5
London
Just as Deborah
turned around to board the tube, she was stopped by a voice. It was calm and
deep, but sounded firm
“Richard Hayes,
Metropolitan Police.”
She turned
around and found herself staring at the identity card of a Met officer.
“Yes”, she said
hesitantly.
“Madam, are you
Ms. Deborah Dawson?” he asked.
“Yes”, Deborah
answered.
“The police has
the orders to detain you for questioning on John Dawson murder case. You can
read the papers.” The officer handed over some papers to her.
As she read,
the expressions of her face changed from confusion, to anger and then to shock.
…..Ms .Deborah
Dawson to be detained by the police as a prime
suspect in Dawson
murder case…..
“This is
nonsense. I was…” Deborah protested, but the officer interrupted her in between
– “Any statement you make can be used in favor or against you, madam. It would
be best if you consult your lawyer in this matter. As for me, I’m just doing my
duty.”
Deborah’s face
turned pale.
As she left the
tube station and entered the police vehicle, there were flashes of lights and
sounds of camera clicks. A group of reporters with video cameras had also
gathered outside the station. Deborah covered her face with handkerchief. As
she sat in the car, Deborah vaguely heard the reporter speaking in the camera-
“…as the Coventry crime bureau have
given confirmation that the body fluids found at the crime scene belonged to Ms.
Deborah Dawson….”
The sound died in the vehicle sirens as the
car moved on to the road.
6
Bangalore
Each day,
Pankaj longed to return to his humble home, but his body had rendered him
unable to do so. His driving license, identity card, and passport – all proved
that he was Rajat. No one would believe that he wasn’t. He seemed to be living
an artificial life. He’d better not lived at all.
It was early
morning. As Pankaj returned from jogging and sat for breakfast, he was reminded
the days when when he went jogging with Rajat. They would return back to have
some tea and cookies. Both of them were still together. His soul and Rajat’s
body, but it was so different.
He remembered how
awkward it felt when Diya tried to kiss him on the first day. He was still uncomfortable
with her. She often told him that he had become a stranger to her..
He visited his
home once; Pankaj’s home. His parents and family had adjusted to life without
him. He just remained in their background memories, maybe in their subconscious
mind, but there was no trace of him in their routine life, except the
photograph on the wall. He remembered how his mother had started crying on his
first visit. There was an uncomfortable silence as he sat down for the tea. He visited
them a couple of times again after that. Last time, his brother escorted him
while leaving and quietly told her – “Bhayia, we have moved on. I know you have
come to sympathize, but each time you come, it seems that it was just yesterday
when Pankaj died. Each time mother keeps crying late till night. The family
feels the loss. I don’t want you to feel bad about it, but I want you to let us
move on, Bhayiya. It’s a request.”
He looked
straight into his brother’s eyes. There was a pain in them. He meant what he
said. He broke the contact. Looked down into the ground and nodded his head in
affirmation. They shook hands like strangers – formally as if it didn’t mean
anything and then he turned around. He kept thinking about everything. That
night, when he went home; he hid his face in the pillow and just cried. He
never went back to his home again.
He called
Itisha one week after the death.
“Hi Itisha,
Pankaj.”
There was no
response for a minute, but after that there was this rather rude voice –
“Rajat, I don’t know if this is to hurt me or you’re making fun of him.” And
she snapped off the call. He tried calling again, but she didn’t pick up. After
two months of calling and messaging, she finally decided to meet at the Cubbon
Parks.
They sat on the
bench in the park sipping coke.
“I don’t know what
you rich guys feel, but love is not a commodity, Rajat.” She said.
“I know,
Rajat…..um..Pankaj, I’m sorry was my closest friend. I feel so much about him…”
Rajat said.
There was a
silence. She asked “How is Diya?”
“She is fine.”
Silence.
“Well I think I
must go.” Itisha said breaking the silence. “I’ve got to take my mother from
hospital. She goes there for physiotherapy these days.”
She said goodbye
and turned around.
There was a
call from her a few months after the meeting. She was getting engaged over the
weekend.
A few weeks later, Bangalore
“Rajat, I have
appointed you as the Chief Manager of our East India project at Kolkata. It
would take you away from Bangalore
so that you can de-stress. It’s a new project, so you can understand and do
better.”
Rajat’s past
memory had weakened a lot after the accident in which Pankaj died.
Miraculously, he had escaped unhurt. His father was concerned about his health.
Rajat couldn’t even recognize people whom the family knew so closely. Whenever
he talked to him, there was contempt in his voice and a line across his
face. Sending him to Kolkata might bring
a nice change in his life. He would meet new people and make new friends. He
would be able to get off the old things.
“What is the
project dad?” Rajat asked.
“Our CEO would
brief you about it.” He answered. “When do you want to be there?” He asked.
“Tomorrow,
maybe!” Rajat answered.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.” Rajat answered.
