrance.

“Everything will be okay. It’s just normal viral. Just keep the liquids and medicines going and all should be okay in a couple of days.”

She smiled as he exited the premises. Bansi, the new kid had come down with a high fever the night before and she had been here since then.

She rubbed her eyes as the dull ache started again. Yes, she hadn’t slept for more than 3 days; maybe just snippets here and there but definitely not a proper one. Rubbing the back of her neck, she tried to ease the tension that had been taken a permanent place in her brain.

Where is he?

Have they found him?

She was feeling sick to the core with everything that had transpired till now.

“Ishani Di?”

Jithu’s voice broke her chain of thought and instantly she turned towards him concerned.

“Bansi wants you.”

She rushed inside the boarding house and saw an entire army of children sitting around the new kid trying to distract him but failing. Smiling, she sat down next to him and pulled his head on her lap and caressed his forehead.

“I want a story,” he said pouting.

And, the Mexican wave started for a story among all others and she laughed hard as slowly her recurring tensions ebbed away. But before she could start anything, one of them started with a tantrum of including Annie also into this. Defeated, she called Annie and put the phone on speaker.

“Yeah, now Ishani Aunty is going to tell a story,” she heard Annie chirp and she could picture her friend dancing in her pyjamas.

Mad lot!

Shaking her head in resignation, she started off.

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Mayank rubbed his temples hard as he tried to concentrate on the GPS on his tab screen. He had been staring at it for more than 30 minutes and now his eyes were getting tired. Sighing hard, he got up and poured himself a cup of coffee and saw Manna and Ram in deep conversation near the security room. Immediately his sleep-deprived mind became alert. Keeping the cup, he strode outside to them.

“What is it?”

Manna turned and gave him a sim card, “We found this in his bag.”

Mayank’s eyes narrowed and then they widened with realisation.

Dammit! How could he forget?

He ran inside followed by Manna and Ram who were looking at him with confusion once they reached his office. They saw him shove the card in a phone and switch it on. As it flickered to life, he dialled his own number and looked at his mobile.

The number calling was Rudra’s registered one. Then he must have the other sim with him.

“Did you guys find any other sim or phone?”

“No!” Ram replied.

“Shit! Why didn’t I think about this earlier?”

“What?” Manna asked looking at him strangely.

Mayank quickly punched in another number in his tab and put the tracker on it.

“Sir has two numbers. One is registered and another is not. The second one is a private one. Not everyone has it.”

He kept staring at the tracker praying ardently for it to blink but all his hopes took a nosedive when it didn’t.

Manna and Ram also slummed against the wall knowing that their last hope of finding Hukum had gone down the drums.

Not able to take it anymore Mayank stepped outside and breathed in. He needed coffee and some air. Grabbing the coffee that he had placed on the table outside, he started to walk around the building as the relaxing and cool night air soothed his racked nerves.

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Faraway a mobile flickered to life and within seconds alert tones flooded the quiet room. As it kept blinking, the darkened room came alive with muted light from the lamp on the table. Footsteps ventured outside in the balcony and a pair of gritty eyes stared at the city skyline.

The game has begun.

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Inside Mayank’s office, Manna sat down on the chair dejected and turned towards the wall, and touched his forehead to the cool surface. He felt so lost. Since childhood, he had been his shadow, now without him, he felt bodyless.

Ram looked at his brother’s downcast image and felt helpless. Sighing, he looked at the screen and kept it vision on it relentlessly as if willing the tracker to blink. Suddenly his eyes widened and throat constricted with urgency.

“Manna!”

“What?”

“We found him,” Ram said pointing at the blinking dot.

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