I sat staring outside the train window at the grey outline of trees as they flew by . Maybe I was brooding, I am not very sure.

" He looks so innocent, like a 5 years old when he pouts", Durga was snickering as she delivered this absolutely unnecessary information to Ravij. I did not hear his reply so in all probability, he just nodded stiffly.

Are you wondering what made me brood like a '5 year old'? Well after I was quite cryptically kidnapped and shoved into a jute bag, I did finally came back to my senses and was able to kick an attacker off me ( the resounding 'oomph' that came on the impact of my leg against someone's tummy was definitely masculine), but the other one, the one who was holding my hands in an iron grip, just won't let go. So, after the sack was opened and I came face-to-face with my butler and Durga, you can imagine my utter mortification at being defeated at the hands of a female.After shoving me in a carriage they drove off into the night , all the while accusing me of nearly blowing up their cover. Apparently, I was smuggled out right under the nose of the patrolling guards. The carriage had come to a halt on the railway station of some unknown little town and then, I was again shoved into a railway coach, 1st class of course. I felt pretty much like a prisoner except that Durga kept assuring me that I was not safe in my bungalow and had to be shifted to somewhere safe. 'I won't let anyone or anything harm you, Thomas' she had reassured me and you can just imagine what wonders it did to my now-badly-deflated male ego. Yes, I felt like a damsel-in-distress who needed rescuing by the high and mighty knight Durga.

I placed my forehead against the cool glass and stifled a yawn, " At least tell me where are we going?"

" We are going to Darjeeling!" Her voice was filled with joy, she sounded relaxed unlike the night before, " My father has many friends there and you will be safe, you see, their loyalties can't be bought."

I nodded feverishly and leaned my forehead against the cool, smooth glass of the window. 5 minutes later I was already slipping into the la-la-land.

Everything was dark, I couldn't feel anything but the endless vaccum filled with despair. I tried to get up but something was holding me back- ropes, tightly bounded ropes around my wrists and ankles which suspended my body in mid-air. I tried to say something,even shout, nothing came out. I felt trapped and helpless. And then something was moving in the darkness in front of me- a lithe figure dressed all in black except those sinister, ruthless eyes. It was surely the grim reaper. Was I dead already? I was with Durga and Ravij moments ago, what happened?

" Thomas, at last we meet", a female voice murmured and I looked around for another entity but found none. The grim reaper was a female, who would have guessed that? "You have troubled me so," she continued, " but at last I'll get YOU." She snickered, I abhorred the sound of it.

" I am not afraid of you!" I spat out.

Her kohl-lined eyes widened and then she laughed again, a high-pitched laughter which can send shiver down any sane person's spine," Are you not, boy? Ah! Let's see. Would you fancy a game, Thomas?"

I stiffened but chose not to answer.

"Answer me!" She growled but I didn't reply. Suddenly a sharp, cold metal grazed my neck. I slowly glanced down, it was a sword. Well, I was expecting a scythe .

" You have no idea how high your stakes are."

" I'm playing for keeps."

" Now we are talking! The game is quite easy. I'll show you two objects and you have to select one. If you choose the right one then your life will be spared but if your choice is wrong then...." the blade dug deeper into my neck.

" What are the two objects?"

She clapped her hands and two objects appeared out of thin-air. One was a red cloth, a silk shroud from the looks of it and the other was a violet inflorescence of Indigo( I felt like it should ring a bell but I don't remember why).

" So you choose...?"

The flower gave me a bad feeling, it had danger written all over it. So I went for the- "Red shroud", I told her confidently.

The blade dropped from my neck and the ropes slackened around my limbs.

" You walk away freely again. However", she said as she watched my relieved face with amusement, " where there is death, there will always be death."

"What do you mean..." but I never got to finish my sentence , for there lying covered in the red shroud, skin white as snow and hair black as Raven, was my Durga.

I woke up with a start. Cold sweat covered my neck and someone was shaking me.

" Thomas,Thomas! Are you alright? Here have some water." Durga gently placed a glass in my trembling hand and I was thankful, partly because of her kind gesture and mainly because I had the satisfaction of seeing her nice and healthy again. Never again do I want to have such a dreaded nightmare but it felt so real. Which reminded me...

" Why the red shroud?"

