Trixy and The Crescent Of Rana

CHAPTER 21 : MOVIE NIGHT

Vikasa stood still after opening the door. Quiroshi went in, brushing past her knees, but the pair stood there, waiting for Vikasa to do something. It was drizzling lightly outside which had left a few wet patches on theirs clothes and the air was damp and chill. Vikasa could tell Maahir hadn't come to their movie night just to take shelter.

"What? Are you two a package deal now?" she asked, moving aside to let them in.

Both of them considered it best to ignore the tease. Maahir took off his boots solemnly before striding in and Ezhil followed. Her nervousness was steadily rising. The fact she was the one who proposed the idea wasn't of much help either. Just as they entered the lounge, Nancy came out of the kitchen holding a large yellow chips packet.

"Maahir?" asked she, surprised.

"Salted?" asked Ezhil, at the same time.

"What?" Vikasa asked, confused.

"Err, the chips," explained Ezhil, walking over to her and snatching it, "Vikasa, didn't we agree not to buy salted last time? You promised to get the Sweet n Chilli."

"I did. But a few salted ones will not render you tasteless. Besides, believe me, you will forget you have a tongue till tonight's movie is over."

Saying that, she grinned slyly. Maahir understood there was an inside joke somewhere there and didn't want to know either.

"Okay, about that," said Ezhil, her anxiety adding up once again, "How about we watch your Mission Impossible some other day?"

"Why? You've got a better movie?" asked Nancy, tossing a chip into Quiroshi's mouth.

"A better story actually," said Maahir, causing the girls to realize there was indeed another guy in the room and wasn't just a hologram walking beside her.

"And a true one at that. It might make Cruise run for his money. Maybe you girls should have a seat while Ezhil tells her tale."

☆☆☆☆☆☆

Vikasa finished another full glass of water. She was truly speechless. She was astonished enough when Maahir recruited a clueless beach vendor into the squad but it was nothing compared to the absolute stun she felt when that seemingly naive girl turned out to be an ex-conwoman and illegal trafficker.

She exhaled a deep breath to soothe her nerves for once. Like a great man had once said, when life gives you lemons, make a lemonade. "So, what do you want me to do?"

Maahir was about to say something but Ezhil cut in.

"How do you feel about me now?"

"Well, what can I say," said she, looking strangely sheepish. It was true she felt desolately shocked for once but she found it too hard to perceive the girl infront of her as the girl in the story. She, somehow, imagined a sharp, distinct line between her past and her present. She simply couldn't get herself to feel dejected, not completely.

"Nothing new really, except the shock. I'm terribly anxious now. I can keep secrets but this one's rather incredible. Honestly I can't believe you guys had the gall to pull this off and then collude me in it out of the blue. But are you sure you want to keep this away from the Chief? I don't believe he's the kind of man who never finds out. Maybe it's better if you tell him yourselves."

"No, we can't," replied Maahir, almost instantaneously. Confessing to the Chief about Ezhil was currently the scariest, and probably the most dangerous, thing he could do. "We don't know how he'll react. It's too risky."

"I think you are worrying unnecessarily," said Nancy.

Unlike Vikasa, she remained remarkably cool throughout the story, like she was only watching a distant movie, that was fairly entertaining, but had no connections whatsoever with her personally.

"I've heard he's not so harsh towards petty crimes after all."

Maahir eyed her suspiciously. "Are you, by any chance, speaking from personal experience?"

Nancy flushed pink. "I can't say I am not."

But no one wanted another story for the night. Vikasa spoke again.

"I guess I'm not wrong in assuming you didn't tell that story now just to skip Mission Impossible. What do you want?"

"Advice," said Maahir, "Ezhil knows another dark portal in the city to Nila bazaar. We are just wondering how reasonable and safe it would be to infiltrate the market."

"Whoa," said Vikasa, dazed once again. Life was giving too many lemons today.

"You know the location of another portal? Does that mean you already knew about the one you found in Richie street too?"

"No, Nancy," defended Ezhil, immediately, "You could say it was an educated guess."

"Except that she isn't educated," said Maahir and grinned. That got him a few giggles.

"Still, I gotta accept it's another bomb," said Vikasa, "Nila bazaar is the biggest platform in Gali for underground dealings. While some small-time business also takes place in there, major crime syndicates run their operations through it. The situation inside and the organization with most control had not been the same over the years. Barging in without knowing the scenario on the other side can be suicide.

Even if you go in, what do you plan to do? Announcing yourself to be the Trixy will, at best, only get you butchered. I have no idea how you can disguise inside and search for whatever you want."

"And not every dark portal is two way," said Nancy, "There is a chance you might not be able to get out without some inside help. Have you already gone to Nila bazaar, Ezhil?"

"No, I haven't. I only know a broker who used the portal. I got him goods and he got me some. He showed me the portal once, but warned me not use it in any case."

"How about confronting this broker?" said Nancy.

"I don't think it'd go well. I was supposed to deliver my last shipment to him nearly three months ago. In fact, the reason I took to Rosui beach was because I lost it and wanted to escape him. I think it's best if I don't see him in my life again."

"But you are now Trixy and he is still a criminal, right? Can't you guys corner him and force him to do your bidding?"

"No, Nancy. It's not so simple," said Vikasa, "While Ezhil says he's a simple broker, we don't know what he really is. If he happens to be someone with enough power and influence and if he realizes someone with the knowledge of a dark portal had joined Trixy, he might try to silence her. You underestimate how big a threat this knowledge can be.

Passing this information up might even aid in complete annihilation of Nila bazaar one day. Also, we can't do anything like that without letting the Chief know. None of us in the squad had ever known about a dark portal before. I don't think any of us had even seen one, like you did, save Aravind or the Chief. Once, Dev and Shri traced a arms dealer running business in there. They seized a large amount of swords, guns and gaslights in a godown, waiting to be transported to Nila bazaar. But even then, they failed to find the boss. This is too big a matter. As long as you want to keep Ezhil's little side business a secret, I advise you to keep the dark portal a secret too."

Maahir let out a deep sigh and leaned back far on the sofa, his head nearly hanging upside down. He had to acknowledge it at last. He will have to report to the Chief tomorrow and officially give up on the mission. If they had succeeded, Ezhil would have probably become a permanent member effortlessly.

In his defence, he at least did everything he could. Quiroshi licked his forehead, trying to cheer him up. Maahir smiled. He was probably saying 'poor luck dude, maybe next time'. Maybe.

The girls proceeded to continue their movie night, as usual, ignoring his entire existence there. And he was grateful for that. He wouldn't exactly call it a pleasant experience to watch three girls wooing over Cruise's abs tirelessly. After contemplating until he felt enough, he did a quick face wash, grabbed an extra-large packet of Cream and Onion from the kitchen, dropped a few chips near the door for Quiroshi and was about to leave the house silently when he got the call – the call that put him back on his case for good.