"Are you sure about this?" Satvik said over the phone.
"Yes." I replied. "I know what to do. Just handle things on your end, alright?"
"Fine. Take care."
"See you."
It was pitch black around me. The only light was my torch. With the limited reach of the phone's torch, I could only see things in proximity. I walked onto the road. The other side was just like this one. The sound of the insects chirping, dense cold air breezing and the scent of humas hinted at something. It meant that I was at the rural side, away from the towns, cities or even suburbs. The tar road seemed to be in a good condition, meaning It must be some tangent road to a highway. The interior roads around a settlement are typically covered with mud, dirt, plastic cow dungs and, most importantly, street lights.
I had a decision to make. Either head left or right. I had no idea where I was and where to go. The GPS was of no use because I could not find enough signal strength. The loud gunshots must have attracted some attention. But it did not seem like it did. So, the only option remaining was to decide. If I take the right one, I would be safe, but a wrong one could be fatal. The risk was very high. Right or left? What should be done?
I decided on left. No reason. Just because left had been quite lucky for me. Suddenly, I saw a light on the far left approaching in my direction. It seemed like a vehicle headlight. It could not have been those bandit dacoity. It was too early for them to appear here. They would probably come in the early morning. They would not risk getting in the limelight with their crimes, especially with the cops involved. Despite this, I was too afraid to trust my logic. High risk, I thought, and therefore, I laid down on my chest.
I could hear a faint noise of the engine approaching. Then there was the sound of a chain clicking. I was sure that it was a motorcycle. The rattling sound of the chain was clear as it approached closer. I realised I was right in my logic. I raised back on my feet and slowly proceeded to the road to be seen.
⁕⁕⁕
The function had ended. Most the guests had departed. The function hall, which was teeming with people, was empty. Littered across the hall with paper cups and plates. The organizers were packing up. The only people remaining were Kaira and her parents and the newly wed couples. Kaira was away in one corner of the hall sitting all by herself, while her parents were speaking to her brother and her new Sister-In-Law. Then all four of them came out of the green room towards her. Anirudh stepped forward to great her, when she raised from her seat.
"Congratulations Ani." She spoke. He joined his hands and bent down to touch her feet for her blessing.
"Ayushman bhava." She blessed. Then held his shoulders and got his upright. Gave him a tight hug. It was a wholesome scene. His wife was so moved that she wished she had a sibling to love.
An hour later, at the house, all the close relatives had gathered to give a party for the newlywed couple. They were going to stay for the night. It is the least I can do her father said to everyone. They had helped them all through the function and it was the least they could do. Though it was near mid-night, they were celebrating the joy and happiness of their sacred marriage. Kaira was among them, enjoying the rush of nostalgia, her childhood, friends, family gatherings, neighbours during festivals. All of it came back to her.
But one thing made her feel uneasy. One question that constantly and repeatedly came back to her. The one question she does not want to answer, at least not in these circumstances. "Where is Reyansh?"
After what had happened between them, she did not want to think of him. Even though they were miles apart, she was constantly reminded of him one way or another. Is this some sort of sign? She thought. Something disastrous.
⁕⁕⁕
The villagers were quite hospitable. They treated me like a guest even though they had every reason to not to. The Panchayat head allowed me to stay at his house for the night. I spent it sleeping outside the house on a bed they arranged. But I believed it was time to go. A stranger, harmed and wounded would raise suspicion. I assumed they would call a cop, perhaps in the morning. It was early morning already as the dawn was upon the village. Three more hours and the village would be awake. I had to get out somehow without being caught.
Three hours flew by quick and smooth. I was up and ready to depart. I walked out from the backyard to the front side of the house. Suddenly, there was a police vehicle parked outside. He was earlier than I assumed. I went back to the backyard. There was a compound which I could easily surmount. The issue was the kitchen that faced it. I would be easily spotted. The backdoor was safely locked with a stainless three-bolted Godrej lock. It would take a lot to pick it. I was running out of options, and so was my time.
"Here." said a voice behind me as she handed me the key to the door. "This will help you."
She was a short woman, perhaps in her mid-Twenties, round glasses, long hairs tied with a ribbon. Dark complexioned, dressed in white Kurtha and blue leggings.
"Who are you?" I asked as I took the key. "Why are you helping me?"
"I've read about you in papers. I read it every day for my exam prep."
"Thank you."
I carefully slid the key into the lock, twisted it gradually to the left. It clicked and the door was open. I stepped outside and looked back, thanked her again and fled. I was worried about her because they would blame her for that. Maybe even batter her. They may be generous, but not harmless.
An hour's walk away was a bus stand of this village. 'Jagna-Vipasha Bus Stand' it read. Apparently, I was not far from Coimbatore where Doctor Chandrappa was. I got on the next bus with Three-hour long journey.
