This chapter has some content which is not suitable for readers under the age of 18.
Moti Bagh
Suburb in New Delhi, India.

"Misha... Misha!!"

As she cursed inwardly at the rude stranger who just threatened to throw her under the truck, Misha turned around to find her bestie Samantha approach her with quick strides.

"Who was that guy? Why were you trying to stop him? Did you pick up a fight with him too?" As usual, Sam raised her hands to her waist, as she prepared herself for time-to-lecture-my-bestie-mode.

"Why do you always think the worst of me?  It was entirely his fault! He bumped into me roughly and I almost fell over the pavement. I didn't fall of course, because he pulled me back in a flash. But that's beside the point. He should have apologised, right? But he didn't, not even when I demanded that he should. Even worse, he bloody ignored me and went away. And you know I can never tolerate that kind of attitude. How dare anyone insult and ignore a beautiful girl like me? That's why I tried to stop him. But he threatened me that he will throw me under that truck, and... and I got scared. He looked so dangerous Sam. And you know how I feel about such guys, don't you?" Misha pouted.

"Wow! What a bloody cheek!  Well... sorry, I admit in this case it wasn't your mistake, but can you really blame me if I assumed that you were the one who picked up the fight? Ever since you joined my class, I had to spend half of my time pulling you away from fights with guys in the campus, and sometimes even girls." Sam shrugged.

"Because, they were IDIOTS, the whole lot! But this guy... he was bloody arrogant and rude. Just wait till I find him again, I will show him what I am capable of !"  Misha's nostrils flared again.

"But of course, you are the only intelligent creature on earth! Now, why didn't I remember that simple fact? And what the hell do you mean you will find him again? I saw him only from behind but trust me, you don't want to mess with that body and size. Now, before your Naani comes all the way down to the shopping mall looking for her spoilt and troubled granddaughter, let's go home, shall we?" Sam pulled Misha towards the street leading to their apartment block.
"God!! Why am I surrounded with concerned and ready-to-lecture Naanis?" Misha raised her hands as if in prayer and poked her tongue out, but ducked easily to escape from Sam's well aimed punch.

"Aargh!! You are too quick, again! I will punch you nice and hard one day! By the way, how did you manage bumping into that guy? One minute you were with me as I was crossing the road and then you just vanished."

"I flew with my wings, didn't you notice? I am a shapeshifter you know!!  God help you. Just because you walk and respond like a snail, everyone else looks too fast for you."

The friends continue to bicker till they reached their apartment block, where their families lived within few doors to each other.

***
Elegant Towers, Moti Bagh
New Delhi.
The words and the context on that torn letter continued to haunt Victor's mind. Who was this DJ and who was this Malayalee person who would write a letter to him, in this day and age of Mobiles and email? Either an aged person, not familiar with technology or a smart one who wouldn't trust it and knows that keeping yourself offline is the best secure method.

He tried to check through his own database and records of all the criminals he had known of, when he was working as an Agent in the Intelligence Bureau, but came up with nothing. But his data was quite outdated, as most of his work was outside India for many years, and all his sources and information were centred around his foreign missions.

He slouched back in his lounge and picked up football on the coffee table , as his eyes roved around his neatly organised living room. Atleast his apartment smelt and looked better, thanks to the rigorous cleaning he had done in the past few days.

He could go to their head office in Lodhi Road, but he knew that he would be shown the door, if Nanda Sir even had a whiff of his presence. He was still under his 3-month imposed leave. He kicked the football towards living room wall with all the frustration. He knew Nanda Sir meant well. When was the last time he spoke to someone not as an Agent but as himself? When did anyone speak to him like a normal guy and not out of fear or respect! He closed his eyes and sighed.

His whole body relaxed as the image of an angry girl with soft eyes flashed before his eyes. Just imagine the cheek of that girl, trying to get an apology from him, when he kindly saved her from falling on the road!! Victor shook his head, as if to get rid of the unwanted memories of that girl and tried to concentrate his wavering mind.

He snapped his eyes open as one name and face filled his thoughts.

Jishu Menon!!

Of course, why didn't he think of Jishu? He would know everyone and anyone related to criminal activities in the whole of Kerala.  But... it's been years since he met or even spoke to him. He wasn't even sure if Jishu still lived in Kochi, that beautiful city in Kerala where they went to high school together. He did keep in touch with Jishu till he joined the Intelligence Bureau, but their relations got strained after.... Victor dismissed the unpleasant memories and began to call his erstwhile contacts in Kerala, and tasked them to find out the whereabouts of the reclusive and often hard to find Jishu Menon, Ex DSP of Kerala Police Department, who often visited Drug and Booze Dens in the seedy parts of Kochi, in pursuit of information and his own craving.

