The Haunted Fortress of Bhangarh: Book 1

5. The annoying girl

Rudra took a couple of steps back, shielding his face with his arms, twisting his body to protect himself as he squinted his eyes shut, admittedly frightened of the hurtling green smoke. He could swear the mass of smoke wanted to engulf him from all sides, crush him, and suck the air out of his lungs. His breathing turned ragged, his heartbeats raced, and he was perspiring profusely. He was sure he would meet an end as gruesome as the man from his dreams because the agony across his chest amplified, and his lungs struggled hard to function after getting squeezed and constricted.

Until a hand pressed on his shoulder, and the heaviness he was experiencing all over his body lifted within the span of a moment.

"Rudra? What happened?"

Concern dripped from the feminine voice, and he was coerced into blinking his eyes open. He wheeled around to face the front, squinting all over again to get acquainted with the strobe of lights falling directly into his eyes. "That smoke... the green..." His gaze skimmed over the entire width of the pool closer to the boundary, but nothing was visible in sight, and his confusion heightened. "The... smoke..."

"Rudra?"

He whirled towards the girl and noticed the frown on her face, for she was utterly befuddled and worried.

"What happened? You were breathing unevenly, mumbling something about death. Are you okay?"

He took heaving breaths as a lot of weird thoughts clouded his rational judgment. "You pointed towards the mass of green smoke, and it came at me."

Her scowl deepened. "Smoke? What... what are you..." She craned her neck this way and that to check if she could spot whatever had the guy rattled. "Which green smoke?"

"The one you pointed at." He followed her line of sight as well, spinning at his spot to locate the source of his puzzlement.

"I was joking, Rudra. I was just trying to scare you off." She fumbled for words for a few moments. "Are you messing with me right now?"

With his brows furrowed, his throat parched, his lips drying, his hands trembling, his blood pressure shooting upward, he shook his head as vehemently as possible. "There was..." He stepped closer to the edge of the pool as he gestured towards the boundary. "The same kind of smoke I saw yesterday and the day before yesterday. I can't see it now, but it was right there, Shravani. Right there!"

"Rudra, I think—"

"I saw it. Thrice now. Earlier it was black—"

"Rudra..."

"But today it was green."

"Rudra!" She held him by his shoulders, given he was very agitated and insistent at the moment. Cupping his cheeks and forcing him to peer at her, she allowed her gaze to soften. "There is nothing here. I was kidding. No smoke. Not green. Not black. Nothing."

"The black smoke had two orbs of fire like two eyes of... of..." He groaned. "I am going mad, aren't I?"

"Rudra," she murmured, caressing his stubble-ridden cheeks, "take a deep breath. All is fine. Everything is okay. Just take a deep breath."

He closed his eyes and followed her instructions. The rosy fragrance hanging in the air calmed his senses, and the profound breaths helped him get rid of the anxiety. His heart rate came back to normal. Licking his lips, he opened his eyes, only to find her peeking at him with much concern swirling in her attractive and moist orbs. "I am okay now," he muttered, taking a step away from her.

She let her arms slide to her side, looking away and smiling once again as if nothing untoward had happened two moments ago. "I didn't know my joke would backfire on me. I guess your imagination is way too wild."