Sins Of Our Fathers

Chapter 6

The night gets darkest right before dawn

What don't kill you makes you more

Strong

- Linkin Park

The makeshift hospital, 2009, Sri Lanka

"Amma!" Bala interrupted his mother's thought. "Amma, Shoba has woken up!"

Bala's mum walked back into the hospital to see Shoba and Parthi.

"How you feeling now?" she asked.

"Good amma," Shoba replied, showing her a thumbs-up with her right hand. Though they are not related, it is the Tamil culture to call a friend's mother as your own too.

"Where is amma and appa, brother?" Shoba asked Parthi. Before he could reply her, Bala's mother intervened.

"They have gone somewhere and we will soon go and find them. We will stay here for the night. Okay Shoba?"

"Okay amma," Shoba said.

It was soon night-time at the hospital. Most patients and their families were sleeping or getting to sleep. The sounds of groaning and crying had stopped. Parthi, Shoba and Bala snuggled together on the floor, beside Bala's mother. It had been a long day for them. Bala's mother could not sleep anyway. Thinking of what is going to happen tomorrow.

She turned her head to the right and looked through a window. It was a cloudless night filled with stars. "What have we done and when will there be peace forever like this moment," she thought.

Just when she wanted to close her eyes, her moment of peace was interrupted by a male nurse holding a walkie-talkie radio, quickly pacing towards the doctor. He was trying his best to keep silent. His radio gave out intermittent sounds of people communicating to each other.

Bala's mother kept her gaze on him to know what was going on.

"Sir, listen to this," the nurse said.

The doctor listened to the conversation that was happening over the radio. "Is that the Army? They are planning another shelling?"

"I think so sir, and I think it is going to be this area," the nurse said.

"Don't worry. We have painted the red cross on the roof right? I will radio the Army and tell them about our position. We will be fine as long as we all stay inside this compound," the doctor said.

Mild sounds of explosions from some far distance woke the patients and the families up. One by one, they all started to come out of their slumber. All wondering what was going on, but the sounds were very familiar.

"We have many patients here. All are civilians. Do not shell here. I repeat do not shell here," the doctor spoke through the radio.

"Roger that doctor. Give me your co-ordinates if you have," came the reply.

"I have no co-ordinates of this place. I have painted a large red cross on top of the building to identify us. Avoid us!" the doctor said.

"Don't worry doctor! You will be fine," and the radio went silent.

The explosions got louder and louder. Dust from the ceiling trickled down slowly to the floor, after one distant explosion. The building walls shook a bit by it. The three kids woke up, but still stayed together on the floor.

"Don't worry. Just stay within the compound. I've told the Army to avoid us," the doctor assured the worried civilians. The sounds of explosion stopped suddenly. Everyone held their breath at that moment, not sure if it had really stopped.