***

Within 48 hours, one of his contacts texted him and gave him the welcoming news. Jishu was in fact in Delhi, staying with his aged and ailing mother. Victor was stuck by fresh wave of guilt. Their families lived in the same neighbourhood  and were so close that Victor called Mr Menon as Maaman and Mrs Menon as Maami.( Uncle and Aunt in Malayalam)  Victor wondered what happened to Mrs Menon, who he always remembered as the most cheerful and friendly soul. As he came out of his apartment, he checked the newly brought shrubs he arranged at the alcove near the front door, which gave the right amount of privacy, from the common corridor, a feature which impressed him the most when he chose to buy this apartment. It was still quite early in the morning, and being a Sunday, he found the apartment block free of noise and usual activity.  From his third-floor corner apartment, he could see all the 5 floors of the building and their L shaped corridors, with a nice lawn and children's play are in the middle and directly across the watchman's cabin. The watchman looked up as Victor walked towards the stairs adjacent to the lift. He probably doesn't know or recognize me, the always absent owner of apartment 302, Victor smirked and noted mentally to introduce himself properly to the watchman. His thoughts got interrupted as he turned the corner, and once again bumped into the girl he had the altercation with, the day before.

"You! What the hell are you doing here? Are you stalking me or what?" He lost his control and bellowed at her.

"Hey, you bloody... Who the hell are you to yell at me like that? And why do you fancy yourself as someone being worthy of stalking? Have you looked at yourself in the mirror, even once? For your kind information, I LIVE HERE. Which makes you, the stalker! Why are you here? The security in this apartment is totally lax. I will call the watchman right now!" Misha spat at him and ran towards the corridor. Before she could utter any word, Victor pulled her back roughly and pinned her against the wall on a side alcove, away from everyone's view and closed her mouth firmly. He knew he was overreacting, but this unnecessary publicity will cost him more than getting into the bad books of this loud mouth, nosy neighbour.

"Don't you dare utter another word. I have no interest in stalking you or any bloody girl in my life. I too live here, in apartment 302. You seem to be new here, otherwise you would have known that I have been away for the past few months." He growled against her face, acutely aware of how soft her lips felt against his rough calloused hands. Sensing how her body stiffened and then relaxed, Victor thought that his explanation was enough and removed his hand and took a step back, away from her.

BIG MISTAKE.

She probably was in shock, all this time, because the moment he removed his hand, she began to shout again.

"You bastard! How dare you touch me and threaten me like this in my own place?"

What the!!

"Oh! So, it would have been okay if I did it at my place then! Let's go, it's the corner apartment over there." He fumed at her, jerking his thumb.

Her face reddened at his insinuation but she didn't take long to infuriate him further.
"You dirty bastard! I knew it, you are just like all those men, the moment you see a pretty face your mind goes to the drain, and you..."

Victor switched off his mind from the barrage of words emanating from that pretty mouth and groaned inwardly. From the outward appearance, she didn't look so dumb. Why do half the women he had the misfortune of meeting, end up sounding so dumb and idiotic, once they open their mouth! This is why he hated his real life so much! He wished Nanda Sir was here at this moment, to watch his brilliant protégé, as he struggled to shut up a silly girl.

Her overtly imagination and wild accusations flared his well-controlled temper and ruined his mood, which was already sour, owing to the prospect of meeting his old friend. Perhaps words were not enough to get through her thick skull. He heard one of the apartments doors open.  Victor had enough! He had no time for all this drama. Something snapped inside his head and he pulled out the gun tucked at his back, closed in on her, and pointed it straight under her chin.
Her eyes widened and there was no sound except her ragged breath which matched the rapid thudding of his heart.

"Listen to me once and for all. I am not after you, I will never come after you but if I see you, anywhere near me or disturbing me again, I won't be responsible for my actions. Are we clear now?" He hissed.

She gulped nervously and looked down at the gun and his face in turns and finally straightened her back, surprising him even further. Is this girl not afraid of guns either? Just as he began to regret his impulsive and irresponsible behaviour, which was highly unusual, his mind registered another shock. To his dismay, he noticed how the initial scare on her face turn into excitement.

