Between The Pages

Chapter 15

"Why can't criminals just surrender themselves? The crime is done, their motive's been achieved, then why shy away from claiming their kill? Cowards. Cowards, all of them. Don't even have the guts to accept their trophy."

Paresh was muttering to himself while scurrying along the busy streets of their little town. Now that the case was solved, he had planned to spend his day leisurely reading another one of those romance novels. But no, some people just do not understand the meaning of rest. They keep on working, if not physically than mentally. And it's those mental works which often lead to rob the serenity from the lives of simple souls like Paresh.

DCP Natasha was one such troubled soul - a workaholic who's dictionary didn't have any synonyms of the word 'rest'. Just when everyone hoped that the case was solved, a bug of doubt had stung their DCP. It wasn't as if Paresh didn't respect her. For him, she was the best police inspector any city could get. But then, it was times like this when he countered his own judgment.

After putting up a calm face to all the honks and the nuisance which they called traffic for over an hour, he finally reached his destination. He had just parked his jeep in the hospital's parking lot and was about to head up when a sharp loud noise filled the air.

Anyone else would have let it pass believing it to be a cracker or a tire-burst. Not Paresh though. He had heard it many times in his life to mistake it for those puny things. It was undoubtedly, a gun-shot.

Meanwhile, in the hospital's lobby, two masked men were chasing Dev around the corner. Their orders were clear - capture the reporter and his girlfriend, alive. However, they were allowed to use any means they deemed necessary to threaten the duo. That warning shot was just meant to make their presence felt.

It normally did the deed with common people. That one shot was enough for them. But this time, their move had backfired in the grandest of fashion. Instead of submitting to them like they had expected, Dev had surprised them by throwing a water-jug at one of them and hitting the other in his groin. Dazed by the sudden onslaught, they had allowed Dev those precious little seconds he needed to flee. His girlfriend still lay there in the bed, too shocked to react in any way.

In that split second, both their eyes locked onto the other's before they silently nodded in an agreement. They knew that Dev was their primary target. If he was successfully nabbed, they can always return to get the girlfriend. It wasn't as if she was going anywhere in the condition she was in. And so, both of them had followed Dev's footsteps to create a kind of ruckus in that confined lobby.

They almost caught him around the second corner just to see a mad old lady foil their efforts. She did manage to line herself with the wall, but her cane kept dangling in the middle just to make the man closest to Dev trip over it. Watching the distance between him and Dev increase, the second man decided it was time for yet another warning shot. With no intention of hitting Dev, he let one more bullet race out of his gun's muzzle. The bullet successfully bored itself in the hospital's wall, but not before accomplishing the task it was assigned. It made Dev stop and look back, giving enough time for the second man to get within an arm's distance from him. Even the first one had recovered by now and was right on his heels.

It might have taken them a little longer than usual, but the hunters once again had their prey. Some punches, a couple of kicks and a hit on Dev's head with the back of their gun ensured that. Satisfied that he won't be able to throw any more tantrums, they quickly carried him to their escape point. While one of them secured him with ropes, the other changed his clothes to done a doctor's apron before heading back to get the girlfriend.

Much to his horror and surprise, the reporter's girlfriend wasn't there in her ward. He searched around in a frenzy going through every other room on that floor. No success. Understanding the importance of time at that moment, he returned to their meeting point with his head held low. Obviously, his partner wasn't happy and in a shock himself. They didn't know how to face their boss. But somehow, they had to find that courage from somewhere after this mix-up.

They left the scene just before the police sirens were heard. Presenting half of the expected bounty to their boss, they still couldn't understand how can a lady who was hardly able to get up from her bed escape all of sudden?

Only a magician had the power to pull off such an escape act. And Anjali was extremely lucky to have found a magician in Inspector Paresh that day.

***

3rd July 2017

"Power and strength often drive your basic instincts, but sometimes, it is necessary to have your wits handy."

***

So, are you enjoying the story? And of course, the story within the story?

You know, when I started this, I didn't know if I could pull this off or not? After all, writing a story within a story was a new experience for me.

How will the readers take it?
Will they like it?
Will they be able to differentiate between the two when needed?

Such questions ruled my thoughts. Today, I feel like I've done a decent enough job. Obviously, a lot of improvements can be done in this and I assure you that I'll do those one day.

But at this point, I'm satisfied with the execution.
What do you say?

And now coming back to the story, why do you think Paresh didn't save Dev?

Are you mad at Tanmay for separating your favorite couple again and again?

Or do you accuse me of that?

Well, you may hate me or love me, the story won't stop.

And so, stay tuned...