"I beg your pardon?" Durga looked confused.

" The army officer who died had a shroud on him, does it seem to have any significance?"

Durga looked startled by my unexpected question but answered none the less " In the middle 19th century, the hand-loom industry in Bengal was uprooted by east-India company because they wanted their trade to flourish and there could be a trade only if there is a..."

" Demand." I completed for her.

" Exactly. Only some craftsmen survived who migrated to the state of Oudh and the Nawab (king) of Oudh offered them protection. The kins of the very same craftsmen attacked a ship of company to show their agitation. The ship was drowned and British soldiers were killed. The army reciprocated by burning the whole village- no one survived."

" Or perhaps someone did", I interjected, " and one of their successors is a mastermind behind these killings."

"Or someone just read a bit of history and turned the situation in their favor. Why are you asking this in the first place?"

" I had a nightmare...." I could not bring myself to complete the whole sentence.

" If a single nightmare can burn such a flare of curiosity in you then I'd say that have one every night."

We chuckled and settled into a peaceful silence. How should I ever tell her that what scared me was not my own demise but the thought of her going away forever.....

Ravij appeared in the compartment ten minutes later to inform us that the train would be reaching Darjeeling very soon. The little uneventful station is hardly worth mentioning. There was no intimidating building, no hordes of railway employees and definitely no people of "high class" sauntering their way around. The station was small with a tin crenulation thrown over a wooden bench and two or three hawkers who sold tea or snacks. Men dressed in white khadi sat on their haunches while women had thick gold bangles covering their hands and thin cotton or silk veils covering their face but* Durga's trailing end of sari remained stubbornly by her side, showing her onyx orbs and shinning, proud face to the entire world. The elders scorned,the young men gawked and I remained confuse.

A carriage was already waiting for us outside the station and as I stuck my head outside the fast-moving coach, my senses were assaulted by the delightful aroma of roasted tea, there was definitely a brewery near by. The hilly air breathed serenity and tranquility and I found myself thinking of a different place, a distant time- The Irish highlands and a small wooden cabin in the middle of no where. "Thomas!" her voice had cried as she had chased me down the moor , " slow down now!" she had instructed me but my youthful spirit and light, fast steps could hardly be matched. Then suddenly her playful scolding had turned into a startled cry of horror and I was......

" Thomas!" Durga's voice broke through my reverie. Her angel-like face was inches away from mine, her eyes contemplative.

"Are you alright?"

" I will be." I nervously rubbed my neck.

" You have been zoning out a lot."

"I know but I'll try to be attentive hence forth."

She had opened her mouth to say something else but the abrupt halt of the carriage thankfully put a full stop to this awkward conversation.

" My Lord", Ravij bowed as he opened the door and gave me a slight smile.

" Thank you, Ravij." After returning his smile I stepped on the hard concrete and looked around.

Long expanses of tea plantation stretched to meet the horizon. It was early morning and the dew covered the virgin leaves. Light haze was omnipresent and the rays of the sun were nowhere to be seen, I was grateful that I had an overcoat on.The only visible sign of trees was around a small, albeit warm and welcoming cottage. The glow of the candles lit in the drawing room was contrasting to its grey exterior, the roof was slanting and covered with fashionable vines and as I drew nearer I could smell roses in the air. Lovely!

A middle-aged, balding man rushed out to greet us. He was plump and his comically red-cheeks made him seem like a welcoming person. He readjusted his shawl as he approached and shook his warm hand with my freezing one.

"Welcome to my humble abode", he said with contagious excitement.

" It is very nice meeting you too, sir."

" Uncle Rahim", Durga greeted him kindly as she stepped out of the carriage and politely refused Ravij's hand.

" Oh my child!" Mr. Rahim patted Durga's head kindly as he said,"Was the journey comfortable?"

" It was , as always , Uncle", she was smiling brighter than ever before," and you have met Lord Fall already. He is here to look into our tea-export. Thomas, Uncle Rahim is our manager here in Darjeeling."

" I'm sorry to interrupt, My Lady", Ravij said in his characteristic drawl, " but I think it will be best if we have this conversation over a hot tea. It is practically freezing here."

