A pitch-black view hung before Mayank's eyes. Apart from the occasional faint cries of birds, silence prevailed. He did not know for how long he had been unconscious.
Mayank's skull was a cracked iron ball. The piercing pain and the apparently amplified weight of his head overwhelmed him, and the fact that he was fastened to a tree was not really helping. The rage in him swelled as his attempts to set his wrists free from the rope's grip kept turning out to be futile. He wished to let out a deafening growl, but with the piece of fabric embracing his lips, his desire was not to be satisfied.
He sighed in defeat.
"Freaking cowards," he cursed in his thoughts. "Four against one. Spineless beasts."
The words continued to ring in his ears.
"Have fun with the snakes! Hissssssssssssss." Laughter from several people followed.
"Wait till we come back with our supplies. I wonder what a rotten egg like you will taste like." Another round of laughter.
"Umm... don't forget the little boy he has brought along. Ah, I can already feel his soft flesh against my tongue."
"It has been long since I sucked a child's blood."
Mayank's eyebrows sank in disgust. Freaking cannibals! He flinched as he imagined himself being devoured raw. But then again, he did not wish to be slaughtered, marinated, or roasted alive.
He pointlessly moved his head from one side to the other, wondering if they had fetched Fayzan yet. With his eyes blindfolded, he could barely find out if the boy was standing tied up anywhere around, puzzled and frightened.
The noisome odor of humiliation assailed his nostrils. He detested the sense of helplessness.
Moments passed in stillness. Then minutes.
The bizarre silence was dismissed by the sound of approaching footsteps. Mayank's heart put on a sprint as he listened closely yet reluctantly. To him, it was the hymn of death and gore.
He stood motionlessly while the pair of feet stopped near him. Mayank held his breath as the creature moved closer. A second later, its ear was pressed against his chest. It moved and slid a hand into the right pocket of his jeans. Mayank could feel his barrow knife being pulled out. He did not know what to expect. A stab at his belly? A slit across his throat? He felt devastated at the thought of a stranger taking him down with his own weapon.
The thing's motive, however, turned out to be rather different. Barely a minute later, Mayank was free. He hurriedly took off the blindfold and the cloth that was holding his lips captive. No sign of hostility was displayed by the mysterious savior.
It took a while for Mayank's eyes to adjust to the fading daylight. As his vision began to get clearer, he turned to his company.
His eyebrows went up in astonishment. Fayzan.
The boy observed him curiously.
Mayank's lips trembled for a moment before letting the words out. "What sort of idiot checks the pulse like that?"
"Your hands were tied up."
"How did you get free?"
"What?"
Mayank narrowed his eyes as he claimed back his barrow knife. "Wait. They didn't go for you in the first place, did they?"
"What are you talking about?"
The all-rounder struggled to ignore the blinding pain in his head. "What are you doing here?"
Fayzan stepped back. "I overheard your conversation with Vaibhav. I knew you were going to be near the old temple."
"And how do you know where this old temple is?" asked Mayank with a raised eyebrow. "How much have you been roaming around exactly?"
The boy gasped and raised the stuffed tiger in his hand. "It's Toby's fault. He keeps asking me to look around for him."
"For whom?"
"My brother."
The all-rounder folded his arms. "That worm is like two million miles away. What were you even thinking?"
"I am not talking about Waseef Bh—AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Fayzan pointed his quivering finger toward a tree standing a few feet away. "S-s-sn-snake!"
Mayank rolled his eyes. "You haven't had a single fan in your life."
"Wh-wha-what? Don't keep standing here! Chase it away!"
"Leave it there, and it won't give a damn! And what sort of stuff are you even expecting to see here? Polar bears?"
All of a sudden, a few scenes from earlier played in his mind, not allowing Fayzan's reply to claim his attention. The purple hue on the sky, the perplexing dimness, the unusual company, and the unearthly situation teamed up to make him question the rationality of what was going on. It could not be real. It had to be one of those nightmares again. Any moment, the boy would drop dead before his eyes, and the place would turn into a graveyard while he would sit amidst the plight and watch ghastly shadows engulf him.
"Run!" Mayank cried as he caught hold of the child's wrist.
Although startled by the action, the boy did not protest as the all-rounder began to drag him along.
The sky was almost entirely bereft of light when they reached Vaibhav's place.
"Go to your room," said Mayank with his eyes on the entrance.
"Where are you going?"
"I need to have a quick chat with—wait, why should I tell you? Go away."
"Okay."
"Wait."
The boy turned around to face Mayank.
"First of all, you better not eavesdrop."
"I wasn't eavesdropping. I was—"
"I don't care. Whatever you were doing, don't do it again."
"And of course," he added, "it was very audacious of you to be there in that place, but well, you did come to some—um—a little, just a little use somehow. I am surprised that you managed to use the knife without causing any trouble, but..."
Fayzan rolled his eyes. "Do you mean 'thank you' by any chance?"
The tip of Mayank's nose went scarlet. "Whatever. Get lost."
The kid frowned and disappeared into the house without further disobedience. Mayank stepped in a moment later and headed straight toward Vaibhav's room. He was greeted with a dark smile by the leader, who was standing beside the window.
"I need to know what's going on!" spat the all-rounder.
Vaibhav observed him blankly for a moment, following which he allowed the grin to reappear. "You don't look so happy, Aavin. Did you get my—"
"That doesn't matter. Tell me why I had to get it. Tell me why you sent your men after me. Tell me why these cowards can't face me like a man."
