This girl!!! Victor fumed inwardly as he noticed one of his neighbours approach the lift on the ground floor. Victor hurried forward and easily overtook her in the corridor.

"The only person who comes in my dreams is my girlfriend, and even she isn't that desperate to break in to my apartment to see me!" He mocked. A sudden chill spread inside Misha.

"Girlfriend, really? Where is she? Does she she even exist? Other than in your imagination?" She sneered.

"I don't have to explain anything to you but if it makes you feel better, let me say it. She is a medical intern and she..." before he could complete, the lift door opened and their next door neighbour, Mr Vinay Sharma and his tired looking daughter came out.

"Arrey Misha!! What are you doing here at this hour? Is everything okay? Has Nani been taken ill again?" He asked anxiously.

"No Sharma Uncle, everything is fine. You guys carry on. Hi Neelu!! Were you on late shift again?" Misha greeted the girl, still in her Medical uniform.

"Yeah Misha, and Daddy insisted that he would pick me up as our hospital vehicle ran into problem.I told him I can take a cab, but would he ever listen?" Neelima complained.

"Of course, I had to come. Can anyone be safe in Delhi now a days, especially women, if they have to travel all alone in the night? Few more months and her internship would be complete, and hopefully these odd and long hours of shifts will come to end." Mr Sharma sighed.

"You are absolutely right Mr Sharma, young women are quite capable in many fields now, but in the city like ours, their safety is still a major concern for the family members. They should never travel alone at this hour. By the way, I am Victor, from the corner Apartment." Victor shook hands with Mr Sharma, who smiled hesitantly.

"My door got jammed and I couldn't get in. So I knocked on the door of Misha who kindly helped me to open the door, she got some nice little tools with her." Victor explained with a smile and signalled to Misha, who reluctantly took out the tools from her pocket and showed it to everyone.

Impressed, Mr Sharma patted on Misha's head.

"Good job beta, I must check  those tools myself, some other time. Good night to you all." After the father daughter began to walk towards their apartment, Victor turned to Misha with a smile.

"Thanks for the help Misha!! Good night and sweet dreams!" He gave her a mock salute and went back to his apartment, leaving Misha in a bad mood.

****

Victor woke up quite early next day, in spite of his midnight rendezvous. He skipped his daily morning weights and exercise session, and got into shower instead. He had a lot of things on his mind as he prepared his breakfast of three boiled eggs and cheese toast.

After breakfast, as he was getting ready to go out, he received a text from J P Nanda, his boss in Intelligence Bureau.

"Please come and see me at office before COB today."

Wondering what this was all about, Victor called his old friend and colleague  Kapil Verma at the headquarters to find out what was going on. But Kapil had no information to offer, except to say Nanda Sir looked serious and worried as he came into office just then.

Victor quickly finished off some shopping he had intended to do in preparation for his trip and reached IB headquarters close to noon. And as usual, he entered the building in a discreet way, away from the main lobby, with a new disguise this time. He had long wavy shoulder length hair, half of which he had tied in a tiny ponytail, thin but clear lens glasses in bright red colour frame, and a french beard. His leather jacket and dark denim pants completing the look of a geeky tech, as he walked in with a laptop bag and a backpack. The security officer at the back entrance was one of the few who knew Victor and his obsession for anonymity, and he scanned his swipe card and identity card before letting him in. Victor had earlier called Nanda Sir to make sure he was free to receive him, and entered his room shortly afterwards, with a mix of curiosity and apprehension.

JP looked up and signalled to him to be seated as he finished his phone call.

"Morning Sir." Victor greeted.

"How are you Victor? You must be still very angry with me for forcing you to go on leave, am I right? How does it feel to be just relaxing and enjoying the small pleasures of life?"

"Sir, I think you very well know what sort of a person I am, and whether I would be enjoying my leisurely time. No offence Sir, but I don't think you asked me to come here to discus that. So, why don't we come straight to the point?" Victor asked in an even tone.

"Victor! Do I have to keep reminding you that other than being an agent and workaholic, you need to develop some other skills too, like how to converse in a diplomatic and gentle manner?" JP's tone was a mix of amusement as well as exasperation.