"Are you... are you a detective? Like Sherlock Holmes in Sherlock? I love that show and I am a huge fan of Benedict Cumberbatch! Isn't he so clever and sexy and that voice... Oh my! I almost  die whenever I hear his deep voice. Anyway, where are we? Yeah! Are you a private detective like that? Do you get to solve interesting mysteries? Please... please can I help you? I am studying Psychology and English literature and I would love to know how the mind of a Private Detective works and how they solve all those thrilling crimes!"

Victor cursed himself. He heard the lift coming up. He quickly tucked away the gun at the back of his jeans. Damn these celebrity crazy and Social media blubber heads who benchmark everything against TV Shows and fictional characters, and have no idea how things work in real life.
Before he could threaten her with more menacing words, an elderly female voice from the adjacent apartment called out.

"Misha... Misha! Where are you? The milk guy delivered less milk today, again! Can you go to the corner shop Beta and get two more packets?"

Misha gasped nervously.

"Oh my god! If my Naani sees me here with you, I will be in so much trouble. But I am so excited to have a neighbour like you! We will meet again for sure, and you can tell me about all your adventures, okay?" As she ran back to her apartment in a flash without even looking back at him, Victor wondered how an elderly lady's summons were more frightening than an armed warning from a stranger.

For a moment, he was sorely tempted to go after her and warn her against blurting about his gun wielding antics to anyone else, but dismissed that thought eventually.  In Victor's opinion, most people never listened to any advice and did exactly opposite to what they were advised to. As he heard the lift door open, he dismissed his pondering thoughts, realizing the futility of trying to understand the weird way female brains work, and rushed down the stairs. He can deal with Ms Misha whoever once he attended to the more important business of speaking to his friend Jishu.

****  

An hour later, as the bright sun gleamed through his windscreen, Victor waited in his car outside an old two storey building in the sprawling suburb of Defence Colony, still in two minds whether or not to meet his old friend.

The fact that he might have to meet Jishu's mother too was adding to his discomfiture.

Finally, the curiosity to find out more about the letter overrode his reluctance and once he made up his mind, he got out of the car quickly and scuttled towards the door.

Just as he was about ring the bell, the door opened with a bang and a man in Nurse uniform charged angrily out, ignoring the pleas of a soft voice from inside.

As he wondered what was going on and whether to enter inside, he saw Jishu's mother walk out of one of the bedrooms and close the door behind her, which failed to muffle the loud groans and profanities uttered by Jishu.

As Mrs Menon noticed the tall and hesitant figure of Victor, the grim lines on her face relaxed and she smiled, although awkwardly.

"Is that you Chotu?? Why are you standing at the door? Come, come inside. It's been ages since I saw you." Being called with his childhood nickname brought an automatic smile on Victor's face. She stretched her hand towards him, and Victor did something he rarely did nowadays. He bent down and touched her feet.

"Arrey! No, Chotu!!" She embraced him with her soft frail hands. "I missed you, you know. You two idiots can fight as much as you want, but how could you forget your Maami like this, huh?" Victor's guilt doubled as he saw her eyes well up. 

"No, Maami, nothing like that. I have been out of the country for many years now, that's all." He knew his lies wouldn't convince her, but he had no other face-saving option.

"Amma! Who is it? Who are you talking to? If it is another bloody nurse, I am going to kick his balls out."

"Jishu, shut up. Don't use your gutter language in front of me." Even though Mrs Menon replied straight away, her tired tone made Victor wonder if Mrs Menon had heard this too often. 

"Give me what I want instead of these lectures, and you don't have to hear anything from me gutter or otherwise!" Jishu voice boomed hoarsely behind the closed door.

Mrs Menon face reddened, but she was quick to stop Victor as he charged towards his friends' bedroom.

"Don't mind him Chotu, he is not in his right mind. Let's go into the kitchen, so I can talk to you while I make some tea." Victor sensed she was keen to move him away from his foul-mouthed son before she could explain why his dear friend was acting like a douche.

As they moved towards the kitchen, another shout came from the bedroom.

"You still haven't told me who you are talking to." Jishu demanded and Mrs Menon replied absentmindedly, "a well-wisher Jishu, probably someone you need right now, more than you realise."

Victor followed Mrs Menon, as he picked up a chair next to the dining table, and placed it against the wall in the small kitchen. But before Mrs Menon could do anything, Victor forced her to sit down in the chair.

