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Word Count : 3350

Audio Theme : Hona Hai Kya | Talaash |

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39 | The Silhouettes In The Dark  

"Which area?"

Daleep Bedi stared at her in confusion. "Sorry, madam ji?"

Hinduja wiped the sweat off her face. "From which area did Karuna Tomar get abducted, Daleep Ji?"

"Bramhanagar." He promptly replied.

She then turned around to face Raghav, who already understood what she was going to suggest.

"The patrolling teams are on high alert in Bramhanagar. Moreover, police check posts were already ordered in every lane." He voiced out.

She nodded. "Four down. One left. I wonder who will be the fifth victim of today."

Swiftly zip-locking the lilies in an evidence bag, Raghav strode towards his SUV.

"I have already pinged the exact location to the forensic team, so they'll be anytime here now. Let's not waste our time here anymore. Patwardhan, Ramandeep, and their respective teams are already searching for the lilies at their respective locations as per your suggestion." He paused as Daleep Bedi unlocked the door and got onto the driver's seat. "I think we should leave for Bramhanagar. Somehow, I have a feeling that the next abduction will take place somewhere around Bramhanagar itself. What do you think?" He probed while getting seated in the passenger seat.

"Hm. I think you are right." She bolted the door, making herself comfortable on the back seat.

Just then a series of white headlamps illuminated the condensed darkness of the lengthy pathway the SUV was parked on.

"The forensic team is here," Raghav announced.

"Who is the chief forensic investigator assigned for this case, Saab Ji?" Daleep Bedi asked.

As the headlamps approached closer, a silver Innova came into their view.

Raghav sighed. "Dr. K D Chadha."

"Kanwal Dheer?!" Daleep exclaimed in shock.

"Yes."

"Oh, Bhens de Gobbar da Falooda!"  The S.I. cursed in proper Punjabi accent.

Hinduja scrunched her face in distaste, imagining Buffalo dung and Falooda in the same sentence.

"What happened, Daleep Ji?" She asked.

"Oh, madam ji! That Kanwal Dheer Chadha!" Letting go of the steering wheel, he flailed around his hands in the air in exasperation. "Ek number da Khaddoos! Bloody stiff-necked thug!"

"Daleep Ji" Raghav tried to admonish the S.I.

"Oh, Saab Ji! Meine ni chup rehnaa iss baar!"

Hinduja looked confused as the Innova approached closer, finally lining its passenger side window adjacent to the passenger side window of the vehicle she was herself seated in.

The glass panes went down as Rukmini and Raghav came face to face.

"Jai Hind, sir!"

"Jai Hind." Jutting his arm slightly out of the window, he pointed at the supposed crime spot and said. "There it is. We have already put markers." He then raised the evidence bag in his right hand. "The lilies. I'll deposit them in the Evidence Room."

"Yes sir." Rukmini offered a nod.

Hinduja adjusted her specs and squinted her eyes, trying to adjust and perceive the silhouettes seated in the Innova shrouded under the dull light around them.

"Dr. Chadha, I hope I'll get the preliminary inspection reports soon." She heard Raghav instruct.

None of them heard any response from the Innova in return. Only Rukmini passed an awkward smile.

Shaking his head, Raghav signaled Daleep to key in the ignition.

A minute later, as the SUV ventured out of the lane, leaving the Innova behind after taking a left turn, Hinduja heard the S.I. cursing again. "Satyaansh ho tera Chadhe!"

***

Twenty-five minutes had passed, and they were still twenty minutes away from Brahmanagar, their next destination.

Her phone vibrated.

Fishing it out of the blazer pocket, she unlocked it and opened the messaging app. And right on the top, there it was—his message.

Will you reach home late tonight?

- M. Dogra

Yes, I guess.

- You

She texted back. The ticks turned blue instantly, and he started typing again.

Alright, no issues. I'll wait.

- M. Dogra

Shaking her head, she faintly smiled.

Don't wait for me. Have your dinner early.

- You

She patiently twiddled her fingers as he started typing again.

I said, I'll wait.

One husband, two chapaatis, a bowl of dal, a bowl of mixed vegetables, and some rice, along with a side of salate. All are waiting for you at the dining table. Come home at your convenience. We'll have dinner together, clear?

- M. Dogra

She stared at the screen, like a baby deer caught in the headlights. Then her cheeks burned as she scratched her neck awkwardly and tried to hide her face from the two men in front of her.

Crystal.

