Part 10 (1/2)

”Where's the other person?”

”I really don't think that concerns you. I'm sorry for being so rude about this, but that is information I cannot give to you. Please just fix me up and let me go.”

The doctor gave me a look of disappointment, and proceeded to clean my wounds and plaster my arm. Thankfully, the bones had just cracked, and had not displaced from their location.

”Take care of yourself, son. Life won't be that easy on you every time. Next time may be the last time.”

I had enough of him judging me, and was about to erupt on him, when Aliya held me hand and gestured me to calm down. Meira had left for some work she was to do, and we were to go to the local Police Station from the hospital.

We took an auto rickshaw and reached the Police Station pretty soon. It was the typical situation that one would expect in a Police Station during the afternoon. There were only two policemen inside, and both were just getting ready to sleep in their chairs.

”Yes, what is it? Lost your money bag?” One of them said.

”No, someone just died.”

”Died? Where? What happened?”

”It happened at a place that comes under your jurisdiction. There's a building nearby, in which this girl lives with her roommate. A man died there.”

”How did this happen?”

I gave him the detailed description of the entire incident. He paid careful attention, and then called the officer in charge. He came in fifteen minutes, but didn't waste time in sitting down and other pleasantries. He directed us straight to his jeep, and we left for the house.

”So, he attacked you first?”

”Yes. He tried to kill me, and would have succeeded, had Meira not killed him.”

”One brave girl you are ma'am.”

Aliya was still in a mild state of shock from the incident, and didn't listen to the inspector's praise.

”She isn't Meira,” I told him, ”Meira left to finish up her work, so that we can leave for Kolkata soon.”

”I don't think you can go anywhere soon. Even if you are innocent, there will be a court case on this, and you will have to stay back here.”

The jeep halted in front of the building. We continued our conversation as we went to the house.

”There has to be some way we can do this. Can't the case be s.h.i.+fted to the Kolkata court? I really need to be with my parents, and so do they.”

”I'll try my best to do something. Open the door please.”

I took the key from Aliya and unlocked the door. Gujjar's body was lying right there, in a pool of blood. The house showed clear signs of a fight. I was just hoping that the cops would believe me.

”I know this man. He is Gujjar, a person known for his crimes in the Bengal region. I had meetings with him when I was in Kolkata. I had to move to Vizag for my personal reasons, but leaving him behind was one of the best things I could have done. There was no way we could do anything against him, thanks to his contacts with various people. Most people who knew him considered him a pain, but kept ties with him anyway for his power. I'm so happy that he is gone.”

”So does that mean we are free to go?”

”I'm afraid it doesn't. I'm sorry, but the regular procedure will still have to be followed. I'll ensure it is as ha.s.sle free as possible for you three.”

Meira walked in at this point, and was rather surprised to see us all smiling in the presence of the cops.

”They've agreed to help us through this Meira. We can go back to Kolkata once your tasks here are done. It should be a smooth way out of here.”

”That is great news! How did you manage all of it?”

”This gentleman here knew Gujjar to be a horrible man, and therefore understood what we said to be true. He has promised to help us out of trouble in case we get into any.”

”You must be Meira. My name is Nag, and I'm the officer in charge of the local police station. You're a really brave woman for a fifteen year old, I must say. I'm impressed by your strength. You'll grow up to be someone great in life.

”Thank you sir, and thank you once again for helping us out with this. We will all be grateful to you.” Meira was indeed surprisingly calm after all of this. Aliya was still recovering from the shock, but Meira held herself pretty well. It may just have been that she wanted to hide her weakness from me. At least that's what I thought at the moment.

”Well, then. Pack your bags. I'll pick you up tomorrow morning from here, and drop you off to the station. I'll get your tickets done too. My men will come and remove the body from here. Don't tamper with the arrangement of the living room though, because we'll need to keep all of it as evidence. I may be on your side, but the law is the law.”

This police officer was unlike the ones I read about or heard about. He was helpful, yet not unmindful of his duties. Sometimes I wondered if the media cooked up, or exaggerated stories about these people just to increase their readers.h.i.+p and viewers.h.i.+p.

We packed our clothes and other belongings in our bags, and informed the landlord that we'll be leaving the next day. He was clearly not pleased with the events that had happened in his house, but when he found out that we'll be leaving a furnished flat behind, was more than happy to 'forgive' us for our 'mistakes'. We didn't mind really, and the girls were happy to be finally able to settle down in one place.

The policemen came in a while and removed Gujjar's body, took pictures and samples of the living room, and asked the neighbours some questions. Apparently noise was something that didn't bother the neighbours much, and they didn't really care about the happenings inside the house, and therefore, did not come to see what was happening.

I couldn't sleep that night, and stared at the ceiling as I thought about the events that happened through the course of the day. A few hours into the night, I saw Meira walking into the living room. I sat up, and she looked straight at me. She had tears in her eyes.

”What happened to you Meira? Are you alright?”

”Yes, I'm fine,” she replied in a cracked voice.

”Sit here. Talk about this with me, and it'll make you feel much better.”

”I didn't want to kill Gujjar,” she said, sobbing.

”n.o.body wants the death of a person on their hands. But what you did then was the best thing you could've done. You saved three lives by one death Meira. You should be proud of yourself!”

”But a murder is still a murder!”

”Not if it's done for the right reasons. Meira, had you not killed him then, we wouldn't have been sitting here and talking like this. Gujjar would've killed me and taken you back into the h.e.l.l he had kept you in. Calm down Meira. It will all be fine now. You will go back to your parents, and be happy with them. You will be able to continue your studies, and become a very big person. You will help your parents out of misery. Don't worry Meira, it will all be fine.”

”Thank you Ansh. I really needed that. Good night.”

”Take care of yourself, and don't you cry again. Sleep well!”

”You too sleep well please.”

We left the next morning in the police jeep, which dropped us to the station. We boarded the train and left for Kolkata. It was just about the court case now, and that was something I could handle without much difficulty. The bad part was now over.

CHAPTER 27.

The train started off for Howrah. This was going to be the last train journey I was to take for this, and I couldn't have been more relieved. We were skipping and jumping as we got to our berths just in time to leave. We had been given tickets for the A.C. Three tier coach, which was a little surprising. We were more than happy there, and all of us lay down exhausted now. None of us had slept well that night, and all of us really wanted to just rest for a while. The three of us took the upper berth and slept like logs.