"Maami, please sit down and let me give you a taste of the best tea in Delhi. No, I won't listen to another word you say." He ignored her protests and fetched a tea pan hanging against the wall hook and began to make tea, as Mrs Menon guided him to gather all the necessary ingredients.

"How are you feeling now Maami? I am sorry I don't know all the details, but I heard..." Victor paused, feeling guilty and awkward again.

"God hasn't been kind to us Chotu. Perhaps we have sinned a lot knowingly or unknowingly. This house belongs to my brother, who has kindly let me stay here ever since your uncle passed away and we had to give up the army quarters. I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer few years ago and now they finally told me I am in the terminal stage. But guess what, your friend seems to be in a hurry to reach the hell much before me." A lone tear escaped from her eyes.

Victor kneeled in front of her and hesitantly reached out to touch her hand.

"Maami, what happened? Why is Jishu..."

"He has become a terrible addict to that new drug "SPICE," Chotu !" Observing the baffled expression on Victor's face, she continued. "I am glad that you don't even know what I am talking about. You must at least know about the drug ICE right?"

Victor nodded.

"Well as I understand, this drug nicknamed SPICE, is a concentrated version of the same drug and it is 10 times more lethal.  It turns even casual users into addicts in no time, which is exactly what happened with Jishu. He was on the trail of some case and got used to this drug, and then the police department kicked him out of the job. We tried everything; counselling, rehabilitation but nothing seemed to work. Finally, when my health began to go down, I kind of gave up on him." Her face reflected the terrible guilt and helplessness she felt.

She took a deep breath and continued.

"I came to know that the supplier in Kochi too cut off Jishu due to his violent behaviour, and so, he moved to Delhi as he ran out of money and supply. He keeps pestering me to buy his drugs from the main supplier, who lives somewhere around here. But to all his friends and our relatives, Jishu lied that he came to Delhi  to look after me. I have managed my health somehow with the help of my relatives and neighbours, but neither me nor the doctors can handle Jishu right now. Because... "she sighed and continued, "this is the worst part, people addicted to SPICE become so hallucinated and violent with everyone around them and end up doing self-harm, if they are kept away from it.   Sometimes it takes 4 or 5 people to restrain him, once he turns violent, and we are forced to tie him up to his bed. That nurse you just saw run away, was the third in this month. More than my health, I am worried about him, Chotu ! I doubt if he still listens to you, but can you try and drill some sense into his brain?" Her voice trembled. Victor felt utterly shocked at this unfortunate development, and cursed himself again for not keeping in touch with his old friend. Well, he would make up for it somehow, and look after Jishu, and relieve this kind mother of her burden. He couldn't even imagine the sight of his dear friend being tied up in his own bed. A slow shudder ran through his back.

"Of course, Maami, you don't have to ask. Please have some tea first. Did you eat breakfast yet?" Victor quickly turned away to hide his face, and took his time to pour out the tea and look through the pantry for some biscuits, as he fought to control his emotions.

"Yes, I did Chotu, that Nurse was kind enough to make some breakfast and give me my morning pills."

"Great, but you will feel more energetic once you have my world-famous tea. I will go and check on Jishu."

"Careful Chotu... and if he speaks rudely to you, please forgive him for old times sake."

"Maami, Please! Just relax, okay. I know Jishu too well and if we are not rude to each other, we both would actually feel weird." He winked at her and was happy to see her face split into a soft smile.

As he quietly opened the door and walked inside to observe his childhood friend, Victor for once was glad that his profession trained him to face some of the most dreadful situations with a hardened and cold heart.

Jishu was lying on the bed with his eyes closed, drawing laboured breath, his famished body and face sunk to such an extent that most of his features looked ghostly. One of his arms and legs were tied to the rails on the metal bed at both ends, as the abrasive marks on all over his body, especially where the ties bound him, told Victor everything his friend had been through.

He knew it wasn't a good idea to approach or touch him in his current state, so he called out his friend as softly as he could.

"Jishu!"

Jishu opened his eyes but they looked so cold and lifeless to Victor, that it was impossible to gauge his state of mind.

"I knew it was you, the way my Amma was grovelling and telling her sob story about her unfortunate and unworthy son." The contemptuous smile on his face didn't reach his eyes.

Victor pulled a chair nearby and sat next to his friend's bed.