- You

Good. Get back to work and finish it fast. Bye.

- M. Dogra

Yes, bye.

- You

Just as she minimized the messaging application, another text popped up on the screen, this time from her brother.

Where are you?

- Bhai 🦧

Still stuck in work. Might get late today.

- You

He read her text immediately.

Come to your home fast. Anirudh and I are going to sleep, but that Banyan tree is still waiting in the drawing room.

- Bhai 🦧

She chuckled.

On a serious note, why does your son fart so much? I swear, I just drained out all the hair that had fallen out of my nostrils in the wash basin.

- Bhai 🦧

These were some serious allegations against her boy.

He is a toddler! And children his age do pass out gas a lot! Just like people of your age snore a lot!

- You

Okay. Okay. Stop being so hyper. His wish how much he farts. Why should I care? 🤷 Come home fast; I don't want your Banyan tree to faint out of hunger.

- Bhai 🦧

Okay

- You

Bye!

- Bhai 🦧

Bye.

- You

Closing the application, she shoved the device back into her pocket and supported her head against the window to stare outside. The SUV took a sharp U-turn and speeded up towards a flyover.

In that very moment, she overheard a ringtone. The source of the auditory intervention was her senior's phone.

She saw him acknowledging the call from her peripheral vision.

"What?!" He exclaimed abruptly.

In an instant she was alert again, ears perked up, head no longer resting against the window, and shoulders dead straight.

"Where?"

The party on the other side said something that caused him to rub his face in irritation and heave a sigh.

"Alright."

And he disconnected the call.

"What happened, Saab Ji?" Asked the S.I.

"The last abduction is also done. Seema Gadwal, age 17, Bhagwantpura. Her mother was there with her. She went to use the restroom for a minute, only to come back and find her daughter missing from home. She then searched around in their neighborhood but found nothing. " He lifted his wrist up and glanced at the time on the watch. "Since news about this abduction case is spreading in the state like wildfire, she immediately called the police helpline number. I guess only seven to ten minutes must have passed since all of this transpired."

The gap between her brows narrowed as she pondered the name of the place that Raghav had just uttered. Something snapped inside her mind, and she hurriedly voiced out. "Daleep Ji! Turn around! Turn around immediately! The road under this flyover leads straight to Bhagwantpura! Quick!"

"Is it?" Raghav asked in surprise. His lack of knowledge about the routes due to his recent transfer to NCR from the neighboring state for the case, blatantly showing up.

"Yes." She shot back.

The S.I., on the other hand, promptly broke the traffic rules by taking a sudden U-turn, speedily gliding the SUV down the flyover. "But as per what Saab Ji said, ten minutes have already passed. The perpetrators must have absconded from the abduction site by now, isn't it?"

"No. From a practical perspective, that's not possible. Unlike the other areas we visited today, Bhagwantpura is a fairly large area. To pass through it's various lanes and come out of it, it will take them at least twenty minutes." She explained.

The DCP smirked. "Good. We have a fairly good chance today. Let me alert the patrolling team. Let's nab the basta*ds today."

Announcing so, he quickly detached the walkie-talkie from his belt and hurled out orders in a quick succession.

Meanwhile, the S.I. raced the vehicle straight through the main road leading towards the town of  Bhagwantpura.

Hinduja glanced at Daleep Bedi for a second and then turned her gaze towards Raghav. She picked up her bag from the seat and placed it on her lap. Slithering both of her hands inside it, she slowly felt the cold metallic surface coming in contact with her palm.

"Daleep, Ji, put the silencer on your revolver." The DCP ordered while putting a sound suppressor on his own weapon.

She gulped, her own hands working silently inside the leather bag on her lap.

"I have a suggestion." She intervened.

"What?" Raghav asked.

"Let's cover up our faces."

"Why, madam ji?" Daleep Bedi asked. Raghav, on the other hand, got her thoughts in an instant.

"Just do it, Daleep Ji. Cover up your face."

The S.I. shrugged his shoulders. "But I don't have a mask as of now."

"I have two." She answered. Taking out a mask akin to the one she had passed on to her brother in the morning, she handed it over to Daleep.

Raghav unlatched the dashboard and took out a mask kept inside it.

Two minutes later, their automobile entered inside the main block of the Bhagwantpura locality. "Keep an eye on every vehicle or person that seems suspicious to you."

Hinduja nodded. So did the S.I.