" Oh!" Her lips formed an adorable 'O' when she realized her mistake, " Yes, of course. I'm so sorry. Look at Thomas's nose- it almost looks like a tomato." Her tinkling laughter resounded all the way inside.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*—*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Dear Mrs. Periwinkle,

It has been almost 6 days since I have arrived at Mr. Rahim's house, 6 days of monotonous languor. The mornings are the same- go to the plantation, monitor the loading, do some calculations, make sure that the cargo have been put on the carrier train and then come home and sprawl on the bed like there is no tomorrow. Other days I just sit in Mr. Rahim's study drawing a new plan for a policy, or just putting my signature on important- looking documents. When the evening comes and I get up to leave, my eyes always travel to the sharp light burning on the opposite hill, God knows who live there but in my boredom I'd let my fantasy run wild- maybe an old man whose last priced possession was his cigar or a rundown mansion which was the haunting of the dead.

I have also made an unlikely friend, a servant boy who lives in the valley and take cares of the cottage. He looks younger than me and his every sentence makes me laugh. While cleaning my side-table he narrates stories about this place, its history and the rumors from the valley. He seems friendly, everyone seems friendly here except one strange fellow- the Gardner. He has a very muscular frame, the kind which is seen on a professional weight lifter. Whenever I pass him he scrunches up his nose as though he has smelled something bad. I have noticed his hands, the violently jutting out veins of his arms. I personally think that those aren't the hands of a fellow who digs up smooth earth all day but Ravij insists that all village folks have such hands due to their hard labor. On one occasion I saw him hold up a heavy log of about 10 kg alone and Ravij smoothly said that they are used to such activity too. It's easy to see that he might be perfectly the kind of assassin my opponent would try to send, Durga says that I'm just being paranoid.

I know you are worried sick about me but I assure you that I'm in a safe house and the sword which is always present on my person is a reassurance in itself. Please do tell how are things in your household, did your son finally made it into the Army corps?

Looking forward to your reply,

Yours lovingly,

Thomas.

One such evening when I sat in the study thinking about the strange Gardner, an angel appeared in front of me.

"You are thinking about him again?" Durga smiled as she took a consolidation of Robert Frost's work from my hand.

"Would you be kind enough to tell that who is this 'him' you are referring to?"

She just rolled her eyes and settled herself onto the couch next to me.

"I think you should go out for some time, meet new people and socialize."

I laughed. "You are sounding like Mrs. Periwinkle."

Durga shook her head, "I'm saying this because you are evidently bored and your mind is making up stories about a killer Gardner and a haunting on the near-by knoll just to keep you entertained."

"You make me sound like a lunatic..."

"Do you like theater?"

"I guess so. Why do you ask?"

"Because we are going to one. Now go change fast!" she commanded.

"Your wish is my command, my Lady." I said in a faux-smooth voice as I bowed and left but not before noticing the light blush on her cheeks.

Some minutes later I descended down the staircase while fidgeting with my cuff. Durga and Ravij were already standing near the front entrance talking urgently in hushed voices. I took this time to study her soft face, her hair which seemed like the dark expanse of night, the ivory color of her sari contrasting against her smooth skin and the fire in her eyes when she spoke vehemently back to Ravij. As I drew nearer, their voices became clearer.

"I told you I have this under control!" Her voice resonated the fire of her eyes.

"It is not safe to take him to the city alone, kid. You better reconsider." Ravij called her 'kid'? There was an air of old camaraderie around them, something which I have never seen before. Something just did not felt right.

"He cannot be confined to this house forever!"

Ravij sighed, "Fine but I'll go with you." It was then that he noticed my presence," My Lord!" He looked startled but quickly recovered, "I was informing Madam Durga that it is of imperial importance to have your butler in your presence."

"Indeed, Indeed..." I nodded my head, slightly suspicious.

"My, my, Tom, don't you look just dashing!" Durga smiled a million volt smile at me and all coherent thoughts flew out of my head.

It was a half-an-hour drive to the main city and I watched the fields of tea replaced by a jungle of concrete. Long towering buildings and large intimidating mansions greatly occupied the city square. Zooming in between some tongas and even less Benz and Mercedes cars, the driver stopped the automobile in front of a large, white-marble building with many intricately carved pillars and a fancy sign reading 'The Mayfair Theatre'.Ravij leapt out and opened the door for us but before we could enter, a guard standing by the door stopped us.