"If Maami heard my mother's complaints about me, she would feel much better, trust me.  All mothers are the same Jishu. But I must ask, what have you done to yourself yaar!" Victor made sure he sounded casual.

"Enough of your old chum drama. You stopped being my friend the day you stole my girlfriend Ria from me. I don't need your sympathy or empathy, just... just get out of here." Jishu turned his face away.

"Seriously Jishu, you are still hung up over that? That Ria used you, dumped you and conveniently blamed me for your break up and like an idiot you bought her whole story. Instead of trusting your childhood friend, you chose to trust that chit of a girl. I never had any sympathy for her but looking at your current status now, I am glad that she had moved on, because even she deserves someone better than this."

Jishu's face turned ugly with supressed anger as he tried to get out of the bed but his constraints held him back.

"GET OUT OF HERE, RIGHT NOW!" He bellowed instead.

"Jishu, I know you are just pretending to wallow in self-pity and treat me as the punching bag, because the alternative is to face up to the facts and start your life fresh, which is too hard for you."

"Thanks for the unasked advice. You know it is really funny to hear relationship advice from someone who lives like a ghost and chameleon because it is too convenient for him, rather than face life like a normal person."

Jishu's sarcasm brought back all the old memories and Victor was glad that his friend was speaking to him normally again. A slow smile spread on Victor's face.

"If I am proud of anything, then it's the fact that I always live upto your low and contemptuous opinion of me. You are so right! I should be the last person to give advice to you. In fact, I came to ask for your advice. Who is DJ?"

The moment he heard that name, Victor observed something akin to fear reflect in Jishu's lifeless eyes.

Victor pounced on the opportunity.

"You know this DJ guy, don't you?"

"Wha... What did you say? I don't know anyone by that name." Jishu's evasive eyes and demeanour told more than his words.

"I found a letter addressed to this DJ by someone in Malayalam, asking for more bullets as they were not enough for the guns supplied. Who is this DJ, and what is his line of business? Arms or Drugs or both?" Victor knew he was on the right path as he watched the contorted expressions on Jishu's face.

Jishu's anger filled eyes bored into Victor's face.

"I always knew you were an arrogant bastard who thought too highly of himself. But I never took you for a fool. Just forget about Dhananjay and that letter if you know what is good for you." Jishu was too rattled to know the slipup he made.

"I know you too well Jishu, so don't even try to hide your fear as anger. Why are you so afraid of this guy?"

"SHUT UP!" Jishu hissed.

Victor remembered something Maami said earlier.

"Was this the case you were working on, in Kerala? Maami said..."

Jishu picked up the copper water jug on the bedside with his free hand and threw it at Victor. Victor ducked casually as the jug hit the wall with a loud clunk, but Victor heard his friend's hidden response loud and clear.

Instead of responding to his friend, Victor walked to the door and laid a reassuring hand on Mrs Menon, who reached there with an anxious face.

"Maami, don't worry. I can handle him far better than any of your nurses, trust me. Please go and have a lie down or watch a musical program. I heard it is good for relaxation. I think I overstayed my welcome for now, but I promise you that I will keep an eye on him from now onwards. I will speak to the doctors too and arrange for a new nurse."

"No need for that Chotu, the nurse said he will speak to the doctors and arrange for alternate nurse." Mrs Menon was quick to clarify.

"Still, this is my number, please give me a call whenever you need me. I will also keep in touch." Victor saved his mobile on Mrs Menon's phone and noted down her number as well as Jishu's. As Victor walked back to his car, his face reflected a new resolve and determination.

#=============#

Sorry for the delayed update friends, but real life problems interrupted my chain of thought and left me no time to type this chapter. It is not edited, so please excuse any mistakes.

So, in this chapter we finally get to know our Victor's "friendly" neighbour Misha, and dwell more into Victor's past as he meets his childhood friend Jishu Menon, an ex police officer and casual drug taker, who is now in a near death situation due to his addiction to SPICE.

I am no expert on Drugs or ICE but if you want to read more about it and how dangerously addictive it is, please check any reliable government website. It is a highly expensive as well as sought after party drug which is causing grievance to many addicts families all over the world, and is gaining a lot of ground in India. ICE is called different things in different regions, and to call the concentrated form of ICE as SPICE is entirely my own idea, because it would reflect the greater kick and effect it is supposed to deliver to the user.

There is also a common link up factor between suppliers who trade arms and drugs although not everyone deals with both.

I would be waiting eagerly for your comments.

Sesi