"I am sorry Sir, you know me too well. All those niceties, I reserve for people who don't know me or when I am being someone else. Why should I pretend to be something I am not, with you?"

Victor's eyes narrowed as he watched JP Sir sigh and rearrange his neatly arranged stationery on his large mahogany desk, with a touch of impatience and nervousness.
Victor's unease grew.
"Sir watching you like this gives me more tension than anything. What happened?" 
JP looked up with a grim face.
"Hmm... Your father called. He wants to see you, at least for one last time. As I keep telling you, he is in terminal stage now, stage 3 lung cancer, so you better...." JP stopped midway as he saw Victor raise from his chair and reach the door.

"Victor!!!" JP's voice was low, but the rebuke and anger it held was unmistakable.

Victor walked back with unsteady steps,  leaned across the desk and looked straight into JP's face.

"And I keep telling you that I have no father, and I don't need to see or make up with anyone. Sir, we had this discussions too many times which end up with me feeling worse than I already feel about this part of my life. So, I beg you, once again, to leave me alone. That man... to call him a father would be an insult to that word. There is a huge difference between fathering a child and becoming a father, and men like him, who abandon their wife and young children to the mercy of neighbours and strangers.. lets leave it Sir. I have too much respect for you to use foul language even against bastards like him.I don't care whether he dies today or in six months time. So no matter what you say, my opinion is not going to change and I am least affected by all this."

JP watched Victor's flushed face and trembling lips closely which belied the words he was uttering, and decided not to push him any further in that direction. Instead he pressed the intercom to call on the service staff to order some cool drinks and snacks. Victor slid down to the chair and got busy observing his long and clean fingers.

The silence between them thickened as seconds passed by. JP got up and walked around the desk to stand next to Victor.

"Victor, do you believe me when I say that I have nothing but your happiness and welfare in my heart?"

Victor didn't look up but answered straight back "Yes Sir."and then added in a softer tone, "I do."

"Is this why you are not even looking at me when you speak?"

"No..." Victor looked up reluctantly. "I know where this conversation is going Sir and I don't want to be part of it, I think you know that. And... you also know that I cant say no to you, and as always, you are going to..." Victor gritted his teeth but the unsaid words and what they meant hung in there.

"You are right Victor, I was going to ask you to let your family to visit your father at least. Surely, it is for your mother and sister to decide for themselves whether they want to see your father or not, right?"

"And you bloody well know that I never stopped them." Victor finally snapped.

"Hmm I know you didn't, but every time they do or even talk to him, you don't meet them for few more months, few more years. That's the punishment they face for going against your wishes isn't it? Even Jishu's mother gets more sympathy from you than your own..."

Victor stood up with a rage that he held back till then.

"Punishment, is it? What about my punishment Sir, my childhood and my sister's where we had to hear the taunts of the whole neighbourhood and society as THAT family whose father had abandoned them for a carefree life with a mistress? They might forget and forgive but I can't. Some crimes, and yes, I do call what he did to us as nothing short of a crime... should never be forgiven. It's because of women like my mother, who are happy to be treated like a doormat by their husbands and forgive them out of their so called benevolence, that men like my ... your old friend get away with murder. Show me a man and I will tell you his worth by the way he treats a woman and those who are under his power. And for your kind information, I met my sister a few days ago and did my brotherly duty. No matter where I am, I always look out for both of them and make sure they are all right. So please don't bother giving lectures on what I should and shouldn't do... Sir!" Victor hissed.

"I know what I am going to say sounds very lofty and idealistic and frankly boring to you. Because right now, you have become this young, brash man who had seen nothing but success in your career, where everything is black and white to you, and you want the criminals you catch to face the severe punishment they deserve and so on. It is almost like you want your professional career to compensate for everything you couldn't do in your personal life."

"That's not true Sir, please don't insult my competence and hard work as some sort of a revenge vendetta. I have invested my whole time trying to understand what compels people to commit crime and so I know every shade and level of morality, or sense of what is right or wrong. I have always tried to prevent a crime rather than punish people, but in my job, I am hardly left a choice." Victor said furiously.

"I am sorry, that came out wrongly but bear with me till I finish." JP raised his hands as if to calm Victor down, and took a long breath.

