Anidita : The Flaming Flambeau

CHAPTER 4 : Part 3

She shot me one of her deadly glares.

"Mera matlab hai, kyun?" I immediately corrected.

"Wajah batayegi toh maan jayega?" she snapped.

"Soch lunga"

She scoffed and leaned back.

"Mein puch nahi rahi thi"

"Mein maanne nahi wala tha"

With a swift swoosh, her pocket knife now appeared in front of my throat.

"Toh phir nateeja bhukne keliye tayaar ho jao""Whoa whoa whoa tum- tum itne serious kyun ho? I was just joking"

The blade pushed into my skin.

"Yeah, right. Sorry. Matlab, mujhe maaf karo mein bhul gaya" I laughed nervously, leaning back as far away as I can "Abhi abhi mulakaat huye hai humari. Mujhe toh tumhara naam tak nahi pata aur tum ho ki mujhe marne par tule ho. Tumhe nahi lagta humein ek doosre ka acha parichay karna chahiye? Uske baad marne, maarne ke bare mein soch lenge"

"Kyun? Agar koyi humein marne aaye toh pehle uska naam puch lena, yeh sikhaya tha London mein tumhe?"

I blinked up at her in surprise but quickly got hold of myself. With a wry and shy smile, I gave out my player boy eyes.

"Mein manta hoon ki mein kuch zyada hi handsome hoon lekin itna pasand tha toh seedha keh deti mujh se. Aise mere background check karke mujhe impress karna and all..."

She gasped irritated and snapped.

"Tumhe Hindustani samajh mein nahi aata kya?! Agar ek aur angrezi shabd bola na, toh-""Manal!"Miss Desi jumped back and turned around abruptly. Manal... That's her name. I remember hearing it before blacking out. I wonder what the name means though... Spitfire? Mouthy? Witch?

"Vande Mataram"

Manal's low yet strong whisper jerked me out of my interpretations. She had her right hand fisted on top of the left side of her chest – eyes staring straight and head held high in pride.

"Vande Mataram"

The reply came from the darkness in front of me. I squinted my eyes at the outlined shadow but failed to get a clue as to who it might be. The sound isn't a familiar one. Who is this man?

Suddenly, the figure came into light. Like the others, he too was clad full in black. But there was this something more to him that screamed authority. Probably the dark eyes that seemed as though it's been ages since an emotion has passed through them. Or may be its the long wild black hair that somehow remains slicked back with the help of oil. Is it the broad chest and the confident stride that sets him apart, may be? Whatever it was, within ten seconds, I knew he was their leader.

"Maaf kijiye Tapas babu... Mere maathat kabhi kabhi kaafi beizzat ho sakte hai" he started impassively.

"Um... Koyi baat nahi. In fact, I enjoyed it a lot" I smirked back, giving a wink to Manal.

She fisted her hands so hard that her hands started shaking. If only looks could kill. Hah! That feels fantastic!

The man laughed out loud.

"Yeh acha hai ki ap yahan khush hai" he continued.

Oh... So he knows English.

"Khushi ki toh koyi kami nahi hai" I glanced at Manal yet again to make my point clear "Lekin agar mujhe pata hota ki mujhe yahan kyun laya gaya hai toh zyada acha hota" I hit the point.

The man gave a questioning look to Manal and the other man behind me. Manal shook her head. The man sighed and dragged a chair before sitting down on it.