The leader narrowed his eyes. "I didn't send anyone after you."
Vaibhav's firm voice held Mayank back from erupting immediately. "Really? Your guys nearly ate me up today."
"What do you mean?"
The all-rounder raised an eyebrow. "Have they really kept you in the dark about it? The beasts attacked me from behind. There were at least four of them. Before I knew what was going on, I was blindfolded and tied up. They were planning to feast on me."
"Did you see these two in the gang?"
"I heard their voices."
"Are you sure it was them?"
"I am sure."
Vaibhav nodded. "I'll talk to them. You and your brother are safe here. Don't worry."
"You haven't answered my question yet."
"What question?"
"Why are you making me do all this ridiculous stuff? Have I not proved my worth yet?"
"You'll come to know everything when the time is right. But of course, you can choose to leave anytime. I won't stop you. I, in fact, won't be surprised at all if you decide to do so. You are a wonderful guy. You don't necessarily need to rot here."
Mayank once again raised an eyebrow. "Have you actually ever been a robber in your life?"
"A pretty intimidating robber, yes."
"Well, you certainly don't sound like one. What do you want from me? I need to know."
"Patience, Aavin. Wait for the right time. You wouldn't regret one bit of anything," Vaibhav replied in a calm tone. "I believe you can use some rest now."
The frosty scene before Mayank's eyes began to zoom in and out. Several marks of distress appeared on his forehead as he grabbed a handful of his hair. He wanted to believe that Vaibhav's words would make sense once he was spared the horrendous pain. At the moment, there was nothing that he desired more than to collapse and lie on the ground for an eternity.
Mayank swallowed an ardent urge to screech and ran out of the room. Following several collisions with walls, he managed to fling himself toward the bed in his room, where he lied motionlessly.
"Mayank?"
"Don't... take... him... away..."
"Mayank?"
"No..."
"Mayank? Are you alright?"
"My..."
Fayzan shook him vigorously. "Oye!"
No more responses came up.
**********
Waseef frowned in vexation as the door refused to admit him. As he decided to punish it for the impertinence with a mild kick, it seemed to acknowledge his presence. The captain shot a blank glance at the man standing inside.
"Come in, Waseef," Sanchit said in a feeble tone.
He entered the room in a rather reluctant fashion. As he heard the door close with a soft sound behind him, he turned around to face the coach. "What did you call me for?"
"I need to know something."
"What?"
"Why did you do that?"
"Reet isn't a baby. You don't—"
"I am not talking about Reet, and you know that pretty well."
A hint of confusion appeared on Waseef's face. "I have no idea what you are referring to."
"What did you do to my son?"
Waseef's eyebrows went up. "Your son? And what do you mean by I did something to him?"
"Nothing invalidates the fact that he bears my blood."
The captain chortled. "The mosquito that bit you a minute ago bears your blood too. Do you even know what it means to be a father?"
Sanchit continued to glare at him for a couple of seconds before walking off toward the window with his back turned to Waseef. "Answer my question."
"I don't know what you are talking about."
A moment of silence followed.
"You are involved in the whole case. You took the chance and removed him from your way on purpose, didn't you? "
"Wh-what?"
Sanchit turned around to face him again. "Don't act innocent. Where is my son?"
"Have you gone mad?"
"I overheard your conversation with whoever he was. You offered a bribe to him a few days ago."
Rage conquered Waseef's face. "You eavesdropped on me? Do you have the slightest sense of decency?"
"I didn't do that on purpose. I thought we needed to talk. So, I was about to knock on your door when—"
"Oh, wonderful! Isn't it?" exclaimed Waseef. "Then you surely know what the whole conversation was about?"
Sanchit let out a sigh. "No, I don't. That's exactly why you are here. Explain what you are up to."
"I don't owe anyone any explanation."
"You have already put enough stain on your immaculate history, Waseef. You don't want me to reveal it to anyone."
"Are you threatening me?" he bellowed. "Are you threatening me when you yourself have a disdainful story to hide? Before you try to talk about something about me you barely have any idea of, you might want to tell the world what you did to your wife."
"I was desperate, Waseef!" Sanchit replied in a trembling voice. "And I regret my action! I will do anything to hear him call me 'father' once."
"You had every right not to want a kid. But if that was the case, you should have made things clear beforehand. You should have discussed the whole thing with her. You don't impregnate a woman and then try to kill the baby against her will. And after all these years, I know you will give up the world, but not your reputation. If you had enough guts to claim your own son, no force in the world could have held you back."
"I admit I was dumb! But not anymore. I am not dumb enough to spill everything and make my son hate me. You have no idea how much it hurts to hold your grief in and pretend you don't care! And... and that's not what we were talking about. Tell me what you did to my boy. Where are these two? Tell me!"
"I really wish I knew," said Waseef in reply, "but I don't have the littlest bit of sympathy for you. Burn in the fire that you yourself have set."
Sanchit turned back to the window and rested his forehead against the glass. He knew he was caught amidst a volatile imbroglio guarded by two dead ends.
"For how long do I have to repent?" he mumbled, knowing he could not expect a reply to come up. "What do I have to do to see my son again? Just tell me what you want, Waseef."
His assumption was not proven to be wrong. Casting a final malevolent glare, the captain stormed out of the room.