"You know I love you and respect you, not just as my agent but as a person for what you stand for, in spite of everything you faced in your life. But you must also understand and face the inevitable truth that not everyone is perfect, a lot of people have flaws and you mustn't judge them too harshly. You might hold the grudge and hatred inside your heart as a Talisman right now Victor, but once you become more mature and reach the ripe old age like mine, you realise that hatred and grudge towards others will destroy your inner peace too. Not everyone is as strong hearted as you, and for some people it comes a burden, and they prefer to let it go. Forgiveness and moving on are equally important parts of our life, and perhaps your mother and sister have embraced it, so why can't you appreciate that? Your father was an excellent army man but he let his life to be ruled by his head and harsh judgement, rather than his heart. All his friends remember him as an expert shooter rather than a kind man. I don't want you to become like him, even remotely."

"I pray to god Victor, that I will never reach a stage in my life where I would need a gun to remind me of who I am."

Victor felt a mixture of annoyance and warmth as to why he remembered Misha's words all of a sudden, but didn't realise that a slow smile spread across his face, till his boss looked at him in confusion. He went on to rectify his slip up in another way.

"What's all this talk of ripe old age and philosophy Sir? You are not even 55 yet! That Superstar Salman Khan is older than you, and is still considered a very eligible bachelor, just like you. Just dye your hair a bit and marry someone, for goodness sake. Women need understanding and respectful men like you to be their husbands."

"Victor!! Don't try to your clever tactics on me Okay?" JP fumed, but as Victor continued his cheeky smile, he too laughed eventually.

He knew what game Victor was playing but understood that Victor didn't want to talk about his family anymore and as an outsider, he knew what his limits are, no matter how close he felt towards this young man.

"Me and clever tactics Sir? I am nothing compared to you and what depths you will go to, to make sure all your agents dance to your tunes. Don't think I haven't guessed how you came to know about me visiting Jishu's family. I am just a rookie at your mercy, because you know too well that I will never go against your wishes." Victor bowed to him in a theatrical way.

"I think  donning different personalities as part of your missions has made you a Drama Queen, Victor. I know you too well, so don't waste your time trying to charm me or give the impression that you do things as per my wishes. I know you are up to something, right under my nose and..."
Just then, much to Victor's  relief, the peon Surjit Singh entered the room, carrying a tray with  soft drinks and snacks. Victor complained "I don't like that Coca-Cola shit. Please bring me Thums Up, Surjit Paaji!"(a common way to address someone elder to you as a brother in Punjabi/Sikh community)

"Victor Bhai, JP Sir knows what you like and he had ordered Thums Up for you, don't worry. And don't you dare use curse words like shit in front of me, okay" Surjit warned with a raised finger and Victor laughed aloud.

"Thank you Sir!" He raised the glass respectfully at his boss and turned with a smile towards Surjit, who was about to leave.

"Paaji, I heard that your brother has become an agent now, is that true? What's his name? Sorry I forgot!"

"Yes Victor, my brother Monty is an Agent in IB, and it is purely thanks to JP Sir and his guidance. He is still a rookie, so Sir had put him in surveillance and analysis team now." Surjit informed him proudly and left with a salute.

Awkward silence ensued between the mentor and his favourite protégé as they drank, and Victor noticed an extra glass of soft drink on the tray Surjit brought in.

"There was one more thing I wanted to discuss with you and that's why I asked you to come here. Are you ready to join a new project or in your words, a new mission before your leave is completed?" JP asked.

Victor gave a skeptical look.

"I know what you are thinking. I am not trying to appease you. It is a mission that has been in the pipeline for a long time. Our analysts team have done all the research and ground work, and the mission has reached a stage when the field team needs to take over. But since you're not well versed with domestic operations, you will be working as part of a team led by..." There was a soft knock on the door and Ashwin entered the room.

"You are not serious..." Victor stopped himself with difficulty as Ashwin looked at him with furrowed brows.

"Hello Victor!" Ashwin greeted stiffly and sat next to him in the vacant chair.

"Ashwin, I was just briefing Victor. As we have discussed before, I am keen that Victor joins you and your team in the new..." JP's phone buzzed just then and looking at the number, he asked the caller to hang on and continued, "Ashwin, why don't you explain the details to Victor while I take this call!" He excused himself and left the room, leaving both the strife ridden agents in thick tension. Victor felt as if he was ready to burst, owing to the already foul mood he was in. Being compelled to work with, or even talk to Ashwin was the last thing he wanted to do right now.