All three of them sharply roamed their gazes around. The area seemed fairly lively and fine. Children were still playing outside while their mothers were gossiping at certain corners, still unaware of the catastrophe that had befallen on someone belonging to the same area they all lived in.

They passed by a concatenation of independent houses, buildings, and a number of families who were out for a walk. 

The SUV drove deeper. On the way, they came across a series of neem trees growing on the sides. The atmosphere turned darker as a few cars with their headlights turned on passed by. And just like that, five minutes passed like nothing.

Gradually, Hinduja felt the surroundings becoming unusually quiet, dark, and deserted.

"Daleep Ji, Speed up. This area seems perfect for the syndicate to execute the abduction. And if that's the case, we need to hurry up. They must have passed through this area. Quick."

Passing her a sharp nod, Daleep Bedi increased the speed.

But much to their chagrin, their eyes came across nothing suspicious at all.

"I think they escaped." Raghav pointed out.

"I concur." Hinduja added, focusing her eyes on the dial of her analog watch.

The SI sighed. "Should we go to the victim's house then?"

"I guess, yes." Hinduja trailed. "But, why aren't the patrolling teams patrolling inside this area actually?"

"You know how these locals are. They want safety and privacy at the same time. The following day, the first patrolling vehicle had entered inside this area, all the residents had come up on the roads to protest. Unwilling, the patrolling team was forced to back down. They are allowed to guard this area around it's boundaries but not venture inside it. And the same thing happened in multiple areas and housing societies around the state. It's the same pattern every time. They will demand safety, and then the very next moment they'll come up with some drama or the other. But the second something wrong transpires, they'll openly blame the police." The DCP explained, absolutely vexed.

Hinduja agreed, the forefinger of her right hand slowly tracing the cold barrel of the handgun inside her satchel. Ducking her head down, she breathed out in exhaustion.

But within a second, she lifted her head again, staring outside the right window. Under what seemed like a large Peepal tree was the silhouette of a vehicle, its color and design undecipherable to her eyes because of the extreme darkness and lack of street lights.

Moreover, the factor that made it even more uncanny was the lack of headlamps. All the four-wheelers, three-wheelers, and two-wheelers that had passed by till now had their headlights on. This piece of automobile, on the other hand, seemed as if it was absolutely veiled under a dense coat of nightfall—leaving aside its silhouette, nothing else was visible.

"Sir?"

Raghav looked behind. Directing her finger towards the right side, she pointed at the suspicious vehicle.

He squinted his eyes, his mouth slightly ajar. "Daleep Ji, something is odd here."

Following both of their gazes, Daleep fixed his eyes on the distant vehicle as well. "Saab Ji, should I turn off the head lights?"

"No, don't. They will get suspicious." The DCP shot back. "Fasten the mask around your face and slowly maneuver the SUV in their direction."

Daleep Bedi gulped, "Waheguruji Ka Khalsa, Waheguruji Ki Fateh." He muttered under his breath and drove the car in the said direction.

[Waheguruji Ka Khalsa, Waheguruji Ki Fateh :  Khalsa belongs to God, and to God belongs the victory]

Steering the car for a few more seconds, Daleep ceased its movements around forty-five meters away from the unknown vehicle.

"On the count of three." Raghav breathed out.

"3"

"2" All three of them unbolted the car doors.

"1"

"Out!" The DCP commanded, and in the flash of a second, all three of them dashed out of the SUV and stealthily moved towards their source of suspicion in silence.

"Why the heck did you come out, Hinduja!?" The officer whispered. "Move back in! I am ordering you—Go back into the car!"

"I .am. not. going. back." Came a steely and assertive response.

"Oh my God! Woman, go back inside! This can turn out dangerous. You are not even carrying a weapon!"

"Who said I am not carrying a weapon?" As if on record, the DCP turned around. And quite contradictory to his thoughts, the lady was indeed carrying a revolver in her hands. One step at a time, he saw her moving stealthily with her posture in accordance with the standard posture of combat and gun aimed at the distant vehicle.

Just who was this woman?

He wondered again, just like every day.

But, pertaining to the situation at hand, he turned back and carried forward with the task.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a whooshing kind of sound fell upon their eardrums—as if there was a sudden discharge of air from somewhere.

"What was that sound?" Daleep Bedi probed.

Raghav looked around when his gaze fell on the front two deflated tires of his SUV.

His steps faltered and eyes enlarged as a sudden realization crossed his mind.

"F**k! They know it's us! They have punctured the tires!"