"Sorry sirs and madam but you cannot enter." He said pointing to a 'Englishmen only!' sign.

"What hogwash is this?" I cannot even fathom the significance of this sign. How outrageous! Was this to insult Indians or to embarrass us fellow British because of some of the fools we had in our circle.

"Policy is policy, sir. Please don't be angry, I'm just doing my job." He said politely.

"It's okay, Thomas." Durga said placing a calming hand on my arm. Shouldn't she be the one furious at such discrimination ?

"I and Ravij are going home. You stay here and enjoy yourself. A cart will be waiting for you at 7 in the evening."

"I have no interest in going...."

"Now don't be so ungrateful. We came here solely because of you. You have been under the weather ever since we came here."

"I am sorry to say but a stupid threatre of all places can hardly uplift my mood." I glared at the guard, who shivered.

"Go, Thomas." Again she reminded me of a very strict Mrs. Periwinkle and I grudgingly went to the counter and paid for my ticket.

The drama 'Romeo and Juliet' had already started when I took my seat in the balcony. The chap who played Romeo might be called very handsome if we were to judge from the number of young maidens who had left their seats and were practically hanging from the railing of the balcony. The play was a drawl as usual and I felt myself thinking of an angelic face, if perhaps her love was passionate as Juliet's? Will her love also finally lead to self-destruction? But the question which made my heart soar yet also clench with jealousy was - Who will be fortunate enough to be her Romeo?

The elderly lady sitting next to me was wailing as Romeo kissed his Juliet's blue lips and I politely offered her my handkerchief. She smiled as she thanked me.

I took in a deep breath as I stepped outside. The evening star was already shinning brightly from the heaven above and the shops on the opposite side of the road were buzzing with activity. It felt as though I was back in London. My favourite dress makers and Mr. Brown's bakery just around the corner. I looked at my pocket watch- it was 6:45. Best to do some sight-seeing instead of waiting aimlessly so I made a beeline to Mr. Brown's and ordered a chocolate pastry. After going in and out of many shops I started to realize that I was being followed. At first I thought that I was being paranoid but when I abruptly turned around at an entrance to a shop, I came face-to-face with a tall man with an unusually hard jaw line, his cold gaze were staring straight at me and something in my stomach clenched.

I swiftly tore my gaze away from him and entered the shop, then I ducked out to the side alley. My lingering touch clenched around the handle of the sword anchored to my belt. I had never expected to use it, it was only another unnecessary precaution however, now.....

My steps faltered as I took notice of my desolate surrounding but I quickly recovered. Taking a sharp turn into an adjoining alley I came to an abrupt stop. At the very end was a dimly-lit mechanic shop and then a concrete wall- it was a dead end. My breath came out in hitches, better turn around when you have time, Tom! But no, it was too late, a hard metal was placed on my back and a rumbling voice spoke to me in a cockney dialect- " What is a rich boy like you doing here?"

I tried to think fast, I knew that my sword was no match to his gun, maybe if I kick him on the knee and then tackle him.

Adrenaline was pumping through my veins and the dull thudding of the blood against my eardrum made my body ready for the fight or flight instinct. However, what happened next was very fast and equally unexpected.

A dark human silhouette jumped from the roof of the building under whose shade we stood. Any normal person would not have survived this fall but when its billowing robes settled into a graceful mess and the lightness and its light and elegant steps landed on the terra firma I knew it was anything but normal. A sharp blade flashed in the dim-moonlight and the cold graze of the metal against my abdomen was unavoidable. Dark liquid oozed and covered my overcoat. I gazed up and held my breath as I stared right into the eyes which had haunted my nightmare.The grim reaper was here to get me.

CLARIFICATIONS-

* This sentence highlights some centuries old Indian tradition according to which a women should always have her face covered, however Durga *as usual* is defying the social norms.

Another point- Mayfair threater or cinema is located in Lucknow but just for convenience sake I've placed it in Darjeeling. Also the point about- "ENGLISH MEN ONLY!" is true, there were a lot of places where Indians were not allowed. I'm sure many of you have heard the story of Mahatma Gandhi when he was thrown out of a train compartment because apparently Indians were not entitled to travel 1st class.

A/N:-Anyways, I apologize if this chapter was uncharacteristically long, but I still hope you have enjoyed it.