Ashwin, who had no idea what went on in that room before he arrived, thought he should take the lead to ease the awkwardness, by talking to Victor about their common interest.

"Victor, I know working with me is not something you look forward to, but both of us want the same thing remember? Getting rid of criminals is what we are here for. And we have just completed a successful mission in getting those IS agents captured!" Ashwin tried to sound excited and cheerful.

"Not thanks to your brains alone Ashwin, remember that! It was primarily my mission and my team did all the work, while you gave back-end support with surveillance." Victor's terse reply wiped off the pleasantness from Ashwin's face.

"Look, I know what you think of me but..." Ashwin tried his best not to show the anger and hurt he felt.

"Trust me, you don't know even half of what I think you. And I would rather die in boredom with this forced leave than work with half witted people like you, who think they know what they are doing. And later expect everyone else to clean up the mess they created. I have done that too many times for you, but I have better and more important things to do right now. So, don't take any offence but there's no chance of me and you working together..."

Ashwin's  patience and civility broke as he heard Victor's harsh response. He abandoned all the pretence and burst out.
"You bastard!! Just because you are our boss's favourite, don't expect me to tolerate your rude and arrogant behaviour. More than you, I loathe to be forced to work with likes of you, who think that they are above and beyond everyone, and break every rule book to achieve their so called mission. I heard how you made those IS captives talk and if that kind of liberty is taken by everyone in the force, we would be called savages, not intelligence officers."

Victor just gave a scathing look at Ashwin, checked his watch and began to gather his bags without even glancing at him. As he got up to leave the room, he heard JP re enter the room, still talking on the phone and was forced to sit back in his chair.

"Yes Mr Gokhale, I will be there at the conference in Goa, don't worry, but remember! My role there would be purely in advisory capacity.It is the state governments who make the rules against drug traffickers and smugglers, and their police force which implement them. Our role comes in basically when everything else fails. Yes.. hahaha. Thank you. I will see you there soon. Jai Hind!"

As he disconnected the call and looked up at the two grim faces, JP realised that his worst fears have indeed come true and his agents didn't get off to a great start.

Victor stood up and said in a clipped tone. "Sir, if I remember correctly, you wanted me to take a break and relax because I needed it, and that is exactly what I intend to do. So, please excuse me if I don't feel like being part of anyone else's mission right now." He nodded his head curtly at JP and left the room, leaving a fuming Ashwin behind.
JP rubbed his eyes in a tired way and gave an exasperated sigh. He looked at the fuming face of Ashwin and said
"Ashwin, please don't take this personally. Me and Victor had a long argument just now, totally unrelated to anything you are involved in. And that's why Victor is in such foul mood. Please give him some time and he will come around. Okay? I will make sure that he understand that our work is above and beyond all personal differences." Unconvinced, Ashwin smiled at JP which looked more like a grimace and took his leave.

The moment he was out of his boss's room though, Ashwin cursed freely and strode angrily towards his car, hell bent on going somewhere, where he could find some peace and quite. He wasn't  aware where he was driving, as Victors words kept ringing in his ears. 

****

Tanvir and two of his men parked their car in front car park of BMS Speciality hospital and checked the surroundings thoroughly. It was afternoon time, but still the hospital was teeming with patients and their families and visitors. Considering how sleek and expensive the hospital looked,  with its spacious grounds in prime location, almost like a five star hotel, Tanveer wondered how common people can afford to get treated in places like this.  One of his men enquired at the reception and found out that Dr Ghoshal had gone home, but would return for his evening rounds at 5 PM. They went near the staff parking and waited patiently for Dr Ghoshal to arrive. 

Tanvir took out a cigarette and as he smoked, he  recalled his meeting with DJ earlier in the morning.

Tanvir entered the living room of DJ 's mansion and realised too late that DJ was having a heated conversation with his mother Sumanji , with their breakfast half eaten.