I was cramped inside the bus with passengers. They kept coming in, so much that the bus seemed overloaded. Typically, I take the air-conditioned busses that have enough space to stretch your legs. The cramped busses were never in my experience until now. The city was beautiful. There streets were busy with vehicles, pedestrians crossing on the signals, street vendors calling their special products out loud. It reminded me of my city market where I grew up. It was busier and more crowded.
I knew one thing about this city and that was its high-end medical technology. They were specialized in surgery, so much that massive international conferences happen here. This could possibly mean that my doctor is popular. He was experienced and knowledgeable and a senior professor at the medical school.
The TNMSC was a prestigious medical school. It had everything a student needed. From the best professors, to the top-end campus. I entered the campus with ease because of my disguise, and headed to the dean's office. He was not too keen on telling me anything. He would not even believe me that I was a journalist. An utter waste of my time. I exited his cabin as he courteously ushered me out, probably his sarcasm. Finding this person was not so easy as I thought, but not impossible.
"You there." Said a professor. He was dressed in formals, with an ID on his collar. "Why are you not in uniform? And where is your ID?"
"I'm a new admission, sir."
"In the middle of the year?"
"I'm a transfer student." He nodded and pressed his lips, like he was sort of impressed.
"You're lucky. We never had such options back in the day."
Suddenly, another professor approached him. While he was looking away, I read the name off his ID card. I was surprised and pleased. It was dr. Chandrappa. An amazing co-incidence. It saved me a lot of time.
After the college hours he headed to his clinic where he practiced. I gathered the address from some college students and got there. There was a long queue from, all for his appointment. It would be a long day, I thought, hope it be worth my time. After three hours of wait, I got my chance.
"I saw you in the college, didn't I?" He recognised immediately. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm not a college student." I revealed. "I'm a journalist. Reyansh Joshi."
He sat idle for a moment as my name sounded familiar. Then it rang a bell as he raised from his seat.
"You're the Reyansh Joshi?" He said as though I was a celebrity. "I admire your work on Zhao and Akeeb's mystery."
"Thank you."
I was relieved. Relieved of the need to repeatedly convince and affirm their privacy, that their information would stay secure with me and be made public with their consent only.
"I herd from John that you were their family doctor." I said after a quick backdrop explanation. "I guess you must be a close associate with them. Could you please tell me the reality?"
He was a little concerned when I requested him. He thought for a while, probably thinking through all the ethics he would be violating by tell me about a patient. I can understand if he refuses, but I had to know one way or another, and he was the last source. I would have to coerce him if he refused.
"Okay." He agreed. I was glad. "But promise me you'll not publish any of these details, nor my identity." I agreed.
"When I became their valued Doctor, I was in Bangaluru. I used to look after her father. Following his death, I was adopted into their extended family. But everything changed when they all separated. In that moment, I wasn't sure where I stood. One day, I received a letter informing me that I was the nominee for all of her fortune. We spoke about it a lot, but she was too insistent on having me near her. But I was also mistaken about her. I believed she was a kind lady, like her father, a tremendous humanitarian in my opinion. However, she was a big drinker. I understood she was putting her riches to terrible use.
"And just like any other rich kid she got into drugs." I said cutting him.
"Yes." He agreed and continued. "I tried to talk her out of that chronic addiction, but I realised soon that I was stepping my lines. But that's not it. She was a jealous person, so much that she grabbed all her ancestral properties from her siblings. By then she was deep into politics."
Suddenly, his attender barged inside. "Sir, there a lot of patients waiting. Please make it fast." She spoke.
"Five minutes."
"One last thing." He continued. "She was not really murdered."
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"A month before her death, she was diagnosed with serious Liver Cirrhosis. She had already had three transplants before, and another one would be fatal. She wanted me to be there when she was admitted, and in complete secrecy. She hired a person to be a doctor."
"But what was the need for such security? It does not seem to add up."
"She was not going to make it. There was too much risk to transplant and she was aware of that. She wanted to give her properties to me." He revealed. "I refused and argued. But she did not listen. I ended up leaving the family, converted the names to John's name. I did not want to be a part of it."
There was a long moment of silence, almost like a mourn. The doctor eventually spoke up.
"I do not know why she was 'murdered'."
"I think I do." I started. "You know, there has been a rise in drug rachets in recent months, and the most of them have been detected being trafficked into Tamil Nadu and Kerala and have spread to neighbouring states. It was just a matter of time until she was discovered, and there was only so much she could do. If the Union Government took up this case, she would be done for good. Making her appear to be the victim was one option. Her reputation, her party, and her drugs all endured."
That was all I needed. Sufficient evidence to prove my point. My job was done, the case was almost solved, or so I believed.
TO BE CONTINUED...