Hurling out so, he rushed forward. The other two followed closely.

"They have guns, and just like us, they are using sound suppressors too!"

"AHHHHHHHH–HHH! SAAB JI!" Sub Inspector Daleep Bedi fell down on the ground, tightly clutching his lower limb. His gun lying in what seemed like a slow-forming puddle of blood. Raghav rapidly crouched down to help the male policeman in his fifties.

Meanwhile, Hinduja rushed forward. And then she saw it—the silhouette of a man. Inconspicuous and dark.

He was leaning against the automobile, absolutely unfazed.

A weird kind of fear crawled at the back of her being. She shuddered but kept on moving towards him.

From behind her, she heard the SI's troubled breathing and the swift movements of the DCP, who was now catching up with her.

"Someone is standing there." He muttered.

"Yes."

She knew what her next course of action was supposed to be.

"Sir, we are neither in a position to attack nor can we defend. We can't even puncture the tires of their vehicle because nothing is visible at all. On top of that, I forgot my torch inside the car. But we can definitely do one thing. I hope you are understanding what I am trying to say." The moment she finished, their eyes met.

There was one thing that he had learned over the span of the last twelve to thirteen days. And it was the impenetrable truth that he could easily trust this young lady beside him without a speck of doubt with absolutely everything around him, even his life.

Her attitude, personality, and stance reminded him of a certain classmate of his from college—the Imperial College of Engineering. She almost felt like a female version of him  to his eyes.

His one quick nod, and she roared. "Cover!"

DCP Raghav Katoch lifted his arms up, straight and unbending. Winding his digits tightly around the grip of his pistol, he opened fire in the direction of the vehicle and the stranger.

"Be careful, the girl might be inside." He shouted as he saw her rushing towards the man in the dark.

Hinduja pressed her forefinger against the trigger and aimed straight on the mysterious entity's left limb. As expected, he dropped down on the ground. She then fired at his other limb. 

But, unlike the Sub Inspector, this man didn't even let a word of pain out, let alone a cry.

Abruptly, out of nowhere, she heard the engine of the vehicle coming into life, and the very next second, the unknown vehicle raced from its initial locus.

"Shit!"

She saw the man crawling. But, quite weirdly enough, instead of moving away from her, he was crawling towards her.

"Vishal! Yes Vishal. Design and color not known. Number plate not visible. Brand not visible as well. Suspicious Vehicle rushing towards the Bhagwantpura back exit! Patrolling team, close all the gates and hurry to the site! I repeat, patrolling team, close all the gates and hurry to the site! And send an ambulance to my current location immediately! We have an injury! I repeat, we have an injury! Over and out!" Raghav hurled out hastily on the transmitter.

Hinduja steadily walked towards the dark figure with shaky steps.

Bending her waist, she crouched down to finally perceive the man's visage. Staring back at her were a lifeless and diabolical pair of eyes with a tinge of bright rubicund red, as if they were directly derived from Satan's hell.

Pressing the nuzzle of her gun tightly against his forehead, she gravely whispered. "Who is it? Who is behind all this? And, Who are you?"

He chuckled.

Deep.

Somehow even his voice felt abnormal to her ears.

"In the dark we dive; in the dark we dwell."

He sang steadily. One word at a time. The satanic smile on his face still intact.

He raised his right arm up, gently lifted up her mask and caressed her face. And then, the very next second, within a splash, she saw him diving his hand straight towards her left shoulder while he brought his left hand towards his own mouth.

"Ah!" A faint but sharp cry escaped her lips as something serrated penetrated the skin right over her glenohumeral joint.

"Yes, where was I?" He blinked his head multiple times. Tilting his head to the right side, he stared at her eerily, his eyes agape.

"In the dark we dive, in the dark we dwell,

How dense is this fog, Only time shall tell."  He chuckled.

"What happened?" Raghav shouted, crouching down beside her.

The very next second, the stranger's body started convulsing uncontrollably. It felt as if he was going through seizures. Slowly his eyes shut close as white froth started erupting out of his mouth.

"Shit! Poison?" The DCP mumbled.

He then turned around to look at her. "Are you okay?"

"I am." She responded, snuggly buttoning up her blazer around her torso, sensing some kind of warm fluid flowing down her left shoulder, the area around it slowly turning numb.

Breaking the chain of silence, a series of flash lights fell upon them. One of the patrolling jeeps and the ambulance had finally arrived.

***