"Maa, I know you want nothing but the best for Loki, but what harm is there if he comes home  for few weeks? And that too when..."  DJ stopped and Tanvir greeted them awkwardly, regretting to have disturbed their private moment. Tanvir was well aware what a reserved and aloof person Suman ji was, and in spite of all his authoritarianism everywhere, how much DJ obeyed her command and respected her wishes when it came to household matters. Tanvir declined their offer to join them for breakfast and waited outside till DJ joined him. He was still wary to start the conversation as he found DJ's face grim.

"Hmm... any luck Tanvir?"

"Bhai, your hunch was damn right. That clerk Shinde spilled all the beans last night about those hospitals these agents go to and I even managed to get the name of the guy who was held captive in Afghanistan." He couldn't control his excitement and gave a blow to blow detail of everything that happened the previous night.

DJ listened with an unchanged face and asked "Did you manage to find out what the real name of that Fayiz Khan was?"

Tanvir's face fell.

"No Bhai, Shinde had no idea who went there to free that guy, or about many other agents, as he is quite new. He knew names of only few agents, whose medical bills and claims he processed as part of his job."

"Pity. Anyway, good job. Now how do we identify who that guy Ashwin is? Do I ask my contact to go through the CCTV footage?"

"Boss! This is the best news. There is a doctor called Ghoshal, who treated Ashwin back then in that hospital, and guess what? He is one of the regulars who comes to one of our high end Bars through the backdoor, just to have a quite drink and watch exclusive dances of our girls. And we got him on our cameras many times. His wife is a Gynaecologist and her parents are very close to the ruling party. All we have to do is threaten him with exposure if he doesn't cooperate with us."

Tanvir felt relieved as he saw DJ's face break into a smile.

Tanvir was on his third cigarette when Dr Ghoshal's black Mercedes arrived, and as Dr Ghoshal got out of his car, Tanvir and his men blocked him.

Half an hour later, the head nurse found Dr Ghoshal enter the hospital in a flustered and nervous manner. He later  insisted on cancelling his first few appointments and locked himself in his consultation room, with few men that she had never seen before. She felt more intrigued as they looked nothing like the type of people who visited their exclusive hospital.

But as Dr Ghoshal came out and began his rounds in the hospital ward, she forgot about the whole thing and helped him in his tasks.

****

Ashwin drove aimlessly for few hours, till the fatigue of the afternoon heat and the oppressive Delhi traffic caught up with him, and by the time he reached home, it was evening.
The sight of his smiling wife Mrinalini, dressed in beautiful red sari, who seemed to be waiting anxiously for him, soothed his enraged heart. He knew he was lucky to have such understanding and lovely wife, who understood his job and the demands that came with it, and to be blessed with a successful married life, which he was sure people like Victor can only dream of.

He hugged his wife gently and asked how her day had been, and listened patiently to everything she described, as he freshened up and made coffee for himself. But as he was about to change into pyjamas, Mini stopped him and said "Didn't you read the message I sent earlier? Ashwin, why do you keep that phone if you don't use it for what it is meant for? We are going to that hospital to meet Dr Ghoshal."

"Mini please I am not in the mood for anything right now but to just relax. I had a..." he stopped as he noted the worry on her face.

"Ashu please, you don't know how many tactics I had to deploy to talk to Dr Ghoshal. He is such a busy man, and he couldn't promise me anything first. But I guess today is our lucky day, because just an hour ago, he called me back and said he could see you today at 8pm. So please dear, let's not waste this opportunity. Don't say no, please, sugar on top, just for me" she pouted and pleaded with him and Ashwin had no choice but agree. He changed into fresh clothes that Mini had already laid out for him and soon they were on their way to the hospital.

As they waited in the reception, Ashwin's eyes scanned the surroundings just out of habit but found nothing out of ordinary. But soon, he was surprised to find Dr Ghoshal come to the reception and call out his name loudly and greet him and his wife, a routine normally done by his assistant or head nurse. Dr Ghoshal took them inside his consultation room, and as he closed the door behind him,  Ashwin never noticed the slight nod Dr Ghoshal gave to someone outside.

^======================^ 

Hi everyone.

Back with a quick update this time, thanks to some free time  I managed to have over the weekend. For the first time, we come to know about the personal life of Victor and I am eager to know what you make of it.

Love

Sesi